Thank you @accenture for inviting me to address the Women’s Leadership Summit in @conradhotels #Bangalore. It was an honour to share my journey and some of my life lessons from my book @closetothebone.book
Wearing @aditiguptaofficial
MUH @sabrina_suhail
Styling @dipikablacklist
Image by @jayapriyavasudevan
@accentureindiacareers #accenturemoments Bangalore, India
I hear it’s International Twin Day 💥 These little bomb womb partners, Sufi and Soleil, are just starting to comprehend how fortunate a thing it is, to have each other. They were born in Tbilisi, Georgia, spent the first few months of their life in Hong Kong and are now working on picking up Marathi and Hindi and reaping the benefits of living in #Mumbai, where numerous mausis and mausas smother them with love and attention. There were a lot of raised eyebrows when Jason and I elected to move our Soufflé back home to Bombay- the city that made me, broke me, schooled me and rebuilt me – over the last thirty years! (most of my drama occurring in the pre-digital, pre-social media, pre-online scrutiny, pre-pre-millennial era)
My twins are resilient, they are world travellers at 13 months and they will never receive the warmth and affection of my loving tribe (@dipikablacklist, big sissy #Shaina @nikitasanyal @preetasukhtankar @devsanyal @coleenssalon just to name a few) anywhere else in the world. Yes, the pollution sucks and they did not feel grass beneath their toes until a recent trip to Udaipur, but the gift of connection, of laughter and acceptance into an extended, fat Indian family constructed from choice, is priceless. We’re a nomadic, no-borders kinda fam, so who knows where we’ll go next, but I can’t think of a better place right now for #Souffle.
I love you, my tribe, who are helping #Soufflé grow into fine, strong, imaginative, naughty and compassionate girls with a hardy streak of Mumbaikar industriousness woven into their spirit. Udaivilas The Oberoi Udaipur
In honour of World Breast Feeding Week I want to share an image by my friend @rekanyariphotography a powerfully committed and talented artist and breast feeding activist. The fact we need to normalize one of the most fundamentally natural bonds between a mother and child is outrageous. Stop policing mothers. Empower parents. Enable breast-feeding: or whatever choice a mother makes. Full disclosure; I did not breast feed my twins. But I’m a passionate supporter of the fundamental right of mothers to follow their instincts and transmit love, protection and sustenance to their child in whatever manner feels right.
Repost from @rekanyariphotography using @RepostRegramApp – “Nursing Madonna” from my new series Mother Ink. See these large scale prints in my next solo show in Paris from June 6-30, or at the Venice Biennale / Palazzo Mora till Nov 30th. #inkstories #motherink #ink #normalizebreastfeeding #breastfeeding #breastmilk #breastfeedinginpublic #badassmom #breastfeedingmama #virginmary #lactanciamaterna #fineartphotography #blackandwhitephotography
‘What’s the furthest a human can travel?’
I scrunched up my face, making quick calculations. Darkness was falling and an evening crowd in long boots and leather shoes were throwing glances as they stepped around us with a coiled impatience.
‘Here to Australia. No, wait, London to South Africa?’
He raised a long finger to his temple. ‘From here-‘ I watched his finger as it descended, to tap the middle of his bony chest- ‘to here. That’s the longest, most difficult distance a human can travel. And you, young miss, are on your way.’ He turned and walked off into the glumness of dusk, as though our allotted time had ended.
I never saw him again. But I never forgot him nor the map he drew on his body.
– from my book #ClosetotheBone
Image @rohitingoa
Waiting. Matching the coverlet. And waiting. MUH @bhavyaarora The Oberoi Udaivilas
Fleeting visit home for cuddles with Soufflé…and my lovelies @preetasukhtankar and @mariagorettiz
Cheers to more mimosa filled mornings.
Thanks for the prezzies!
Pieces of my heart in one frame. Happy Birthday Aye!!!!! 🎉🌈💋
Ulsoor lake and some optic trickery from my window @conradbengaluru Conrad Bengaluru
Wandering. Between shots. In the coziest robe ever @theoberoiudaivilas (May I have it please?) Udaivilas The Oberoi Udaipur
Early morning farewell committee out in full force @theoberoiudaivilas
It’s been a complete dream staying and filming here 🙏🏼 The Oberoi Udaivilas
I love you my lavender sister!
Happy Birthday @sujstyle
Cheers to our lifelong bond, hitting our personal targets and more adventures together 😘😘😘😘😘😘✌🏼
An important public service message flashback. The year: 2012. I was filming a PSA for #MM5K charity run with young Kensey, the daughter of an MM patient. It was August, and I was hurtling towards two, fundamentally life altering events; 1. My marriage. 2. A relapse from Multiple Myeloma. How I managed to step into the arena, to dare to use the logic of vulnerability to intuit the necessity of both events, will form the spine of my next book 🙏🏼
“Earth is not a platform for human life. It’s a living being. We’re not on it but part of it. Its health is our health.” –Thomas Moore
@theoberoiudaivilas
Soufflé seem to have a far more vibrant social life than me! Happy Birthday @rahulagarwala both Jason and I missed being there, but doesn’t look like you missed us at all 😜 We love you and celebrate you and I’m so grateful you are family. Cheers to celebrating all year long.
