In Part 1, "Mosque," the novel opens with a panoramic view of the fictional city of Chandrapore, India. The narrative shifts to Dr. Aziz, who is called away from dinner with his friends by his superior at the hospital, Major Callendar. He then visits to the local mosque, where he meets Mrs. Moore, an Englishwoman who has recently arrived to visit her son, Ronny Heaslop, with his love interest, Adela Quested.