Zen 🔖Ft. Conversation with Shabnam Minwalla
Hello and good evening everyone. This time I'm back again with another exuberant author who will be here in conversation with us on the Swell app. Allow me to introduce Shabnam Minwala, a Mumbai holic, an ardent sari shopper, a murder mystery buff and an occasionally frazzled mother of three teenagers. She has spent all of her life with words, working as a journalist with the Times of India, writing columns and features in various publications and non fiction books about facets of Mumbai
Good afternoon. Before we begin this much awaited interview, let me tell you more about Shabnam's work. Her popular books include The Six Spellmakers of Dorabji Street, what Maya Saw, Saira Zariwala Is Afraid, and the Rip Tickling Nimmi series. She has won numerous awards and teaches creative writing in a Mumbai college. Her latest book, Zen, the one on which we'll be talking about today, a mix of romance, history and politics, has been greeted by fantastic reviews
Shabnam Minwalla
@sminwalla · 4:01
And Miss Briganza and an even crotchety a woman on the third floor, Mrs. Kotalia. And this was a one off in my mind. But a few months later, after the book came out a bunch of children accosted me in the school library of the library of the school where my daughters went. And they said, Auntie, next book. You must write a book set in a Mumbai school. So I said yes. Sure. And I started writing that book
You. Thank you for sharing your journey, Ma'am. Even we had moral science classes in school and I believe it is somehow every literature lover kids dream to someday become a writer and share the stories the way they have seen others sharing theirs. But it is really inspiring to see how you actually fulfill that. Now you have several renowned books under your name and you mentioned how, say, motivation from another child on writing another book helped you. But the book in discussion today, that is Zen
Shabnam Minwalla
@sminwalla · 5:00
And this particular girl, the modern Zenab, is a very buttoned up, quiet girl but has a lot of stuff going on in her head. And I thought Zen was the perfect name for her. When it came to giving the book a name, my editor and I sort of sent each other 100 emails and 100 WhatsApps? And all kinds of suggestions. The moon is very prevalent in the book, so I wanted a name connected with the moon
Shabnam Minwalla
@sminwalla · 0:21
Just to end that earlier answer. Essentially, we talked about many, many different headings, but the one name that kept popping up was Zen. And finally, my editor just said, I want something short. I want something that has punch. And Zen is a beautiful word which has so many meanings. So the title is Zen. And that is how Zen was born
That is a very interesting story indeed. It somehow shows us how things were destined to do ultimately find their way to us. So thank you for that. Now, coming to deeper details of your book, what do you think is the USP of zen and why and how will readers connect to it?
Swell Team
@Swell · 0:15
Shabnam Minwalla
@sminwalla · 2:34
Also, I use a lot of music to create the scene. The kind of music that you and I would listen to appears in the book a lot, and in a sense, sets the mood for each chapter, just as for the chapters on the original Zenab. The music that is there is the music of 1935, the jazz standards, songs like Blue Moon or Isle of Capri. So it sets the mood for that period
Thank you for that beautiful description, ma'am. I'm sure most of the listeners today will be exhorted to indulge in this very wonderful book. Now, the story of the two Zenabs is one that will allow the readers to think of their own past and perhaps look at it in a new light. Since you've drawn this symphony, this relation between the past and the present in Zen, to what extent do you think our past plays a role in shaping us as who we are today?
Shabnam Minwalla
@sminwalla · 1:29
And for me, this was a beginning into looking into the lives of the other people, other people who came before me. And whenever I go to schools now, I ask students there, how much do you know about your grandmother? How much do you know about your great grandmother? And most of them admit that they know very little and that what they know in their head is a very stereotypical image of a little old woman, possibly cannot write, possibly has rarely stepped out of the house
Thank you for that insightful answer, ma'am. The way you included stuff from your life as well will make the readers be able to connect with what all you've said. Now, coming to a little bit advice from someone who's been in the industry like you. What is one piece of advice you'd give to young readers and writers today making their way through the technicalities of a book? Writing, editing, publishing or even self publishing and marketing?
Shabnam Minwalla
@sminwalla · 5:00
And this can only come by observing the people around you, paying deep and quiet attention to what they do, how they react, how they think, how they feel. And writing is a lot about stepping into the shoes of others
Thank you for patiently and so intricately answering all of our queries relating to a book, ma'am. Now, I believe we'll have to end this conversation soon, so before going, I'd like to ask you to please give us a sneak peek into what you're planning to do next in the future and any work that we as readers, could look forward to
Shabnam Minwalla
@sminwalla · 1:44
And I think it's going to be my next really big project, and I'm excited and I hope all of you to read it one day soon. Thank you so much and see you
Thank you for sharing your projects, ma'am. I really hope we do get to read them someday soon, and I'm really eager to indulge into a world that you've created so beautifully through your books. Thank you so much for being here today on Swell, for answering all of my questions so patiently and for keeping the conversation so engaging and lively