Chapters
American novelist and former screenwriter, Robert Gregory Browne once said, "Characters are story. And any great plot or subplot is driven by the characters' wants and desires."
Without engaging characters, there will not be engaging readers. This rule of thumb applies to every literary genre, including Anita and Me by Meera Shal, a short novel of the GCSE English Literature syllabus.
Let's dive deep into the key characters of this story.
The Protagonist: Meena Kumar (Narrator)
Anita and Me is written and narrated entirely from the author's point of view.
As a British-born Indian, nine-year-old Meena (the ME in the story) often finds herself caught between the two countries and cultures (the United Kingdom and India).
To blend in, Meena tried to act like other English children, by eating typical English food like fish fingers, watching British TV shows, and following their bad behaviours like stealing and forming a gang.
She also deliberately exaggerates the Tollington accent and even imitates some unfamiliar phrases that they use in her daily conversations.
Hey Meena,’ Anita said almost tenderly. ‘Know what that means, that he wants to shag the arse off me?’
I shrugged in what I hoped was a non-committal, I-Might-Know-But-I’m-Not-Telling-You sort of way.
‘It means,’ she continued, coming right up to my face, ‘that he really really loves me.’
Nevertheless, Meena is extremely imaginative, observant, reflective and empathetic — caring deeply for her family and those around her, especially those who are vulnerable.
Protagonist's Family Members
Now let's explore the family members of Meena.
- Shyam Kumar (Papa)
Before moving to the UK, Shyam lived in Lahore and New Delhi. He is good-looking and sings well. Due to his upbringing and experiences with the Partition in his home country, he is not ultra-religious and encourages Meena to always act according to her conscience.
As the head of the Kumar household, Shyam chose to have a stable office job in the UK for his family despite harbouring dreams of being a film star.
Generally, Shyam is a loving father to his children and husband to his wife, Daljit. However, he can be strict when reprimanding Meena's mistakes especially when he caught her stealing and lying multiple times.
- Daljit Kumar (Mama)
Daljit grew up in a small Punjabi village near Chandigarh and married Shyam in New Delhi before coming to the UK.
A school teacher by profession, Daljit is compassionate and has a soft spot for the vulnerable individuals in the community.
For instance, she attended the funeral of Mr Christmas, an old neighbour and was careful to wear appropriate appropriate mourning attire despite having a different religion. She also showed compassion to Meena's friend, Anita after knowing that her mother had left the family.
- Nanima
Nanima is Meena's maternal grandmother. She came to the UK after Daljit gave birth to a son, Sunil.
Loving and nurturing in nature, Nanima is the bridge that connects Meena to her roots in India.
Meena is often fascinated by Nanima's stories about India even though she has to rely on her parents for translation.
The Antagonist: Anita Rutter
Described as a blonde and pale girl, Anita Rutter is the centre of major conflicts in this novel. Her regular gang initially comprised younger girls like Fat Sally, Sherrie and Meena.
Despite being older, she is selfish, insensitive, rude and manipulative to the people around her including Meena — a typical bully.
Unlike Meena, she grew up in a troubled household. Her mother, Deidre eventually left the family, leaving her and her sister to her dad, Roberto's care.
‘Me mom’s gone,’ Anita said flatly.
‘Oh,’ I said. ‘Where?’
‘Dunno. She left a note, only dad read it. She’s gone off with a butcher from Cannock. Dad says she’ll feel at home with the other scrag ends and good riddance …’
Despite having a younger sister, Tracey, she does not show great interest in her. The only person she seems close to is Sam Lowbridge, the official "bad boy" in Tollington.
Notable Contrasting Impactful Minor Characters
As a young girl, Meena had many fantasies about having a boyfriend and being in a relationship.
Let's look at these two young, male characters who had impactful presences in Meena's story.
- Sam Lowbridge
A troubled 16-year-old teen who is closely acquainted with Anita, Sam is part of a gang in Tollington and has a criminal record at his age.
It was implied that he took a liking to Meena from the beginning before he forcefully kissed her. And while Meena too had a small crush on him, she was later disgusted by his racist remarks and behaviours after learning he and Anita attacked an Indian man in Tollington.
- Robert Oakes
Robert is a sickly boy with curly brown eyes and electric blue eyes that Meena befriended while she was hospitalized after breaking her leg.
Despite having a thin frame due to a prolonged illness, he was kind, cheerful, friendly and loved spending time with Meena. It was implied that he is older than Meena as his initial plan was to take his O-Levels the following year.
Unlike Sam, he was respectful towards her, as seen through their regular conversations and interactions.
Before Meena left the hospital, Robert confessed his feelings for her.
"Okay Rob, I don’t know if you’ve got a girlfriend or not,’ I said loudly.
‘Yeah, I have,’ said Robert quietly and took my hand in his."
Sadly, he passed away not long after that, leaving Meena heartbroken.
Character Comparison Between Meena and Anita
Just like the title of this novel implies, the story revolves around these two characters. Despite living in the same town, Meena and Anita couldn't be more different.
That said, character comparison is one of the most commonly asked questions for your GCSE English Literature paper. Let's take a look at some of the similarities and differences between them.
| Character comparison | Meena | Anita |
|---|---|---|
| Desire for a sense of belonging and acceptance | Has a deep desire to belong and be accepted in a white-dominant community due to her Indian heritage. | Has a strong desire to belong and be accepted because of her dysfunctional family background. |
| Attitude towards friendship | Genuinely wants to be befriend Anita and blend in with her peers. | Sees Meena as someone younger and easily to be manipulated to exert her influence and power. |
| Family dynamics and support | Has supportive parents who cares for her wellbeing and education. Though Meena sometimes disagree with them, she shows respect and love to them. She gradually grows to love her baby brother, Sunil. | Does not have a loving and supportive parents who care for her and her sister, Tracey. There's a sense of emptiness whenever she talks about her family, especially when her mother eventually left her family and getting her uniform size wrong. |
| Overall personality | Imaginative, kind, helpful and reflective. She often uses her imagination to think of endless possibilities of various situations and putting herself in other people's shoes. Despite being curious about boys and relationships, she is generally more reserved. The kind Robert Brooke was her first boyfriend. She reflects on her actions and eventually decide to stay away from Anita after realising that she is a bad influence to her life. | Mean, rude and most of the times rash. She is always thinking of the next "bad thing" to do like stealing. She does not shy away from talking bluntly about boys and relationships. eventually having a sexual relationship with Sam Lowbridge. She focuses on herself the most, not showing any remorse despite her shortcomings and mistakes. |
We hope this article has offered you some new insights on the characters in Anita and Me. Happy reading!
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