Examine how Anita Desai depicts different cultural and religious features of rural India in the first two chapters of the novel.

From the beginning chapters of Village by the Sea we can see that while the setting of Thul is an immensely beautiful place, the suffering that the family undergoes is severe. Father is a drunk, who can no longer work and support his family. Mother is very ill with an undiagnosed disease. The eldest children, Lila and Hari, are only thirteen and twelve, respectively, but it is up to them to eke out a living for themselves and their family. They do not go to school anymore because they cannot afford it, food is scarce, their hut is dismal, and their futures are uncertain.