"To be an author was never in the pipeline until I went through a custodial family law situation for my son," said Sheetal Ohri, the author of 'Custodial Battle: Chronicles of an Immigrant Mother Who Was Delayed Justice in family law due to immigration status'.
Last week, the Indian American writer, entrepreneur, and mother was felicitated at a special book reading event at Double Tree by Hilton in London and spoke to iGlobal about her journey.
"It was more of an Indian citizen vs US citizen issue in the US courts. There was a bias towards US citizens depriving a mother of her child's custody based on immigration status. I had to write down the issues, the biased situations, the frustration of being an Immigrant, not having a status and being deprived of justice or my own son's custodial rights even though when I had not done anything wrong," she said.
Ohri strongly believes in making a difference and her efforts have been recognised with an NRI Institute Pravasi Award 2023 at the UK Parliament complex and a recognition by "Women Around the World" – an initiative to coincide with International Women's Day this week on March 8.
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"I would want people here to know the situation as this issue is prevalent in the UK as well, where Indian women are married and then left by British citizens. They too go through similar situations and struggles. Family courts need to take an aggressive approach on such cases by understanding the immigration system process and not alienate children and non-immigrant parents on that basis," she said.
In the last 14 years, Ohri has founded her company Sheetal Ohri Inc in San Francisco, California, which has attracted much California State Legislative and California Senate acclaim. Actively involved in various philanthropic work in the community, Ohri also hosts her weekly radio talk show ‘Making a Difference with Sheetal Ohri’ for the last 10 years. The talk show airs on San Francisco's largest South Asian FM radio station Bolly923Fm.
Speaking about her book, Ohri reflects on the issues that pushed her into becoming an author.
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She shares: "The US family law itself was my inspiration to write about the system. Seeing the biased system, seeing how easily the system was swayed on the basis of citizen vs non-citizen, and how the system was flawed when everyone thought US law was the best in the world. Sitting and seeing many cases before my own case and dealing with bias and or injustice which was at times intolerable, was the reason to write the book.
"By writing the book, I completed what I intended: to let the readers get resources and understand the custody situation and immigration issues, which not many understand unless attorneys are involved. I tried to provide help through my book detailing family law situations and cases. The whole goal was to bring the positive side out of this story for readers, by sharing the story of Ritika, who fought against a powerful judicial system and even in times of adversity, never gave up on herself and her child."
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A licensed California real estate agent, Ohri launched Silicon Valley Awards-SVA "Making a Difference" in 2012, a unique red carpet glamorous affair in San Francisco. Using local talent, she directed and produced the first Bollywood Broadway show ‘Bollywood Dreamz, Journey of a Star’, in 2013.
Looking ahead, the multi-talented Ohri is working on her second book, which is expected to be published in early 2024.
*Info: Sheetal Ohri
