Q. As an Air Force officer, your husband was frequently transferred. How was your family life affected by this?

A.  In the Air Force, unlike the Army, there are few non-family postings. So my husband, our two daughters, and I, have always been together. My daughters had to change their schools often as they had to join a new school every time my husband’s posting changed, but the experience was good for them as they were exposed to various languages, cultures and religions, which helped them to develop good leadership qualities, communication skills, and other positive qualities. I have also enjoyed my stay at all the places where my husband was posted, because we always had a good social and cultural life at all the Air Force stations.

Q. You were in Iraq with your husband when he was posted there in the late 80s. What was your experience of living there?

A. I found Iraq to be much more liberal than other Arabic countries because it was more socialistic. The condition of women there was also very good, as they are allowed a lot more freedom than their counterparts in other Arab countries. They used to wear western clothes, drive cars, and also worked in good positions in offices. The men also respected them a lot. I found the Iraqis to be very warm and friendly people, and they all had a very good opinion about India. Bollywood films were very popular there and Hindi film heroines of that period like Zeenat Aman and Parveen Babi were also very talked about! Our two year stay in Baghdad was very enjoyable.

Q. Please tell us something about your work as a social worker.

A.  I have been interested in social work ever since my school and college days. I used to visit the ‘Mother Teresa’ homes wherever my husband was posted in order to fulfil my urge to do social work. I have worked with old people and orphan children and I find it very satisfying to be with them. In addition, in Delhi I used to work in the paediatric cancer ward in AIIMS, where I counselled the parents of the cancer affected children about their diet. I also used to sponsor children by paying for their medicines, as most of them came from very poor families.

Q. You are the president of AFWWA. What are the activities of this association?

A.  AFWWA is the oldest association among all the defence services. Wives of all Air Force personnel automatically become members when they marry into the service. AFWWA is mainly focused on the welfare of the families of air warriors. We have established hostels for the children of Air Force personnel in various places of the country, offer various kinds of scholarships to them, and also rehabilitate the widows of Air Force personnel who become martyrs. In addition, the members of AFWWA also perform a number of social activities, like running schools for underprivileged children living near the Air Force stations, adopting neighbouring villages, organising health camps, running awareness programmes for the local people, etc. They also run pre-schools inside the stations for the Air Force personnel, organise community events, and celebrate all national festivals.

Q. What are your other interests?

A.  I am a voracious reader and love reading novels and fictions. One of my favourite authors is Paulo Coelho and my special favourite is ‘The Alchemist’. I also enjoy novels written by John Grisham.