Success is often treated as a universal goal. We are encouraged to work harder, achieve more and constantly improve ourselves. But Fusion of Reality by Ketan Varia asks a more difficult question: what happens when the pursuit of success begins to cost us the very things that make life meaningful?
Through Aman, a British-Nepalese man navigating career pressures, family responsibilities and his own experiences with grief, the novel explores the ethical dynamics behind ambition. His journey is not simply about whether he succeeds or fails professionally, but whether the choices he makes in pursuit of success aligns with the person he wants to become.
At the beginning of the book, Aman has built a successful career at DigiArt, a company focused on digitalising Renaissance artwork, and his professional identity is closely tied to his sense of self-worth. We see this directly when he is challenged by another character, content in serving their community, rather than traditional ideas of success. When encourages to aim higher, the character responds, “You don’t seem to think I like what I do.” This begs the question: who decides what a meaningful career looks like? Aman assumes that fulfilment must come through recognition and achievements without considering other factors of a better life. His job itself presents an interesting ethical tension: technology allows humanity to preserve and share cultural masterpieces in new ways, making art more accessible around the world. However, Aman’s relationship with his work raises questions about what happens when innovation becomes disconnected from human meaning.
Digitalising art should ideally allow people to engage more deeply with creativity and history. There is no doubt when reading this book, that Aman loves his work. Despite this, Aman becomes easily swept up by the mainstreamed focus on outcomes,productivity and external measures of value. The beauty of the artwork risks becoming reduced to a digital product, rather than something to be experienced emotionally. This reflects one of the wider ethical questions of modern technology: just because something can be made more efficient, does it mean that we should only measure its value through efficiency?
Being an economics student, it was apparent that much of Aman’s struggle is built around trade-offs and opportunity costs. Every choice involved giving up something else. For Aman, every late night at work and every additional effort towards career advancement has a hidden cost – missed time with his family, neglected relationships and emotional distance from the people around him. His choices are not wrong because ambition itself is wrong. Wanting professional growth, financial stability and recognition are understandable human desires. At some points of the book, you can find yourself agreeing with Aman, or at least, understanding where he’s coming from. The ethical problem emerges when ambition becomes the only measure of success. Aman begins to prioritise what can be seen (promotions, possessions) over what cannot be easily measured such as emotional connection and presence. The recurring “familiar smell of cheese” reveals this ethical problem to be a larger critique of workplace culture, becoming a subtle symbol of the blurred boundaries between career and personal wellbeing within the higher levels of Aman’s workplace.
The novel also challenges the idea that people are only valuable because of what they can produce. When Aman experiences setbacks in his career, including his demotion, the impact is not only financial. He feels that his identity has been damaged because his position represented years of effort and sacrifice. This reflects a broader workplace issue: when people feel undervalued, their motivation and productivity can decline. Human beings are not simply resources; meaningful work requires recognition, purpose and connection.
Aman’s relationships become the strongest reminder of this. Characters such as Edith, the elderly woman in the park, challenge his assumptions and forces him to reconsider what he values. She represents the importance of paying attention to the ordinary moments that we overlook daily and suggests that ethical living is not only about the major decisions we make but also the way we treat the people around us every day.
Ultimately, Fusion of Reality, highlighted through Aman’s Buddhist roots, questions the idea that success is a destination. It suggests a life built entirely around achievement can leave someone disconnected from the very things that we’re trying to achieve. Aman’s transformation highlights a more balanced understanding of success, one that includes personal growth, meaningful relationships and awareness of the impact our choices have on others.
The ethical lesson of the novel is not that ambition is harmful, nor that technology and progress should be rejected. Instead, it asks us whether we are using these tools to improve our lives or allowing them to decide what our lives should look like. In a world increasingly focused on productivity and performance, Fusion of Reality reminds us that the most valuable things we possess are often the ones that cannot be measured.
By Fatima Faridul