The seeds of 'No Worries'

I grew up in a small town in South London, during the 80's and 90's the town was dominated by North Indian families. My parents had a video shop, Bollywood movie rentals, all the recent hits were available at the little Indian Entertainment store, my father also filmed and edited wedding films. My elder sisters helped with the store, my younger brothers and I were too young to help so we watched the latest Bollywood films, inspecting the picture quality. Most of the customers would visit the video shop to chit chat with my parents as well as to rent out their weekly film. We were good with giving reviews as we had watched all of our stock! Back in the 90's the Bollywood scene was very- 'power to the people', the poor fighting against the rich and corrupt, it was very male dominated. Now stepping away from the screen and onto the streets, during this time there were talks about a woman called 'Phoolan Devi', who was a female rebel/bandit (you may remember the film Bandit Queen) She was probably the first Indian female activist in her right. Talks of her fight for justice seem to spread across the globe, every Indian residing out of India, were aware of the way she had been tortured, her struggle and need to be heard. Most Indian women were stunned but were slowly waking up to the idea of a woman taking control of her life, be it with the aid of a gun. I didn't understand the stories at the time, but now I realise how these real life stories were due to be a catalyst for mine.

Some of the women that the characters are based on:

One of my mum's friends- a young Punjabi woman, she had an arranged marriage, had two sons, who were a 4 or 5 years older than me. She spent a lot of time at our house and shop, she was particularly fond of me, I was a cute baby (so I've been told) and I seemed to cheer her up. She would have appeared in my life when I was just a few months old. She always wanted a little girl, despite her families' obsession with sons, it didn't matter to her because though she had produced two sons, her husband still insisted on abusing her. The only place she had safety was at our video shop where she spent as much time as possible. I was 6 years old when her husband committed suicide and soon after, she left the area with her sons- I think she moved to Canada. I never saw her again but while growing up, I heard more about what had happened to her and how she had escaped the life that she was imprisoned in.

I wondered what she would be like if she stood up to her husband, if she defended herself against her family who were just as bad as the husband. She was the strong silent type, her best feature was her maternal side, the warmth of which is stored in my childhood memory. From knowing a woman so suppressed, I had my mother on the other side who was far from suppressed and definitely not silent. She has been a loving mother, very protective, once she loves you- its for life, when she hates you... that is also for life. There are no limits to her sarcasm and wit, she used to have a bit of a hot head, specially when her prize possessions were involved... being her children. She is probably the most fearless woman I've ever known, I've only seen her vulnerable once and that was during the time of her mothers death. She's always stuck by her beliefs be it right or wrong, she is titanium!

Moving on from those personalities to those of my generation, one of my oldest friends, we met in college, she is the most sweetest and clean hearted woman I know, she is extremely beautiful, yet very modest. Actually I don't think she realises how amazing she is, she has an air of purity and innocence about her. This friend of mine was the first person to read through the first chapter I drafted round 10 years ago in my attic, she said that I should complete it and that is what I decided to do. Another source of inspiration was a friend who I've known from that time also, she's most resilient person I know and intelligent beyond her understanding. However, at the time she was very cautious and panicked over the slightest thing, she has been forced to compromise throughout her life. I am still fascinated by the way she faces a problem head on, she has never run away from a problem, she has always made the best of a situation. She was also one of the first people to read the entire rough draft of the story. She has also stuck by my side through thick and thin, she is not only my best friend, she's my rock!

The plan was to complete the story for my friends to read. It was more for me, I had such an issue with getting into books... I still do, my reading list is very minimal- yes I am aware that for a writer that is strange. I couldn't find a book that held my interest, so I decided to write one, how about that! If I can do it, anyone can. Find that story that drives you and start tapping those keys, dish out those words and you just never know, your story may entertain one person or more.

The book is available as an ebook on amazon, if there is a popular demand for paper back, I'm sure we can find a way to get it printed.

JoT

Paperback available here and Ebook available here

The girls behind 'No Worries'

Five young Punjabi girls who'd never stepped out of Punjab before getting locked behind bars. They were incarcerated to help society, the girls were meant to be an example of what happened to those women who stepped out of line.

The girls have a very different outlook on life and their surrounding, they were born to fly and live freely. Though their wings had been clipped by society, this didn't stop their hunger for freedom, this could not stop them from running!

Rani- 24 years old, has a sensible and serious nature. She plays the 'mother role' at most. After all, she is the one with the answers and solutions. She's reserved, head strong and protective of her loved ones.

Jags- 22, feisty and aggressive, she the most courageous out of the five- she'd go miles out for those she cares for. A practical creature who doesn't have a lot of patience and doesn't think before speaking.

Bilo- 19, not the sharpest tool, she's naive, caring and very beautiful. She doesn't understand her potential or her abilities, she views the world and people from a different angle compared to the norm. Bilo is known to be a sweetheart and a supportive friend.

Preeti- 19, intelligent beyond her years, a devout book worm, more theoretical than practical. She is timid by nature and tends to surprise herself with sudden outbursts of confidence when in a jam. She panics easily and over analyses things.

Gulab- 20 and the joker of the pack, carefree and mischievous, finds it hard to have a serious conversation. Relaxed about most things, a bit of a party animal and a bit of a passionate cook.

The only thing they have in common is that they don't believe in 'giving up' and they couldn't get through without cooking a chicken curry made with love! It would be unfair for them not to give us something after reading their story, so the girls kindly give us their traditional Punjabi Chicken Curry recipe.


JoT

Paperback available here and Ebook available here