“Sometimes, we do not get a chance to thank each one who has helped us in our Journey.”  Let the readers get a chance to know about all the important people who have played a part in this ‘Author Journey of  Yours’.

You have started by making me do my favorite thing. Expressing gratitude!

First and foremost are my three friends and soul-sisters Prachee, Paayal and Namita(who also happens to be my sister from my Massi) who have been patient enough throughout our lives (like literally) listening to my continuous ranting about all the problems (real or imaginary) of my life. You know what they say about friends being your reality checks. That’s my husband for me. He is the kind of person who will analyse even my threat to jump down the roof. He will ask me how I felt about surviving the fall and becoming a quadriplegic for life. Scary right! But that’s what he does for me. Put things in perspective. On other instances when I am too scared of taking the plunge, he would say,

“Come on! Be a sport and don’t bring in your fear of failure in the way of me having a good laugh at your expense.”

Then there are my two sets of parents, the Gupta’s who gave me wings to fly and the Chowdhary’s who are the wind beneath my wings.

Ever since I started blogging and writing, the online community and the friends I have gained here have been a support and encouragement throughout.

Blogchatter and ArtoonsInn particularly have played a significant role in boosting my confidence. And there are these amazing people – Shivani Salil, Maitabi Banerjee, Anupama Dalmia, Debdatta Sahay, Divisha Mittal, Vartika… god I could ever list all of them. But everyone of them has not only been an encouragement, but also my sounding boards when self doubt engulfed me. I am thankful to each one of them.

Tell us a bit about the books you have written.Who is the favorite character from your book and why?

All my books are relationship dramas. I have tried to explore some unusual and difficult relationships and ensuing equations in all my stories. The idea is always to poke at one or more of the emotional bones that otherwise lay latent within and make one shift in the seat.

My first book ‘Because I Promised’ –is about a young girl Varnika, who has a difficult childhood and as a young adult finds herself working for a very peculiar cause i.e welfare of eunuchs. She also is constantly running away from her best friend Sushant, who is also the one she loves. Varnika is deeply impacted by the life choices her parents made and continues to dwell on her insecurities. How she fights her own inhibitions and comes out a winner in both her professional & personal life is a journey this book takes you on.

‘Unusual Equations’ – is the story of three people Mads, Viraj and Aman stuck in a vicious circle of incidents motivated by their love, passion, desire, insecurity with each other. It’s a love triangle with a married couple and a best friend struggling to find their footing in this three way equation. Whether they are able to fight their innermost fears without hurting each other and themselves in the process, or do they succumb to the relationship protocols as defined by the society is the core of this story.

My latest ebook ‘A Lifetime To Move On’ is the story of Sarika and Kuamr. As lovers they could not walk their relationship through the aisle. But they are forced to come face to face after 30 long years. Do they have it in them to set aside their differences for their families’ happiness, is what lies at the core of this relationship saga.

You ask me about my favorite character? When has a parent been able to distinguish amongst their various kids and point at out at one of them as their favorite. No, that would be a sin J

Are you working on anything at the present you would like to share with your readers about?

Yes, I am working on another novella in a very peculiar genre. I wouldn’t want to spill the beans, but I have to say that this is my most challenging writing pursuit till date. That’s because I have set out to explore a world, I know nothing about from personal experience. It’s all research and perception. It is going to be a real test of my sensitivity and maturity not only as a writer but also as a person.

 What other authors are you friends with, and how do they help you become a better writer?

I am lucky to have found a very compassionate tribe online.  Though I do not interact with many of them as much as I would like to, but Damyanti Biswas, Maitabi Banerjee, Richa Mukherjee, MV Kasi and Aarti V Raman are some authors I love to follow and try to learn as much as possible from their journey.

If you are observant enough, you will realize that every person irrespective of their profession is waging a personal battle. It could be a battle to remain at the top of their game or to just float. But there is no replacement for authenticity, conviction and hard work. I really like to follow through these girls’ journey and know that everyone will eventually emerge a winner (or is already one).

 How long on average does it take you to write a book? What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?

Reading came very late in my life. But I have been a couch potato and a bollywood movie buff ever since I can remember. Even when my father would dismiss certain movies or scenes as unrealistic, I realized that they were all inspired. The writer of those characters or scenes surely observed something, someone, somewhere and came up with this for the screen. And that’s how I grew up to be. A huge reservoir of observations, scenarios and possibilities lives within me. Sometimes, all of these just get together and create a pattern in the madness. Those patterns have lived within me for the longest of times. Until five years ago, when I decided to let go of my inhibitions and write these down in the form of stories.

So yes, the first drafts of my stories are generally quick. That’s because a lot of the story is already there in my head before I actually set out to type it out. The time consuming part is the editing. Most times I know what I want my story to look like, but sometimes when I do receive a varying beta reader feedback, doubts creep in. And then there is this painstaking phase of re-editing, re-writing, repeat.