‘You should be writing on one of our great Indian papers, then you will really be starting to understand us.’

A chance conversation with her greengrocer about the media’s portrayal of India inspired journalist Justine Hardy to leave London and, following in the footsteps of Rudyard Kipling, spend a year reporting for an Indian newspaper.

Following the direction of her eccentric landlord – an erstwhile Rajput prince – and an editor at The Indian Express, her new life takes her across the Himalayas, Assam tea gardens and city slums, exploring marriage, spirituality and the remnants of Empire in the heart of modern India.