Meher Pestonji Biography 
Meher Pestonji is a social worker, freelance journalist, and writer, who works for underprivileged people since 1970s. Mixed Marriage and Other Stories Parsi (1999), Pervez (2003) and Sadak Chhaap (2005) are her published novels. She also authored a few plays such as Piano for sale, Outsider, Feeding crows etc. She has been associated with many social moves since 1970s. She actively participated in the campaign to change rape law then. After the Babri Masjid riots in 1992–93, she took up to fight communalism and parochialism and she supported filmmaker Anand Patwardhan's campaign against slum destruction.
Meher Pestonji was born into a Parsi family on 19 September 1946 in Mumbai, Maharashtra. She completed her graduation in Psychology and also studied journalism. She separated from her husband when her daughters were four and five years old. Now she lives with her daughters in Mumbai. After separated from her husband she started as a freelancer journalist, and slowly she stepped forward for other reasons too. She started her career as a social activist in the 1970s, and has been a part of several campaigns since then. She also wrote books, mostly choosing themes from her personal life and her career as a journalist.
She once called herself 'an accidental Parsi' and her stance towards her community changed after Mumbai riots 1992-1993. During the Mumbai riots, she worked in Dharavi and interviewed many personalities of upper sections of the society. They include entrepreneurs, journalists, scientists etc. She also faced criticism for her remarks against her community. As a writer she started off her career in 1999 with Mixed Marriage and Other Stories Parsi, and after that published five more books.
Published: September 16, 2018
Updated: September 16, 2018
