Jaishree Misra's guest appearances

Jaishree Misra

Desi Outsiders

Melting Pot

Stories Seldom Told

Helena Kennedy

Ethan Nadelmann

Natasha Scripture

Nitin Sawhney

Eliza Griswold

Ifrah Ahmed

Giles Duley

Katharine Birbalsingh

Lemn Sissay

Matt Davis

Shashi Tharoor

William Dalrymple

Nick Pendry

Papa CJ

Matt Henderson

OwlTail

Jaishree Misra is an author of Indian origin living in Britain. She has written eight novels published by Penguin and Harper Collins. She has also written a non-fiction account of building a writer’s studio on the beach in her home state of Kerala, India. She is a postgraduate in English Literature from Kerala University and has two diplomas from the University of London, one in Broadcast Journalism and the other in Special Education. She has worked in special education, journalism and as a film classifier at the British Board of Film Classification. She lives in London with her husband and daughter. Her daughter, Rohini, is a woman with special needs and specific difficulties with language and communication. "I tend to assume that people, even my dearest friends, are not that interested in my stories of parenting Rohini. I'm perfectly happy to hear stories of their sons, you know, going off to New York and doing a flash job, or someone else's daughter getting into medical school. And I love those stories, I have not a moments envy or resentment or anything. Because I genuinely enjoy the company of young people, my friends children. So I love those stories. I think I do tend to assume that they might not be as interested in my stories, a little triumph when Rohini came out with a new word. I mean, she's 38, for God's sake, to come out with a new word at the age of 38, I tend to assume would be a little bit embarrassing to announce to the world. So yeah, I hold back."

Jaishree Misra is an author of Indian origin living in Britain. She has written eight novels published by Penguin and Harper Collins. She has also written a non-fiction account of building a writer’s studio on the beach in her home state of Kerala, India. She is a postgraduate in English Literature from Kerala University and has two diplomas from the University of London, one in Broadcast Journalism and the other in Special Education. She has worked in special education, journalism and as a film classifier at the British Board of Film Classification. She lives in London with her husband and daughter. Her daughter, Rohini, is a woman with special needs and specific difficulties with language and communication. "I tend to assume that people, even my dearest friends, are not that interested in my stories of parenting Rohini. I'm perfectly happy to hear stories of their sons, you know, going off to New York and doing a flash job, or someone else's daughter getting into medical school. And I love those stories, I have not a moments envy or resentment or anything. Because I genuinely enjoy the company of young people, my friends children. So I love those stories. I think I do tend to assume that they might not be as interested in my stories, a little triumph when Rohini came out with a new word. I mean, she's 38, for God's sake, to come out with a new word at the age of 38, I tend to assume would be a little bit embarrassing to announce to the world. So yeah, I hold back."

We couldn’t be more excited to present to you our conversation with the writer Jaishree Misra. Her debut novel ‘Ancient Promises’ which came out in 2000 was a major best-seller, following which, she has written seven books. But apart from her success as a writer, we delve deep into many other aspects of her life and career. Her personal story is one of breaking social barriers to let her passions thrive, especially as she stepped out of an unhappy marriage and a rigid system to reclaim her own life. She talks about arranged marriages, the stigma surrounding divorce, step parenthood, and the many facets of caring for a child with special needs.

We couldn’t be more excited to present to you our conversation with the writer Jaishree Misra. Her debut novel ‘Ancient Promises’ which came out in 2000 was a major best-seller, following which, she has written seven books. But apart from her success as a writer, we delve deep into many other aspects of her life and career. Her personal story is one of breaking social barriers to let her passions thrive, especially as she stepped out of an unhappy marriage and a rigid system to reclaim her own life. She talks about arranged marriages, the stigma surrounding divorce, step parenthood, and the many facets of caring for a child with special needs.

Episode 45 - In Conversation with Jaishree Misra