A Passage to India is a 1924 novel by English author E. M. Forster set against the backdrop of the British Raj and the Indian independence movement in the 1920s. A Passage to India, novel by E.M. Forster published in 1924 and considered one of the author's finest works. The novel examines racism and colonialism as well as a theme Forster developed in many earlier works, namely, the need to maintain both ties to the earth and a cerebral life of the imagination. A Passage to India, novel by E.M. Forster published in 1924 and considered one of the author's finest works. The novel examines racism and colonialism as well as a theme Forster developed in many earlier works, namely, the need to maintain both ties to the earth and a cerebral life of the imagination.