I am neither a Bengali nor am I from Delhi's St Stephen's. I am an Allahabad boy.

I am very interested in human-interest stories emerging from modern India. I get my inspiration and daily dose by reading the Hindustan Times.

The brain is not an organ we are authorized to use. We are supposed to use only our hands and legs.

The slums are not a place of despair. Its inhabitants are all working towards a better life.

The first thing you have to understand is that I was not desperate to be a writer. I was never a closet writer filing away notes in a cupboard.

My books are about ordinary people placed in extraordinary situations who are able to draw upon their inner reserves to challenge the status-quo in life and navigate compelling human relationships.

I want to show that the underdog can win. I believe were all the same: you, a slum girl, my mother.