A bit about my writing journey…

I was born in Derby (UK) in 1966 to an Indian doctor from Kolkata and an English nurse from the Lake District. Me and my three siblings lived and went to school variously in Hull, the Lake District and Shropshire.

The Lake District countryside and folklore in particular had a profound impact on my imagination as did my dad’s storytelling and visits to and from my family in Kolkata.

After A Levels I lived in Paris for a year au-pairing for a family. There I had an opportunity to attend Le Cours Florent Drama College. I studied English Literature at Bristol University and I have an MA in Arts Education from the Central School and Speech and Drama.

After university I began working in community theatre at The Royal Court Young People’s Theatre working with young people to develop their writing. I then went on to work with many theatre companies to develop education programmes for among others Talawa, Tamasha and the Royal Shakespeare Company with a focus on bringing underrepresented diverse voices to the fore. From childhood I was always searching for the nuanced, complex and often beautiful representations of families, cultures and histories that I had experienced growing up, but seldom found in literature or the arts.

In 2011 I wrote my debut novel Artichoke Hearts (Macmillan, 2011) and was thrilled and amazed when it won the Waterstones Children’s book prize and recognised by The Guardian as one of the top 50 diverse books since the 1950s as well as being shortlisted for a romance prize! .

In 2013 I co-created a theatre production inspired by Shaun Tan’s graphic novel The Arrival (Tamasha, 2013).

Over the last decade I have written many acclaimed novels for children and young adults, contributed to animations, plays and short stories. I have been published by Macmillan Children’s Books, Barrington Stoke, Otter Barry Books, Hachette Children’s Books, Stripes and Little Tiger.

These stories have all emerged as a consequence of collabration with incredible editors, illustrators, publishing teams and book agencies such as Book Trust, the Reading Agency, Empathy Lab, English & Media Centre and National Literacy Trust.

Tender Earth was honoured by The International Board of Books For Young People.

It’s a joy to meet readers in schools at festivals and live and online events and to create this patchwork of storytelling.

Work in communities and with young people has always been central to my research and storytelling. I’m proud to be a human rights ambassador for Amnesty International and that children’s, refugee and environmental rights have been at the forefront of my stories.

I have been Writer in Residence at Islington Centre for Refugees and Migrants since 2012 alongside Artist in Residence Jane Ray and a growing team.

My articles and interviews, about working with refugee and disenfranchised communities have featured widely in the media.

I was Book Trust’s twelfth Writer In Residence.

I was Patron of Reading at Fortismere School for many years.

From 2021 - 2023 I took up a post as a Royal Literary Fund Fellow based at The Courtauld. From October 2023 - 2025 I was a Royal Literary Fellow at The British Library.

In 2022 I was invited onto the editorial board of Writers Mosaic a division of The Royal Literary Fund where I have enjoyed in conversations with fellow authors such as S.F. Said, Jasbinder Bilan, Candy Gourlay and Az Dassu.

In January 2022 I became Associate Lecturer teaching on the module in Children’s and YA Literature at Goldsmiths University.

In November 2023 I was made a fellow of the Society of Authors.

This year (2025) I was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and an Ambassador for Book Clubs in Schools. I will also be supporting Together in the UK Then & Now Competition encouraging the writing of children from refugee and migrant backgrounds.

I live in London with my husband and family and Billie our adored dog and when we can, we head to the Suffolk coast whatever the weather.