A Journey to Dominique Dada's Sunderbans

The French author first came to India on his honeymoon. And he fell in love with the country. He returned in 1971 and spent three years in India doing research for Freedom at Midnight.

The book was an international success. Lapierre returned to express gratitude to India for its hospitality. "Gandhiji had a great deal of compassion for lepers, I wanted to set up a home for leprosy victims." This was how he got involved with Udayan: The Resurrection in Barrackpore, near Calcutta.

For Lapierre it has been a long journey not without its obstacles. When we reach Bhangar, now the hub of his operations in the Sundarbans, he recollects his fight for electricity. He wanted to install an X-ray machine but there was no electricity. He and his team threatened to go on hunger strike. In a bid to appease them the government installed the electrical boards. Their protests continued. Gradually the lines were fitted. And days later electricity finally flowed through.

By the time the X-ray machine began operation, Lapierre had returned to Paris. One evening he received a courier with the first X-ray. On it was the logo of the Southern Health Improvement Samity, the NGO he was supporting. Two Muslim hands and two Hindu hands holding each other in a bond of love. A touching gesture from a country which has seen the ugly face of commualism. "I cried," he says.

Braving the heat and dust, 15 friends from France, Spain and Italy accompany him on this trip to get a first-hand feel of the work he passionately talks about each time he returns from India.

They talk of his infectious enthusiasm and love for India. "It was impossible to not follow him here!" says Florence Decoster from France.

He is secretive about his next literary work but hints about extraordinary lives. One cannot help marvelling at his far from ordinary existence.

India is a passion with him. He is immersed in India. But he cannot help worrying about India too. He laments the widening economic gap. Lapierre echoes the words of Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen -- as one part of India becomes California, the vast majority is sub-Saharan Africa. If this gap is not bridged, he cautions, there will be a revolution.

As the boat pulls away, the sun sinks into the Hooghly, illuminating the waves with a golden sparkle. Lapierre's face has a quiet sense of fulfillment. Maybe it is the joy of lighting up lives. And leaving in his wake a radiant glow.

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