#rahuls50 #friendslikefam @dipikablacklist
When a later call time presents an opportunity for exploration and a nature walk around the grounds of @theoberoiudaivilas on the banks of #LakePichola you grab it.
Result: a glimpse of fields of lotus blossoms, new feathered friends, wildlife encounters, and a deepened awareness of the harmony that is available to all of us in nature.
Hint: seek out the service road
Repost from @authoranuraganand using @RepostRegramApp – That blush-ful moment when you get to gift a copy of your book to your childhood crush and present-day inspiration… 😍😇
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with @lisaraniray … go grab a copy of #closetothebone if you haven’t done so already…
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#theassassinationofrajatgandy #bookstagram #indianauthors #booklaunch #harpercollins #gurgaon #readersofinstagram #readersofinsta #authorsofinstagram #authorlife #booklaunch #booktour #authorsmeet #bloggersofinstagram #celebrityauthors
Final glimpses, pressed into the pages of my mind 🙏🏼
@theoberoiudaivilas
The joy of seeing your book reach your sister in law. I’m quite nervous/excited for my family in Boston to read #ClosetotheBone
Repost from @harpercollinsin using @RepostRegramApp – #Repost
• @book.amour Name- Close to the Bone
Author- Lisa Ray
Genre- Autobiography
Pages- 412
Close to the Bone is an autobiographical account of Lisa Rani Ray, India’s first super model, in a time when modelling was still uncommon in Indian industry.
Lisa has unlayered her entire life in the book, barely hiding anything from the readers- from my childhood as the only child of a Bengali father and a Polish mother, to joining the industry at the young age of sixteen, then becoming a successful supermodel and actor and finally her battle with a rare type of cancer. The book talks about her adventurous life which included a lot of travelling and hardwork. The best part is that Lisa has not shied away from mentioning her failures. As confidently as she has put across her success, she has talked about the setbacks in life- difficulty in accepting her mother’s paralysis and then her death, her fight with the eating disorders and certain average performances.
This is a book which is to be read and inspired from. The book highlights her personal and professional life in the right balance. Lisa’s writing and story-telling is amazing. The descriptions of the cities she visited are so vivid that it practically takes you around the globe. The book not only establishes her skill as an artist but also as a very polished writer. The cover is gorgeous with her name embosed in gold and I can’t get over the fact that it is a harcover. I can never imagine a non-fiction to be such a page turner but then, her life is not ordinary. The book is a lesson that when life throws a googly at you, it is important to handle it the right way. Lisa is the definition of a bold, independent woman who doesn’t mind fighting her own battles, without paying heed to the society. I adore her parents for being her best support system throughout her life. I had heard a lot about her but after reading this memoir, my respect for has only increased. This book is no doubt one of my best reads till now.
Thank you @harpercollinsin for sending across such an inspirational read.
QOTD- Have you read any inspirational reads so far?
Repost from @ivsolano using @RepostRegramApp – 🥰 From India to Costa Rica. “The Kintsugi technique is built on the idea of strength and beauty in imperfection. When a ceramic object breaks, the kintsugi technique involves using gold dust and resin to reattach the broken pieces”. @lisaraniray @closetothebone.book
Repost from @expatlifefiles using @RepostRegramApp – Loot from India 😀#bibliophile#closetothebone #aneraofdarkness
Repost from @sayantansunnyghosh using @RepostRegramApp – “At some point in life the world’s beauty becomes enough. You don’t need to photograph, paint or even remember it. It is enough.” The Toni Morrison quote to live by. Rest in power and ink, my beloved.
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#tonimorrison #courage #power #writer #writerslife #favoritequote
Repost from @swapganges using @RepostRegramApp – A nomad, a gypsy, wings to soar and fly, a journey into the self told in the most riveting way by Lisa Ray. The title ‘Close to the Bone’ cuts you like a knife as you keep reading. One wouldn’t ever know anybody’s journey right? We make our own perceptions based on a public image especially coming from someone from the tinsel world. It connected with me on so many levels I am at a loss for words. Cross cultural upbringing, a ‘mixed breed’( that’s what I was called too) and stubbornly not adhering to what society expects you to do but making your own jagged path and with it comes scars and battle wounds. One of the most honest biographies I have come across. I am halfway into it and I can’t put down this book. Highly recommended is an understatement, just get this book. #book #books #bookworm #biographies #writersofinstagram #closetothebone #lisaray #mustread #spiritual #journey #life @lisaraniray #keepreading
I can’t wait for this. I have always held @sujstyle writing skills, her intimate and deep knowledge of textiles and fashion in high esteem. Not because she’s my dear friend, but because she is that rare breed: a woman of limitless wonder and passion. (PS we were both working on our individual book projects on our @vanajourney retreat last year- remember Suj?) Repost from @sujstyle using @RepostRegramApp – On Pre-Order Finally: “100 Iconic Bollywood Costumes”. Available on @amazondotin. Link in Bio.
About two years ago I received an insta-message from @piyukapoor of @rolibooks asking if I wanted to write a book that looks at the fashion in Bollywood. I called her up and she connected me Aparna Ram, @cuckooforcolour a London based illustrator who already had been working on illustrations from key moments in film. And that’s how it all started. A big thank you to @manishmalhotra05 for writing the foreword. #bookstagram #books #coffeetablebook #bollywood #bollywoodfashion #mynewproject
