One Foot on the Ground: A Life Told Through the Body

by Shanta Gokhale

One of the finest and most unusual autobiographies written in contemporary India.
In this unusual, extraordinary autobiography, Shanta Gokhale—writer, translator and one of India’s most illuminating cultural commentators—traces the arc of her life over eight decades through the progress of her body, as it grows, matures and begins to wind down. Starting with her birth in 1939—in philosophic silence, till the doctor’s slap on her bottom made her bawl—she recounts her childhood, youth and middle and old age in chapters built around the many elements and processes of the physical self: tonsils and adenoids, breasts and misaligned teeth; childbirth and fluctuating weight, cancer and bunions. And through these memories emerge others, less visible but just as defining: a carefree childhood growing up in a progressive Marathi household in Mumbai’s Shivaji Park; the pleasures, in adolescence, of badminton, Kathak and hairdressing; the warmth of friends and an almost love in cold England; finding and losing a mate—twice—and bringing up her children as a single parent; the great thrill of her first translation from Marathi into English; nursing her mother, dying of cancer, as she would a baby; surviving cancer herself, and writing her second novel through the recovery.
Told with effortless humour and candour, One Foot on the Ground is the story of a life full of happiness, heartbreak, wonder and acceptance. It will rank among the finest personal histories written in India.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, India, Biography, Autobiography

210 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 10, 2019

About the author

Shanta Gokhale, is an Indian writer, translator, journalist and theatre critic.

Reviews

[Rakhi Dalal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shanta Gokhale is an eminent translator, writer, editor and columnist based in Mumbai, India.

This is her autobiography, where she tells the story of her life, keeping her body and not her mind, as central to her existence. I really enjoyed reading it because I found it a very candid and honest take on life which has been lived in the pursuit of finding what matters most to the author.

My review of the book has been published by Kitaab here:

https://kitaab.org/2020/05/06/one-foo...

I do hope you find the book an enjoyable read too.

[Vartika · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must confess, I was not familiar with either Shanta Gokhale or her works before this book came around. I had been aimlessly browsing at Title Waves Bookstore in Bandra a few weeks ago, when I came across a mesmerizingly simple paperback featuring a woman in a silk saree on the cover. She was smiling, as saree-clad women on book covers rarely are. One look at the blurb and I was sold — thus, One Foot On The Ground entered my most urgent reading lists.

One Foot On The Ground: A Life Told Through The Body is an extraordinary, unique autobiography that traces the life of Gokhale — the becoming of an eminent cultural critic — through the seventy-eight years long journey of her body. From her first cry, to her tonsils, to breasts, cataract and bunions; this book not only chronicles growth and change with eloquence and good humour, it also brings to fore our dependence on our bodies and the intimate relationship we forge with it, every step of the way.

But there is a lot more to the book: it is also a biography of the times; of Bombay, Bristol, and all the places Gokhale remembers and writes about. It speaks of contemporary attitudes; of idyll and bustle; of friendships, relationships, dreams and diagnoses. It speaks without restraint of the feminism experienced by middle-class Indian women in form and practice — with echoes of Woolfian ideals of freedom — and of the raw, often comic, often maddening manner in which society operates. That the author starts by emphasising her happy childhood counters Tolstoy's argument about sameness, and introduces one to the quintessence of her; and this book's; admirability: its refusal to give up its rationalism, to cheapen memory by privileging and exhalting tragedy and pathos.

Despite my unfamiliarity with Gokhale's works, I found this to be an immensely enjoyable and gripping read. The conversational tone, along with the gentle force of the author's voice and word-ly expression makes this memoir truly one of a kind. Even more wonderful is her spirit — her dispassionate recollection of unpleasant caprices in the course of life and of the body, and her lively sense of a purposeful self. One may always not agree with what the author believes in, but one has to concede to her incredible insightful as a testament to her prowess as a cultural commentator.

One Foot On The Ground is simply brilliant. With its sense of adventure, its unusual consciousness and incredible insight into the personal, political, and everything in between; it makes for one of those memoirs one would definitely cherish ad infinitum.

