One is an epistolary account of a violent agrarian movement through the eyes of Ghosh family scion Supratik, who has left his home to mobilise the oppressed peasants against corrupt moneylenders and landlords.

[5] The story touches briefly on notable moments of the city's history such as the Bengal famine of 1943, the Great Calcutta Killings of 1946, and the Partition of India.

[9] The Lives of Others was favourably reviewed by novelists including Amitav Ghosh, A S Byatt, Anita Desai and Patrick Flanery.

[7] The New York Times likened Mukherjee with Tolstoy in his ability "to bring to life a diverse and expansive set of characters and to sharply evoke their interior worlds.

[11] Reviewing for The Telegraph, Patrick Flanery wrote favourably of the well-observed and psychologically nuanced scenes of collective family.