Mira Sethi's debut novel among Vogue's 2021 must reads

From journalism to TV, theatre, an online talk show, and now a book – Mira Sethi is set to channel her inner Rupi Kaur and we're here for it.

The Yeh Dil Mera actor has been sharing snippets of her upcoming book Are You Enjoying? on social media. But her debut novel has also made it to Vogue's Best Books to Read in 2021, a list co-compiled by Refinery29 and Vogue Magazine.

According to Chloe Schama, the senior editor at Vogue, Sethi's novel is "a powerful book with a light touch, marking the arrival of an assured storyteller."

Schama writes, "The stories that make up Mira Sethi’s debut collection are set in Pakistan, but that is about where the similarities among her protagonists end: A young actress negotiates power dynamics on and off the set; a divorced man strikes up an affair with his diplomat neighbor. A portrait of a diverse and varied country, told through the emotions and exploits of her characters."

An Insta post Sethi shared back in September 2020 claimed that her upcoming book would explore the high-stakes worlds of television, politics as well as the intimate corridors of the home and the bedroom. "It is a collection of wryly observed, deeply revealing stories that look at life in Pakistan with humour, compassion, psychological acuity, and emotional immediacy."

It goes on to add, "Childhood best friends agree to marry in order to keep their sexuality a secret. A young woman with an anxiety disorder discovers the numbing pleasures of an illicit love affair. A radicalised student’s preparations for his sister’s wedding involve beating up the groom. An actress is forced to grow up fast on the set of her first major TV show, where the real intrigue takes place off-screen — every story bears witness to the all-too-universal desire to be loved, and what happens when this longing gets pushed to its limits. Are You Enjoying? is a free-spirited, confident, indelible introduction to a galvanising new talent."

Sethi's book is set to hit the shelves in April 2021.

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