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You Are Here
For Arshi, the protagonist of You Are Here, life is at a crossroads. A cheating ex, a flat-mate who not only mixes fantastic cocktails but also reality with a touch of fantasy, the archetypal she-dragon for a boss, a best friend who’s getting married, and a guitar-strumming hottie who blows hot or cool according to his own internal compulsions—we have all of the makings for a pot-boiler of 20-something anguish, emotional see-saws and lots of heart break. Add to this little nuggets of startling insights that shake you out of your complacent little world and you realise that reality is far seedier than you ever imagined—Arshi’s anorexic friend nearly dies of alcohol poisoning aggravated by drug use, done to please her bored, rich boyfriend; her ‘friendly’ neighbour is quite ready to ‘warm’ Arshi’s bed while she struggles to even find the correct labels for the men in her life; and although she is at peace with her parent’s bohemian lifestyle, the details of the drinking, smoking and drugs does make one wonder at what kind of life it was for an impressionable child exposed to little else. Still it’s wonderful to know that we have women like MRM who know what they want, have an opinion and are not afraid to voice that opinion, and a mind of their own not clouded by cultural impositions or western influence. "Sometimes I think this ‘comfort’ thing is the basic problem with all adult relationships. When we stop acting like we’re unique from our partners`85the enigma vanishes and we become regular people`85Who really wants to be that and lose the allure of being an unfathomable, extraordinary woman? It’s feminism of a different brand, I guess." Here is a voice from a generation that is truly representatives of modern India, a nation that does not bend itself to self-effacing western idiosyncrasies, a nation that sets its own standards, a nation on its way of discovering itself Saucy, wise and audaciously candid, You Are Here introduces a bold and irresistible new voice.
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GOOD
girls don’t booze. Good girls don’t sleep around, and good girls
certainly steer clear of potentially dangerous situations. Bullshit,
says Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan in her debut impertinent-meets-urban
daily-living book. One of the country’s most famous women bloggers,
MRM, as she is also known, has always been writing about life as a
young, single woman in India. Refreshingly candid about her life and
detailing everything from drinking and smoking to sexual escapades, she
has won an audience that loves her bold style and can relate to her
experiences.