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In the Book Notes<\/a> series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book.<\/em><\/p>\n Previous contributors include Jesmyn Ward<\/a>, Lauren Groff<\/a>, Bret Easton Ellis<\/a>, Celeste Ng<\/a>, T.C. Boyle<\/a>, Dana Spiotta<\/a>, Hanif Abdurraqib<\/a>, Andrew Sean Greer<\/a>, Roxane Gay,<\/a> and many others.<\/em><\/p>\n Chital Mehta\u2019s debut novel Have You Seen Romit?<\/a> is a searing portrait of family and identity.<\/em><\/p>\n R. O. Kwon wrote of the book:<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cA gripping, intensely moving portrayal of a woman whose ferocious love for her children ends up clashing with how others expect her to behave. I loved spending time with the rule-breaking Usha and with the complicated world Chital Mehta has conjured. Vivid, fresh, and resonant.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n In her own words, here is Chital Mehta\u2019s Book Notes<\/a> music playlist for her debut novel Have You Seen Romit?<\/a>:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n My novel, Have You Seen Romit?<\/em> takes place in Southern India, where a middle-aged mother, Usha, goes looking for her missing son in the forests. Usha has never broken the rules, but for once, she must step outside the realms of what she thought was comfortable and safe. It is a story of defiance and relentlessness, delving deep into the true nature of connection and kinship under the most daunting of circumstances.<\/p>\n I put together this playlist, songs that helped me take a deep dive into the head of my protagonist, Usha, and allowed me to step inside her world. Most tracks, especially the ones from Kishore Kumar, are part of my childhood, songs that my father played in our house, urging us to connect with the songs of his era. Back then, I was averse to this music. As I drafted Have You Seen Romit?<\/em> I pictured Usha in her house with the faded walls; I picked these songs to put me directly into her settings, a slow domestic life that is disturbed by an upending problem.\u00a0<\/p>\n This soundtrack is like my brain \u2013 soft, loud, quiet, and cheerful. Pour yourself a cup of chai as you take a listen.<\/p>\n Kisi baat par main kisise khafa hoon<\/em> from the movie Bemisal \u2013 Kishore Kumar<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \n