World Book Day, on April 23, creates awareness around the good habit of reading and also draws attention to book publishing and copyright. It’s a special day for Maninee De, as the actor is a voracious reader. She talks about books that have influenced and inspired her to live a better life. Maninee also shares her opinion on how the practice of reading books has been abandoned by many in today’s world of mobile phones and the internet.
“I would say that books are a very important part of one’s development. They impact you in various ways. For me, I think it would be The Seat Of The Soul, by Gary Zukhov, a book that has been highly recommended by Oprah Winfrey. Also Homosapiens is another book that has really impacted me. For sure, and I am not a Kindle user. I still am a very tactile person. I want my paper bags and the whole experience of reading a book is a very different one. And I don’t mean any disrespect to Kindle or to people who read Kindle,” says the SSUP MA actor.
Maninee feels that books have really contributed in developing her love for literature, world history, current affairs, politics, autobiographies and biographies.
“These have been part of my childhood. I read poetry. I read science fiction. So, I have a varied range of favourites. Lord of the Rings was a book that I really, really loved. I read a lot of science and quantum physics books. All the timeline jumping sort of things really fascinates me. Right now, there is a book, which is by Dr Shefali, called Radical Awakening that I am reading. I have gifted that book to someone. And I think books, to me, are a means of not just learning, but, it also transports me to different worlds without me moving an inch from my home. It’s a different world altogether and only people who are readers would understand how powerful books are. I always give plants and books to children on their birthdays. Because I feel that these are two things that in my eyes can help in building the character of a person. When you can look after a plant, you nurture life, and when you can read a book, you give wings to your imagination,” she adds.
