{"id":1401,"date":"2015-09-09T13:33:43","date_gmt":"2015-09-09T13:33:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/heart-beats.ca\/HDB\/?p=1401"},"modified":"2015-09-10T05:27:27","modified_gmt":"2015-09-10T05:27:27","slug":"fourfive-seconds-with-farzana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/heart-beats.ca\/HDB\/fourfive-seconds-with-farzana\/","title":{"rendered":"FOURFIVE SECONDS WITH FARZANA"},"content":{"rendered":"

Interview & photos by\u00a0Vivek Shraya.<\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n

When I am asked what I like about living in Toronto, I always mention the transit system (aka the TTC). Say what you want about the Dufferin Bus or the inconsistency of our streetcars, the TTC is a luxury after growing up in a city where the bus only comes every 30 minutes. But if I were to expand my Favourite Things About Toronto list, I would have to include writer, activist, psychotherapist and dear friend, Farzana Doctor.<\/p>\n

It’s strange to think of a time when I didn’t know Farzana, timidly approaching her at the Trans March or at readings, and then running away. Hi! Bye!\u00a0<\/em>And yet my every awkward greeting was consistently met with an unusual warmth, the kind that perhaps foretold our future friendship, or is just part of who she is. Because of the scarcity of opportunities\u2014<\/span>sometimes perceived, sometimes real\u2014<\/span>artists, especially in Toronto, can be guarded and even competitive. But Farzana embodies a rare generosity that I am indebted\u00a0to and also inspired by. And it’s not just me that has benefited from her generosity. I recently met someone who, upon me mentioning Farzana, immediately shared that it was Farzana who helped them confirm their career path. Farzana is an important reminder that few things have more impact, and are more necessary than kindness.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, Farzana asked me to take the press photos to accompany her fantastic new novel, All Inclusive,<\/em> which launches in Toronto on September 29 at Gladstone Hotel<\/a>. The photos featured here are some of my favourite outtakes from that shoot.<\/p>\n

\"Farzana<\/a><\/p>\n

What compelled you to write\u00a0All Inclusive<\/em>?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Opening Up<\/em> (by Tristan Taormino), a book about non-monogamy, was my beach reading at an all-inclusive resort I went to six years ago. A sort of idea collision occurred that vacation week, seeding the novel.<\/p>\n

During my first year of writing, I joked that this book was all about my love\/hate relationship with all-inclusive resorts and monogamy.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I realized there was much I wanted to explore (and contest) about both through fiction.<\/p>\n