Women’s painful stories urge Azra to write ‘Tearful Pages’
Awantipora: A simple but high thinking author cum novelist Azra Mufti, hailing from north Kashmir's Baramulla district has came out with her unveiling novel ‘Tearful Pages’ that talks about the various painful stories regarding the tolerance and violence against women to highlight the gender issues and crimes in a society. Talking on the diverse aspects, Azra shared the journey of her life in an exclusive interview with Imtiyaz Pandow.
Give us a brief introduction about yourself, educational and family background.
As a very simple human being, I only believe in simple living and high thinking. Reading and writing has always been my first love. I feel relaxed when I write. I did my schooling from Saint Joseph Higher Secondary School Baramulla and then went to Chandigarh, where I did my Bachelors and Masters in Business Administration. My parents worked in Education department as lecturers. I worked as an Assistant Professor in Islamic University of Science and Technology Awantipora. Presently, I am working as a Research Scholar in Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University, Rajouri.
What was your aim when you were a student? Did this writing change your aim?
I wanted to be a journalist since childhood but somehow I could not actualize that dream. But I kept on writing for few newspapers since my adolescence that harnessed my writing skills. Writing did actually change my take on life and my passion for becoming a writer developed gradually.
When did you start writing as a professional and what was your first piece of writing? Tell us what was your first piece about.
I remember the first time when my writings got public. It was in year 2009 when I wrote a small letter to editor about the hike in petrol prices. There was no looking back after that. Letters changed into columns, columns into chapters and chapters into a book.
What are the interesting areas you want to write about?
Any issue that can bring a change for better and somehow that is connected to society like current, economic, political or social issues.
What was the inspiration to become a writer?
My family, my parents are my biggest inspiration, who always wanted me to do something bigger and better with my life that acted as a trigger for my achievements.
As your first book is “Tearful Pages”, tell us what inspired you to write this book and provide a context regarding its title.
Since my childhood, I have always noticed that there is a huge difference between what people preach and what they practice. I came to believe that a woman is treated as an object of lust and people are losing their morals when it comes to giving dignity and respect to women. I also read a lot about the various crimes that are being committed daily against women and how women are exploited in different ways. These things motivated me to channelize my writings into something productive and thus I came up with an idea of the novel. My parents were always very supportive of my decision and their support is what keeps me moving. My novel “Tearful Pages” talks about the various painful stories about tolerance and violence against women. The stories are very haunting and every woman who has faced any sort of violence can relate to these stories in one way or the other.
What is the main issue that you have discussed in the book, and what was your main objective for writing this book?
The book which is comprised of 100 pages highlights the gender issues and crimes against women. There are definitely a lot of issues that need a pensive pondering but given the statistics of crime and incidents that occur each day against women, I felt a strong urge to write something about it. Times are changing but stereotypes are not, women are still facing harassment in one form or other, so just these bottled up emotions inside me had to come out and what could have been a better way than to write about it.
What do you expect a reader will get after reading your book?
The reader will definitely be enlightened about the global issues about women in a very lucid and comprehensible way. I expect that if not much, but it should at least change the mindset of people about the repressive status of women.
What hardships did you face while compiling the book?
The biggest challenge I faced was that of emotional factor. Sometimes the words got too personal that I cried while typing. Again, time factor was an important consideration, I had to manage my job and writings simultaneously. As in January 2016, I started to work on this book and it took me about eight months to complete the manuscript.
Share the experience of your journey from being a student to a teacher and from a teacher to a writer and successful author.
This journey has been exhilarating! The journey from being a student to a teacher was a very learning and growing experience. I learnt a lot of things in between. The journey from being a teacher to a writer was totally accidental but a challenging and enlightening experience.
How did you manage your time at the times when you may be busy with other works besides the compilation of the book?
At times, it was too difficult to manage writing and other things but a disciplined and focused approach is what helped me with getting things done.
Share your feelings for getting your first book published. Are you satisfied with what you expected to get after writing the book?
It was a great feeling indeed. A sense of accomplishment was felt when I first got an acceptance. As your maiden book is always special so is Tearful Pages for me. With high thanks to Almighty Allah, I am satisfied with the response of the readers. I also believe there is always a room for improvement so one should always try to improve at different levels.
Who published your book and how many copies of it were published at the first time and now in total?
It was published by RIGI PUBLICATTIONS from Khanna. I am sure that more than 500 books have been sold so far.
What are your future plans? Do you want to continue or have any other plans?
I am working on my second publication as of now and will continue to write in future if God wills.
What do you want to say to the budding writers, or who want to be writers in future or those who have not got any opportunity to publish their work?
My message to young writers would be: "Focus on your writings and never lose your originality. Develop a writing style of your own and always look for improvements."
Any message for all girls in general and Kashmiri girls in particular?
