Anuradha Roy is known for her beautiful stories, but her new book, Called by the Hills: A Home in the Himalayas, goes further. It makes you want to pack your bags, head for the mountains, and start your own story.
Roy has lived in Ranikhet, Uttarakhand, for over 25 years. Her home is a quiet cottage surrounded by forests, birds, and misty mountain mornings. Ideas come to her slowly and gently, much like the soft sunlight on her writing desk.
Mountain life has its challenges too. Roy shared the sad news that her beloved dog Jerry was taken by a leopard in broad daylight. That painful moment made her question her life in the hills for the first time. Still, she feels deeply connected to Ranikhet and the life it has given her.
Roy and her partner, Rukun, found their cottage over twenty years ago. It was abandoned and quiet, waiting for someone to bring it back to life. They knew right away it was meant for them. In her book, she calls this moment an “epiphany.” Even now, she can point to the exact bend on the Ranikhet road where the air suddenly changes: light, fresh, almost sparkling.
Many people imagine the hills as perfect, but Roy says it’s not just warm mittens and cozy fireplaces. There are long winters, heavy monsoons, wild animals, and few modern comforts. If you want nightlife or busy social scenes, Ranikhet may not suit you. For Roy, this quieter life feels right. She writes, gardens, paints, and designs book covers. She calls writing the only “real work” of her day.
People from the city often find her life hard to understand. Some are unsettled by the silence. Others search for “places to see,” forgetting that the mountains are the view.
A Different Way of Thinking and Working
Living in the hills changed how Roy thinks about productivity. In the city, success means deadlines, meetings, and constant activity. In the mountains, writing a few thoughtful pages in a day feels enough. The rest, like walking, gardening, and listening to birds, is part of life, not a distraction.
Writing About Real Life
Roy’s new book is non-fiction, and she says writing real stories about real people was strangely relaxing. She quotes journalist Janet Malcolm: fiction writers own their world, but non-fiction writers only “rent” it. They must follow the truth. Roy enjoyed this discipline. It helped her look at life in the hills with more clarity, honesty, and love.
Why Her Book Inspires You to Move Away From the City
Called by the Hills is more than just a book. It invites you to slow down. It shows how living close to nature can make you feel small in a beautiful way. You start to notice things bigger than yourself: forests, seasons, animals, and silence. You learn to breathe and live differently.