“Going back to writing was like coming home for me,” says Rashmi Joshi, author of self-help book ‘Here and Beyond’, who did not know until six years ago that she would become a professional writer in the near future.

Writing, however, comes naturally to Joshi. She was 13 when she started writing, about life in general, and writing had remained a constant thing in her life.

And after she wrote her first book, the professional singer and yoga instructor it felt like it was something she was always meant to do.

In Here and Beyond, Joshi tries to answer a reader’s existential queries.

Joshi did her post graduation in Human Resources from Symbiosis University and her masters in Labour law from Pune University. She had worked for a few years in the corporate world before she left it all to pursue her love for music.

Describing herself as a “seeker” or a “wanderer”, Joshi says even after she had left her job for singing she never felt she belonged there. Even while she sang on the stage, Joshi describes, a voice would tell her this was not something that she meant to do.

This same voice encouraged her to write, and before she realised it, she says, she had written so much that the only thing left was to actually arrange the chapters and give it the shape of a book. Having lived a tough life, she says writing was her way of giving that chapter a closure. She wanted to share with the world the lessons she had learnt along the way.

“Everything comes together in the end,” says Joshi and it is this process that she wanted to share with the world.

Self-help books are becoming very popular in today’s time. Joshi agrees. She says human beings are essentially “evolvers” and this time is extremely difficult to survive. “There are about a hundred things packed in a single person’s life, it becomes extremely important for people to realize that they need to put their foot down,” says Joshi.

“Thirty-six percent of Indian population is susceptible to depression”, she says, adding 4.5 percent remain clinically depressed all their life.

Describing herself as an “existential philosopher”, Joshi says it is her duty to impart the knowledge she has learnt in life. Stating that there comes a time in every human being’s life when they start feeling sorry for themselves, it is extremely important to help others to deal with their challenges.

Joshi elaborates that “Here and Beyond” is a tale of her own experiences as well as of people around her. Describing herself as a “sponge”, she says she very keenly observed her life as well as that of others and has stated those examples in the book.

Joshi says people will resonate with the book and this is the reason why she wants people to read it.

“Evolution” is the one word she would use to describe her book, emphasizing that it is her favourite word.