Insha Khawaja, 20, hailing from south Kashmir’s Bijbehara area is ready with her maiden book titled ‘Finding the lost you’. This nonfiction piece of literature crafted by Insha speaks about the anxiety, depression, and the way back to life.
Despite being an engineering student, Insha always had an affinity for literature and writing. “I was always inclined towards writing, be it prose or poetry. I love to write irrespective of the fact that I am not a literature student. My debut book is related to counseling. I call it my suggestion box. This book is meant for the readers to rediscover the lost uniqueness within them,” says Insha, who is currently pursuing B.Tech from Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST).
Insha terms her past struggles as being the reason for writing this book.
One unfortunate night in 2010, Insha and her father Muhammad Ashraf Khawaja, a businessman from Bijbehara in Anantnag district-were returning home from Jammu when they met an accident in Ramban. Insha regained consciousness at a hospital. She was told her father was fine and they were being referred to Srinagar for treatment.
While the family mourned Ashraf’s death, Insha battled it out at a Srinagar hospital. She came to know about her father’s death after about two months and straightaway fell into depression. “It was anti-depressant medication that kept me going on for a while. But then I started writing again. I started to rediscover my only love since childhood, writing.”
“The book is based on my own struggles against depression. Writing is my solace and so is this book as it talks about the hope, rediscovery, and happiness,” she adds.
Eight years later, in 2018, as engineering student Insha Khawaja’s maiden book has hit the stands – she misses her father the most. “He would have been a proud man,” she says, “but it was not to be.”
Her book titled, Finding the Lost You. Discovering the hidden gems…, is a non-fiction and a collection of essays and poems, which she says is an attempt to motivate the “hopeless”.
Today, her book is available on all leading e-commerce websites in India and will hit the stands soon.
The journey of Insha, so far, has been full of challenges but she overcame everything and made this book a reality. From facing an opposition at home to the financial issues, she faced it all.
Insha is receiving an overwhelming response from the people as the book is available on all the leading e-commerce websites. “Whosoever has read my book has given me a positive feedback and people even are asking me to make the book available in the market too,” she says.
Insha hopes that her book becomes a way for the youth, particularly girls, to realize that they are their own heroes and can conquer any battle with hope and faith. She wants her generation to believe in their abilities and never to compare themselves with others. “You are you. So focus on your flaws and work to mend them properly. Stop comparing your uniqueness with others. Know your worth and make peace with that. And also, work to make your parents smile because they are the precious assets bestowed to us,” says Insha.
