As the title of the book suggests, this is a memoir of the long life that I have lived. Towards the end of my life, I have an inner compulsion to speak about my time on this planet which has been mixed, on the whole, not bad at all.

This book is a kind of putting together entries in diaries and scribbles on paper that I did from time to time, almost like a compulsive habit. I have also written about certain aspects that have deeply affected me, like nature, friends, relationships and of course, death.

About Author

Chitrotpala Mukherjee was born in Ranchi in 1940. She did her early education in Bangalore and later moved to Shantiniketan, where she completed her schooling. Her college years were spent in Kolkata and she graduated with English Honours from Lady Brabourne College and later finished her MA from Calcutta University.

She worked for about a year with the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi in the political department. On returning to Calcutta, she joined Indian Airlines and worked with them initially in Calcutta. Later on, she moved to Bombay and then retired from the Head Quarters in Delhi in 1995.

Post-retirement, she pursued her passion for art and founded Artspace India in collaboration with Bridget Fraser of Artspace UK. Artspace India was an initiative for promoting and nurturing young and aspiring artists. This included setting up a gallery in the city and an Art Residency in Baruipur on the outskirts of Calcutta. The Baruipur residency had a full-fledged ceramic unit.

Gunter Grass one of the foremost writers of our time, spent some creative time at Baruipur. He visited the Art Residency again after receiving the Nobel Prize and churned out a few pieces at our ceramic setup.

Chitrotpala Mukherjee, more popularly known as Mitu, has continued her association with the art world. She has written a monograph on the renowned artist Suvaprasanna as well as a personal reminiscence that records and archives her work at Artspace India.

She lives in Kolkata with her cat Buri.