Uma ChatterjeeUma Chatterjee is postgraduate in applied clinical psychology from the University of Delhi. She started multiple organizations throughout her life--from a special guidance clinic and laboratory for children with special needs in Chanigarh, Sanjog--an organization for the emancipation of survivors of sexual violence and slavery--to Change Mantras, a leadership development firm.

A 'compassionate leader' is how Uma's colleagues describe her. While she holds strong convictions about her views and does not hesitate to make unconventional choices in life, she is equally empathetic to people who have different views and beliefs than her own.

Uma is perhaps best known for her work with young women and men in India who have survived gender violence and caste exploitation. She has invested a better part of the last decade fostering and mentoring the youth to mobilize, collectivize and organize themselves--to connect with each other and support themselves to heal and emancipate. 'Empowerment cannot be bestowed by the privileged to disadvantaged, nor can saviours and crusaders rescue the fallen. The best way to heal the hurt is to listen and share, our vulnerabilities, our fears and anxieties, and those parts of us which we feel ashamed to reveal, even to ourselves, ' says Uma.

A mother of a teenage daughter, she sees how, in so many ways, her daughter's context, peer culture and worldview are different from hers. At the same time, the connection between her own mother, herself and her daughter, in their desire, their struggles and their hopes as women connects their worlds. This book, Uma hopes, will evoke 'grey' conversations on identity, gender and sexuality. For it is in the messy grey areas where we find complexity, compassion and the truth.
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