[Jaanaki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shantha Gokhale writes about her life ,right from the moment she comes out of her mother's womb with a philosophical silence followed by a loud bawling that is instigated by a firm slap to her tiny buttocks by the doctor ,till her life today, in association with various parts of her body and the trouble the parts have created for her throughout her life .As she so rightly says,from experience ,even a strong mind is never a match for the body ,which has a mind of its own and we never know when the mechanics stop operating smoothly.The only way to resist is acceptance and to grow a resilient ,adventurous and fighting spirit .Indeed,hers has been a life of adventure and spirit ,all through a middle-class sheltered childhood on Mumbai ,studying in England ,two unsuccessful marriages ,childbirth ,raising her children as a single parent ,continuing with her jobs to feed her family and never losing touch with the intellectual pursuits of reading and writing during the entire journey .Her body in parallel goes through tonsils surgery ,sneezing sessions ,weight loss and gains ,breast cancer ,glaucoma ,cataracts ,a hand fracture and finally bunions on her feet .I was laughing the whole time when reading the chapter titled ,"Brains". I loved reading this because of the way it is written.We can see that , Shantha Gokhale is a truly empowered woman and by empowerment ,I don't mean by education ,or money ,or power .I have seen many educated ,working women who do not even understand empowerment .The empowerment ,I am talking about is the comfort of having the freedom to choose where and how we live,who we talk to ,what we eat and how we wish to lead our lives .She made me look at my body in a totally different way and suddenly I feel very grateful to this body of mind that has weathered so many storms

[Divya Shankar]

Review -
"Our all-too-human condition is the gift of the body we inherit. However high the flights of the mind or of ambition, it is ultimately the body that allows or disallows them."

This is what the author writes in her first chapter which is titled 0 and is like a prelude to her memoir. I must say that despite everything that plagues her health, several issues around menopause and post this period, she has achieved stupendously on the career front. It definitely inspires us readers.

But the clear lack of gut feel or common sense in deciding her life partner/personal choices or even matters of health brushed aside without a second opinion left me with an urge to criticise her. Given her age and her achievements, I shall refrain from doing so. But yes, if I am not allowed to point my finger at what troubled me/left me uninterested while reading the memoir, I guess I should not be going gaga over parts that worked or impressed me as well, precisely the reason why I stay away from memoirs. This book has a good share of both parts.

It's always said, observed as well that a woman is either blessed with a blissful childhood or a relatively hassle free married life, to have both is a rarity, atleast in Indian families. The author too is no exception to this rule. You may read the memoir to know more or why.

Not rating the memoir, taking away a little something from it but definitely not floored by it to the extent of rating it 4 or 5 stars.

Yes, the memoir is unique that a person's body has been (mostly) used to tell a life story, especially/more prominently in old age. There is humour and wit, an all pervading light touch to the writing that helps us sail smoothly through the read. But that same light touch makes us wonder if things were really this rosy at all. An okay read!

[Surabhi Chatrapathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first introduction to Shanta Gokhale was when I heard her and Jerry Pinto in conversation at BLF in 2019. I enjoyed every bit of the session and set my mind to read her works. That plan finally materialized when I picked up her autobiography, One Foot On The Ground.

The book flows with the growth of her body. Her bodily experiences act as the background against which she narrates her life. She writes much like she speaks, with humour and a very matter of fact approach. It was hard to put this one down.

As I've shared earlier I've been reading a lot of memoirs this year, this memoir stands out with the more optimistic perspective it brings to experiences and a cheerful narration. As she says in the beginning, she had a happy childhood and life and that is what she chooses to write about.

At parts, I felt like I was an adventure with her as she found her way in UK during her education. There is a certain determination that drives her life and her writing style. There is also a free spirit who goes after what she wills. It's a story of a feminist, who is one in thought and action.

There were parts that made me wonder if honestly things went by so easily, or she is only recording on paper the lighter, not so intense version of the instances. But that could be the pessimist in me speaking.

But I loved reading the book and engaging in a happy life and story. Her life has been quiet a journey and I am so glad and grateful that Jerry Pinto @mahimkajerry urged her to write it all down. We are all a little better, hopeful and enriched by reading this one!

[Chitra Ahanthem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in a conversational tone, Shanta Gokhale’ autobiography covers her rich life of 78 years in a succinct and almost amusing tone filled with wit that makes the reader desperate for more. The writing of a memoir through memories and association with one’s body and physiology is an interesting style and forges an intimate bond with the reader making one look at how one’s body and its various functions play milestones in our life that we really don’t register.

I loved the author’s dispassionate look at the vagaries of life: illness, old age, the end of relationships and how each takes its toll on one’s mind and body. This is a memoir I wanted more of.

