Shoba Narayan has spent time in three countries - India, the United States and  Singapore. She grew up in Chennai, India and got a Bachelor's degree in psychology from Women's Christian college. Right after graduation, she enrolled as a Foreign Fellow at Mount Holyoke College where she majored in Fine Arts, focusing on welded steel sculptures. She went on to do five years of Art - three in graduate school in Memphis, and a summer at the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, Vermont.

After marriage, Shoba pursued her interest in alternative medicine by interning with an acupuncturist for two years but stopped short of becoming one herself. Instead, she attended Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism (J-school) and received a Master's degree. She also won the Pulitzer Travelling Fellowship awarded to the top three students in each graduating class. Armed with the degree, she pursued a career in freelance journalism, writing for many publications including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Condenast Traveler, Time, Gourmet, Food & Wine, Saveur, Newsweek, Beliefnet and House Beautiful, among others. She also worked as a commentator for NPR's All Things Considered Weekend.

Shoba's first book, "Monsoon Diary: A Memoir with Recipes" was published in April 2003 by Random House. She lives in Bangalore, India with her husband and two daughters. 

You can get in touch with Shoba at: shoba@shobanarayan.com