Malladi, Amulya. The mango season, New York : Ballantine Books,2003.
When a young Indian leaves for the West, the parents fear the worst – they will lose all their traditional values and their worst fear is materialised – their child marries a “white” person. So when Priya left India to study in the U.S, the same fears were harboured by her parents too. Now seven years later, Priya returns home to give her family the news that she is engaged to Nick Collins, a kind and loving American.
Her trip back home is very overwhelming for Priya. She recalls her youth – the summers, when sweet ripe mangoes were in season. However, on her return, the unbearable heat of the summer gets to her. Everything looks more rustic and primitive to her. Nothing seems to have changed and so too does Priya’s relatives. Her parents insist they arrange a marriage to a “nice Indian boy”. Her extended family constantly refer to the marriage of her uncle Anand, who married a woman from another Indian state and that too for love. Her grandparents and parents do not view the basis of a marriage to be one based on love and happiness. Duty is the driving force behind marriage. Under these circumstances, Priya feels loathe to break her news.
The author takes the reader on a delightful trip into contemporary India and a woman on the threshold of immense change in her life.
Amulya Malladi was born in Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, India. After graduating in electronics engineering, she did her master's degree in journalism from the University of Mephis. She worked as an online edition for a high-tech publishing house in San Francisco and then a marketing manager for a software company in the Silicone Valley. After living in the US for several years, she now resides in Copenhagen with her family. Her other novels are: A breath of fresh air, Serving crazy with curry, Song of the Cukoo bird and Sound of language.
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