Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Chapter 15 Summary & Analysis

One afternoon after the trial, Abdul, Mirchi, Zehrunisa and Karam consider the trash left in the storeroom. They have to sell it now, even though prices are still low, because they have sold the storeroom to pay for the lawyer. Their profits have been even further depleted by Abdul’s frequent trips to check in at Dongri and their new vow not to buy anything stolen. The police continue to sniff around the family, hoping to catch them doing something wrong so they can extort even more money.

As the family recycling business fails, Mirchi has been forced to take any job available, so he works construction and loads a freezer for a catering company. He prays that someone will notice his talent, charm and hard-working nature. But there are too many boys in Mumbai looking for permanent work and Mirchi is stuck with temp jobs.

All of Mumbai begins to follow another case in which a young Pakistani man is the lone survivor gunman of a terror attack. Karam laments the terrorists who twist the words of the Koran and Abdul feels hopeful when he sees that the Hindus of Mumbai don’t seem to transfer their anger to all the Muslims of the city. Rich people in Mumbai are also hopeful that they can rehabilitate the Indian government into a government capable of keeping its citizens safe, as security is the only thing that the rich can’t buy privately.

The terrorist attacks act as a reminder that most public services, including police, medical response teams, and military squads, are dangerously untrained and underfunded. Parliamentary elections at the end of April bring record numbers of middle and upper-class candidates running for office to bring change, as well as a new fervor for voting among the rich and the poor.

The Husain family’s business finally fails completely when another garbage trader moves in to Annawadi. Abdul tries to trade in a nearby neighborhood, Saki Naka, but mostly he just sits and enjoys being in an environment where everyone does not know his tragedies. He thinks about water and ice, two substances made of the same thing, just as all people are made of the same thing. Yet ice is better than what it is made of, in Abdul’s opinion, and Abdul hopes to be the “ice” that rises above the dirty water of his slum. Being ice means believing in ideals and the possibility of justice.

A new judge is appointed when the judge who has heard all the Husain family’s evidence gets transferred. The Husains are crushed that they will have to convince yet another person of their innocence. The special executive officer tries to get the Husains to pay her to have Fatima’s husband call off the trial, hiding the fact that this is a criminal trial that cannot be shut down by a private citizen. Karam checks with his lawyer and refuses the special executive officer’s corrupt bargain.

Part of popular Indian mythology is that Indian success comes from the very instability of their country, which forces Indians to constantly adapt. Yet for the poor, forced to reinvent themselves over and over, this adaptability no longer brings profit. Abdul wants to believe that his new persona as a virtuous student of The Master will finally bring him the good life he is looking for, but each day Abdul cannot earn any money in Saki Naka.

As a distraction one afternoon, Abdul goes to Haji Ali, the biggest Muslim gathering place in the city. He sees the beauty of the temple as it is shown in postcards and calendars, but he also sees the throngs of disabled beggars lining the road up to the mosque. He leaves quickly, reminded too much of Fatima. He prays that the courts will see him as ice, proclaiming him innocent despite the dirty water of his life.