Hi Ankita, congratulations on the release of No Woman’s Land. The book has been garnering rave reviews and is an inspirational read for many.
Readomania: What inspired you to join the Army against your family’s wishes at a time when it was hardly a career option for women?
Ankita: Thanks to some of those young boisterous Allahabadi eve-teasers / roadside Romeos with whom I came across during my college time. They made me scared and rebellious at the same time. Because of them, I watched a Doordarshan serial titled Udaan and I mentally resonated with the power of the uniform. The Role of fiery fierce authoritative IPS Kalyani Singh essayed by Kavita Choudhary made me conclude that if ever I shall look impactful in any attire; it will be the military uniform only. So all those miniature rowdy roadies who have now grown up into senior citizens can pat their backs for this success of mine but please don’t be shocked when you come to know that I was conspiring behind your misbehaved back all along.
Readomania: You say you were born with an ‘iron spoon’. Could you elaborate on that? Also, did you have the quintessential middle child syndrome?
Ankita: People are born with either a silver spoon or no spoon. And I was born with an iron spoon as a gift from God. He gave it to let me dig tiny trenches to keep me safe from the strictness around me. God in fact gifted me plenty of invisible little survival kits to be used during variable situations. Yes, being the second child amongst four children had its own disadvantages. Pencil boxes and crayons were always handed over in their most creatively distorted shapes and sizes. The first born obviously takes the ones that come from the market in its original condition
Readomania: St. Mary’s Convent, Allahabad was a big culture shift for you, isn’t it?
Ankita: Yes, my school St. Mary’s Convent was a school for the privileged. It recognized students who were good in studies or sports or extracurricular activities and some teachers had a tilt of the heart towards smart looking girls. I was none of the above. There were few like me from the middle-class families— a strict dad and a pampered older brother, but these girls were docile and had a noble aim—to get convent education so as to be of high value in the marriage market. However, I had quite a restless mind and always wanted to stand out of the crowd somehow. I put my heart in almost everything that happened in school just to shine in the eyes of teachers. I used to volunteer for participating in dance, drama, singing, races, debates, science exhibitions. I even participated in some cooking competition which I obviously lost. I think such a grand legendary school had a magnanimous effect on my heart. I was constantly collecting feathers to sew them as my wings.
Readomania: Your entry into the SSB is a whole roller coaster ride, starting from the train journey itself, isn’t it?
Ankita: Yes, reaching the SSB centre and staying there was indeed a roller coaster ride because everything there was absolutely a new stage for me. But when I look back today it appears it was unreal. Scenes like in the books that I grew up reading. It was a window opening in the Russian streets full of snow, like a door opening into the Red Riding Hood Forest, it was the jungle of seven dwarfs, it was the castle and the prince who saved Rapunzel. Yes, it appeared to me like a fantasy , but it was real. .
Readomania: No Woman’s Land is a unique title. What was the thought behind it?
Ankita: No Woman’s Land is indeed a unique title that I created for depicting my life journey which had constantly converted into fifth gear moments by God’s blessings. Also, the book has many a FIRST moments of my life which made me stitch them together under a title that can give a glimpse of such vibrancy. Additionally, it marks my effort towards moving forward with two words- Hope and Hard work. I strongly feel responsible towards my readers, so I want readers to borrow some life tactics from my life and I knew they would only pick the book if I gave it a unique title.
Readomania: You joined the third batch of women officers in the Indian Army and faced quite a few logistical and operational challenges after your posting. Did it ever make you reconsider your decisions?
Ankita: No, not once did it deter me or make me rethink my decision. I was as I said earlier always moved with hope and hard work. So, any challenge that came in, I simply sat down to re-strategize my tactics for overcoming that challenge at that time. I am a strong believer in God, and I always knew it is he who shows us the path ahead. And apart from this I also believe that every problem has a solution. For this I would like to tell you about two theories that I have coined on my own—first is Rubik’s Cube theory—like when you go to buy the Rubik’s cube from the shop, he gives it us in a mismatched format of colors and we take days/hours/ minutes/ seconds to bring it back to the desired color format depending on our brain power, patience power and belief. That means the solution is there, but it depends on us how much we are willing to put in to solve the puzzle. My second theory is—Question Paper theory—every question paper that has been set by the teacher knows the answer to all the questions there but the person solving may not write the correct answer which does not mean the question cannot be solved / answered correctly. So, drawing comparison from these two theories, I feel God has solutions to every challenge that he throws at us; only we should know that all our challenges are solvable and until we have reached the right answer, it is not solved.
Readomania: Which task do you think was the toughest for you during your tenure?
