'The best words in the best order'

Assembled in five sections, Ms Deshpande's perspectives touch upon an array of subjects

Anyone who has written for a reasonably long time must have dealt with the following questions: Why do I write? What use are my words? What’s my location in the canon of literature? Who can be called an “Indian writer”? Am I one if I’m writing in English either here, in my homeland, or abroad?

Over the years, several writers have tried to wrestle with these questions. No one claims to have addressed them fully. In the Indian context, if someone has meditated on these questions with sensitivity and clarity, breaking away from the cabal of entitled male writers, then it’s