South Asian Identity with novelist Preti Taneja

Masala Podcast Episode 3 - SOUTH ASIAN IDENTITYOn this episode I speak to the multi-award-winning novelist, Preti Taneja. Preti was born and grew up in the UK and following a career in human rights reporting, now teaches writing in prison and in universities.Her novel WE THAT ARE YOUNG (Galley Beggar Press) won the 2018 Desmond Elliot Prize for the best debut of the year. It has been described as a 'masterpiece' and an 'instant classic' by critics in India, America and the UK, and was also shortlisted for the Republic of Consciousness Prize and the Books are my Bag Readers Choice Awards, and longlisted for the FOLIO Prize, the Jhalak Prize and for Europe’s most prestigious award for a work of world literature, the Prix Jan Michalski. It has been translated into seven languages to date and will soon be a major international TV series from the makers of Narcos, Gaumont. Preti & I talk about identity, about “fitting in”.We talk about not having a ‘double identity’ but rather a ‘dual reality’. Which makes life far more interesting for those of us who belong to two different cultures. We talk about how shame is used as a weapon by patriarchy to keep us ‘in our place’ Preti also talks about the state legislating over the body and sexual morality – and so many other interesting things.I talk about what my identity is, having moved to the UK from India about 15 years ago. Which parts of me are Indian and which are British? And does it even matter?Masala Podcast is a show for South Asian women, where we talk about all those things that we’re NOT supposed to talk about in our culture. Sex, sexuality, periods, menopause, mental health, shame, sexual harassment and many more taboos.FIND OUT MORE ABOUT MY PLATFORM SOUL SUTRASWebsite: https://soulsutras.co.uk Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Soul_Sutras Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soulsutras/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoulSutrasNetwork/ Join the Soul Sutras newsletter:https://soulsutras.us15.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=ddd9c3fdfeb58cecbc5d8a6b2&id=99fbec55d9MORE ABOUT PRETI TANEJA:Website: http://www.preti-taneja.co.uk/ Twitter: @PretiTanejaLink to buy the novel WE THAT ARE YOUNG: https://www.galleybeggar.co.uk/paperback-shop/we-that-are-young  MASALA PODCAST PRODUCER:Hana Walker-Brown, Multi-Award-Winning Documentary Maker + Composer Executive Producer at Amazon Audible www.hanawalkerbrown.com Music Credit: Sunny Robertson @sunnyrobertsonmusicMentioned in this episode:Inspiring feminist memoir Bad DaughterBad Daughter is my story of going from Mumbai’s slums to New York’s Billboards, with a healing stopover in Kerala. But it’s your story too. It doesn’t matter where you come from, it doesn’t matter what happened to you. You still get to have the life you want. That's the message of this book. My memoir Bad Daughter is deeply personal. I talk about growing up in poverty. I talk about my father’s violence, my mother’s murder. I talk about how I turned my pain into power, navigating mental health, sexuality, spirituality & patriarchy. If you’re looking for a book to move you and inspire you to change your own life, buy this book on Amazon: https://shorturl.at/TDC7g. Or buy directly on my website: https://baddaughter.co.uk/about/ Bad Daughter is an essential feminist book, this inspirational memoir is for every woman who wants to break free. This powerful memoir is a reminder that the courage to be your authentic self can transform your own life – and the lives of those around you.