Interview: Nisha Sharma discusses Shakespeare-inspired ‘Marriage & Masti’

In the finale of the ‘If Shakespeare Was an Auntie’ trilogy, award-winning author Nisha Sharma finishes her Shakespeare-inspired romcom adult series by featuring a friends-to-lovers trope, an accidental wedding, meddling families, and sizzling chemistry. An ode to Twelfth Night, Marriage & Masti follows Veera Mathur, who has been through a lot. Her two best friends have found their soul mates, the man she fell in love with is engaged to another woman, and her father fired her before selling their family company. 

Deepak Datta hasn’t had the best luck either. To secure enough board votes for the CEO position at his family’s company, Illyria Media, she’s ready to marry board member and famous beauty influencer Olivia Gupta. That is until he wakes up to a get-ready with-me video announcing their separation. Despite his immediate relief, Deepak must do something to repair his image.

After a series of convenient mishaps bring them together again—including a literal shipwreck, way too many drinks, and a sunset elopement on the beach—Deepak and Veera realize their accidental wedding might be the solution to their career aspirations. Together, they plot against the very company that ruined their lives in the first place.

This spicy romance blends heartfelt relationships with Sharma’s signature flare of writing messy romances about family, love, and identity in a BIPOC space. We talked to Sharma about the inspiration and writing process behind her final book, the timely themes within the beloved series, and her thoughts on finishing the trilogy. 

William Shakespeare has written 38 plays. I’m curious to know how you selected which play to draw inspiration from for your trilogy. What made you decide to choose Taming of the Shrew, Much Ado about Nothing, and The Twelfth Night? Did you know ahead of time how the plays and plot weaved together, or did the series grow with each book?

This is a great question. Frankly, I chose my three favorites from Shakespeare’s comedies, three that I resonated with the most. I sold all three before I started writing Dating Dr. Dil, so I knew how they would fit together before I began the series.

Publishing a book series is often a hit or miss because you never know how the sales or audience will react the deeper into the story you go. For If Shakespeare Was an Auntie, you wrote three love stories following a trio of women and men from the first book and their perspectives. What was it like writing each perspective and love story, and how have you grown since releasing book one two years ago?

I am so grateful for my readership because I’ve genre-hopped most of my career, and I’ve been fortunate to have a solid audience from the beginning that is willing to go with me where I want to write. I ended up with a lot of new readers after Dating Dr. Dil, and it’s been a pleasure seeing this readership develop and grow with the Shakespeare series, too. I’m so blessed to say that the most common reader feedback I’ve seen/received remains the same: that I’m writing South Asian representation for South Asian readers to see themselves in my stories.

I love how you dedicate each book of the series to a certain audience, often sadly looked down upon by society. In doing so, you offer an inspiring message to the women reading your romance novels, telling them to not give up. Are there more messages or a particular audience you’d want to write another love story for in this universe? Do you see perhaps the Aunties having their own story or writing a spin-off, or do you think you’re ready to move on from this series?

I wish I could say, but so many publishing news tidbits don’t come to fruition until years in the future! You’ll just have to wait and see!

Marriage & Masti offers an inside look into the corporate world with its cast of characters, like how the love interests are set to work in their own family’s businesses. Even in the previous books, you touch upon the corporate world as it meshes with women in South Asian communities and their experiences. I’m interested in your experience as a South Asian woman spearheading DEI initiatives for billion-dollar companies. Did you draw real-life inspiration for your books, or what was your experience writing these details?

I spent a decade of my career in DE&I in corporate spaces, and although the world feels very similar to what I include in my stories, i.e., setting, office buildings, job titles, etc, the experiences are very different. We still have a long way to go regarding representation in corporate America.

For women, sometimes their relationship with the romance genre is complicated. What are your thoughts on this as an author and reader of the genre? How do you think this applies to your readership of your If Shakespeare Was an Auntie series and how you wrote it?

I’ve been a long-time romance reader, and I think, like with every media, readers need to triangulate information and use critical thinking before applying it to their own experiences. That said, my relationship with romance has never been truly complicated. I’ve always seen it, first and foremost, as a vehicle to express marginalized joy. At least for people like me.

What parts of yourself do you see in your cast of characters in the series, and how did this apply to the hardest part of writing Marriage & Masti?

I think there are bits and pieces of an author in every story they write, whether it be themes, emotions, settings, etc., but nothing in my stories is a direct translation from my own life. I think the hardest part of Marriage & Masti had nothing to do with parts of myself in the story but just saying goodbye to a series that I really loved.

What did you learn about yourself when writing each book of the series? How do you feel knowing the series has come to an end?

It was just a rush to finish a trilogy! I’m excited I was able to do this. It’s so bittersweet, but I feel confident in the completion of the friends’ stories.

Besides a romance series, If Shakespeare Was an Auntie highlights other themes like identity and family through writing about BIPOC experiences. What do you hope your readers will take away from the series, especially if they are people of color who may have scenarios similar to the ones you wrote in the series? 

I hope readers can see that South Asian stories are not monolithic and that everyone deserves an opportunity to love and be loved.

Marriage & Masti is available now for purchase.

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Author image courtesy of Marco Calderon.