When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine

Content Warning: The story contains references to wartime violence, including genocide and sexual assault.

Most of story’s conflict arises from the fact that Lilia is a second-generation immigrant (her parents were born and raised in India, but she was born in America). As a result, she has dual cultural knowledge and must navigate two very different cultural spheres while she attempts to form her own sense of identity. At home, her parents want to preserve Indian culture as much as they can: They search for other Indian friends, they complain about many aspects of America, and her father wants Lilia to know Indian history. However, in Lilia’s day-to-day experience outside of the home, it is American culture and history she is supposed to know. Her teachers literally test her on it while steering her away from learning about Pakistan. To further complicate matters, Lilia’s parents are divided about which culture should take precedence. Unlike Lilia’s father, her mother is happy that she has the opportunity to learn an American curriculum, which she sees as representing a life free of the struggles she and her husband experienced growing up. 

The result is that Lilia has one foot in each cultural sphere and a sense of not fully belonging in either.