That, in short, is the poignant story of about 19-year-old Jayant van Peperstraten, whose complexion reveals his Indian roots but when he speaks, the language stumps you. Dutch is the only language Jayant knows, besides a smattering of English.

In Pune with his uncle, Mario van Diessen, who is helping him in his mission of finding his ``birth mother,'' it has been quite a real life tale -- tracing hospital records, making a dash to Nandgaon in Satara, which was probably Jayant's birthplace, placing advertisements in local dailies... but unfortunately clues have provided little. With the help of Sassoon Hospital records, thesocial workers at the Shreevatsa -- the adoption home -- were able to trace the name and the village of Jayant's mother. Mario van Diessen and Jayant along with a social worker from Shreevatsa promptly headed for Satara on July 15. But they drew a blank despite spending a whole day at Nandgoan.

In what can be termed as a gentleman's agreement, the real mother's name is never to be revealed in any adoption home in India unless there is a special condition. And that is, ``only if it is beneficial to the child, like in the case of Jayant,'' states the social worker from Shreevatsa.

In the meanwhile, a local advertisement will shortly appear in one of the Marathi dailies in Satara, seeking help for finding his mother.

In December 1982, Jayant left Shreevatsa for Eindhoven in south Holland where warmth, affection and comfort awaited him. His magnanimous parents were to be Kees and Ria van Peperstraten. Magnanimous, because they already had a baby girl, Woude, a four-year-old then, who was to get a newbrother.

What made the Peperstratens adopt a baby from India? Says van Diessen, ``Because they wanted to give a good life to a baby from another world, give him a good educational base, to make him a better individual with better opportunities in the world.'' But is that backfiring? ``Not really, they have tremendous affection for him and they want him to be happy. And that's why they have financed this entire trip to India.''

According to van Diessen, ``Jayant was adopted from Shreevatsa, the orphanage home of the Sassoon Mitra Mandal, located in the Sassoon General Hospital. Jayant at the age of 18 months was admitted to the Sassoon Hospital in 1981. But his mother absconded from the ward. Hence, the child was taken to Shreevatsa sometime in September 1981. The police was informed but there was no trace of the mother. Jayant's photograph was also published in a local newspaper on December 14, 1981 but nobody came to claim him. Jayant was an absolutely abandoned and destitute child, according to therecord of the district judge in Pune.''

There is a discrepancy in Jayant's age. According to the court papers which arranged his adoption, he was born on February 26, 1980. However, medical examination in a Dutch bone research hospital stated that he was born on November 19, 1978. All was hunky dory, as Jayant fared well in his academics until four years ago when the obsession to find his mother gripped him, drowning him in depression. Says Jayant, who is stocky and speaks little, ``My parents told me that I am an adopted child ever since I began to understand what adoption means, but that never bothered me. It is about four years back that I just wanted to know who she is and that's why I am here.''

According to van Diessen, Jayant's obsession to find his mother bothered him so much, that medical help was sought. Says he, ``He has been prescribed some drugs and the doctors there say that if he actually gets to see his mother, he might overcome his depression. Earlier, he was a very playful child and anextrovert too. I guess it is natural for any adopted child to think at some time or the other about his real mother, but then for Jayant it has gone far beyond the normal curiosity.''

Jayant has decided not to give up his mission. Says he, ``I would like to come back to Pune for a job sometime later and simultaneously search for my birth mother.'' Adds van Diessen, ``We have told him to finish his studies, get a degree -- he has not been able to complete the last six months of his school because of this depression -- and then come here and take up a job.''