Disabled is a word which people used when they saw me. But it is a term which I don’t associate myself with. I strongly believe disability is only in the mind and one has to overcome that to move ahead in life.

Q Here are seven attitudes to harness the power of intention:

1 Stay rooted to reality. Don’t believe in hype, superstition, tarot, astrology or star signs to lure you into believing things about yourself or others that aren’t true. Don’t for a second believe that some guy with a beard and booming voice and deep burning eyes has some “power” to alter your reality either. He doesn’t. If he really did, he wouldn’t be desperate enough to lure you into swallowing his hype today.

In the opening image of Shivani Dass’ exhibition titled “Violet Dreams”, the viewer is confronted with a portrait of a girl whose face is masked by a full head of hair as though in a state of trance. The curator Tanvi Mishra remarked, “For someone who isn’t a believer in the existence of the devil or his antics, Dass’ images challenged me to think that there could be an alternate version of reality.”

I am a fighter, believer and an optimist all rolled into one. My life has always thrown up challenges and hurdles but I could tide over them because I always believed in the Almighty.

Q I am a regular reader of your column and I have a personal query to ask you. I recently had a tragic experience. I lost my 16-year-old daughter to a rare disease. She was my world. We did everything to save her. Why did this happened? She had many dreams, which were not even realised. How I can get peace of mind? She passed through a painful treatment. I want to know she is in peace.
Anupama

I was curious about hypnotherapy and after asking around, somebody suggested Zarina Godrej. “The best there is in Mumbai. She is discreet. She deals with many celebrities and not one knows who goes to her.” I wanted to meet her, experience her and ask her questions.

August 12, 2012 will remain etched in my memory forever. It was the day I made my country, family and well-wishers proud. It was also the dawn of a new beginning for me. The bronze medal at the London Olympics also ended the sleepless nights of suffering of four years.

You want to harness the power of your mind to alter your reality, yes? That’s really an invitation to chaos. Lots of people are in the market, offering quick and easy solutions. You flow into them with anticipation and excitement. You follow their prescribed formulae, their chants and utterances, wear their beads, read their books, watch their DVDs, dress as per their code, hang on to their every word, hoping, pleading, fantasizing.

My husband Gary Sewell wooed me for years when we were in college and as much as I wished he would change, I knew I was falling in love with him. When he promised that he would change his errant ways and work hard towards building a future with me, I agreed to marry him. We took our vows in a beautiful church that we would be with each other through sickness and health; 17 years into this tumultuous marriage that involved multiple occasions of adultery and alcoholism, he broke all those vows and deserted me in Riyadh.

I was born and brought up by poor parents who couldn’t provide me and my other siblings’ proper education, clothes and daily meals. My father has two wives, but there are no hard feelings in the family. I adore my stepmother and her children because we all live together. I have one brother and two half-siblings. Singing happened out of desperate situation.