The Return of an Immigrant

If you are one of those who wonder why scores of NRIs give up their six-figure salaries and return to their homeland,then Shoba Narayan’s latest book Return to India: A Memoir might interest you. “This book is written by an immigrant for an immigrant,” stated the Begaluru-based author at the book launch at The Park hotel last week.

Written over a period of ten years,the book is an account of Narayan’s return to India,after staying in the US for 20 years. That’s when she realised that she missed India. “When I recollected my childhood memories — the smell of jasmine at night and the sightings of a goat placed in between two men riding on a bike — my longing to return grew stronger,” says Narayan. She finally moved back to India a decade ago. “I wanted my kids to know about the Sardarji jokes,what cricket means to India and how the Indian monsoon feels. I could not bear the thought of my children becoming foreigners to the land that nurtured me,” adds the author whose book Monsoon Diary: A Memoir with Recipes released in 2003.

While the audience at the launch flipped through the pages of the book,Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh was the chief guest. Answering a question on why should NRIs return to India,he stated,“If you read the book,you will get to know that you are not doing the country any favour,you are doing yourself a favour.” While that won applause,Narayan announced that a sequel to the book is in-the-making.