It is said that shame dies when stories are told in safe places. 'The Girl with the Paisley Dupatta and other stories' forges within its pages the sanctity and dignity that allow fragile stories to become powerful, purposeful, healing and exhilarating epics of personal courage and enterprise. Many of the stories within this book are from outside the bell curve of our lives: From the brutal vigilante justice perpetrated in the name of religion to the harrowing custom of revenge rape, to the patriarchial ruthlessness that so many young women are subjected to, to the deep-seated fear and also the heroic endurance and optimism of our minority communities - these stories come straight from the truth-telling corners of our heart. These tales will make you laugh, cry and ruminate in equal measure while constantly niggling at the peripheries of conventional value systems.