[Swathi · Rating 5 out of 5]

December started on a rough note for me. I ended up in a slump after finishing Rita Welinkar, probably due to my hectic routine or the story's impact on me. While I tried reading few light reads to lift my spirits, what brought me out is again Shanta Gokhale's writing. Full of humour and heavily relatable, Gokhale's memoir told through her body ticks all the right boxes.

I cannot stop gushing over her writing, her experiences , her stories and her persona in general. Writing a memoir through her body and bodily experiences in itself is unique. I remember seeing another similar memoir on Teenu's feed as well. In Bangalore Lit fest, Gokhale mentioned about her happy childhood. People generally perceive that you need an unhappy one to write well.

Starting with her birth, in her parents we find strong support system, someone who challenged the norms of society and giving a new light to progressiveness. Having seen people hesitate to send their kids outside their town for education, I was surprised to learn her father sending her off to London . Coming from a modest family, the family did more than their best to provide encouragement and education to their daughters. Bringing up with solid principles of independence and importance of education while learning other life skills, Gokhale's are a force to reckon.

For all her intelligence, she has made her share of erroneous judgement in her own words. But overcoming these, bringing up her children as single parent, serving a variety of roles in her career from translator to teacher to PR executive. I related to her clumsy experiences and when she mentioned her journey with breast cancer, glaucoma I had my heart in my mouth. At a lot of places, I felt her experiences deeply reflect what I would have done in the situation. I loved reading every bit of this book. I will keep coming back to, some books truly teach you life lessons to always have a positive outlook and face each challenge to the best of your ability. Thanks to Jerry Pinto for pushing her to write this book. In her own way she is living an extraordinary life and that continues to motivate me.

I can't wait to read (devour) more of her writings. And universe if you are listening, I hope I meet her again and tell her how much I love her work.

[Teenu Vijayan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have enjoyed reading memoirs lately and this one is definitely on the top tier of my personal favorites.
The book traces her extraordinary life right from her birth, her first wails to growing up in a progressive household, making life choices that may not have necessarily worked out in her favour but that's how life and to overcoming every hurdle with a sense of optimism that is contagious to say the least.
I honestly am rendered speechless that we know so little about this lady who should be a role model to every girl who wants to live on her own terms.
Sent to England to pursue her education, she doesn't sugar coat the entire living in a foreign country but recounts her struggles to adjust to almost everything.
Her take of every relationship she has had, with no sense of bitterness but just a tinge of regret about how things could have been better. The same goes with her health struggles.
From a daughter to a mother, she has maintained her integrity in all the roles.
Her writing journey is so inspiring and now I understood why Mr Jerry Pinto couldn't stop gushing about her.
I'm going to share my favourite quote from the book : "When there was so much reason to worry, there was no point worrying. A corollary to not worrying was believing that something promising would soon turn up."

[Krutika · Rating 5 out of 5]

• r e c o m m e n d a t i o n • #nonfictionnovember
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Gokhale writes in a manner that appears to be like a conversation between two friends with a cup of coffee warming their palms. There's no judgement nor any sort of hurry in narrating it but only a deep silence that is occasionally broken by the listener's laughter which is entirely due to Gokhale's refreshing sense of humour. I was often surprised by how wittily she addressed certain difficult incidents, halting the readers from feeling too morose. Her incredible idea of writing this autobiography by keeping her body in the spotlight by moving the mind into a shadowy corner shifted the book's success many inches up the ladder. We don't have to look elsewhere for a role model when Gokhale is right here.
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Born in a middle-class family with open minded parents, Shanta and her sister Nirmal were brought up differently. They were asked to focus not only on studies but also in sports of all kinds. The Gokhales' believed in expressing love through actions and it is evidently clear that the author had a lovely childhood. Her parents believed in transparency and she gives an example about how her mom taught her menstruation when she was about ten. Their support even sent her to England to study further where she made friends with a varied set of people. She enjoyed plays, acted in them and participated in debates. She speaks of unexpected friendships with people away from her home and even of her romantic relationship with a man named Otto. When she flew down to India, she dabbled with many careers including that of a columnist, writer, teacher and a relations executive. Through all this Gokhale addresses her marriage(s) candidly, about her body growing old and even about her regrets.
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Gokhale is a mind-blowing writer, whose work falls along the lines of being perfect. There's the right amount of seriousness coupled with humour and wit. She lays down her life as an open book through this autobiography and it inspired me to read about a woman who is unapologetically herself, breezing through all the challenges life throws at her. Although I struggled a bit with the endless names of friends and family that made an appearance in the book, this was in no way a difficult book to read. Gokhale has an innate knack of luring in the readers and leaving them thinking about her writing long after they finish the book. One Foot On The Ground turned out to be one of my favourite non-fiction books of this year and I wouldn't be surprised if you feel the same way once you read it too.

