Set in Kolkata, India, the novel tells the story of its central character Jivan, a woman who witnesses a terrorist attack on an Indian train while it is stopped in a station.The woman posts to Facebook the next day, drawing the attention of police who arrest her on suspicion of committing the terrorist attack herself. Following the accusation, her fate hinges upon her former gym teacher, PT Sir, who has become a politician in an Indian right-wing party, and on a hijra actress named Lovely.