Mala Mukherji- I am My Mother's Child

“A giant, unspoken worry filled my childhood. My parents didn’t understand how America worked, and I could tell by the way they looked at each other with terror when seemingly small choices presented themselves. Each of their faces tightened, Dad clenched and unclenched his jaw, and Mom’s eyes grew wide, while her thin eyebrows lifted a little. They didn’t speak of their uncertainty yet I knew.”

So begins Ashes, a memoir by a first-born child of Bengali immigrants from Calcutta. With courage and vulnerability, though she would just say truth, Mala Mukherji charts a childhood filled with cultural confusion, self-hatred, bullies, an abusive father, and a consistently loving mother. The book continues on to share the journey Mala takes to discover herself and how that journey is changed completely when her mother commits suicide. It is an inspiring and poignant tale of transformation and love. It shows that people are not alone in their struggles, and that they can look within themselves to survive and grow from life’s experiences.

We are so fortunate and excited to share this episode with you. Mala generously came on our show to talk about the book. Akaash and Arjun thought it would be a straight interview about aspects of the book and a way for her to promote it, but we were thrilled when it became a conversation about much more than that. Within moments of starting the interview, we had launched into a discussion about the nature of vulnerability versus truth. About the need growing up in a fully white community to look and feel bulletproof, and learning that it was only when she held her feelings that no one could touch her. It continues on to explore themes the book deals with and how they hit both Akaash and Arjun in their particular ways. We hope you enjoy the episode today and our discussion will drop in a few days.

If you are inspired to get the book it can be found here: http://www.amazon.com/ASHES-story-about-cigarettes-cremation-ebook/dp/B00CMUM1P8