Dehradun, Sept. 26 -- There seemed to be a curious law of nature that Einstein had somehow forgotten to document. It concerned expatriate relatives and the remarkable transformation that seemed to come over them whenever they landed in India.

I first witnessed it at one perfectly ordinary afternoon when relatives from abroad arrived at our cottage. It was a warm day and the house was quiet with everyone going about their usual routine. Then the relatives arrived.

Now, abroad, these very same people had been spectacularly self-sufficient. They had mowed their own lawns and cleared snow from driveways. They had unclogged drains, washed cars, carried groceries and packed lunches with astonishing efficiency. They had even assembled complica...