A book that promises to be one of the most personal political memoirs in recent Indian publishing history has arrived — and Congress MP Dr. Shashi Tharoor is already among its first readers. On Tuesday, 10 November 2026, Tharoor took to X to congratulate Sonia Gandhi on the publication of her memoir Belonging: A Journey of Love, calling her life 'intertwined with some of the defining chapters of our nation's history.'

Tharoor, himself a prolific author and Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, said he was 'delighted to have one of the first copies' in his constituency and expressed eagerness to read 'her story in her own words.' The book, published by HarperCollins India, has been described as a deeply personal account of love, loss, resilience, and an enduring bond with India.

A life at the centre of modern Indian history

Sonia Gandhi — Italian-born widow of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi — served as president of the Indian National Congress across multiple terms, making her one of the most consequential political figures of the post-liberalisation era. Her tenure oversaw the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance governments and shepherded the party through years of both dominance and opposition.

Personal memoir from someone of her standing is rare. Where most political figures commission authorised biographies or offer selective interviews, Belonging appears to promise something more intimate — love and loss framed as the spine of a national story. That combination of the private and the political is precisely what has made the book's arrival notable in literary and political circles alike.

Tharoor's Thiruvananthapuram copy and the book's wider reach

Tharoor's shout-out to both HarperCollins India and Kerala bookseller DC Books signals early distribution reaching beyond the capital. That Thiruvananthapuram — far from Delhi's political epicentre — has copies in hand on release day speaks to the publisher's confidence in the memoir's national appeal.

Indian political figures from established families have periodically published personal reflections that knit individual experience to major national events, but a first-person account from Sonia Gandhi herself is unprecedented. How much she reveals about the corridors of power — and how much she reserves for the purely personal — will shape the book's legacy as much as its sales figures.

One of India's most watched, and least heard, political voices has finally chosen to speak at length. The country is listening.