A woman must not forget her “dharma” towards herself: Sulekha Bajpai

When Sulekha Bajpai was told that her story was among the 25 winners of the eShe magazinersquos short story contest she couldnrsquot believe itAs a veteran advertising professional behind some timeless catchphrases like ldquoMelody khao khud jaan jaordquo and Pepsodent Dhishoom Dhishoom Lagatar kitanuon se ladta hai Bajpai is wellversed with writing taglines and jingles but the resolve of authoring a short story came from her fear of getting lost in oblivion After working for over a decade she quit her job to take care of her two children but soon realised that her creative side was getting lost in the rutldquoIt felt like I was wasting my life so much so that mundane conversations with the vegetable vendor or the domestic help would frustrate merdquo she saidFor a multifaceted artist with a rich background in screenwriting and a person with solid grit this chaos was natural After all she has been associated with several big Bollywood projects as a dialogue and script writer including Ram Gopal Varmarsquos Naach and Sooraj Barjatyarsquos Isi Life MeHer more recent work in the short film genre has garnered many awards Khamakha on which she worked as a lyricist won the Jio Filmfare Award 2017 for Best Short Film Her screenplay and dialogues for Udne Do 2019 a poignant film on child sexual abuse has received critical acclaim along with 9 international awardsAll this to say that even though she is not a literature student she has managed to work her way up through the creative industry all thanks to her keen knack for the creative arts and perseverance Her love for reading and watching movies has also helped her up her gameHowever even the best of us have doubts when trying new things While she wanted a break from her domesticated life she was unsure whether she would be able to pull off a short storyAfter having bouts of inner conversations she decided that it was the way out of her ldquomechanical liferdquo She was determined to not let her job of a fulltime homemaker be a speedbreaker in her forever momentous professional lifeShe started locking herself up in a room for a few hours every day and allowed her creativity to take over from there In the process she developed the character of Danish Wadia for her short story Navjote Nu Bhonu She said once she decided to not give in to the emptiness of her domestic life everything fell in place effortlesslyldquoIt was like a portal opened and I seeped into the zonerdquo The story and the characters reflected her observations about the Parsi culture and human interactions in general ldquoI am most interested in people cultures and human behavioursrdquo she says which helped her create an immersive tale of a Parsi ceremony laden with emotions and nostalgiaHer story went on to win the short story contest by eShe magazine and feature in the book ldquoEverything Changed After Thatrdquo a collection of 25 stories by 25 women from different professions edited by Aekta Kapoor Bajpai was back in the game and she also realised that she has not lost her sharpness She has now decided to write her debut novel and reach out to directors with her scriptsShe says all this would not have been possible without the help and support of her husband who has always believed in her and motivated her to exploit her potential to the fullest She also thanked her domestic help who took care of her family like her own allowing her the time to focus in her workBut most of all she recognises her own hardwork and grit that never let her give up She reveals she was always a gogetter who would live life on her own terms be it travelling to unknown destinations with her children or creating a name for herself through her workWhile she attaches much importance to her job of being a mother she says it is not the end of the world ldquoWomen must never fail to make use of their potential and fulfil their duty towards themselvesrdquo she addsShe describes herself as ldquobindaasrdquo who has never shied away from taking risks in her professional as well personal life At the same time she has not let go of the discipline and stability that a writer requires Most importantly through her journey as a scriptwriter and a mother she has always fulfilled her ldquoswadharmardquo onersquos duty towards oneself and not let adversities push her into a boxBajpai has never limited herself to one zone and has branched out in every phase of her life with Navjote Nu Bhonu getting the recognition it deserves she has again discovered another path for her to explore