In Winnipeg in the late seventies, an Indian immigrant family (the Bharves), are on the brink of coming apart due to a clash of values and ambitions. Sharad (the father), a former scientist, works as a real-estate agent; Savitri (the mother) is a teacher; Veejala (the aunt) is a frustrated scientist at the university. Jyoti (the daughter) has a white boyfriend and will probably move out. A crisis occurs as Veejala announces that she is going back to India and Jayant (the son) is packing to go off to Montreal. A phone call comes during this tense situation.

". . . an effective examination of all the issues that immigrants face. It would be an effective catalyst for discussion in today’s high schools which are full of youth from every continent."
— Harriet Zaidman, CM: Canadian Review of Materials

Uma Parameswaran was born in Madras and grew up in Jabalpur, where her father was a Professor of Physics. She received her B.A. from Jabalpur University and her M.A. in English and her diploma in Journalism from Nagpur University. She was a Fulbright Scholar and received an M.A. in Creative Writing (Indiana University) and a Ph.D. in English (Michigan State University, 1972).
She has lived in Winnipeg, Canada since 1966. She is currently a Professor of English at the University of Winnipeg . She is married to a mathematician and they have one daughter.