Episode notes
Award-winning author Ritu Hemnani joins us for a powerful conversation on writing as a tool for empathy and social change.
We begin with her poem, "Mind the Gap," which hijacks the London Underground's warning to frame the xenophobia faced by Asian communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ritu reveals how this mundane phrase becomes a metaphor for prejudice, bystander silence, and the fear of being targeted.
We explore her cinematic craft, moving from nostalgic Chinatown memories to a tense tube car confrontation, and how her drama background fuels her character-driven empathy.
The discussion expands to her mission as a children's author. She shares her journey to publication with the Partition-inspired verse novel Lion of the Sky and picture book Gope and ...
Keywords
hong kongliteraturestories from asiacantonesemigrationcovid-19poetry
What place this episode is about
City
Where this episode is made
City