India’s small towns, like its villages, once had a magic all their own. It was where many Indians lived, but now they are rapidly emptying, as more and more residents move to the big cities in search of lucrative jobs and the rather dubious joys of living in sprawling metropolises. As Ruskin Bond, the country’s foremost chronicler of small town life, writes: ‘Villages become small towns, small towns become big towns or even cities, and cities become mega cities. In my ninety years on this cherished land, I have seen this transformation take place. One day, the nation will become one big city.’

The rapid urbanization of India has made ghost towns of some of its iconic places. This book is an elegy to all that we are losing as small towns are buried under a mass of concrete and pollution. It is also an evocation of everything that was worth celebrating about these tranquil, memorable places that were to be found right around the country.