[Shruti · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

One of its kind, this is a unique memoir told through the parts of the body. It is a powerful memoir of a woman who lived life by her own terms. Marital troubles, physical maladies and narrow mindedness did not deter Shanta Gokhale from achieving what she ultimately did. What moved me the most was her undying spirit and the vigour with which she took on life's challenges, not once regretting the choices that shaped her into being the woman she became.

Blessed with parents who were far ahead of their time, she goes to England to complete her studies in an era where it was a rare for women to travel alone within the city they had lived in all their lives. What follows later is a failed relationship, troubled marriage, 2 children, hurdles at the workplace and the struggle to keep up with her two intellectual pursuits - reading & writing, all of which she takes on with a smile. Though this autobiography covers her life from the day she was born till she turned 78, I wish to know more about this courageous woman (something that the almost 300 page long autobiography lacks). This book also brings a strange realization of how one should never take the body for granted. The body that grows, matures and ultimately winds down through the different seasons of life and stands by one through everything that life has to offer. It must be revered, it must be cared for and it must be nurtured.

[Tanvi Agrawal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course I loved the book. That it's a memoir by a female public intellectual already had me.

I love the motif of the body that runs through the book -- even though Shanta Gokhale is an intellectual, whose life should be consumed by being 'in the head', she recenters the materiality of the body in her life and work. (But why doesn't she talk about sex?).

Of course she comes from a highly privileged background which was crucial to the opportunities she got - she briefly acknowledges this and perhaps that is enough(?). This caveat aside, my key away from the book was how to stay engaged in ways that are meaningful to you, without taking yourself too seriously. I also admire the style of writing (which probably mirrors her outlook towards life) which isn't too self-involved. There is a practical attitude of 'getting on with things', which was also in Leila Seth's On Balance, one of my favourite books (also a memoir) of all time. Perhaps it's a thing about women of that generation? (are they the same generation?) They didn't have the time to swim in their emotions or wallow in self-pity - they tried to find a balance between their personal ambitions and 'expected role in society' pushing against it where possible and doing what needed doing for the most part. I find this approach practical and inspiring.

And of course, what's not to love about a book with literary and cultural references sprinkled into the text -- a trail of cookie crumbs to follow and enjoy.

[Suvasini Sridharan reddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sublime! Please do yourself a favour and read this book immediately.

[Prerna Mishra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an author about whose works I was shamefully unaware of. Shanta Gokhale is an eminent writer and translator of Marathi literature. I also found out that she is Renuka Shahane ‘s mother; not that either needs the other for introduction; but the family is blessed with talent.

This is her memoir; a looked back on a life lived fully, genuinely on her terms. And what is the most enticing part is that she uses her body as a tool for her narrative. And no! That’s not obscene. It’s ingenious. Her body organs act as the plot for most of the events in her lives that she describes. From an innocuous tonsil renewal to the deadly cancer; she writes about both the battles of life and body with honesty and objectivity.

I loved her self-deprecating sense of humor which comes on in anecdotes that she recalls with playful candor; a mark of a person completely aware and accepting of their flaws. She went to England to study for high school and then undergraduate degree at a time when women didn’t even go for grocery shopping unaccompanied. The progressive spirit of her father is remarkable. When she chooses to return back and break up a relationship with a Norwegian man; she acknowledges that she doesn’t have what it takes to be a world citizen. Amidst all the desire for being liberated; there is a longing for being rooted. And this is a characteristic of hers throughout; even when it comes to troubled marriages and children. She desires both; like a traditional women of her times; not symbolic of the feminist icon that she is expected to be. But, this is ironically her biggest contribution to feminism in my opinion. Making choices, standing by them, doing what is needed to be done and then accepting the consequences.

Hers was a life I have wanted to know more of. Very well written 280 odd pages, but I wouldn’t have minded more.

