`Take off your clothes I want to see you’ Karam said.Just a few words, spoken
like a caress made Sarna start wondering. Where did he learn such new
and passionate techniques?When Sarna Singh leaves the
lustrous green hills of Uganda for England, streets of cramped old
houses were not what she was expecting. Husband Karam has been seduced
by the historical feel of the city of London. Sarna, however, is
convinced they have moved to England so he can visit his secret London
lady friends. Sarna has a secret of her own, but she is adept at hiding
it. She impresses her English teacher with her attempt at a cutglass
accent, and copious gifts of delicious food. With two children to
educate, money is scarce, and soon, she is devising weekly shoplifting
expeditions to the supermarket. But all the while, Sarna is
tormented by a mistake she made as a young woman in India. To stifle
unwanted memories, she cooks zealously, sweetening her thoughts with
syrup, or suffocating them with the hottest spice she can find. But
when she receives an unexpected letter from back home, her assumed
equilibrium is shattered to the skies. It carries an ultimatum she
cannot ignore …Set on an epic backdrop from Partition, the
Coronation and Churchill’s funeral, to the present day, Priya Basil
explores with compassion, the universal complexities of vanity and
love. Her sensuous portrayal of the trials and tribulations of the
Singh family carries universal truths for all of us.
