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Alka Joshi

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Alka Joshi

Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ Author


Born
in Jodhpur, India
Website

Twitter

Genre

Influences
rohintin mistry: /author/show... ...more

Member Since
May 2009


There comes a point in every daughter's life when she begins seeing her mother as a person separate from her family, someone who has an identity outside of motherhood. That was the moment I began re-imagining my mother's life, and that re-imagining became THE HENNA ARTIST. I was born in Rajasthan, India, and moved with my family to the U.S. when I was nine. Even after graduating from Stanford University, and working in advertising and marketing, I never considered becoming an author. But taking my mother to India in her later years changed all that. In 2011, I got my MFA in Creative Writing from the California College of Arts in San Francisco, California. It took 10 years, a lot of research, and many trips to India to complete my debut nove ...more

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Popular Answered Questions

Alka Joshi I'm so pleased you took the time to tell me that. Before social media, it was so difficult for me to send messages to authors whose books I devoured. …m´Ç°ù±ðI'm so pleased you took the time to tell me that. Before social media, it was so difficult for me to send messages to authors whose books I devoured. Funny you should ask about more books. I wrote a sequel to The Henna Artist, and the publisher already bought it. We're working on edits now. It's the same characters, 12 years later. I missed them so much that I had to write about them again even though I have 2 other book ideas started! Thank you for your question. :-)
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Alka Joshi Absolutely! They will feature the same major characters and take place 12 years into the future and 18 years into the future, respectively. I love the…m´Ç°ù±ðAbsolutely! They will feature the same major characters and take place 12 years into the future and 18 years into the future, respectively. I love these characters so much that I miss them when I'm not writing about them :-) Thank you for asking!(less)
Average rating: 4.16 · 298,283 ratings · 24,297 reviews · 11 distinct works â€� Similar authors
The Henna Artist (The Jaipu...

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The Secret Keeper of Jaipur...

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The Perfumist of Paris (The...

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Six Days in Bombay

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La Tatoueuse de Jaipur

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it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating
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it was ok 2.00 avg rating — 1 rating
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Die Gabe der Malerin: Roman...

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Kit Trilogia de Jaipur

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More books by Alka Joshi…

The Sari vs. Modern India

Earlier this year, Architecture faculty at Ansal University in Gurgaon, just outside New Delhi, received an email from the registrar to attend a convocation. It requested formal dress: "trouser, coat and tie for men" and "saris for women." This sparked a lively, funny, albeit very polite, conversation on WhatsApp among the female faculty, who normally wear trousers, Western shirts/tops, or salwar Read more of this blog post »
23 likes ·   •  2 comments  •  flag
Published on October 25, 2019 14:37 Tags: asian, culture, female-empowerment, india, sari, tradition
The Henna Artist The Secret Keeper of Jaipur The Perfumist of Paris The Complete Jaipur Trilogy
(4 books)
by
4.16 avg rating — 296,034 ratings

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Alka’s Recent Updates

Alka Joshi answered Milly Virus's question: Alka Joshi
Hi Milly! I’m delighted you love my books :-) Early readers of SIX DAYS IN BOMBAY tell me it’s like traveling throughout Europe and walking the streets of old Bombay without leaving the comfort of their cozy armchair. To research the time period and See Full Answer
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The Huntress by Kate Quinn
The Huntress
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Alka Joshi answered Sarah Willmann's question: Alka Joshi
Thanks for your question, Sarah! I am rewriting the treatment and I’ll be involved in the next writer’s room we put together. I’m looking forward to the work ahead to make sure the screen adaption is the story I wrote. Stay tuned... :-)
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Six Days in Bombay by Alka Joshi
" Thanks, Candace, for your heartfelt comment. It’s amazing what travel to other countries tells us about ourselves. "
Six Days in Bombay by Alka Joshi
" Laura, thanks for recommending the new novel. I loved writing about an innocent woman’s first foray into a foreign world. "
Six Days in Bombay by Alka Joshi
" Dear Shantha, Thanks for your lovely review. I will treasure it. "
Six Days in Bombay by Alka Joshi
" Thanks, Bobbi, for taking the time to comment so thoroughly. I so appreciate it! "
Six Days in Bombay by Alka Joshi
" Thanks, Lori, for your comment. It takes so long write a book and it’s totally worth the effort when someone finds it meaningful. "
Alka Joshi and 4 other people liked Betty's review of Six Days in Bombay:
Six Days in Bombay by Alka Joshi
"Alka Joshi does it again with Six Days in Bombay! This book is a mesmerizing blend of historical fiction, mystery, and self-discovery, set against the vivid backdrop of 1930s India under British rule. As someone who adored The Henna Artist, I was thr" Read more of this review »
More of Alka's books…
Quotes by Alka Joshi  (?)
Quotes are added by the Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ community and are not verified by Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ.