[anusha_reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

SHANTA GOKHALE (OOTY LIT. FEST & TATA LIT. LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD and many more awards)
“MY LIFE’S PHILOSOPHY WAS NOT TO LIFT MY SECOND FOOT UNTIL THE FIRST HAD FOUND A FIRM TOEHOLD.”- Shanta Gokhale
A witty, rational, and frank narrative of her life through parts of her body; a very unique way of telling one’s story.
Shanta Gokhale comes across as sensible, versatile, determined, pragmatic and feminist. A voracious reader, and a novelist, she was also the sub editor of FEMINA magazine, translator of many Marathi novels, and much more. I didn’t know that Shanta Gokhale is the famous actor Renuka Shahane’s mother.
A point I noted is that from the beginning she always carved out a ‘Me-Time’ whether she was at college, married, working or a parent. Although Virginia Woolf talks about what curbs women’s creativity in ‘A room of one’s own,’ it was clearer from the narrative of Shanta Gokhale where she reads/ writes undeterred by the complexities in life.
She has mentioned many books that she loved and has aptly used her bookish knowledge in various instances of her life.
Be it her tonsils or her teeth, when she was a girl, a chapter on her nose, about photic sneeze reflex, menstruation or menopause, her hairstyle obsession during her teenage or her hair loss after delivery or her tryst with cancer, every chapter portrays her humour, her resilience and tenacious nature.
The last chapter, a story about her buying shoes at Bata is hilarious and when she finally gets the shoes which are apt for her bunion, she slips her feet into them, yes, slip not squeeze! She thoroughly enjoys her morning walk the next day.
She ends with the lines: Heaven’s Gate …Seventy-eight…Bingo!
The book traverses a journey from her childhood to the age of Seventy- eight.
People face problems in life and every problem has its unique solution. It is nice to read about people’s lives. There are so many questions one has in life for which there is no universal teacher who can solve them all. Autobiographies often reveal how people tackle or juggle various difficult situations in life.
An amazing autobiography, recommended by a friend, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book!
 

[Soumya · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazing autobiography. The book is soo hooking that you just can't let it go until you finish it

I am not a great fan of autobiographies but somehow this held my attention quickly. This book was recommended by one of my acquaintance on her Instagram handle and that's when I decided I will read this.

I had never heard about Shanta Gokhale at all until I read this book. However now , I might read her other books as well.

If you are looking for an autobiography which is non-boring, this is definitely it.
The way she narrates the whole of her life story via various body parts of hers, is all together a different story telling styles I have come across.

Per to me, this book is definitely worth a read 😊

[Anwesa · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best memoirs I have read recently. It was unputdownable, to say the least. We meet Shanta Gokhale - the baby girl, the student and all stages of her till she turns 78. Her relationships with her parents, extended clan, friends, men in her life, children, grandchildren, colleagues, communities and more. Her agency as an individual. Her ideas about feminism. This is a book that appealed to me a lot more than the words penned her describe.

[Geethan Gunaratnam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Liked the idea of narrating a life through the body.

Liked the phases of the book where it is about shanta gokhale's life on europe and its coziness.

But apart from that, the book wasn't so much exciting/thought provoking, insightful for me. A disappointing read, indeed.

[ankit · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the wittiest writings I have come across in my life. Barring few pages, which I just skimped through, the book is an exceptionally woven tale of author's own life. What a life she's lived!

[Gauri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it!! The autobiography has been recounted by the author uniquely- reference to body parts.
The story flows with a touch of humour.

[Arvind Caulagi · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delightful little memoir!

[Divya Nambiar · Rating 4 out of 5]

From tonsils to bunions and beyond

Name of book: One Foot on the Ground : A Life Told through the Body
Name of Author: Shanta Gokhale
Publisher: Speaking Tiger
ISBN: 978-93-88874-85-4
Genre: Non-fiction/ Autobiography
Price: Rs. 399
Pages: 252

This review appeared in the Free Press Journal: https://www.freepressjournal.in/weeke...

Waved into the ante chamber of a labour room when the pain begins, what do you do? You do what's been told to you. And when the gynaecologist, on his morning rounds, asks you what you are doing there, what do you say?
"Having my baby." Of course.

In another instance, she walks out of the MRI 'tunnel' laughing and tells the assistant technician, "That's quite an orchestra you have there."

Written by Shanta Gokhale, one of India's most illuminating cultural commentators, a well-known writer, translator and also, the mother of well-known actress Ms. Renuka Shahane, this is a witty, well-written and humorous autobiography.

The title couldn't have been better considering the justification for the 'one foot on the ground' phenomenon she faced, many a time in life.

