Shobha De

Shobha De is an eminent Indian novelist, who is often known as India's Jackie Collins. She was born as
Shobha Rajadhyaksha to the Saraswat Brahmin family of Maharashtra on the January 7, 1947. She
completed her graduation from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai and obtained degree in Psychology. In this
article, we will present you with the biography of Shobha De, a well known Indian writer.

In the beginning of her career, she worked as a model and made a name for herself. Thereafter, she thought
of changing her profession. Then, she pursued her career in Journalism. She brought out three magazines
namely Stardust, Society, and Celebrity. Presently, she is working as a freelance writer for a couple of
newspapers and magazines. To know the complete life history of Shobha Dey, read on.

These days, she is staying with her second husband Dilip De along with their children in one of the posh
colonies of Mumbai. Most of her writings focus on different aspects of urban India. The erotic matter that she
has written in the past has become the subject of controversy. She has also been actively involved in writing
scripts for various TV soaps like Swabhimaan.

At present, she is working as a columnist and writes for a fortnight magazine "The Week". In this periodical,
she writes on varied issues concerning the society. She speaks her mind in her writings. She often
expresses her dissatisfaction with respect to the behavior exhibited by the present day generation. Many a
times, she has been held responsible for accelerating the pace and bringing about a sexual revolution
through her writings in the column "The Sexes" of the magazine "The Week". She has also written a couple
of erotic novels.

Notable Works of Shobha De

Starry Nights
Socialite Evenings
Sultry Days
Sisters
Small betrayals
Second Thoughts
Surviving Men
Spouse
Snapshots
Selective Memory

Indian women writers

Women writers in India are moving forward with their strong and sure strides, matching
the pace of the world. We see them bursting out in full bloom spreading their own
individual fragrances. They are recognized for their originality, versatility and the
indigenous flavor of the soil that they bring to their work. Yes, they are our women
writers. Writers first, I must insist. Gender is only incidental…but, one must admit, it
does spice up their work.
Some well-known Indian women writers who write in English

We see Indian women writers like Shashi Deshpande, Arundhati Roy, Anita Desai,
Kamala Das and Shobha De, just to name a few, who hold their own in the woman
writer’s world of initial rejection, dejection, familial bonds, domesticity and whatnot. It is
amazing to note that these writers and many more have climbed the ladder of success the
slow and painful way. Arundhathi Roy’s phenomenal success took everyone, including
herself by surprise. After all, she did admit that she had just been “fooling around” on her
new computer and that it took her at least five months to realize that she had a story, let
alone a novella in the making, though she had always known she would be a writer.

Shashi Deshpande, on the other hand, started out just like any other starry eyed young
writer- in- the- making. Like innumerable potential women writers she began her work
with national magazines such as Femina and Eve’s Weekly, slowly branched out to more
serious literature oriented magazines such as The Illustrated Weekly of India, The Junior
Statesman and so on. She has also mentioned that writing is a gift, sometimes like a
fountain that spouts out words. Although she had the writer’s gene in her system (Her
father was a great Kannada dramatist and Sanskrit scholar), she has had her share of
writer’s block too. There have been times when she would not be able to write even a
paragraph! According to her, writing is more like a ‘patchwork quilt’. Bits and pieces
come together at odd times and places and finally merge as a sequenced whole.

Kamala Das, the controversial writer who had her feet firmly on the ground and could get
to the brass tacks in no time at all. She had a child marriage and three children followed.
Her husband agreed that she should follow her instincts and in the process, augment the
family income. But being a woman, however, she could not enjoy a regular morning-till-
night working schedule. Her writing schedule was, on the contrary, a night-till-morning
affair when the family had all gone to bed. Her working table was the kitchen table where
she would cut up the vegetables, get the table cleared, and then, start typing. Though this
working time-table reflected on her health, it did give her time to manage a home as
well…a woman’s idea of an essential pre-requisite for a job.

Anita Desai seems to have had a simple middle class upbringing with a German angle to
it. Her mother, Toni Nime was of German origin. Perhaps that is why Desai has
confluences of sorts in her writing.

Shobha De, a controversial writer, has had diverse career roles ranging from model to
columnist. All her published novels have been successful. Currently we have witnessed
her make a literary transition from writing-projects based on a rather flashy, elite society
with emphasis on its extra-marital affairs, to a more mature and rather philosophical work
on life and the myriad of twists and turns in relationships.

Sudha Murthy has reached her destination the hard way having shouldered many a
responsibility on the way, including supporting her illustrious husband through it all. She
has fulfilled her dreams, though it appears as though she has always taken the back seat
in life. She now heads Infosys Foundation, is an engineer, a teacher, writer, mother and
wife.

The quality of their work:

These women writers have given literary work in India an unmistakable edge. They are
able to sensitively portray a world that has in it women rich in substance. Their women
are real flesh-and- blood protagonists who make you look at them with awe with their
relationships to their surroundings, their society, their men, their children, their families;
their mental make-ups and themselves.

Now writing in India has not been treated as a medium for entertainment alone. We have
a vast storehouse as far as non-fiction is concerned. Women writers in India do not
merely write jet-set tales of intrigue and fantasy. Shobha De has moved away from the
beaten path and has actually undertaken a serious analysis of the man-woman relationship
in marriages. She has made certain insightful comments that will do the average Indian
woman a lot of good. For instance she advises that a woman ought to announce to her
partner right at the beginning of the relationship that she too has a set of priorities and
prerogative (s) other than him because men don’t like to be taken by surprise.

Sudha Murthy, the reputed wife of Infosys giant Narayana Murthy, has written a tenderly
humorous account of their modest beginnings and their subsequent growth in life. Her
account of her life before and after Narayana Murthy, the birth and growth of Infosys and
her novels in general, provide an impetus and kindle positive thinking in her readers. Her
work exudes simple realism and empathy. All the little things in life that go a long way
are highlighted. She says, for example, that she chose to stay back to keep house and rear
the children while her husband went out to brave the outside world, and in the process, let
Infosys grow out of their cramped living quarters where it had been born in the first
place! Her huge contribution in the birth and growth of Infosys is well known.

Women writers in India not only sweep you off your feet with just their down-to-earth
attitudes, but they also have you nodding with wisdom and agreement. Their leading
ladies jerk the average Indian readers out of their typical Indian complacency regarding
gender issues. One might tend to think of women writers only in a Mills and Boon
context, but women writers in India have proved that they are made of sterner and more
serious stuff than that. Our women writers have grappled with complex issues such as
sensuality, servility, subjugation and society. They have handled them with a sense of
balance, never disregarding our Indian traditions, yet discovering that there is more in the
offing.

Detailed intimate descriptions (marital or otherwise) have been an issue of controversy

both with Kamala Das and Shobha De. When one goes through this kind of graphic
literature, one is certainly struck by a sense of Déjà vu…haven’t we all witnessed or even
played these scenes somewhere, sometime… in the backs of our heads? It takes a lot of
grit or perhaps even a touch of arrogant defiance, for a woman writer, albeit an Indian
woman writer, to express it in writing and place it on exhibition to the entire world!
Women writers in India can no longer be claimed as the exclusive property of India.
Their work and their art belong to the world.

Books to read:

My Story-Kamala Das
The Descendants- Kamala Das
Moving On – Shashi Deshpande
That Long Silence - Shashi Deshpande
The Dark Holds No Terrors - Shashi Deshpande
The God of Small Things – Arundhati Roy
Baumgartner's Bombay - Anita Desai
The Peacock – Anita Desai
Fire on the Mountain – Anita Desai
Spouse: The Truth about Marriage - Shobhaa De
Wise and Unwise – Sudha Murthy