Life · 1975–1976
Los Angeles was a place between longer chapters. Zarina arrived from Tokyo, but her attention was already turning toward the independent life she hoped to make in New York.
From Tokyo to California
Zarina left Tokyo for Los Angeles in 1975. An acquaintance there had bought her work in India and helped make the move possible. After the intensity of Japan, Los Angeles initially offered a welcome change, but Zarina did not imagine it as a permanent home.
Saad was posted in New York, and Zarina had already set her sights on the city. Los Angeles became a place from which to consider what the next stage of her life might be.
A family journey
While Zarina was moving to New York in 1976, Rani visited with her children. The sisters decided to drive across the country to collect Zarina’s belongings and car in Los Angeles.
Two South Asian women travelling with two young children crossed the country in the 1970s, stopping at tourist attractions, sleeping in inexpensive motels and, on one occasion, in a parking lot. After reaching Los Angeles, they returned east in Zarina’s small car. She remembered it as one of her most memorable family journeys.