Rashmi Navada – Co-author, Out of My Box

By WriteFluence on June 19, 2021

Rashmi Navada was born in Shimoga, Karnataka. Her father was a banker and her mother, a teacher. Her parents moved to Bengaluru when she was three years old. Vivacious and effusive as a child, she was the darling of the house.

Coming from a family that emphasized a lot on a well-rounded education, her morning routine, as a child was to read the headlines of the day’s newspaper. This knowledge helped her win the debates and elocution contests held at her school. Multi-talented, she was the head girl of the school.

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She took up science in Pre-University with an intention of pursuing medicine. But fate had other plans and she ended up with a Master’s in Computer Applications. As was the norm, she jumped on the IT bandwagon, working with Wipro Technologies and then VMware. After nearly nine years of grueling IT career, she called it quits to take a breather.

She inherited her love for books from her mother, who is also a short-story writer. She spent her childhood hooked to Enid Blyton, Nancy Drew, and Hardy Boys. Mills and Boon and Silhouette Books kept her awake at night as a teenager. While J K Rowling and Dan Brown awakened her dormant flair for writing, The Alchemist kept her motivated.

Rashmi took her first step as a writer when she was hired to write book summaries for Bookbhook.com. She continues to work as a freelance writer.

‘SAKHI’ is her first published short story. She lives in Bengaluru with her children and researching material for her next story.

Here’s an excerpt from Rashmi’s winning story ‘Sakhi’ published in Out of My Box

I always dreamt of my name being synonymous with quality reporting. Being a feature-writer for City Times, today would be the day that would take me a step closer to my dream. I have grabbed a spot for interviewing the elusive Ms. Neelanjana Mahesh. It would be her first interview ever- be it print, television, or the internet. They take her name in awe and respect in social services. She is the woman behind the NGO that sponsors mid-day meals in state-run schools. For countless women, her NGO is the temple, and she the goddess. But, there are only a handful of people who have seen her in person. I hope today I will be on that list of people.

A receptionist announces her presence. Wearing a full-sleeve, golden yellow tussar silk kurta with bright red palazzos and handmade sandals, Ms. Mahesh is almost 6 feet tall. A red dupatta covers her head and face. Side bangs escape the drape, covering her forehead. Dark glasses complete the chick-look. She sits on the chair with her back to the window; the sunlight giving a halo effect.

“You have pulled quite a few strings to interview me, Ms. Sen,” she starts without preamble.

‘Yes, mam. This is for a series I am writing called Spotlight. Every week we focus on a woman icon who has made a difference to society.”

She gives a slight nod. I guess she is not one for small talks. I get straight to the point.