Unravelling by Preethi Nair BLOG TOUR #Unravelling #PreethiNair @RandomTTours #AuthorInterview

 

The stories we tell ourselves and others are very often not true…

To the outside world, Bhanu seems to have a perfect life: a beautiful home and a wonderful husband and family… No one knows that each superficial layer has been carefully constructed to hide the dark secrets of her past and to bury the utter disappointment that what was written in the stars did not come to pass.

Then, on the eve of her fortieth wedding anniversary and vow renewal ceremony, a chance encounter shatters Bhanu’s pretence, when a face from her past reappears.

Deep, her first love who was etched into her heart, the man who lingered in her dreams throughout her married life, reappears, asking her to abandon everything for a second chance at love.

Forced to confront the consequences of choices made long ago, Bhanu begins to unravel as her life is thrust into chaos. But by reaching for a different future, can she heal the wounds of her past?

An extraordinary story about the complex tapestry that makes up a woman’s life and how facing the truth can change everything…

Unravelling by Preethi Nair was published on 26 September 2024 by Kiss The Frog Press. As part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour, I am delighted to share an interview with the author. 

Interview with Preethi Nair - author of Unravelling 

1. Tell us a bit about your upbringing. How do you feel your South Asian cultural roots have influenced your writing and storytelling?  

I was born in a tiny village in Kerala, South India, and came to England as a baby. We lived in the East end of London which was quite a tough place to be in the 1970s. I remember going back to Kerala for the first time when I was four of five and the contrast was stark. It was like going from a black-and-white film (England) to full technicolour (India). My mother says that when we arrived in the village it was dark, and I jumped out of the car and ran to my grandmother’s house. Having no idea where it was, I found it. My grandmother was like a grandmother out of a fairytale. She could read people's faces and tell them their fortune (looking back I’m not sure she really could) and she owned the local rice mill so all the villagers would congregate there with their letters (my grandmother was one of the very few people who could read and write) and so she would read their letters out for them, and they would share their problems. It was so different from London predominantly because I felt I belonged in Kerala and for many years, I longed to go back to her, to the village. Back in London, I felt like a total outsider and had a double life like most children of immigrant South Asian parents. My parents wanted me to be a lawyer, I wanted to be a writer, and I knew this from a very young age. To make sense of all my emotions, I used to write. Although I write fiction, I write about what I know and draw on a lot of the influences of my cultural heritage.

2. Your journey from a management consultant to author and entrepreneur is inspiring. What motivated you to take the leap and pursue your dream of becoming a writer?

I have always believed that we just have one life and that it is short. In my twenties, I was in a routine doing the 9-5 and thinking is this it? I decided to leap. I think the decision to leave a “stable” career was motivated by the fact that at the time, I was writing a book “Gypsy Masala” about following your dreams and perhaps, I was writing this book for myself and I thought – “If not now, then when?” 

3. Facing rejection from publishers for your first book, "Gypsy Masala," led you to establish your own publishing company and PR agency. Can you share some pivotal moments from that period?

My first novel “Gypsy Masala” got rejected by most publishers, so I set up my own publishing and PR company, promoted it under an alias alter-ego (Pru), got it into the book charts and sold it off to HarperCollins as part of a 3-book deal. This was all whilst putting on a suit and pretending to go to work so you can imagine the challenges of running two companies and pretending to go to work! This went on for around two years. I think the biggest challenge was deceit. I had to lie and deceive so much, especially my parents and this went against everything my father taught me - to always tell the truth. So, the international conflict of following my dreams was huge.

The most rewarding time from that period was signing the book deal with HarperCollins, my alter-ego, Pru, was short-listed as Publicist of the Year

and I won Young Achiever for the Asian Women of Achievement Awards. My second novel “One Hundred Shades of White” was translated internationally.

4. As Pru Menon, your alter ego, you successfully navigated the world of marketing, PR, editorial, and sales to promote your work. How did managing these diverse roles contribute to your growth as an author and entrepreneur? 

