How to buy a cow in India and other stories...
Shoba Narayan’s new book milks her experiences for fodder
Author and HT Brunch columnist Shoba Narayan’s living room is dotted with family photos. There are framed photos of parents and kids; some even chronicle important life events. But one photograph stands out: it is of a herd of spotted cows crossing a street. A simple image, it doesn’t quite tell you where it has been shot, only that these cows are focusing their energies on making it to the other side. Shoba is quick to clear the air though; her latest book, The Cows of Bangalore: And How I Came to Own One, is just out, but the cows adorning her living room wall have nothing to do with the book. “This picture was shot in New Zealand more than a decade ago, in the early years of my marriage. This was long before I even thought of writing this book,” she says.