ISLAMABAD: She was introduced as a prolific author of 18 books, a writer of four columns a week and more as an icon of outspokenness on culture issues in India. But when Shobha De speaks, much of it resonates with Pakistanis.

While ‘In Conversation’ with Aliya Iqbal-Naqvi at the Islamabad Literature Festival, De shared that this is her sixth visit to Pakistan and she hoped the visa processes would continue to get less complicated so she could come more often.

“I don’t think of it as here and there; when I am here, I am at home,” she said.

When asked about the Indian elections, De said: “These are scary times for you [Pakistan] and for us [Indians], but the Indian voter has continued to surprise us repeatedly. The fears that we are faced with may be completely unfounded but we will know soon enough.”

Commenting on Modi’s politics and the possibility of him becoming prime minister, she said the positioning required to lead a billion people is entirely different from the persona he has created thus far. “Modi is both hugely intelligent and a quick-change artist and being associated with ethnic and religious hatred is not a smart move,” she said.

Talking about her writing, De said: “I write the way I choose to and that is the way I have always written. But I expect people to understand what I write and I have had issues when people have misunderstood what I have tweeted. Part of it is of course the semantics and changing forms of communication but there is also the space for people to mischievously or maliciously misunderstand.”

Commenting on the increasing relevance of social media, De said that she found it more democratic and far-reaching than all other media.