Meher Pestonji
Meher Pestonji | |
|---|---|
| Born | 19 September 1946 Mumbai, India |
| Occupation | novelist, social worker, journalist |
| Nationality | Indian |
Meher Pestonji is an Indian social worker, freelance journalist, and writer. [1] Pestonji has fought for the rights of the oppressed and underprivileged since the 1970s.[2]
Life
Pestonji was born on 19 September 1946. She comes from the Parsi community in India and lives in Mumbai with her two daughters .[2] Pestonji chose freelance journalism after her marriage broke up. Freelancing gave her the opportunity to expand her areas of work and contribute freely. [1]
Career
Pestonji participated actively in the campaign to change rape law in the 1970s. She fought for the housing rights of slum dwellers, children's rights and anti-communalism campaigns.[3] After the Babri Masjid riots in 1992-93, she took up to fight communalism and parochialism. She was a part of group of communal harmony activists who worked to restore the peace after the Mumbai riots in which close to 900 people died. [4] Around this time, she took creative writing as a career. [2] In the mid-1980s, Pestonji worked with street children and mobilised support for filmmaker Anand Patwardhan's campaign against slum destruction. During the Mumbai riots she worked with mohalla committees in Dharavi. [5] For her work, Pestonji interviewed scientists,businesspeople, and social workers.[1]
Works
Pestonji's writing is closely tied to her personal and journalist experiences along with the society she saw around her. She has the below novels to her credit
- Mixed Marriage and Other Stories Parsi , HarperCollins 1999 - This book is a collection of stories and provide an insight into a community living. Written with Mumbai as the backdrop, the stories also reflect the mindset of the city at troubled times. [5]
- Pervez, HarperCollins 2003 - This novel traces the political maturation of Pervez, a young Parsi woman based in Mumbai whose marriage to a Christian man has turned bitter. Coming from an affluent background, Pervez starts participating in an activist movement in the months prior to the demolition of the Babri masjid.[1]
- Sadak Chhaap, Penguin India 2005 [2] - This novel is the story of Rahul, a part-time rag-picker, pickpocket and petty thief who takes charge of an abandoned baby on a railway platform. His tory as the new hero within his street community and his struggle as he finds himself spiralling into a vortex of crime, abuse and loneliness. [3]
- Piano for sale, a play
References
- ^ a b c d "Meher Pestonji - Biographical Sketch". Retrieved 15 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Pervez - Meher Pestonji". Retrieved 15 November 2016.
- ^ a b "BookChums profile". Retrieved 15 November 2016.
- ^ "Times of Inida". Retrieved 15 November 2016.
- ^ a b "Mixed Marriage - India Today". Retrieved 15 November 2016.