The Guardian reviews "The Complex" by Karan Mahajan, his third novel, which tells the Chopra family's story across decades from post-independence India through the 1970s and 1980s. The narrative opens with the murder of patriarch Laxman by his nephew Brij twenty-five years prior, then rewinds to explore the family dynamics and historical events leading to this crime, interweaving personal betrayals with India's shifting political landscape and the rise of Hindu nationalism.

The story centres on a residential compound in Delhi's suburbs, home to descendants of SP Chopra, a freedom fighter turned politician. The novel follows various family members—including Laxman, who runs a bobby pin factory; Brij, a former military pilot; and Sachin, who moves to Michigan to develop plastic sauce bottles—alongside their wives navigating limited agency within family structures. Set across Delhi, Indian villages, the American midwest and London, the novel explores themes of corruption, infidelity, entrepreneurship and faith; Mahajan's skill at character development prevents the increasingly bleak domestic drama from feeling overwhelmingly pessimistic.