Ankita: The task of being a mother to my sons. Yes, that was the toughest as it is a full-time job. There have been times when I have been absent to understand their emotional needs. Children are a very precious gift of God to us whom we create with a promise to give them love all the time but sometimes, we as mothers may not be able to be physically present there or might take help of others to hand out our love which at times backfires. It creates a vacuum in the tender hearts of kids. I feel after office hours, I should have been less occupied in mundane activities like ensuring cleanliness of the house etc. or managing issues of relatives. After office hours I should have been only and only focused on my kids which I mostly did. I may be drowning in guilt of being away in the daytime. Possibly that has over pampered them which is not a very good thing I must admit. As a working mother, we are bound to mismanage some aspects of laid down chapters of motherhood, but I know kids of such fiery strong mothers inherit strength of survival and they use this skill once they start their own independent life.
Readomania: What do you think women officers bring to the table vis a vis their male counterparts?
Ankita: There is no difference between the two. We both are trained to handle tough situations without complaining and both genders do full justice to it. However, an additional emotional touch might come in while dealing with issues of soldiers that relates to their family matters. We women officers listen to their issues with an empathetic mind which, half of the time solves the issue just by giving a patient hearing. However back on ground dealing with soldiers for op preparedness is same as male officers’ deal with them. Army is not about gender; it's about accepting the orders of the seniors and as seniors we officers (both male and female) are supposed to lead the juniors by following the rules ourselves and by becoming personal examples.
Readomania: You have always been a poet/writer since your girlhood days. How did you balance your creative side with your tough exterior?
Ankita: My soft creative side was always under camouflage, maybe because that time when I started pouring my heart on paper in my teens, I was not this bold. Maybe I feared people reading me wrong or maybe I feared people would laugh at the way I used to soar and perch; obviously acting oblivious of the real world around me. I guess I was further taught by the Indian Army very well as to how to camouflage what you do not want to show to the world / enemy as you know you might be attacked / misjudged so I continued enjoying my creative side as my best friend in solace.
Readomania: Your transition from boots to stilettos and from Olive green to Beauty queen is a very interesting story. Tell us a bit about it.
Ankita: Being amongst men in uniform for 14 years where nothing was feminine, I kind of aped every mannerism that was non-feminine. This was done on a subconscious level and I came to know about it only when I hung my military boots. So, after leaving army, I felt a difference in my gait, understanding of feminine attires, footwear and even the tone of my voice and all this made me now super conscious that I am all the time behaving like an officer and not fitting in the feminine format. I had wanted to learn to flaunt my feminine side. But at the age of 39, I did not know who will teach me how to unearth my submerged feminine ways so the best platform I could zero down was a national beauty pageant Gladrags Mrs India 2009.Plus, all this while after hanging boots, when I was sitting at home staring at my shoes that had been shifted to my servant quarter; I realized I need some 180 degrees opposite task to do which will keep up my sagging morale. And having no idea about fashion, beauty, makeup, and heels, I volunteered to dive into this new world!
Readomania: You say your sense of humour is liquid. What does it mean? Also, how did the journey as a stand-up comedian begin?
Ankita: Aha! I was put in the best English medium convent school that had miniature versions of strict Army Commanders in the form of my teachers. Together my strict dad and the nuns made me drink so much discipline that the only antidote to it was some liquid humour that I drank secretly most often when no one was watching. Liquids after all are easily digestible and when spewed; it goes up in the form of vapors which are mostly not noticed by most humans. The stand-up comedy was totally accidental. I was selected as a storyteller of Asmita Season 1 hosted by AWWA where chief guest was Dr Kiran Bedi. When I spoke my real-life humour with full honesty on stage, I saw Dr Kiran Bedi laughing her guts out along with all the audience. I instantly knew I can regale a very sophisticated audience for sure by my military humour. And then a few months later when AWWA organized this litfest at Jaipur, I wanted to enact my previous book—Olive Green to Beauty Queen in front of a very worthy audience which was a mix of soldiers and their families so that people get drawn to it and buy of course. You can call it a marketing style—my personalized marketing style. I chose all the hilarious moments from my book and started talking about it which people loved and laughed at and yes at the end of my 15 minutes act; they rushed to buy my book.
Readomania: What do you think the reader will take away from No Woman’s Land? Do you feel young girls will be motivated to join the Forces?
Ankita: Each of my readers after reading No Woman's Land will be a guaranteed turn into a stronger version of themselves. They will feel resonated with each page and will learn to leap mountains like a tiger or by crawling like a snake or by flying like an eagle. Yes, it will motivate each young reader to step into my shoes to taste the feel of hope and hard work. Young girls, when you read my book No Woman’s Land; you surely will want to join ‘The Forces’ because it is undoubtedly the best profession. Actually, the Army is not a profession; it’s A WAY OF LIFE!
Readomania: Thank you for speaking to us, Ankita! We look forward to your forthcoming books.
Her books are available on Amazon. Click on the link below.
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