India
Sonia Gandhi Makes X Debut, Shares Love Story With Rajiv Gandhi Ahead Of Memoir Release
By: News18 India
Published: 24 October 2026
Photo / Illustration: Haldwani Times News Desk
<p>Congress leader Sonia Gandhi made her debut on social media platform X on Saturday, sharing a video in which she revisited her love story with former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and recalled their first meeting at a Greek restaurant in Cambridge.</p>
<p>The video, shared ahead of the November 10 release of her memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, offers a glimpse into her early relationship with Rajiv Gandhi, including what first attracted her to him and how their friendship developed.</p>
<p>“In a small Greek restaurant in Cambridge my journey of love began," Sonia Gandhi wrote in her first post on X.</p>
<p>“Rajiv and I created a world filled with love, laughter and memories. On 10th November, I share that world with you," she added.</p>
<p>— Sonia Gandhi (@SoniaGandhi) October 24, 2026</p>
<p>Sonia Gandhi Recalls First Meeting With Rajiv Gandhi</p>
<p>In the video, Sonia Gandhi is seen looking through old photographs as she recalls her student days in England and the circumstances that led to her first meeting with Rajiv Gandhi.</p>
<p>She said food in England was very different at the time, prompting her to search for restaurants serving meals closer to the Italian food she was accustomed to.</p>
<p>“Food in England was awful in those days. You didn’t have so many restaurants, you know, like you have today," she recalled.</p>
<p>Her search eventually led her to a Greek restaurant popular among European and Indian students in Cambridge.</p>
<p>“It was a Greek restaurant where many students, especially European students, but also Indian students, used to go for their meals. And that is then where I met Rajiv in that very restaurant," she said.</p>
<p>Recalling her first impression of Rajiv Gandhi, she said she felt an immediate connection.</p>
<p>“When I first met him, I felt almost immediately that, you know, it was someone I would really love to be with. And of course, I learned that it was the same for him," she said.</p>
<p>Sonia Gandhi also recalled that a mutual friend had introduced them, after which they began spending time together, attending parties and socialising with other students.</p>
<p>She remembered attending a Valentine’s Day party with Rajiv Gandhi and their friends.</p>
<p>Describing what first attracted her to him, she said Rajiv Gandhi was good-looking but that it was his gentle nature that particularly stood out.</p>
<p>“He was a very gentle-looking person. Of course he was very good-looking, but that gentleness came through," she said.</p>
<p>The couple married in 1968. Rajiv Gandhi later served as India’s Prime Minister from 1984 to 1989 before his assassination in May 1991.</p>
<p>Sonia Gandhi’s Memoir To Release On November 10</p>
<p>Sonia Gandhi’s X debut comes just two days after she joined Instagram on October 22, when she shared the first look at her upcoming memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love.</p>
<p>The book traces her journey from her childhood in Italy to her marriage into the Nehru-Gandhi family, her years with Rajiv Gandhi and her eventual entry into Indian politics.</p>
<p>It also explores major personal and political events in her life, including the assassinations of former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, and her years as Congress president.</p>
<p>The memoir is scheduled for release on November 10.</p>
<p>Sonia Gandhi first met Rajiv Gandhi in 1965 at a small Greek restaurant in Cambridge, England, where students frequently gathered for meals.</p>
<p>Her memoir is titled *Belonging: A Journey of Love* and is scheduled for release on November 10, 2026.</p>
<p>The 544-page memoir is being published globally by Alfred A. Knopf, while HarperCollins India is handling its release within India.</p>