Rarely does one discuss autobiographies with one's parents. However, because there was a mention of INS Hamla in the book and there is a tendency in the family to get emotional at the mention of it (thanks to their childhood and youth spent there), the reader had to.

And to top it, mother quipped in, "That means I received a prize from the author's first husband when I was in school."

When you realise there's a connection like that, you automatically get even more interested. And thus, the reader sped up reading a book which started on a slow pace but with the years adding up, gained pace eventually.

Divided into 31 chapters and united by a body (no soul, please, for she doesn't believe in it. Phew! What a relief!), this is a must read for those who want to experience their own bodies in a new light (no generation-gap humbug involved).

"I'm evenly dark, inside and out. I can live in the Arctic all my life and still be this colour." Saying that to an Anglo-Saxon (pink inside and out) takes a lot more than humour, especially when one grows up in a country that weighs worth on the basis of fairness (no matter how much we claim to have left that long back in our sophisticated, modernised journeys, it's a thriving reality).

Brutally honest writing ( 'many of my ideas for stories were conceived over the chapati rolling-board'), spiced with facts of the time, makes it a resourceful read.

Be it the Jai Telangana movement of the 1969 or the Jay Andhra movement of 1972, or the way menus were decided for the get-togethers that the Naval Officers' Wives Association (NOWA) regularly had, or the fresh perspective to the reader about the Babri Mosque issue -- all of them have been described with great panache. There's also a mention of the Drug Price Control Order. Personally, it was like living history with a zestful person in tow.

Thank you, Shanta ma'am, for coming alive from the photograph from your columns in Mumbai Mirror and taking the reader on a personal tour of all your highs and lows (horse fall included).

The reader comes out unscathed despite everything, albeit with a lot of experiences to treasure for a long time.

For more reviews, head here: https://critiquedontcriticize.blogspo...

[RK · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got to not know about Shanta Gokhale only after reading an excerpt from her book One Foot on the Ground: A Life Told Through the Body. I bought my copy after getting bowled over by the author’s wizardry of words and profound observations.

"However high the flights of the mind or of ambition, it is ultimately the body that allows or disallows them. Athletes have a proper sense of this. After his eighth Wimbledon win, Roger Federer said, 'Again and again I am grateful my body has cooperated.' He was thirty-six, which is supposedly ancient for tennis. It is vital then to accept the body in all its beauty, mystery and power; to know that the images we build of ourselves might one day be rudely shattered by its exigencies."

I found out later that she is the author of several English & Marathi books, translator, scriptwriter and mother of actress Renuka Shahane.

After the author reveals at various points in the book, I also learned that she's a feminist, rationalist, atheist and cancer survivor. Her convictions and independence of spirit shine through her writing. I enjoyed reading her autobiography immensely.

I loved how the author conveys her deep appreciation of the human body while weaving her life story on the theme of human body parts. She narrates in a lighthearted way the highs and lows of her life without flinching when it comes to her weaknesses. Peppered with gentle humor and keen observations about life, the book is engaging & insightful even when she talks about her illnesses and medical issues.

[K.sampath]

Got this book recommendation from someone on the Chalchitra talks youtube channel, when I decided to read diverse books. I never heard of Shanta Gokhale or her works. Autobiography through her body is itself very interesting. There are lots of incidents throughout her life that shows how strong a woman she is. Not typical Indian women we see of that era. She was good at sports, dance, journalism, teaching, and writing. Shantha's father was remarkable, at one point he says to her "why do you have to marry ?". I haven't seen any father saying so even in 2022. Some of her best work as an author was when she was in cancer therapy in her 50s to support her medical expenses. Brave !. Her journals to her friends/family during her cancer therapy make me feel what exactly she is going through. Felt she haven't opened up much on most of the important decisions she took in her life. But by the end of the book had a feeling that what a fantastic life she had lived.

[Nandini Arora · Rating 4 out of 5]

it's strange. what i retain from the book is not the sequential events of her life. But her attitude. the way she has chosen to recount her life is just by sharing what she is, way more than a product of any circumstances or happenings in her life. i had never read her before, much to my shame. and no i did not know her as renuka shahane's mum either, just some marathi, progressive writer, i would vaguely read. but she is the kind of writer one should learn marathi for!

[Shruthi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved, loved, loved this book.
I like reading memoirs of women writers especially when it is also funny. There is just something about women narrating their life and talking about their marriages that worked or didn't work among other things nonchalantly.