Previous
Munchi
Naraya is the builder of Lakshmi’s new Rajnagar house, and one of the novel’s secondary antagonists. The novel frequently depicts Naraya as unmannered and cruel (as his sister Lala puts it, “a harder man you will not find”); he is also a second-rate builder, as he frequently cuts corners on Lakshmi’s design. Naraya puts pressure on Lakshmi to pay off her debt, and even after Samir intervenes, he continues to raise his rates and charge heavy interest. Later, Lakshmi learns that Naraya needs the money because he wants to marry off his daughter—Lala’s niece—before the world learns of her pregnancy.
Get the entire The Henna Artist LitChart as a printable PDF.
Naraya Character Timeline in The Henna Artist
The timeline below shows where the character Naraya appears in The Henna Artist. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
Lakshmi considers going to see her house, which is still in progress. The builder, Naraya, cuts corners if she does not check in frequently. But she is exhausted, so she...
(full context)
Chapter 4
...tonga, and Lakshmi is shocked to see that he is bleeding from one ear. Apparently, Naraya (Lakshmi’s builder) had hit Malik when he’d seen that he only had 200 rupees, saying...
(full context)
Chapter 5
...and he teases back (“I already have one wife, Beauty”). The pair gossips about how Naraya is a third-rate builder, and Samir laments that Lakshmi did not let him intervene earlier....
(full context)
Chapter 6
...that they have a meeting with the maharani tomorrow. Beyond that, Samir has also gotten Naraya to agree to an extension for Lakshmi’s payments. He comments again on Radha’s beauty and...
(full context)
Chapter 9
Lost in thought, Lakshmi leaves the restaurant. Her builder, Naraya, stops her. He muses that he would love to send his daughter to such a...
(full context)
Naraya explains that he has figured out a way to marry his pregnant daughter off to...
(full context)
Chapter 10
...“be careful” about something. Fortunately, money is no longer a stressor: Lakshmi has paid off Naraya and hired another builder for her house (which is almost finished).
(full context)
Chapter 20
...Lakshmi in her tracks: it’s Lala, Parvati’s old servant. Lala explains that her brother is Naraya, and that Ravi impregnated her niece, Naraya’s daughter. When the daughter’s new husband learned of...
(full context)
