When the filmmaker reclaims a common xenophobic epithet and begins a series of journeys back to his birthplace of Calcutta he is not sure what he is looking for, or even if he wants to document the experience. He reluctantly gives in to compelling forces that draw his camera out of the bag to document glimpses of South Asia that do not match up with any guidebooks. But that is not all that is let out of the bag. Paralleling the physical journeys are daunting emotional and psychological treks into his personal history. Reflecting along the way on centuries-old traditions that predetermine many life paths, and colonial ideologies that erase all that is not white, his journeys start to take on a more intimate texture.