✍️By Special Correspondent
MERAKI, the Journey Within written by Dr Debjani Gupta was released at a program held recently at the Calcutta Club Ltd in the presence of eminent actor Deb Shankar Halder and renowned artist Dipali Bhattacharya. The book has been published by YAPANCHITRA FOUNDATION.
MERAKI -A Journey Within is an acknowledgement of some of the extraordinary moments amidst ordinary acts spread over the last few decades celebrating those moments encapsulating the essence of The Journey Within.
Stitching together the thoughts and events of the past to understand the present and be hopeful about the future is the essence of The Journey Within. The moments being so relatable makes the lines of prose and poetry resonate with most of our lifestyle stories.
They are merely about words and lines but the thoughts and emotions within the author and so the title MERAKI – a Greek word depicting love, passion and a lot of soul.
The three sections of the book merge seamlessly into one another so that the pages can be stopped and started at leisure. The illustrations on all the pages are from the author’s collection of artwork (charcoal sketches and acrylic paintings) done over the last two years.
The photo collage on the cover of the book has been composed of photographs that Dr Debjani Gupta has captured one her numerous heritage tours that she immensely enjoys undertaking periodically.
This book of journey acknowledges the footprints that have shaped the moments of today. Hence it empathises and resonates with the thoughts of most of us.
In the author’s words, “This journey of words is an attempt to reflect and showcase how extraordinary are some of the ordinary moments of our lives. Tiny tales of SMALL JOYS they may well be, however they stand tall among the ordinary and mundane. MERAKI, is an expression of the many untold unsaid everyday acts of us all.”
Dr Debjani Gupta is a senior paediatrician in Kolkata. She spent her early years studying at the Loreto Convent School, Ranchi followed by her training in medical curriculum in Kolkata and the UK.
Although she has contributed articles in various anthologies and journals this is her first complete book.
She is not only a practising physician but also trained in classical danseuse and creative art forms are what she enjoys. She also dabbles in painting and enjoys cooking and baking.
Dr Debjani Gupta, a multifaceted and multi talented individual, lives in Kolkata with her husband and their two daughters.