She’s constantly harassed by the rent-collector and warned about operating a business in her flat. She worries about money and about meeting her weekly Au Revoir Exports quota. He prefers to dwell on his lost, happy childhood and resists the changes that life forces on him.ĭina has other problems. Maneck refuses to move forward psychologically. He easily becomes overwhelmed and depressed despite acquaintance Vasantrao Valmik’s advice that he must learn to strike a balance between hope and despair. The appalling conditions in which people live in the city deeply affect Maneck.

The apartment becomes a safe haven in the midst of political turmoil, abject poverty, squalid slums, and government corruption in 1975 India. Despite hardships and struggles, the four form a family bond. Ishvar acts like their father, while Dina acts like their mother. Maneck and Om become fast friends since they are both 17. Even though Dina’s flat is shabby, Maneck finds it a better alternative than the student hostel. Instead, his parents arrange for him to rent a room from Dina, who was his mother’s school friend. He’s disgusted with the filthy student housing and wants to go home.

Maneck is taking a certificate program in refrigeration and air-conditioning at the city college. Ishvar and Om hope for a fresh start in the big city and are glad to find employment with Dina. By learning the sewing trade, they have escaped their village, where the upper castes oppress the lower ones, and where a local landholder named Thakur Dharamsi killed the rest of the Darji family because Ishvar’s brother got above his station. The Darjis belong to the “untouchable” caste. Meanwhile, the landlord is looking for an excuse to evict her and get a higher paying tenant. Dina, a widow, wants to maintain her financial independence so that she won’t have to move back in with her brother, Nusswan Shroff, who treats her like an unpaid servant. Dina hires the tailors to work from patterns provided by Au Revoir Exports even though she isn’t supposed to run a business from her rent-controlled apartment.

A fine balance maneck