Press & Media
The official media resource center for author Neil Banerjee and The Gate of Belonging—a literary fiction series about migration, marriage, memory, architecture, and inheritance across generations.
Essential series facts
Quick reference information for journalists, reviewers, podcasters, booksellers, and event organizers.
What the Gate First Knew
Abir and Harleen build a marriage, career, and family across Kolkata, Berlin, and Boston.
What the Gate Remembers
The next generation inherits the unfinished questions, places, and memories their parents carried forward.
Enter the world behind the green gate
Official trailers for both published novels—an introduction to the people, places, memory, and questions of belonging that shape Neil Banerjee’s fiction.
What the Gate First Knew
Play the official Book 1 trailer below.
What the Gate Remembers
Play the official Book 2 trailer below.
Stories that continue after the final page
Early readers consistently respond to the series’ emotional depth, multigenerational relationships, cross-cultural identity, and quiet exploration of home.
“A family saga that settles deep in your bones… For anyone who’s ever loved from a distance, this one stays with you.”Amazon reader review · What the Gate First Knew
“A deeply moving exploration of family, migration, and the meaning of home… a heartfelt family saga that stays with you.”Amazon reader review · What the Gate First Knew
“Beautifully written and emotionally rich… a thoughtful, moving read that perfectly balances intimate family moments with home and legacy.”Amazon reader review · What the Gate Remembers
“A beautifully written novel about family, belonging, and the quiet ways love endures across time and distance.”Amazon reader review · What the Gate Remembers
Announcements and coverage
Published announcements and press mentions for The Gate of Belonging.
Both Published Novels Receive Second Place at The BookFest Awards
What the Gate First Knew and What the Gate Remembers each received Second Place in Historical – Multi-Period Family Saga at The BookFest Awards, Fall 2026.
Neil Banerjee Publishes First Two Novels of Five-Book Series
Announcement of the simultaneous publication of What the Gate First Knew and What the Gate Remembers, distributed via ACCESS Newswire.
Complete media kit
Download press-ready author materials, book information, publication details, and contact information in one organized package.
- High-resolution author photographs
- Book 1 and Book 2 covers
- Short and extended author biographies
- Series and individual book summaries
- ISBN and publication information
- Interview topics and contact details
Suggested interview topics
- Writing literary fiction while leading global technology organizations
- The emotional geography of immigration
- India, Germany, and America through fiction
- Building a family across continents
- Architecture as metaphor in literature
- Memory as a character
- Self-publishing ambitious literary fiction
- Technology leadership and creative practice
- Why belonging matters in the age of AI
Media and professional inquiries
- Media interviews
- Podcast invitations
- Book-club conversations
- Speaking engagements
- Review copies
- Publisher inquiries
- Foreign and translation rights
- Film and television rights
Award-winning novels
Confirmed recognition for the first two novels of The Gate of Belonging, with official award listings below.
The BookFest Awards · Second Place
Historical – Multi-Period Family Saga
Both What the Gate First Knew and What the Gate Remembers received Second Place in this category.
Pending submissions
Independent Publisher Book Awards — 2027
Both published novels entered across selected fiction, multicultural, series, and first-book categories.
Press FAQ
Concise answers to frequently asked questions about the books, their themes, and the planned series.
Why did you write these books?
Both novels grew from a life lived across India, Europe, and America. What the Gate First Knew asks what it costs to build a home between countries; What the Gate Remembers asks what happens to the next generation that inherits that home without ever choosing the original departure. The fuller story appears on the Books page.
Is Abir based on Neil Banerjee?
No. Abir Das is a fictional character, and the events of the novels do not reproduce Neil’s life. The emotional question driving Abir—what “home” means after building a life in more than one country—does draw on a question Neil has lived with for decades.
Why architecture?
Architecture offers a physical language for the series’ central idea: home is something people construct deliberately and imperfectly, rather than something simply handed to them. Buildings, courtyards, rooms, and thresholds carry emotional weight alongside the relationships.
Why Kolkata, Berlin, and Boston?
Each city represents a different relationship to home: Kolkata as origin and memory, Berlin as the discipline of starting over, and Boston as a place where ambition and family are tested. Copenhagen and Delhi extend that geography through the next generation.
What does the green gate represent?
The gate is a threshold crossed through leaving, returning, and leaving again. It becomes a recurring image for the idea that home retains a memory of the people and generations who pass through it.
Will there be five books in the series?
Yes. The Gate of Belonging is planned as a five-book series. Three additional novels are planned to continue the Das–Kaur family’s story across further generations and continents.
Begin a conversation
For interviews, podcasts, speaking engagements, review copies, publisher inquiries, foreign and translation rights, or film and television inquiries, email the press address below or use the contact form.
press@nban.io