Storizen Magazine June 2018 Issue Storizen Magazine June 2018 Issue | Page 24

COVER STORY
After I made Nanak Shah Fair, a multiple national award
winning film – that was Sehmat’s blessing to me - I was
more than convinced that ‘Calling Sehmat’ should hit
the silver screen and destiny took over from there on.
The journey of
writing the book and
then seeing it turned
into a movie, how
and what was your
experience?
It took me eight years
to write the book and
publish it in 2008. It
took me another few
years to minutely
correct and rewrite
the same. Penguin
India came as a
blessing and took the
book to a new height.
After I made Nanak
Shah Fair, a multiple
national award
winning film – that
was Sehmat’s
blessing to me - I
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STORIZEN MAGAZINE
was more than
convinced that
‘Calling Sehmat’
should hit the silver
screen and destiny
took over from there
on.
How much time
you have devoted
to writing this
book?
I spent many months
to reshape the book.
'Calling Sehmat' is a
passion in motion to
someone deep within
me who was
emotionally attached
to this amazing
character. I wanted
to ensure that the
lead character did
not go away unsung.
It must have taken
enormous effort in
researching about
Sehmat and her
story. Where it all
did began? Did the
story leave you
feeling heavy and
haunted?
Researching on
Sehmat itself became
a passion for me. It
began from a point
where I heard the
sentence “my mother
wasn’t a traitor”. I
witnessed from close
quarters many
Sehmats helping our
forces. Sehmat's acts
of valor and courage
pierced the soul
within, brought me
JUNE 2018