In the world of words, few voices carry the rare ability to straddle both fact and imagination with equal brilliance. Ashwini Gangal is one such voice—a journalist, fiction writer, and poet who has carved her own path from the bustling newsrooms of Mumbai to the creative landscapes of California. Her journey is not only one of professional growth but also of reinvention, courage, and an unshakable commitment to storytelling.
Ashwini Gangal: From Mumbai Newsrooms to California’s Creative Spaces
For over a decade, Ashwini built her reputation as a sharp, insightful journalist in Mumbai. Working with afaqs!, one of India’s most respected publications covering advertising, marketing, and media, she rose from senior correspondent to Managing Editor between 2010 and 2022. In this role, she interviewed some of the brightest minds in the industry, crafted thoughtful editorials, and managed a team of reporters. Her work reflected a deep understanding of the advertising world and its complex interplay with culture and communication.
But like many writers at heart, journalism was only one part of her story. While her words informed and analyzed, her inner voice longed to create characters, worlds, and poetic universes that reached beyond newsprint. That longing eventually found its outlet when life took a dramatic turn—she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, trading the high-energy pace of India’s media industry for the reflective, creative freedom of independent writing.
Journalism with Depth, Fiction with Soul
Even in California, Ashwini Gangal did not leave journalism behind. She began contributing to local publications like Embarcadero Media, India Currents, KQED, and Nob Hill Gazette, writing stories that engaged communities, explored cultural narratives, and celebrated the richness of everyday life. Her ability to adapt seamlessly between Indian and American media landscapes is a testament to her versatility and global perspective.
Yet, alongside her journalism, her creative writing flourished. Her short stories and poetry found homes in prestigious literary magazines across the world—from the United States and the UK to Pakistan, Croatia, and India. Each piece carried her signature style: atmospheric, layered, and deeply human. Her fiction is not escapist but reflective, often born out of solitude, migration, and a keen sensitivity to the human condition.
Ashwini Gangal: Books That Illuminate the Human Experience
Ashwini’s work as an author stands as a bold expansion of her creative identity. Her books are not just collections of words but worlds unto themselves:
-
Hormonal House (Fiction, Alien Buddha Press): A haunting collection of seven interconnected stories written during the pandemic, inspired by the dilapidated Mumbai house she grew up in.
-
Yersinia Pestis (Poetry, Bottlecap Press): Poems reflecting on disease, humanity, and the eerily close resemblance between humans and microbes.
-
Lithium and Other Fairy Tales (Poetry & Fiction, Bottlecap Press): A collection exploring migration, madness, and identity through haiku, rhyme, free verse, and story.
-
My Name is Not Ghost and Other Things: A lyrical mix of poetry, creative non-fiction, and autobiographical fiction that examines modern creativity and dislocation.
These works reveal Ashwini not only as a journalist of fact but as a chronicler of emotion, memory, and imagination.
Migration, Madness, and Meaning
Underlying much of Ashwini’s recent writing is the theme of migration—a personal and artistic upheaval that shaped her after she left Mumbai for California. She has often described migration as a form of “insanity,” an emotional crash that leaves one grappling with fragments of identity, longing, and belonging. Out of this dislocation, however, emerged some of her most powerful work.
Her fiction characters—Vaali, Vaara, Vaayu, Baali, Soki, Hotoli, Botoli, Gabroo, Abaka—are not just figments of imagination but alter egos of the spirit, mirrors of resilience and reinvention. Her poetry, on the other hand, often echoes existential questions, exploring humanity’s fragile place in a world marked by both beauty and chaos.
Recognition and Global Reach
Ashwini’s writing has not gone unnoticed. Her short stories and poems have appeared in renowned literary magazines such as The Bangalore Review, Danse Macabre, Piker Press, The Aleph Review, San Antonio Review, Museum of Americana, Sage Cigarettes Magazine, and The Bitchin’ Kitsch, among many others. In 2024, she was also nominated for the Pushcart Prize, a recognition that celebrates the finest of small press publishing.
Also Read : Pranysqa Mishra: The Youngest Golden Buzzer Winner