“Success was ephemeral—and fluid—as I’d found out the hard way. It came. It went. It changed you from the outside, but not from the inside. Inside, I was still the same girl who dreamed of a destiny greater than she was allowed. Did I really need the house to prove I had skill, talent, ambition, intelligence? What ifâ€�”
Alka Joshi, The Henna Artist

“there were three kinds of karma: the accumulated karma from all our past lives; the karma we created in this life; and the karma we stored to ripen in our future lives.”
Alka Joshi, The Henna Artist

“People are more gullible and less compassionate than any of us want to believe.”
Alka Joshi, The Henna Artist

Polls

Time to vote on Septembers Members Choice.

Poll will remain open until August 15th

If the book you voted on wins please plan to makes comments in the thread. Thanks

 
  12 votes, 32.4%

 
  6 votes, 16.2%

 
  5 votes, 13.5%

 
  4 votes, 10.8%

 
  3 votes, 8.1%

 
  3 votes, 8.1%

 
  2 votes, 5.4%

 
  2 votes, 5.4%

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Alka Joshi, The Secret Keeper of Jaipur

“Be humble for you are made of earth Be noble for you are made of stars. —SERBIAN PROVERB”
Alka Joshi, The Secret Keeper of Jaipur

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Comments (showing 1-9)    post a comment »
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message 9: by Sid

Sid Sahib Hi Alka, it's great to be connected.

If you get a chance, I'd love for you to read my book - "Undivided"

Great cultures endure even through tough tests. Despite some voices being louder on the global stage, Undivided aims to amplify a significant yet often overlooked human event in the West: the Partition of India.

In a heinous wave of partisan bloodshed, almost 2 million people are killed, 15 million are displaced and about 75,000 women are subjected to unimaginable violence during India's partition into Pakistan in 1947. The scars of those times endure across multiple generations even today, over seventy-five years later. But what if this Partition hadn’t taken place?

Couched in an alternative historical 1940s and 1950s India, Undivided centers on this possibility as the backdrop to this story.

Summer 1945 is a messy time and death is in the air. World War Two has consumed 75 million lives, and, in the middle of it all, India loses most of its leadership to a series of dubious accidents. With only Wazir Jahan and his loyal ally Timur Mirza left to govern, an undivided India gains independence from British rule in 1947. But Mirza has his own plans; he starts by deploying his “Hitler-inspired� secret police to enforce sectarian control over a secular society.

Elsewhere, Ram and Fatima, an ordinary inter-faith couple's lives are suddenly disrupted, when a group of unlikely rebels - tenured in their own bitter experiences - seeks to retaliate against Mirza. Led by Shiva, the group desperately needs Ram's help. But Ram and Fatima refuse to cooperate, thrusting themselves into a roller coaster of astonishing events and self-discoveries.

Heather Sangster edited this work. Heather has copy edited and proof-read Margaret Atwood’s poetry and prose, including The Testaments, the 2019 Booker Prize � winning sequel to The Handmaids Tale. She also collaborated with Rohinton Mistry on the international acclaimed bestseller (1996 Booker Prize shortlist), A Fine Balance.

I hope you find the premise interesting enough to read the book. Thank you for being part of this journey � all profits will be donated to charity.

Warm regards,
Sid


jas kaur wilkhu-degpal Thank you for accepting the request I want to read your book The Henna Artist and may other of yout books


message 7: by Erin

Erin Thanks for the friend request.


message 6: by Alka

Alka Joshi Sara wrote: "Alka, delighted to have you as a friend."

Thanks, Sara!


message 5: by Alka

Alka Joshi Dana wrote: "Thank you for the friend request! It's an honor!
🤗🤗🤗🤗
Can't wait to read some of your reviews."

Looking forward!
Alka



message 4: by Alka

Alka Joshi Judith wrote: "Hi Alka. This will be fun:)"
:-)


Judith E Hi Alka. This will be fun:)


message 2: by Dana

Dana Ilie Thank you for the friend request! It's an honor!
🤗🤗🤗🤗
Can't wait to read some of your reviews.


message 1: by Sara

Sara Alka, delighted to have you as a friend.


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