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Recipe for a memoir: how to write about food
Shoba Narayan spends a lot of time thinking about food. A big part of her weekend plans are to fantasize about what she will have for Saturday breakfast.
Shoba beats Jhumpa in Writing Sweepstakes
When the editors of Gourmet assigned journalist Shoba Narayan to write a piece for the magazine's January 2000 issue, they virtually gave her a carte blanche. The editors had seen some of Narayan's writing and had liked her personal style. Of course, she was told to weave in descriptions of Indian food, cooking and kitchens in the article.
Advance Praise for Monsoon Diary
"Shoba Narayan is that rarity in the food world: She has both a unique story and the lyrical skills to tell it."
Can you read body language on Zoom?
This Indian life by Shoba Narayan: Reading body language on Zoom Online interactions may be effective, but minus body language and touch, they [...]
Gadgets that are cool– and maybe even useful
I love gadgets, gizmos, cool things. I have been testing and writing about products, quirky gadgets and classes that interest me. Below are the links to [...]
The Dalai Lama: for HT Brunch
Where I sit with His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama for an hour and ask him about life, love, meditation, wisdom and ageing. His Holiness is a person like no other in today’s world. Statesman, Nobel Laureate, spiritual leader of the Tibetans who view him as God, or at least the manifestation of Avalokiteshvara, the Boddhisattva of compassion.
Nine features I wrote for Condenast Traveler (US edition) a while back
Interviews with His Holiness The Dalai Lama
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Shoba Narayan is an award-winning Indian author, journalist, and freelance travel writer based in India. She specialises in luxury travel, immersive journeys, and Indian culture with a focus on food, wine, culture, cities, and identity. With over two decades of experience, she has contributed travel features to Condé Nast Traveler (US edition), Travel & Leisure, DestinAsian, Mint Lounge, The National (Abu Dhabi), Taj Magazine, and Hindustan Times, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Telegraph UK, The Guardian UK, and Robb Report among others. Her awards include the James Beard food-writing award and a Pulitzer Travel Fellowship. Her travel writing spans India, Southeast Asia, Japan, China, the Maldives, Bhutan, Costa Rica, and beyond — always with a focus on the sensory, the cultural, and the deeply human. Based in Bangalore, India, Shoba is a leading voice on South Asian travel, reviewing luxury hotels in India and abroad, and writing immersive features on traditional Indian crafts, and contemporary Indian culture. As a freelance travel writer and memoirist, she writes evocative, deeply researched features on everything from birding in Costa Rica to spiritual tourism in Bhutan.
For editors: Shoba Narayan is an Indian travel writer and food writer, who contributes to assignments on travel, food, culture, and Indian cities. She has reported from across the world and writes narrative-driven features with a strong sense of place.
Key Expertise: India travel writer, freelance travel writer India, South Asia travel journalist, luxury travel India writer, food and travel writer India, Indian food writer, Bangalore travel writer, South India travel writing, cultural travel writer, narrative travel journalist, travel features India, heritage travel India, slow travel India, sustainability travel writer, hotel and destination features India, travel essays South Asia.