The Journey of The Impish Lass – Erudite Editors
Bishakha Das
The Impish Lass Publishing House gave birth to many writers and editors – and I am one of them. My first publication in the ILPH is for the anthology ‘Meticulous men of mettle’. A writer-friend of Mumbai informed us in our literary WhatsApp group about this anthology. The title was captivating and inspiring for me to pen down about the two men in my life – my father and my husband. My write up took the form of prosaic poem. Thereafter, each time I was attracted by the title of the anthologies – ‘The Teacher I have never forgot’, ‘Yes’s Boss’ ‘Traveller’s Diary’, ‘Living with an empty wallet’, ‘Colour the world’, ‘Hearteculations’, No, I am not ok’, etc. I found my genre of writing shifted from prosaic poem to Creative Non-fiction prose. The CEO of the ILPH inspired me to pen a story for the anthology “Bitter Almonds” which was based on magical realism. I learnt to pen down another genre. The ILPH decides to motivate the academicians, and this gave birth to the multidisciplinary academic journal ‘Journal Littéraire de l’impish lass’. The publishing house trained me as an editor. I am grateful to the ILPH for providing me with a space in the literary domain.
Vaishali Chandorkar Chitale
My journey as a writer after joining TILPH has been an extraordinary one. I am a journalist by profession and writing has been in my DNA like, forever. Also, I am an English graduate and have taught English in various schools over a period of fourteen years. Being a journalist, I was more used to factual reporting and editing the written word. My creativity and imagination had to take a back seat while covering an event and sub editing the news. To my immense happiness, my creative streak which till now had shown no signs of ever awakening from its deep slumber, suddenly shook itself up during the pandemic and I started writing stories and poems. The Impish Lass Publishing House provided me a platform to showcase my writing skills and I became a published poet and a writer. I am grateful to the CEO, Ms. Meena Mishra of TILPH for holding my hand and leading me onwards on my writing path. She also entrusted me to edit anthologies, for which I am forever indebted to her. Today, I have been published in many of their anthologies and also have two anthologies, (a third one is presently WIP) under the TILPH banner. I am proud to be a part of The Impish Lass Publishing House and working with a dynamic and a visionary CEO, who with her innate humaneness and leadership qualities has led her team towards greater heights. I hope to be associated with TILPH till I hang up my spurs and wish the publishing house all the success in the world.
Dr. Sanam Vaseem Shaikh
“A positive attitude can really make dream come true- it did for me” describes Dr. Sanam best. She is a PhD in English Literature from JJTU, Rajasthan. I’m a teacher by profession and writer by choice. I work in Anjuman-I-Islam’s Dr. Mohammad Ishaque Jamkhanawala Girls’ High School & Junior College. Being simple and down to earth, I always render to do something good for the society. I believe that my work should speak more than her words. I have been associated with many National and International projects. I am one among all others editor of Impish Lass Publishing House.
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”
Such is exactly the attitude of our CEO, Magnanimous Meena Mishra, a down to earth and humble human who aspire to inspire other upcoming writers. I am a lucky such one to get in touch with her and explore my talent of writing. Her soothing words gave me courage to pen some very heart touching write ups in many of her anthologies. One fine day, I approached her to do editing for an anthology. She at once trusted me and gave a E-book “Penny Wise” Anthology. I expressed my unending gratitude to a soul with such an ample power to touch so many hearts with her writing and smile.
Badhuli Rath
I had never ever envisaged a life that I have led since my childhood but I have faced it head-on when the going got tough and walked on without any regrets. Strangely, whenever I have thought that things are settling down, life has always thrown me a spanner in the works and everything has gone topsy-turvy. What happened in March 2020 when the entire world came to a standstill was exactly that! The panic that set in me was of a kind that lasted the rest of the year as I could only look on with horror at the havoc created by a virus. The transient nature of human life became apparent. Prior to it, I had become so immersed in my career as an IBDP educator that I had forgotten one of my childhood’s pipe dreams – to become an author and editor. Now, it has been more than a year since I became a part of The Impish Lass Publishing House family and the journey has been cathartic. Writing my poem never for the CEO Meena Mishra’s maiden editorial venture No! I Am Not OK! made me delve into my own life and it made me realise that all of us go through the Not OK days.
Aparna Patwardhan Bhat
“A blessing in disguise”
Impish Lass Publishing House, was introduced to me by a good friend. The whole world was going topsy turvy during this Pandemic period. For some may be a boon and for few others it was an ordeal. This pandemic phase was quite a turmoil for me and day in day out my family and me endured new challenges. It was a total chaotic phase, but taught me the most important lessons of life. TILPH came as a saviour, during this traumatic phase of my life. Losing my mother had created an unfilled void. It was then that, I was introduced to their ongoing anthology named, “Mom’s the word.” After that I wrote for few more anthologies, which were floated by Impish Lass. This gave vent to many articles and writing of poems, it was a complete therapeutic journey.
