Magic in the Margins: Exploring Magical Realism in Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children

This article examines the role of magical realism in Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children as a means of reimagining historical narrative and exploring postcolonial identity. By intertwining the protagonist Saleem Sinai’s supernatural abilities with major political events in India’s modern history, Rushdie blurs the boundary between fantasy and reality. The novel uses magical elements such as telepathy, prophetic dreams, and symbolic bodily decay not to escape reality, but to convey the emotional truths and psychological trauma of a newly independent nation. The article argues that magical realism enables Rushdie to critique official historiography, emphasize cultural hybridity, and present a more nuanced and subjective view of truth and memory.