Why Reticent Sonia Gandhi Chose To Speak About ‘Belonging’ Now: The Message Behind The Memoir

News india Why Reticent Sonia Gandhi Chose To Speak About ‘Belonging’ Now: The Message Behind The Memoir

Why Reticent Sonia Gandhi Chose To Speak About ‘Belonging’ Now: The Message Behind The Memoir

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Last Updated: August 19, 2026, 19:02 IST

‘Belonging: A Journey of Love’ is Sonia Gandhi's way of making it clear to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and her opponents that she very much belongs to India

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Sources say that it was not an easy call for the reticent and intensely private Sonia Gandhi to write a memoir.

The title of Sonia Gandhi’s upcoming book captures a political message she wants to convey after over six decades.

‘Belonging: A Journey of Love’ is her way of making it clear to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and her opponents that she very much belongs to India.

That’s because when she came to India for the first time in 1965, before she made India her home where she got married, had children, and did her politics, she was seen only as an outsider, an Italian who did not know what India was all about.

As she struggled and won the fight for survival and adjustment, she finally captured this and ended up belonging to India. More importantly, the book hopes to find a closure to the “outsider" or “videshi" tag attached to her, which at times was seen as a liability for her party.

Sources say that it was not an easy call for the reticent and intensely private Sonia Gandhi to write a memoir. Her children, Priyanka Vadra and Rahul Gandhi, goaded her to go ahead and pen her thoughts to bring a closure to the campaign against her. In fact, the memoir has been in the making for over two years and been drawn from a diary she would maintain.

The book, sources say, does not seek to embarrass anyone but will explain the trauma she had to go through in adjusting to a life which was high profile, and a tough one which required her to live with a PM. More importantly, how she coped with meeting new people, who were remote from her personality and language and culture.

The toughest adjustment for her was with food, and this is explained in her book too. How she took a while to consume dhania patta (coriander leaves) and green chillies, but has now grown to love it. How she learnt to make gajar ka halwa, which was the favourite of Rajiv Gandhi and others in the family. She also learnt how to cook multiple cuisines like Kashmiri food from Indira Gandhi’s relatives from Kashmir.

Sources say the memoir also mentions how she finally decided to take the political plunge and her stitching up the alliance to form the UPA came as she was discussing over dinner one day as to how she and her party colleagues faced bad times.

Interestingly, the announcement of the memoir came on a day when there has been much outrage and controversy over Sonia Gandhi’s objection to singing the Vande Mataram in full, at a party event on August 15.

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Key Questions Answered Powered by Ask News18 Will the book reveal new details about her life in India? Sonia Gandhi's memoir, "Belonging: A Journey of Love," will trace her life from her childhood in Italy to her life in India, where she became part of a prominent political family. The book will cover her marriage to Rajiv Gandhi, the assassinations of Indira and Rajiv Gandhi, and her decision to decline the prime minister's post in 2004. It will also include personal anecdotes and reflections on defining moments of her life. How might this memoir influence future political narratives? Sonia Gandhi's memoir, "Belonging: A Journey of Love," aims to convey a political message that she belongs to India, countering narratives from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and other opponents. Her children encouraged her to write it to address campaigns against her. The memoir will also detail her decision to enter politics and her role in forming the UPA alliance. Powered by Ask News18

About the Author Pallavi Ghosh Pallavi Ghosh has covered politics and Parliament for 15 years, and has reported extensively on Congress, UPA-I and UPA-II, and has now included the Finance Ministry and Niti Aayog in her reportage. S... Read More

First Published: August 19, 2026, 18:52 IST

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