Arjie
Arjie is the protagonist and the narrator in the novel. A seven-year-old boy, Arjie loves to play the game Bride-Bride with the rest of the girls and sees nothing wrong in wearing a sari, meant for women, and playing the role of the bride. While innocent, Arjie understands that what he does, wearing a feminine attire and playing with girls instead of boys, is frowned upon after the adults catch him wearing the sari and playing Bride-Bride. Though he doesn’t understand what is wrong with what he does, he’s clever enough to figure out that the others view his behavior as strange and it upsets him.
Arjie grows up watching the adults around him navigate their world, which is often a tempestuous, dangerous, and confusing one in terms of romantic love, politics, and identity. He starts to acknowledge his sexuality as he grows older, first being attracted to Jegan and then starting a relationship with Shehan.
He is an empathetic, contemplative, and sometimes guileless child and young man. He is creative as well, enjoying theater and reading and poetry.
Sonali
Sonali is Arjie’s younger sister. She is the only one in Arjie’s family who supports him in playing Bride-Bride. Arjie sometimes confides in Sonali because Sonali understands him better than any other member of the family.
Varuna
Varuna is Arjie’s elder brother. He always mocks Arjie when he plays girls' games. He is named Diggy-nose because of his prevailing habit of poking his nose into others' affairs. Diggy, like his father, is not supportive of Arjie's attraction to feminine markers and tells him to stay away from Shehan since he is aware of the sexual identity of Shehan. Diggy manages his responsibilities of being a big protective brother on the first day of Arjie attending the Victoria Academy School.
Amma
Amma is Arjie's mother; she scolds Arjie when she comes to know that he is a homosexual boy and forces him to play cricket with other boys. Arjie has a special relationship with his mother unlike the one with his father.
Appa
Appa is Arjie’s father, a banker who eventually becomes a wealth hotelier. He is not close with his son, and is worried that Arjie is "funny," meaning homosexual. He is rather aloof from his family, though he takes care of them as best he can and eventually agrees to take them to Canada when the Tamil-Sinhalese civil war begins.
Tanuja
Tanuja is Arjie's mean and selfish cousin, nicknamed Her Fatness. She interferes with the sanctity of Bride-Bride, ruining one of Arjie's favorite pastimes.
Kanthi Aunty
She is the mother of Tanuja and sister of Arjie’s father.
Cyril Uncle
He is the father of Tanuja and husband of Kanthi Aunty.
Ammachi and Appachi
They are Arjie’s grandparents. His grandmother loves her grandchildren and welcomes them by giving them a kiss on their cheeks. Arjie’s grandfather loves his grandchildren too but says “Ah, hello, hello” in welcome, showing his reserve. They are killed at the end of the novel during the riots.
Radha Aunty
Radha Aunty is the youngest sister of Arjie's father; she is the only open-minded family member, and that is why Arjie loves her the most. Radha Aunty returns from America, and soon falls in love with Anil, who is from the Sinhalese community. She wants to marry him but her family is hostile to the idea, so Ammachi is forced to send her to Jaffna to stay with other relatives. During her journey back from Jaffna to Colombo, her train is attacked by Sinhala fanatics. She breaks up with Anil and marries Rajan Nagendra, a safe Tamil choice.
Anil Jayasinghe
Anil is Radha Aunty's lover. They meet each other in the play “The King and I” and fall in love, but they are separated due to Tamil-Sinhalese conflict.
Rajan Nagendra
Radha Aunty met Rajan Nagendra in America; they worked together and he is an engineer from a good family. Radha Aunty marries him due to the socio-cultural backdrop of the Tamil-Sinhala conflict in Sri Lanka, which precludes her from marrying her true love, Anil.
Daryl Uncle
A Burgher and a journalist, Daryl is the first love of Arjie’s mother but they did not marry each other because of ethnic riots between Tamil and Sinhalese. Daryl comes back into her life when he returns to Sri Lanka to cover a report on Tamil-Sinhalese riots, but he is killed under suspicious circumstances and Amma can make no headway investigating his death.
Jegan Parameswaran
Jegan is the son of Arjie’s father’s school friend. He comes to Colombo to find a job, which Appa gives him at the hotel on account of Jegan's startling resemblance to his late friend. Jegan was previously a member of the Tamil Tigers organization but says he left the organization; this later comes to haunt him and Appa ends up firing him when ethnic tensions spark again. Arjie realizes a little about his sexuality because of his attraction to Jegan at the age of 13.
Shehan Soyza
Shehan is a homosexual boy at Arjie's new school, the Victoria Academy. Shehan lacks the awkwardness of most boys his age and his body is delicately built. Shehan and Arjie start as friends and eventually begin a relationship; he is Arjie's first sexual encounter, which confuses and disturbs him at first but he eventually comes to terms with his sexuality and his affection for Shehan.
Black Tie
He is the principal of the Victoria Academy, nicknamed Black Tie because of his attire and his strictness toward the students of his school. He is a strong believer in the practice of physical punishments and uses it as a way to convert young boys into men by teaching them to tolerate pain and conform to the conventions of being male. He beats Arjie and Shehan because Shehan fails to help Arjie in memorizing the poems.
Sena Uncle and Chithra Aunty
They are close friends of Appa and Amma who help the family when the riots begin.
