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Journalism of Courage
Who would imagine the hi-flying publisher of an equally hi-flying magazine like Elle to be kind of woman who8217;d buy a house on the grounds of a terrace?
But then, that is what Nirja Shah is all about. And her favourite place in the whole world is nothing more than testimony to her wild, wanton and wonderful personality.
No. Perhaps not. The little pagoda standing tall in one corner of the terrace looks down at a variety of fauna that would make the greenest of thumbs envious.
There8217;s everything here from flowers to wild tea and ajwain. A ledge on the walls all around drops creepers down like Rapunzel8217;s locks, dotted with the occasional flower here and there.
And peeking from behind the pagoda are sunsets that can put the most disturbed souls at ease with themselves. But Nirja8217;s strongest link is between herself and her precious plants.
quot;My plants actually have a very definite form of communication with me. Like there was this time when I had a maali who just didn8217;t seem right, but there wasn8217;t anything wrong with him either. So I took him on.
quot;But my plants started rebelling in the most amazing way. Leaves yellowed, flowers wilted. Eventually, I asked him to leave, and they recovered. Just like that,quot; she says, firm in her belief that this wasn8217;t just a figment of her imagination.
quot;And even otherwise, I8217;ve had some of the most wonderful times of my life right here, on this terra firma. I threw a party for my parents8217; golden anniversary here. Then there was my own 39th birthday I refused to celebrate my 40th and my son Rishab8217;s 13th birthday. The times that have been the best in my life have been right here,8221; she says softly, withdrawing into her own world as she flips through photo albums.
quot;Parties outdoors are really something else. You have the best of both world, quite literally, stars and the moonlight, and good company down here,quot; she says.
