came to Kathmandu for the first time in 1955 as a three-year-old with her parents. She recalls learning dance and Nepali the (language), while also soaking in the rich Nepali heritage. She was here for the second time in 1998, and her recent visit - to the Kalinga Literary Festival Kathmandu 2024 - was her third detour here.
This time she was accompanied by her successful legacy - an experience of working for 28 years with the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) as a diplomat. She represented India in different countries including Japan, and Sri Lanka. She was in Geneva doing multilateral work with the Indian mission dealing with the UN.
She was the ambassador to Hungary, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. After that she joined the UN, where she remained for 15 years - as Director of the flagship International Trade Division of UNCTAD, later as Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations, and as the founding Deputy Executive Director of UN WOMEN. The recipient of the Eleanor Roosevelt Prize for Human Rights, Puri has contributed to UN's major projects on peace and security, sustainable development, climate change, human rights, and humanitarian action.
The multi-faceted personality walked down the memory lane with as she shared vignettes of her childhood days here while also talking about her debut novel Swallowing the Sun and the Naari Shakti (woman/female power) that she believes in. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. Excerpts from the interview: It was very emotion.