Such a Long Journey takes place in Bombay, India, in 1971. The story begins with the main character, Gustad Noble, a Zoroastrian Parsi, performing his daily early morning prayers in the yard of his apartment complex, the Khodadad Building, as the compound slowly comes to life around him. Gustad is in his 50s but still strong and vital despite an accident a few years earlier that gave him a limp.

Miss Kutpitia, an elderly neighbor with a reputation “of being mean and cranky and abusive,” loudly berates the milkman (2). Miss Kutpitia has an interest in magic and spells, in finding “the hidden meaning of mundane events and chance occurrences” (4). Gustad’s wife, Dilnavaz, a petite woman of 44, is waiting for her turn with the milkman.

As we learn that Gustad sings songs to her, changing the words to match her appearance, we sense that Gustad and Dilnavaz have a loving relationship. Earlier that morning, Gustad read the newspaper aloud to Dilnavaz, and the two discussed the good news that had arrived for their son Sohrab. The couple enjoyed anticipating that Sohrab will be successful. Now Gustad stands under the neem tree, concentrating on his prayers, as the women chatter and radios broadcast the news.