The first woman Chief Justice of a High Court in India, the first woman Judge of the Delhi High Court, the first woman to top the Bar examinations in London: seventy-three-year-old Leila Seth has led a full life. In this autobiography, Leila talks about its joyous as well as its difficult moments. Figuring prominently are her early years of homelessness and struggle, her straying into law while in England with her husband Premo, and later practising in Patna, Calcutta and Delhi; and her happy marriage of over fifty years, including the experience of bringing up three remarkable children: writer Vikram, peace activist Shantum and film-maker Aradhana. With candour and with, she tells of her taking up law studies because this could be conveniently combined with caring for her son and husband; of the difficulty she faced as a woman barrister in Calcutta in trying to find a senior to ‘devil’ with; of her lighter moments as the sole woman judge on the otherwise all-male bench of the Delhi High Court. Also dwelt upon are her views regarding corruption, discrimination and delay in the legal system; some judgments dealing with education and with inter-personal and constitutional law; and her experiences as a member of the 15 Law Commission. Intertwining family life with professional, Leila movingly describes the years after her father’s premature death when as children they were obliged to live with friends. There are also delightful vignettes: Premo and her turning an old mansion into a splendid home in Patna, Vikram’s writing of the novel A Suitable Boy, Shantum’s ordination as a Buddhist teacher by Thich Nhat Hanh and Aradhana’s marriage to Peter, an Austrian diplomat, and work as art director on films like Earth and Water. Intimate, intricate, charming and often amusing, On Balance presents a rich and heart-warming portrait of an exceptional woman, her family and her times.
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