Part of youth is about rebellion — Shobha De

Talking off the cuff on children, parenting, generation gap and her 13th book, Shobha De remarked: “From my experience I can say that part of youth is certainly about rebellion. If children are as good as gold and not allowed to make mistakes they can’t learn anything further in life. That is why parenting is a full-time job.”

Fielding questions from the audience, De admitted that she does have two separate sets of rules for her boys and girls. “It has nothing to do with morality, but more with safety. Today I feel worried if my girls were to go out for a late-night party because I have personally witnessed drunken driving on the road,” she argued. She added, “Actually it is far more easier to understand the girls as a parent than the boys. My two boys want to be tycoons overnight, and they divide people in two categories — winners and losers! So I have to gently step in and tell them some hard facts.”

Priced at Rs 250, Speedpost is not meant for a certain class of parents only; in fact, it has a universal appeal, remarked De. Living, loving, caring and coping with the world, Shobha criticised those who said that they could only spend `quality time’ with their children. “What quality are we talking of if parents tell her children that from 6.15 to 6.45 they are going to have fantastic quality time with the kids!” she said.

When asked what her 14th book would be like, De replied: “The next book is going to be a non-fictional work and it has got to do with the new millennium. I’m very excited about the arrival of year 2000 and my exuberance will reflect in the new book!”