Shobhaa De
| Shobhaa De | |
|---|---|
 Shobhaa De, at 'Meet The Author' programm conducted by sharjha International Book Fair 2011 |
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| Born | Shobha Rajadhyaksha 7 January 1948 Mumbai, Maharashtra, India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Alma mater | St. Xavier's College, Mumbai |
| Occupation | Author, Columnist, Novelist |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Website | |
| http://shobhaade.blogspot.com | |
Early life
Shobha De was born in a Maharashtrian Goud Saraswat Brahmin family in Mumbai, India. She completed her schooling from Queen Mary School, Mumbai and graduated from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai with a degree in psychology.
Career
After making her name as a model, she began a career in journalism in 1970, during the course of which she founded and edited three magazines – Stardust, Society, and Celebrity. Stardust magazine, published by Mumbai-based Magna Publishing Co. Ltd., was started by Nari Hira in 1971. and became popular under the editorship of Shobhaa De. In the 1980s, she contributed to the Sunday magazine section of The Times of India. In her columns, she used to explore the socialite life in Mumbai lifestyles of the celebrities. At present, she is a freelance writer and columnist for several newspapers and magazines.Shobhaa De is one of India’s top best-selling authors. All her 17 books have topped the charts and created records. Spouse – The Truth About Marriage, that examines the urban institution of marriage, sold 20,000 copies on the day of its official launch in Delhi and is currently being translated into several languages. De gave a new definition to the mass market best seller with her breakthrough, bold and highly individualistic style that spoke a new language. She is credited with having given birth to Hinglish, a heady, irreverent mix of Hindi and English, that spoke to readers in an entirely new way. Four of her titles, namely, Socialite Evenings, Starry Nights, Sultry Days, and Second Thoughts are course material in the University of London. Her work features extensively in Comparative Literature courses at Universities abroad and within India. An academic examination of her books titled, The Fiction of Shobhaa De, compiled by Professor Dodiya, features 40 critical essays by academics – Indian and foreign. Over a hundred dissertations on her work are in various libraries worldwide.
Recipient of several awards for her journalistic contributions, De writes prolifically for Indian and International publications. She runs four weekly columns in mainstream newspapers, including the The Times of India and Asian Age. She has been the writer of several popular soaps on television, including India’s first daily soap, Swabhimaan. She also anchored a prestigious weekly show called Power Trip which featured India's Billionaires as never before. She participates on a regular basis on important TV debates, such as The Editor's Verdict on NDTV during the 2009 elections. She is recognized as an important social commentator and something of an authority on popular culture. Outspoken and forthright, De chronicles today’s India in her own inimitable style. More recently via her immensely popular blog and Twitter account.
Her books are best sellers in several regional languages, including Punjabi, Hindi, Gujarati, Malayalam, Bengali and Marathi. Bollywood Nights was launched at the London Book Fair in April 2007, and for the American market in the same year, by Penguin International. The U.K. edition of her work, Superstar India was published in April 2009. Superstar India sold over 100,000 copies in India during its first year, to establish a new record. It will be published in America in September 2009. Glitzernacht, was launched at the prestigious Frankfurt Book Fair in 2006, followed by 4 more titles in German, with an additional 3 to follow. The first of her Italian books, Sorelle was launched in Milan and Rome, followed by Bollywood Nights in May 2007. Her books are in translation in Spanish, Italian, German, Hungarian, Portuguese, Turkish, Russian, Polish and Korean at present. Her first book in its French edition was published by Actes Sud in 2010.
She was the chief guest at Chandigarh University, in 2007. Department of English, where she delivered the Presidential Address on "New Trends in Contemporary Writing." De has participated in several literary festivals, including the prestigious Writers' Festival in Melbourne. The Writers’ Festival in Hong Kong, Singapore and Jaipur, besides the literary festival called Kitaab in Mumbai. She has been invited to the Kovalam Lit Fest as well as the first South African Festival of Indian Authors in September 2009. Dubai Lit Fest in 2010. Jaipur Lit Fest 2010. Hay Lit Fest in the Maldives in 2010. Karachi Lit Fest in Feb 2011. There are over 50 dissertations on her work in publication. She was a part of the official Indian Delegation to the Global Women’s Forum at Deauville (France) in October 2008. She was a keynote speaker at the Leadership Conclave in Delhi, October 2009 . The subject – "Has the Indian Woman Come of Age, Finally?." She is regularly invited to participate in prestigious All-India debates, like the annual one in Kolkata, The Telegraph Debate. Invited regularly as a leading television panelist on national issues by India’s top anchors, Arnab Goswami, Rajdeep Sardesia, Karan Thapar.
Considered one of the top Opinion Shapers in the region, she is on the Readers’ Digest List – “ India’s Most Trusted People” published in March 2010, along with Ratan Tata and Dr. Abdul Kalam. She is on the list of ‘50 Most Powerful Women in India” published by the DNA Newspaper, March 2010. She was also featured on the 2010 list of ‘ India’s 50 Most Beautiful’ in Hi Blitz.
Her latest book is titled Shobhaa at Sixty and has been published by Hay House in 2010. 2010 saw her emerge as a Publisher in her own right, with the launch of her own imprint by Penguin Books, titled The Shobhaa De Book.
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