Subhechcha Ganguly 
Sakshi Kesharwani is a CA by profession and a writer by passion. She has translated a beautiful book “ A girl and a night at Haus Khas” Let us know more about her in this interview.
Q1) Since when did you start writing ? What was your first writing experience like ?
Ans :It was very random how I started. I remember it was 4-5 yrs ago, I took a pen and my diary and scribbled down a few lines on ‘how our life changes as we grow up’ in a poetic way. I posted it on insta and to my surprise , I got many compliments. Gradually, I kept on posting on my personal Id and then created my own page “put_pentopaper.”
Professionally, my first writing experience has been as a translator. In 2017, one of the authors saw my posts and he offered to translate his book in English. It was a bitter sweet experience because, before that, I had never thought of writing my own book. While working on it I realized that I am only translating, my creative skill was resting. That experience made me think that I should write my own solo book someday where I can put all my creativity to the best. I have also co-authored an anthology ‘Hiraeth Skies’.
Q2)What is your favourite genre when it comes to writing ? Mention some of your favorite books ?
Ans : My favourite genre when it comes to writing is fiction – romance and new adult fiction.I also like to write flash fictions, poetries and musings.
I love reading Preeti Shenoy’s books – ‘Life is what you make it, Wake up, life is calling, A Hundred Little Flames, When love came calling.Her books mostly talk about contemporary romance, adulting, mental health.
I also enjoyed “29 seconds” by T.M.Logan and ”The Perfect Daughter’ by Alex Stone in the thriller-suspense genre.
Q3) If you ever plan on writing a solo book what would the topic be ?
Ans : As mentioned before, I l like to write about romance, so whenever I plan my first book it would revolve around adulting and relationships.I recently read the Harry Potter series, such an amazing work! It has influenced me to write about fantasy someday.
Q4) Nowadays the youth does spend a lot of time on social media. It often causes social media addiction, what are your views on this topic ?
Ans : Social media addiction is now the new reality. Not just the youth, people of all age groups have become used to it. I think the craze for followers and all the deceptive lifestyle that social media portrays makes it appealing. The sad part is we are so much obsessed with the ‘reel’ world that we are forgetting the ‘real’ world. It also affects the mindset, you never feel satisfied with what you have, instead you start craving for the filtered life that your mobile screen is showing.
Q5) How do you think writing helps a person ? Do you feel writing helps to vent out emotions and thus can help people?
For me, writing has been like meditation. During my CA final preparation days, there was so much going on- career stress, attempts in exams, a continuous pricking thought that I am never going to clear, plus the pandemic- amidst all this your mental health takes a toll. Writing helped me alot, just scribbling my feelings, what I want to cry about, what I want to achieve, anything and everything. Personally, it helped a lot in venting out emotions. Sometimes, when you articulate your dilemmas in words and keep writing about it, you may end up getting the solution in that flow because at that moment you are having a conversation with yourself, no second opinion and nothing to distract.
