A Few Of Author Koral Dasgupta's Favourite Things

"I have many favourite authors. But to name a few, of course, Rabindranath Tagore, who we have grown up reading graciously. Sukumar Ray, you may not know this person too much, but to give you an idea, he is the father of Satyajit Ray, a filmmaker. When I was small, I used to read his writing as plain simple humour, (for) the fun of it, I would just break into laughter. But when I grew up, I realised that, his writing is pure play social satire. Third is Ismat Chughtai, again a satirist and an excellent storyteller. And the last one is Ruskin Bond. He can find magic in the most simple things."

"Again, there are many, but I'll name the Bhagavad Gita, the one that I go back to again and again. And second is a book written by my husband The Edge of Desire. I named it because it is not just that the story is compelling, but I have seen my husband's journey while writing this book. Another book that I can name is In Search Of Sita by Namita Gokhale and Malashri Lal who curated it."

"I love hill stations primarily. But my favourite travel destination I would say is Darjeeling because I have memories of that place. Walking over the hilly terrains, and the thin roads that were there. Those were memories. It was not that my family went somewhere which was something out of the world. We would be inside the guest room, the children playing, the elders talking, laughing their hearts out, or arguing, some politics, some cricket. Those itself made it very lively."

Pro-tip: Best things to do there. 

"I have this penchant for going out into the market and buying. I would go to Gariahat Market in Kolkata and buy saris. Then in Chennai markets, I would go for Kanjivaram shopping. Those really appeal to me a lot more because those are the places from where my marriage trousseau had come. To name some brands, I love Fabindia silk and the linen of Cotton World."

Pro tip: Best stores in Chennai for wedding and saree shopping.

"The only shoes that fit me actually are Bata sneakers or Catwalk flat heels. Pencil heels... I don't have the confidence to wear stilettos. Bata sneakers and Catwalk flats are what works for me. They're so easy on the feet."

"So, a lot of things are actually rehashed. When it comes to brands, I have a lot of table runners and all those are from Fabindia."

"I just love to see Lakme on myself. I use a face mousse when I'm attending a function. Otherwise, it's just sunscreen and there's translucent sunscreen powder. Everything is from Lakme."