My message for Kashmiri girls in particular and girls in general is: "Never compromise on your dignity! Remember dust settles but we don’t! Do not sacrifice your dignity for your destiny and learn to stand up for what is right. Bring honor to your parents and learn how to deal with problems gracefully. Girls are full of power and nobody will serve it to you, you have to take it and lead.
As a very simple human being, I only believe in simple living and high thinking. Reading and writing has always been my first love. I feel relaxed when I write. I did my schooling from Saint Joseph Higher Secondary School Baramulla and then went to Chandigarh, where I did my Bachelors and Masters in Business Administration. My parents worked in Education department as lecturers. I worked as an Assistant Professor in Islamic University of Science and Technology Awantipora. Presently, I am working as a Research Scholar in Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University, Rajouri.
What was your aim when you were a student? Did this writing change your aim?
I wanted to be a journalist since childhood but somehow I could not actualize that dream. But I kept on writing for few newspapers since my adolescence that harnessed my writing skills. Writing did actually change my take on life and my passion for becoming a writer developed gradually.
When did you start writing as a professional and what was your first piece of writing? Tell us what was your first piece about.
I remember the first time when my writings got public. It was in year 2009 when I wrote a small letter to editor about the hike in petrol prices. There was no looking back after that. Letters changed into columns, columns into chapters and chapters into a book.
What are the interesting areas you want to write about?
Any issue that can bring a change for better and somehow that is connected to society like current, economic, political or social issues.
What was the inspiration to become a writer?
My family, my parents are my biggest inspiration, who always wanted me to do something bigger and better with my life that acted as a trigger for my achievements.
As your first book is “Tearful Pages”, tell us what inspired you to write this book and provide a context regarding its title.
Since my childhood, I have always noticed that there is a huge difference between what people preach and what they practice. I came to believe that a woman is treated as an object of lust and people are losing their morals when it comes to giving dignity and respect to women. I also read a lot about the various crimes that are being committed daily against women and how women are exploited in different ways. These things motivated me to channelize my writings into something productive and thus I came up with an idea of the novel. My parents were always very supportive of my decision and their support is what keeps me moving. My novel “Tearful Pages” talks about the various painful stories about tolerance and violence against women. The stories are very haunting and every woman who has faced any sort of violence can relate to these stories in one way or the other.
What is the main issue that you have discussed in the book, and what was your main objective for writing this book?
The book which is comprised of 100 pages highlights the gender issues and crimes against women. There are definitely a lot of issues that need a pensive pondering but given the statistics of crime and incidents that occur each day against women, I felt a strong urge to write something about it. Times are changing but stereotypes are not, women are still facing harassment in one form or other, so just these bottled up emotions inside me had to come out and what could have been a better way than to write about it.
What do you expect a reader will get after reading your book?
The reader will definitely be enlightened about the global issues about women in a very lucid and comprehensible way. I expect that if not much, but it should at least change the mindset of people about the repressive status of women.
What hardships did you face while compiling the book?
The biggest challenge I faced was that of emotional factor. Sometimes the words got too personal that I cried while typing. Again, time factor was an important consideration, I had to manage my job and writings simultaneously. As in January 2016, I started to work on this book and it took me about eight months to complete the manuscript.
Share the experience of your journey from being a student to a teacher and from a teacher to a writer and successful author.
This journey has been exhilarating! The journey from being a student to a teacher was a very learning and growing experience. I learnt a lot of things in between. The journey from being a teacher to a writer was totally accidental but a challenging and enlightening experience.
How did you manage your time at the times when you may be busy with other works besides the compilation of the book?
At times, it was too difficult to manage writing and other things but a disciplined and focused approach is what helped me with getting things done.
Share your feelings for getting your first book published. Are you satisfied with what you expected to get after writing the book?
It was a great feeling indeed. A sense of accomplishment was felt when I first got an acceptance. As your maiden book is always special so is Tearful Pages for me. With high thanks to Almighty Allah, I am satisfied with the response of the readers. I also believe there is always a room for improvement so one should always try to improve at different levels.
Who published your book and how many copies of it were published at the first time and now in total?
It was published by RIGI PUBLICATTIONS from Khanna. I am sure that more than 500 books have been sold so far.
What are your future plans? Do you want to continue or have any other plans?
I am working on my second publication as of now and will continue to write in future if God wills.
What do you want to say to the budding writers, or who want to be writers in future or those who have not got any opportunity to publish their work?
My message to young writers would be: "Focus on your writings and never lose your originality. Develop a writing style of your own and always look for improvements."
Any message for all girls in general and Kashmiri girls in particular?
My message for Kashmiri girls in particular and girls in general is: "Never compromise on your dignity! Remember dust settles but we don’t! Do not sacrifice your dignity for your destiny and learn to stand up for what is right. Bring honor to your parents and learn how to deal with problems gracefully. Girls are full of power and nobody will serve it to you, you have to take it and lead.
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