Dr Najma Heptulla received her doctorate in cardiac anatomy at the age of twenty-two. A scientist by training, who has taught at university level, she has had an outstanding academic career. She is also a prominent parliamentarian and one of the longest-serving, having the unique distinction of being elected as deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha four times. She was unanimously elected as the president of the Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU) in 1999 in Berlin, the first woman to hold the position.
Impressions is a collection of poems written over a span of twenty-five years. I have tried to capture love, peace and beauty, not only in words, but also through the photographs I have taken. Some photographs were taken in the era of the tiny view-finder in the camera, others, during the reign of digital cameras. I have attempted to blend the photographs with the soul of the poems I have written. While I travelled on work to various countries, I tried, between conferences and official corridors, to snatch a few moments to see and appreciate the beauty of the lands that I visited. This is the result of that attempt.
