With the tagline, "two worlds, one journey," the movie is directed by Mira Nair and stars Tabu, Irfan Khan, Kal Penn, Zuleikha Robinson, Jacinda Barrett and Sahira Nair. Lahiri herself appears as Aunt Jhumpa.

The movie tie-in edition of the book is published by Mariner. Newmarket has a book about the movie, The Namesake: A Portrait of the Film Based on the Novel by Jhumpa Lahiri, featuring essays by Lahiri and director Nair, excerpts from the book and a range of photographs.

"The novel tells the story of a tradition-bound family that moves from India to Massachusetts. While the husband adapts, the wife resists. And their American-born son bears the burden of his heritage--and an unusual name [Gogol]."

(Mar 12) Here's a critic's update after the release -

The often ornery Joe Morgenstern, film critic for the Wall Street Journal, has this to say about The Namesake, which opens today and is based on the Jhumpa Lahiri novel: "This immensely pleasurable film is . . . a saga of the immigrant experience that captures the snap, crackle and pop of American life, along with the pounding pulse, emotional reticence, volcanic colors and cherished rituals of Indian culture."