The Last Burden is a novel by Upamanyu Chatterjee that portrays life in an Indian middle-class family.

In this novel, he travels the lives of different people constituting a joint family, expertly portraying their emotions, needs and desires.

The author uses somewhat strong language but makes the readers aware of the actual tensions that exist within the joint family structure.

It elegantly portrays the decisions and sacrifices made by different people in a family and the frictions and frustrations thereby.

The novel talks about Jamun, a workless young man, his old father, Shyamanand, his dying mother, Urmila, and other members of his family.