JLF 2018: Soha Ali Khan on ‘The Perils of Being Moderately Famous’

Khan, who made an impressive debut with her book, ‘The Perils of Being Moderately Famous’, was speaking at the JLF.

Soha Ali Khan (L) and Sharmila Tagore (R) at JLF 2018.

(Photo Courtesy: Facebook/SohaAliKhanPataudi)

How many celebrities do we come across that acknowledge that they are only “moderately” famous? The great wall of Ego blocks this self-realisation. This is what makes Soha Ali Khan exceptional. She’s recently made an impressive debut as an author with The Perils of Being Moderately Famous. Memoirs are tricky for anyone but when it comes to a moderately famous member of a high-voltage celeb household, it is a different ball game altogether.

Answering The Quint on whether she felt vulnerable while writing the book, Soha responds affirmatively. “Yes, I did. Because writing about oneself is never easy. There are a lot of things in the book that even my husband does not know. When he read the manuscript he told me that he understood me better after reading it.”

“Writing is very different from filmmaking. When you are part of a film project, you are surrounded with multiple people and processes. With writing, it’s just you and your thoughts with the computer. It is very different,” she says.

Soha shares that when the publishers asked her whether she’d like to write fiction or non-fiction, she chose the latter. With a life like that, who would not? But she has another reason to back her choice. “My memory is better than my imagination. There is a lot that I have seen and experienced and I thought it was good material for a book.”

She finished the book during her pregnancy months and when little Inaya was born, the author was replaced by mother. She is focusing on bringing up the child and learning another set of rules of engagement with life. “Being the youngest child of the family, I have no training in raising kids. I’m learning to change diapers now!”