I’m the kind of person, who given half a chance, would love to take off somewhere for the weekend. But work pressures are such that I hardly ever get the scope to do so. So, while everyone else around is in a holiday mood, you’ll probably find me working on a ton of different projects.

I run a cultural institution in South Calcutta, and Saturday evenings are given over to the Kathak classes which I conduct for the students there. Most of them come from far-off locations, so these classes are something I can’t afford to miss. They carry on till about 8.30 in the night, and after that, it’s straight home for me to spend some time with my daughter Rajnandini. After I put her to bed, work calls once again, and I stay up till late, planning the details of forthcoming programmes, and at the most, manage to catch a movie on the DVD before calling it a night.

Sundays again, it’s time for the family, besides of course, doing up the house and tending to the garden. We usually go out for a drive, stopping at this lovely juice parlour in Bhowanipur for some delicious mango or sitaphal juice, or just get some ice cream on the way. Otherwise, friends drop in and we spend hours chatting in our terrace garden, enjoying snacks rustled up by my cook. Otherwise, if there’s a really big party, I usually have the catering done by Bijoli Grill. Give me home food any day, but if we do have to entertain guests outside, Chinoiserie, Aaheli and the ITC Sonar Bangla are my favourite places.

On the rare occasions though, when I just have to get away, I re-schedule my classes and head for a short break. If it’s a one-day trip, I go to Ffort Radisson, otherwise Darjeeling, Kalimpong or Puri are on the cards. These getaways are all about some good old rejuvenation, and I always come back, refreshed and raring to face the week ahead.