Traveling With the Ghosts of Mumbai

How does a place change when the person who defined it for you is now gone? That's the question we're exploring in this week's episode of Travel Tales by AFAR. Author Shruti Swamy grew up in the United States, but her parents grew up in Mumbai, India, so she has a unique relationship with the city, in some ways intimate and in some ways totally distant.

Her aunt, Ila Mami, was the person who helped her find Mumbai’s pulse, who helped her fall in love with the city’s colors and tastes and smells. When Ila Mami passed away, Shruti wasn’t sure what Mumbai would hold for her. So she traveled to Mumbai to find out—with her four-year-old daughter in tow. Along the way, she discovered:

• What it's like to visit a place after the loss of a loved one.
• Her favorite memories of exploring Mumbai with her aunt
• How creating new memories with her daughter redefined the city for her in new ways.

Don't miss these moments!

• 3:31: How writing nonfiction is different than writing fiction
• 6:01: Her expectations for the trip
• 7:16: Her daughter's memories of the trip
• 8:35: The hardest part of the trip
• 10:01: The beginning of Shruti's travel tale

In the episode, you'll understand how one traveler coped with grief and created new memories in Mumbai. You'll also get an insider's look at the vibrant, busy, full-of-life city on the west coast of India.

Resources

• Read this episode’s show notes, including a full transcript of the episode.
• Read the story Shruti wrote for the magazine
• Buy Shruti’s novel, The Archer, and short story collection, A House Is a Body.
• Follow Shruti on Twitter.

Be sure to subscribe to the show and to sign up for our podcast newsletter, Behind the Mic, where we share upcoming news and behind-the-scenes details of each episode. And explore our second podcast, Unpacked, which unpacks a tricky topic in travel each week.

And a special thanks to our season four Travel Tales by AFAR sponsor, Avalon Waterways, who shares our belief in the transformative power of travel.