Sonia Gandhi’s much-awaited memoir “Belonging: A Journey of Love” has run into an unexpected publishing controversy with Penguin Random House India (PRHI) no longer set to publish or distribute the book in India. HarperCollins India is now reportedly close to finalising an agreement to take over the Indian publishing and distribution rights.
The development follows a reported disagreement between Penguin India and Sonia Gandhi’s team over proposed editorial changes to parts of the manuscript. Reports said the publisher had sought certain changes and deletions, which Sonia Gandhi’s representatives did not accept. The exact passages at the centre of the disagreement have not been officially disclosed.
Penguin Random House India has said that it simply backed out because Sonia Gandhi and her team refused edits.
In its clarification, Penguin said it was not the publisher of the memoir in India and maintained that it had remained “willing and keen” to publish the book. The company also stressed that fact-checking manuscripts, questioning content, and making editorial recommendations are part of a publisher’s normal responsibilities. Penguin declined to discuss the confidential negotiations further.
With Penguin India out of the picture, HarperCollins has emerged as the reported frontrunner for the Indian edition. Although several publishers are understood to have shown interest, reports indicate that HarperCollins is close to finalising an agreement. As of now, however, the deal has not been formally announced.
The controversy, however, does not affect the memoir’s international release. “Belonging: A Journey of Love” is scheduled for release on November 10, 2026, with Alfred A. Knopf, a Penguin Random House imprint, publishing the US edition. The book promises to provide Sonia Gandhi’s personal account of her journey from post-war Italy to India, her marriage to former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, life within the Nehru-Gandhi family, the assassinations of Indira and Rajiv Gandhi, and her eventual entry into Indian politics.
