Coming Back: the Odyssey Of a Pakistani Through India

“A charming little travelogue where our writer opens a window to our enemy’s house and discovers a home as haunted as ours.” – Mohammad Hanif, author of A Case of Exploding Mangoes

“Shueyb Gandapur had crossed continents before he decided to visit India. He takes us on a colourful guided tour of mosques, monuments, shrines, and temples, from the Taj Mahal to the ghats of Benares, from Ghalib’s grave to a room that houses the belongings of Qurratulain Hyder. He encounters hostility and hospitality, religious differences and inclusiveness, and an end to certain preconceptions and prejudices which make him feel at once a sense of homecoming and a frequent estrangement. His gaze is both intimate in its celebration of old and new friendships, and clear eyed about the widening gap between the country of his birth and the land he longed to visit. His discoveries both in the erstwhile centres of Muslim culture and in the Hindu heartlands are oen shot through with an abiding sense of wonder.” – Aamer Hussein, author of The Cloud Messenger

“Shueyb Gandapur’s endearing travelogue begins with a child’s yearning to visit a land he had heard about from his grandfather. He makes a cautious but nuanced foray into the space of ‘neighbourly relations’—the highs and lows of the India-Pakistan relationship. Every vignette in this travelogue is engaging. e book is a page turner.” – Mehr Afshan Farooqi, author of Ghalib: Flowers in a Mirror

“Shueyb Gandapur’s narrative is engaging and written with immense sensitivity. The author is a keen observer and displays empathy throughout his journeys. The divided Indian subcontinent has deprived the younger generations of South Asians to freely travel and interact. Aside from its descriptive merits, this book is an important addition to texts that defy borders guarded by nationalisms.” – Raza Rumi, author of Delhi by Heart