Rites and rituals play a very important role in the stories. These are not only the cultural rites ad rituals belonging to India, but some rituals are made in the story themselves by the characters. In the story “When Mr Pirzada came to Dine” it was a ritual of Lilia to eat the sweets that Mr Pirzada had given her, before going to bed each night. She became used to this, but the drawback of this was the fact that she would miss it when Mr Pirzada left. It also became a ritual for Mr Pirzada to visit them in the evenings and have dinner with them. Dining with thm and watching the news with them became a ritual. Also Lilia’s family was a typical Indian family who still followed many Indian rituals. For example not drinking alcohol, taking of the shoes outside the door and having fennel seeds after dinner were some of the Indian rituals that they followed. Together with this they also got themselves accustomed to the American culture and so Lilia celebrated Halloween.

    In “A Real Durwan” it was a ritual for Boori Maa to sweep the staircase on a daily basis and for the people to line up at the sink everyday. The drawback of this however, was that the people became frustrated as they waited for their turn and even after doing so much for the people Boori Maa did not get anything in return. Indian culture also plays an important role as the women in “Mrs Sen” and “The Third and Final Continent” wore saris, bangles and applied vermillon powder. This showed that even though they lived in America they did not let go of their Indian identity. Gods also played an important role as in Sexy there was a statue of Kali ma in the house of the Dixits and in “A Temporary Matter” Shoba’s mother set up a small temple in her house where she prayed twice a day. Even in the “Interpreter of Maldies” they visit the Sun Temple and see the statues of different Gods as the people believed in them. The practice of following religious rituals is also prominent in the stories.

    Another important point that is presented in the stories that rites and rituals play such an important role that even though Mrs Sen had been living in America for a long time she till followed the old Indian rituals of preparing food and cutting vegetables. Thus I think that rites and rituals play an important role in the story, but at times they create problems for the people as the find themselves unable to adjust themselves in a new country with a new culture.