I was learning on the job and making most of it up as I went along so being Pru gave me permission to be someone else; to fail and not take things personally and these are the skills you need as an entrepreneur -fail, keep going and know that nothing is personal. It contributed to my growth as an author as I had some great stories to tell!

5. Adopting the alias Pru Menon played a pivotal role in your journey as an author. Can you share the significance behind choosing this particular alter ego and how it influenced your approach to marketing, PR, and sales during the early stages of your career?

I chose the alter ego Pru as that’s what my brother calls me and I thought if someone is talking to me and calling me Pru, I could in some ways identify. Menon was my mother’s maiden name. Pru was the total opposite of me: feisty, fearless of rejection, wouldn’t take no for an answer and would get the job done. I am shy introverted and incredibly sensitive and my alter ego, Pru, was loud and proud – everything that I was not and perhaps wanted to be! I was able to hide behind this alter-ego and perhaps do things that I wouldn’t ordinarily do – as Pru, I used to gate-crash publishing parties and speak to people to promote the novel. There isn’t anything she wouldn’t have done!

6. "Sari: The Whole Five Yards" marked your debut as a playwright, producer, and actor. What inspired you to step into the world of theatre, and how did this experience shape your creative journey?

I went on to write a one-woman show where the character was a 59-year-old Asian woman, and I thought which West End theatre is going to want to put this on? So, I booked the theatre myself, having never acted before (not even at school), trained for over a year and performed it. It was one of the most nerve-racking experiences and in a way, for me, it came out of a mid-life crisis. I was 47, safely in my comfort zone and I thought, I need to do something that terrifies me for some people it’s bungee jumping or something physical. I’m not a physical person and putting on Sari play was the challenge I needed to get out of my comfort zone. I felt alive doing it and conquered so many fears. I learned that it’s never too late to do something new. I also learnt about presence and energy and how to feel and respond to the energy in the room and most importantly, to believe in myself again - when you stay too long in your comfort zone, self-doubt creeps in and the more you want to stay there. There is so much to experience but it is outside of that zone! That show was optioned for television and went on to be Unravelling.

7. You have turned down a fourth book deal to publish Unravelling yourself. Can you tell us why?

I didn’t really enjoy being published by a big publisher – you lose a lot of creative control, and I knew exactly how I wanted Unravelling to look and feel. The book is about liberation, and I felt hugely liberated publishing it myself.

8. Tell us about Unravelling and the themes. 

It’s based on Bhanu, the character of the stage play “Sari: The Whole Five Yards”. Bhanu, a 59-year-old woman has spent years carefully curating the perfect life - great kids, a loving husband, and a beautiful home, all to hide the dark secrets of her past. But on the eve of her 40th wedding anniversary celebration, she bumps into her first love, Deep, reigniting long-buried feelings. He asks her to come away with him. The story delves into the complex tapestry of a woman's life and the power of self-truth in the face of it all. Ultimately, when we tell ourselves the truth, and I mean the real truth, everything changes…

So essentially, I wanted to explore the gap of who we really are and who we pretend to be. I also think as women, once we hit a certain age, we become invisible, and I wanted to give a voice to an invisible woman. To say that sometimes, when we think it’s all over, it’s just beginning.

"Preethi Nair is a one-woman whirlwind"- HarperCollins.

Preethi worked as a management consultant and gave it up to follow her dream and write her first book, Gypsy Masala. 

Having been rejected by most publishers, she set up her own publishing company and PR agency to publish and promote the book all whilst putting on a suit and pretending to go to work. 

Working under the alias of Pru, Preethi managed to gain substantial coverage and after two years of a roller-coaster journey, she signed a three-book deal with HarperCollins. 

She won an Asian Women of Achievement Award for her endeavours and "Pru" was also shortlisted as Publicist of the Year for the PPC awards.

Having never acted before (not even at school), Preethi went on to write, act and produce "Sari: The Whole Five Yards", a sell-out one-woman show in the West End. 

Preethi adapted this play into the novel, "Unravelling", which has been optioned for television. 

Preethi is also visiting professor at various business schools, teaching modules on creativity for personal leadership. 

www.preethinair.com