Book publisher Bloomsbury has acquired world English-language rights to Railsong, the latest novel by Rahul Bhattacharya, with publication scheduled in the UK, India and the US on 12 February 2026, book news company The Bookseller revealed on Monday.

Bloomsbury India will release the book first in November 2025.

Railsong follows Charu, the motherless daughter of a railway worker, as she navigates the social and political upheavals of 20th-century India. From her railway township, she journeys west to Bombay, seeking independence and opportunity amid a backdrop of industrial change, drought, famine, strikes and state repression. The novel combines sweeping narrative, elegiac detail and moments of comic insight.

Bhattacharya described the work as "a thickly peopled novel chronicling one person's odyssey across a vast, varied landscape," praising the support of his Bloomsbury editorial team. Paul Baggaley, editor-in-chief at Bloomsbury UK, called the book a "masterpiece" and expressed confidence it will reach both critics and new readers. Sivapriya R, Bloomsbury India's literary and translations publisher, highlighted Charu's perseverance and optimism as central to the story's appeal.