Durga is named after the Bengali goddess; pure of heart, filled with goodness. But the goddess has an alter-ego— the fearless Kali, filled with fire and crackling with energy.

The third of four children born to a middle-class Calcutta family quiet Durga is the last person her loving, overbearing family would have picked as an emigrant. She is not as charming as her sister, Tia, as light-hearted as her brother, Arjun, or as clever as her youngest sister, Parul. But when she arrives in Ireland to work at a tech company, she finds that she is suddenly free. Free to have fun, to stay out, to sample everything that western life has to offer. Suddenly, Durga can be whoever she wants and make whatever she wants of her new life. And she wants it all…

But freedom comes at a price. Durga falls in love with handsome, charismatic Jacob, who fills her life with energy and drive. His sister, Joy, now Durga’s flatmate, will be a friend forever. But with one wrong choice, the result is heartbreak and then tragedy. How will she pull the pieces of her life together? Who will she now be; fearless Kali or peace-loving Durga? A trip home to India, to see her sister wed the boy who was chosen for her at birth, seems to provide the answers. She could be happy here, comfortable with her place in the family and with the husband her parents will choose for her. But for Durga, it isn’t enough. She now has to summon her inner Kali, the brave and fearless warrior, and fight for the life she truly desires.

What makes a person who they are? Their history, where they come from, or the choices they make? Through Durga’s eyes, Disha Bose asks this essential question. In one woman’s journey, from East to West, from traditional to modern, from Indian to European, we get a glimpse into the woman she might have been, as well as the woman she is about to become. Modern thought-provoking and sharply funny, I Will Blossom Anyway is the story of the clash and blending of two different cultures, what it means to be caught between opposing worlds, the pressures and freedoms of millennial life and what it really means to be a modern woman today- anywhere.

Disha’s debut novel, Dirty Laundry, exploring themes of motherhood, friendship and immigration was published by Viking, Penguin in the UK and by Ballantine in the US in 2023 where it was chosen as a 'Good Morning America' Book Club pick.