Derived from the Sanskrit root ‘nyas’ (to place/lay down) with the prefix ‘upa’ (near/before), the word literally suggests "placing before" or "a discourse." However, in the modern context, Upanyas refers to a long work of fiction in prose that explores human life through a sequence of events involving a group of persons in a specific setting. It is a genre that bloomed in India during the 19th century, acting as a mirror to the social, political, and psychological upheavals of the colonial and post-colonial eras.