Podcast Discontinued episodes:

• July 14, 2025@Ramya | Ask Hemangini | The idea behind the book...

  Click here to reply to @Ramya
  
  "Hello Hemangini, thank you so much for taking the time out and doing this Q and A on the author spotlight. I hope you are enjoying your time on Swell and many congratulations on the launch of your book the Scratch and Sniff Chronicles published by Niyogi Books. So let me kick start the Q and A with this question for you. Your protagonist, Ollie, quite literally smells emotions, histories, and even danger at times. So if you really think about it, smell in this case bypasses logic."

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 14, 2025@Ramya | Ask Hemangini | How do you write a scent?

  Click here to reply to @Ramya
  
  "You know, Hemangini. Maybe I should have started off with this question. But anyways, here goes. How do you write a scent? It's a hard thing to describe. You're not just saying it smelled like roses or lily. You're asking your readers to feel the scent. So was there a moment in the book where you struggle to put a smell into words? And how did you get past that? Also, smell drives both suspense and memory in your story."

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 14, 2025@Ramya | Ask Hemangini | Neelbari, the ancestral home as the setting...

  Click here to reply to @Ramya
  
  "So, Neelbari. I hope I'm pronouncing it right. The ancestral home in your book isn't just a setting. It's a living, breathing, secret holding entity. How did you channel the whole atmosphere of Nilbari? Through scent, both literal and figurative, to make it feel like you know, another character in your story. And why do you think such, you know, ancestral homes carry so much of psychological residue, especially in South Asian families."

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 14, 2025@Ramya | Ask Hemangini | A question about Ollie's 'gift'

  Click here to reply to @Ramya
  
  "Okay, so I really wanted to pick your brains on this one. Your protagonist Ollie's gift is extraordinary, but at the same time, alienating. So as you were working on your book, did you intend this as a metaphor for other forms of differences like neurodivergence or hypersensitivity or even emotional intelligence? As you were working on your character development and the whole, you know, the protagonist character arc?"

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 14, 2025@Ramya | Ask Hemangini | balancing the cosy elements and the darker themes in your book...

  Click here to reply to @Ramya
  
  "I think I'll leave you with one last question. Hemangini at its heart, the book is a whodunit, but it is also a journey through loss. So what drew you to this intersection between solving something and mourning something? And how did you balance the cozy elements of the book with Docker emotional themes like guilt, suspicion and grief? As you were working on your narrative."

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 08, 2025@Vivekn976 | What experience falls into the book

  Click here to reply to @Vivekn976
  
  "But the fact that you've taken it as an autobiographical conversational tone itself suggests that you're, you really want the reader to understand what you're trying to say and you want to change that readers perspective of life and how life works. So my question to you would be regarding your book. Owing to the fact that it's an autobiographical book, what were what made you pick out certain instances in life that really impacted you?"

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 08, 2025@hemal_j11 | Question

  Click here to reply to @hemal_j11
  
  "What is the most common internal barrier you've seen in people when they ask themselves what next? And how do you recommend they begin to overcome it, especially when priority does not come easily to them? I would like to just say that your work equips people not just to make a choice, but to also make a very conscious one. Thank you so much for writing such a deeply needed book for this generation. Sir."

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 08, 2025@hemal_j11 | Question

  Click here to reply to @hemal_j11
  
  "Hi ma'. Am. Your book what Will youl Legacy Be? Offers a refreshing and necessary perspective in a world often driven by short term wins and surface level success. By rooting the idea of legacy in authenticity, values and everyday impact, you have invited the readers to view their lives through a more intentional and compassionate lens. I would like to ask you a question."

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 08, 2025@Ramya | Ask Sreemati Sen | What drew you to writing horror fiction?

  Click here to reply to @Ramya
  
  "Hello, Sreemati. Thank you so much for taking the time out and doing this Q and A on swell around your latest book, Shadow Town. To begin with, tell us what drew you to writing horror fiction, especially with a setting rooted in Bengal's tribal heartlands."

  ...more

  

  ---

• July 08, 2025@Ramya | Ask Sreemati Sen | The spark behind the book & the protagonist

  Click here to reply to @Ramya
  
  "So your book Shadow Town isn't just horror fiction. It is layered with folklore, realism, with, you know, aspects and themes of medical ethics thrown in. What inspired this story and your protagonist, Dr. Disha."

  ...more

  

  ---