‘I loved reading and hated sports’

ME, MYSHELF AND I: MANASI JOSHI ROY

Which books are currently on your reading list?

I’m reading Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I sometimes read two books at a time, so I’m also reading Jhumpa Lahiri’s In Other Words.

Which is the best book you’ve read so far?

That’s very difficult to define. There have been several books that have been on my best list. Gone With the Wind, Requiem for A Wren, and Rebecca were my favourites when I was in college. And as I have grown older, there’s been a new favourite every year. Gone Girl, Paris Wife, Where’d You Go Bernadette, and Girl With the Dragon Tattoo are some of my recent favourites.

Which writers — novelists, critics, playwrights or poets — working today do you admire the most?

Vikram Seth, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni and many others. A lot of good and original plays are being written in Gujarati and Marathi.

Which genres do you enjoy reading? Which do you avoid?

I like reading different genres depending on my mood, but I’m not one for romances and horror stories.

What do you like to read when you travel?

I usually like to read a book that’s related to the place I’m going to be visiting. I’ve just ordered Ernest Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast since I’m going to Paris (France) next month. It’s a memoir about his struggle when he was a writer and journalist in Paris during the 1920s.

Which was the last book that made you laugh or cry?

Books that always make me laugh would be anything by PG Wodehouse, especially the Blandings Castle ones, and anything by Erma Bombeck and Robert Fulghum. The Time Traveler’s Wife made me cry.

Which is your favourite fairy tale or folklore?

Rapunzel. I was always fascinated by how she was stuck in a castle and had to let down her long hair for the witch to climb up.

What kind of reader were you as a child? Which childhood books and authors have stayed with you?

I was a little bookworm. I loved reading and hated sports. Enid Blyton’s books were a major part of my childhood — The Famous Five, Malory Towers, I loved all of them. I loved Nancy Drew, too. And the best part is, all these books appeal to the kids even today. My daughter, Kiara, has also read all these books and loves them.

If you had to name one book that made you who you are today, what would it be?

It’s called The Book of Life and it’s different for each one of us.

Which author would you choose to write your life story?

I would love it if Vikram Seth wrote my life story in verse like his The Golden Gate, which is one of my favourite books.

I would love it if Vikram Seth wrote my life story in verse like his The Golden Gate, which is one of my favourite books. MANASI JOSHI ROY, ACTOR