Sonia Gandhi, the 79-year-old former president of the Indian National Congress, has announced her memoir, 'Belonging: A Journey of Love,' will be published on November 10 by Alfred A Knopf. In the highly anticipated book, Gandhi shares that it was "heartbreak and loss" that ultimately compelled her to enter the public world of politics, a realm she had previously guarded her privacy from.
The memoir promises to offer a unique perspective on Gandhi's life, tracing her journey from a simple childhood in a small Italian town to her complex years in India as the wife of Rajiv Gandhi and daughter-in-law of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. She noted that while much has been written about her family, few narratives have truly captured their motivations, actions, or human failings.
A Reluctant Entry into Public Life
Gandhi recounts her initial fierce resistance to joining politics, a stance she maintained even after the assassinations of her mother-in-law, Indira Gandhi, and seven years later, her husband, Rajiv Gandhi. These profound personal tragedies, however, reshaped her life and eventually led her to accept the challenge of leadership, becoming the longest-serving president of the Indian National Congress.
The book's narrative begins in Cambridge, England, in 1965, detailing how a 19-year-old Sonia Maino fell in love with Rajiv Gandhi, the grandson of India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. It then navigates through the subsequent decades, offering her firsthand account of the significant social and political changes she witnessed in India.
Seeking Truth and Offering Perspective
Writing 'Belonging' was not an easy process for Gandhi, as it required her to open up and share experiences she had long kept private. Through this memoir, she aims to present a more authentic account, serving as a homage to the humanness of her family and providing readers with her distinct viewpoint on a pivotal period in Indian history.