Ratna Vira's new book talks about bullying and abuse in schools

It has been over two years since author Ratna Vira published her first novel Daughter by Court Order At the time there was much noise about the bookrsquos semiautobiographical content and how the disturbing equations between the characters bore a striking resemblance to Virarsquos own troubled relationship with her mother veteran journalist Nalini Singh Her relationship with her politician uncle Arun Shourie also became a subject of great scrutiny While the author never denied anything then she hasnrsquot yet spoken about the family feudFortyyearold Ratna Vira had a 18 yearlong stint in corporate communications before she took to writing books PICAjay GautamBut her stories dominated by complex tense relationships speak for themselves Virarsquos second book Itrsquos Not About You published by Pan Macmillan releases next month and tells the story of bullying and abuse in schools ldquoDrama in families definitely interests merdquo says the Gurgaonbased author over a phone call ldquoBullying as an issue is important whether it happens on the playfield or in families Manipulation by abusive and extremely intelligent people can happen in any power equation be it motherdaughter as described in my first book or at a school as in my second onerdquo says the 40yearoldThe writer maintains that shersquos speaking about her fictional works but one canrsquot ignore the matteroffactway in which she talks about relationships In an interview with The New York Times in September 2014 the author who had fought a legal battle for a portion of the family estate had maintained that she ldquocouldnrsquot care lessrdquo about what her relatives thought of her first novel ldquoTo me this is clearly fiction so whoever takes offence we will deal with itrdquo she had saidAnd while it doesnrsquot seem like Vira has had a change of heart since she says shersquod like to know what her mother thinks about her writing ldquoI am laughing nowrdquo she says ldquoMany people have said great things about the way I write But I am still waiting for her Singh to callrdquo says Vira ldquoMy mother has an opinion on everything be it highprofile murders or womenrsquos elections But she hasnrsquot reacted to my books Even my uncle Shourie has a lot to say about many things but I havenrsquot heard from himrdquoHer disappointment is palpable especially when Prime Minister Narendra Modi had written to her after her first book congratulating her for taking up the cause of daughters in her narrativeBut Vira takes everything in her stride ldquoI am not holding my breath for them to callrdquo she says ldquoI sleep easy and I am happy with my life and children I hold up a mirror to hypocrisy and I write freely and fiercelyrdquo says the motheroftwoItrsquos Not About You is a book that she says she worked on alongside her first ldquoThe idea for it was set off by a short newspaper article I read A young American had stepped across the racial divide to protect a fellow high school student and had ended up in coma for his troubles I met the head of an Indian school soon afterwards who told me about the rampant bullying he was dealing with at his institution I began to wonder how these power equations would play out in a place like IndiardquoThatrsquos when Vira began to write this story The book touches on the life of a single mother Sammy who has to singlehandedly fight her son Akshrsquos case after he lands up in hospital following a bullying incident in school ldquoSingle mothers who have careers are often made to feel guilty about their choices I wanted to highlight the struggle within the protagonist while giving readers a peep into the lives of teenagersrdquo she saysMeanwhile Vira also offers consultancy to corporate firms Before dabbling into writing the alumnus of London School of Economics had an 18yearlong career in corporate communications and HR working for some of the countryrsquos leading brands She switched to writing books because she believed ldquoshe had a lot of stories to tellrdquoEgging her on are her kids Suhasini and Shauryya ldquoThey are my best friends and my worst criticsrdquo she says Thatrsquos the relationship Vira cherishes the most Everything else she says doesnrsquot matter