In 1991, Monisha Rajesh's family uprooted from Sheffield to Madras in the hope of making India their home. Two years later, fed up with soap-eating rats, severed human heads and the creepy colonel across the road, they returned to England with a bitter taste in their mouths.
Two decades on, she turns to a map of the Indian Railways and takes a page out of Jules Verne's classic tale, embarking on an adventure around India in 80 trains, covering 40,000km - the circumference of the Earth. She hopes that 80 train journeys up, down and across India will lift the veil on a country that has become a stranger to her.
Along the way, Monisha discovers that the Indian Railways - featuring luxury trains, toy trains, Mumbai's infamous commuter trains, and even a hospital on wheels - have more than a few stories to tell, not to mention a colourful cast of characters. And with a self-confessed 'militant devout atheist' in tow, her personal journey around a country built on religion isn't quite what she bargained for...
Monisha Rajesh takes a page out of Jules Verne's classic tale, turns to a map of the Indian railways and embarks on an adventure around India in 80 trains connecting 80 cities, covering 40,000km - the circumference of the Earth. As one of the largest civilian employers in the world, featuring luxury trains, toy trains, Mumbai's infamous commuter trains, and even a hospital on wheels, Monisha discovers that the railways have more than a few stories to tell, not to mention an amazing cast of characters.
A rollicking account of Modern India at express pace: from the good sprawling temples and scrapping tigers to the bad groping passengers, churning stomachs and officious ticket inspectors. Rajesh's quick-fire writing is unflinchingly frank, with details packed in as tightly as passengers on Mumbai's commuter trains. A lively read.
