Veteran actor Deepti Naval’s memoir ‘A Country Called Childhood’ launched in New Delhi – Times of India

Talking about her new memoir, Naval said that she started taking notes for it some 20 years ago. She would often ask her parents to tell about their lives– both as individuals and together as a family, Naval shared. “I shared a whole lot of life with my parents because of the writing of this book. It made me sit with them and know about how they looked at their life in old age, and their struggles to make our lives,” she said at the event.

However, Naval finally started writing the book roughly five years ago. She wanted her parents, whom she lost in the last few years, to read the book, she said.

The book’s blurb reads: A Country Called Childhood is a beautifully told memoir of growing up in Amritsar in the tumultuous 1950s and 60s by award-winning actress Deepti Naval. In extremely visual and evocative prose, Naval describes an unforgettable childhood filled with love, adventure, mystery, tragedy, and joy. She uncovers, in great detail, life in an unconventional Punjabi family while plunging the reader into the distinctive sights, smells, and sounds of a fast-vanishing India. Starting at the moment of her birth on a rainy night, she tracks her journey to adulthood, a path punctuated by many personal turning points as also momentous events of national importance, such as the Sino-Indian War of 1962 and the Indo-Pak War of 1965.

At the event, Naval also shared how she had always dreamt to be an actor. She would often collect pictures of popular stars of her time including Meena Kumari, Nanda and Sadhana’s. The veteran actress-filmmaker also recalled how she also got her formal training in Kathak, but she was never offered a dancing role in any of her films.

In her memoir, Naval also writes about running away from her home to see the mountains as shown in Kashmir-set films ‘Kashmir Ki Kali’ and ‘Jab Jab Phool Khile’, an anecdote noted writer-lyricist Gulzar encouraged her to add in her book.

Meanwhile, praising Naval and her memoir, veteran actress Sharmila Tagore said at the book launch, “She is a sensitive actor, writer, poet, painter, filmmaker, but above all, a thinker. In this book, she delves into her childhood with admirable honesty and artist vision… And the end result is a mesmerizing kaleidoscope of evocative vignettes which hold you spellbound… When you’re exploring Deepti’s journey, you will also explore yours.”

It’s noted that Deepti Naval has also written other books in the past. These include ‘The Mad Tibetan: Stories From Then and Now’ and ‘Black Wind and Other Poems’.

(With inputs from PTI)
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