Salman Rushdie is renowned for his literary contributions that blend history, politics, and imaginative storytelling. Rushdie was born on June 19, 1947, in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. His family belonged to the upper middle-class, and his father was a successful businessman. Rushdie studied at the Cathedral and John Connon School in Bombay before attending Rugby School in England. Later, he went on to study history at King’s College, Cambridge, where he became involved in theater and writing. Rushdie’s early literary influences included Gabriel García Márquez, Jorge Luis Borges, and Gunter Grass, who played an instrumental role in shaping his interest in magical realism. Magical realism, characterized by the seamless blending of the fantastical and the real, became a prominent feature of Rushdie’s writing. He incorporates elements of mythology, folklore, and magical occurrences into narratives also rooted in real-world historical and political contexts.

Salman Rushdie gained international acclaim with his second novel, Midnight’s Children (1981), which won the Booker Prize. The novel blends magical realism and historical fiction, following the lives of characters born at the moment of India’s independence. It explores the nation’s tumultuous journey, its struggles, and its aspirations through the lens of magical realism.