Travelogues by women writers launched in Kolkata

Based on the author’s solo travel experiences, "Notes from A Spanish Diary" (Niyogi Books published both the books) has five chapters on the country’s varied landscapes, from Barcelona and Madrid to Andalusia in the south, from central Castille to the Basque region in the north.

Guest of Honour, Sanjukta Dasgupta, former Dean, Faculty of Arts, Calcutta University commented that the book, “is a travel book written like fiction.”  She also dwelt on the ‘women writing’ in the travel genre and praised the efforts of both the writers for stepping out of home to explore unfamiliar terrains.

From Zanskar to Ziro is a 10,000 km journey of two women that begins in the remote  Zanskar Valley in Ladakh and ends in Ziro in Arunachal Pradesh covering the Himalayan foothills of India, Nepal and Bhutan.

In an interactive session later, Biswas and Sen talked about their experiences, the challenges they faced travelling on their own and what moved them to take off on their individual journeys.

“Travelling in Spain alone with a limited knowledge of the Spanish language was a bit daunting at first. But one can always manage with some ingenuity. Besides, the people were very friendly and went out of their way to help me,” said Biswas, a senior journalist and editor of Trans World Features.

“Spain has had a chequered history with many invasions, including by the Moors from Morocco who reigned in the Iberian peninsula for almost 800 years. The influences of different people living in the land side by side have percolated into the country’s socio-cultural ethos, food habits, etc. Contemporary historians recognise it in their writings.. That’s interesting,” observed Biswas. 

Asked about the essentials for preparing  a trip to a foreign country on one’s own, Biswas said that a bit of homework before departing, budgeting but with little extra for  any eventuality, and above all, an open mind  while exploring the land, food included, are important.

Chief guest Jawhar Sircar, former CEO, Prasar Bharati, spoke at length about the genre of travel writing where women writers are fewer in number and lauded the authors for their work.

Goutam Ghose, well-known filmmaker and travel writer, commended the efforst of both the writers.