Writing my diary, articles, stories and anecdotes was always there, but now I found a new platform to express my writings, with the help of TILPH’s various anthology themes. The offer by dear Meena to be a part of the editorial ship for the anthology, “The Impish Lass Requiem,” was like a soothing balm to me, and since then, I am fortunate to be a part of this Publishing House. Not only that, I found a good friend, healer and a like-minded person in our Impish Lass, aka our CEO, Ms Meena. God bless…
Samahita Mukherjee
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”— Lao Tzu
I believe that I have emulated this infamous quote without even realising it. The power to dare a magnificent dream was provided by The Impish Lass Publishing House, the honorable and multi-faceted CEO, Ms. Meena Mishra, my editors who gave me the platform to articulate and shape my story forms, and most importantly my readers. The first plunge or the virgin footsteps are the most daunting for a traveller, especially when embarking solo. It is one thing to write an essay, but quite another to pull themes, plots, and sensory details from rudimentary outlines to be frozen in time. My journey of a thousand miles and perhaps more has just begun and thankfully there is no looking back or elsewhere. Needless to say, the most important milestone that I have reached until now is the euphoria of reading multitudinous creative works alongside the learning that each of them dished out; nurturing me as a human being. The fun doesn’t end here for as an editor curating an anthology just makes my journey perfect. Heartfelt gratitude to the publishing house for allowing me to become a published writer, poet, and an editor.
Shruti Bhardwaj
The Impish Lass Publishing House – A truly selfless and philanthropic publishing house just like its CEO Ms. Meena Mishra. It is a blessing in disguise for me as a teacher turned writer, bilingual-poet and an editor to nurture my dreams and strengthen my wings to fly high under this name. In the days of pandemic when everything seems negative, this publishing house came to my rescue with varied opportunities to utilize my free and stressful time to know my true potential and work upon self-improvement. As for the anthology ‘No I Am Not Okay’ I must say the title in itself is self-explanatory but writing for the same is a next level experience for me. In the present-day materialistic world, we all are trapped, running aimlessly in the material rat race and lost in our ways. We even do not have time to think about our acts, feel the happiness of success or even lament at the losses etc. As a person I admit that I choose escapism when the situation is against me i.e. I always ignore the situations that makes/ made / can make me feel sad, angry or hurt. I never talk or share my feelings with anyone, not even with myself. But, it was for the first time while writing for this anthology I poured out and faced my inner feeling to the fullest and worked upon the solution to make the situation better. It was for the first time when selfishly I thought about myself and courageously revealed to myself that I AM NOT OKAY! Indeed, writing for this anthology is a learning experience and I am truly Ms Meena Mishra for choosing such a topic and obviously giving me an opportunity to be a part of the same.
Madhu Jaiswal
“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” -George Bernard Shaw
This quote, not just complies with Ms Meena Mishra, the CEO of The Impish Lass Publishing House, but also resonates with everyone who is part of ILPH in any form. To let their visions get fulfilled, their destiny transforms for betterment. ILPH is a platform that has given exposure to myriad people to showcase their talent creatively. While its inception I too was privileged enough to be chosen by the maverick Meena Mishra, CEO of The Impish Lass Publishing House to be privileged on an incredible journey that was about to roll on a mission that has endless successions. The journey from being a housewife to a poet-writer and editor has been a roller coaster ride. And now I am proudly associated with the publishing house in the capacity of Executive editor and in-house graphic designer. The journey with the publishing house has benefited me in multiple ways. Association with the publishing house not only added significance to my life but also allotted me an identity that I could barely dream of. Also, would like to state, the zeal, and enthusiasm that all my fellow editors and writers put in and the way Ms Meena Mishra portrays grit and dedication in her approach. The coordination, the moral values, and the motto of the publishing house stand tall, “Each writer that writes, has the right to get published.”
La Familia
Anamika Kundu
Writing has been a part of my life since long but getting published happened during the lockdown.
My first story was published in an anthology called, ‘Locked in tales’ and then there was a slew of books.
I turned editor with my debut book Changed Forever, followed by The Runners’ Tribe.
No, I am not Ok, is a book that dares to call a spade- a spade. It’s high time we discarded the cover long used to keep in wraps things, people, feelings which are not ok.
I am enjoying my journey with The Impish Lass Publishing house as a writer and an editor and look forward to each day, cause there are always surprises lurking round the corner.
Best wishes to Meena Mishra, fellow editors and writers. Together we can fly high, together we can reach for the sky.