There’S More to Life Than a House in Goa

Book excerpt: When her mother passed away, author Heta Pandit found herself the owner of four historic houses. All of Pandits conversations revolve around her four houses: their upkeep, their leaking roofs, their Minton floors, their refurbishments, their stories, and the spirits that inhabit them. In Theres more to Life than a House in Goa, she offers a personal history of the houses she owns in Mumbai, Panchgani, and Goa in India. Interwoven with the stories of several generations, this memoir is not just about houses, but it also shares a capsule on social history at a micro level. It provides a reflection of the eccentricities and quirks of the extraordinary community of Parsis, immigrants from Iran, and their adaptation to the social and cultural customs in the land of their adoption. Theres more to Life than a House in Goa talks about personal history and recalls family values, remembering the way things were. After all, the stories of the houses are also the stories of the people who inhabit them.