Bangladeshi author Shazia Omar launched her third novel, Being Water, at Bookworm in Shahabuddin Park, Gulshan-2 on Saturday, closing the weekend literary festival organised by Bookworm in collaboration with HerStory.

The launch featured a conversation with Professor Firdous Azim, Chair of the Department of English and Humanities at BRAC University, who also moderated the launches of Omar's first novel, Like a Diamond in the Sky, and second novel, Dark Diamond, in 2016.

The conversation brought together the writer and the academic who had followed Omar's literary journey from her debut to her latest work, published by Om Books International in June 2026.

Being Water follows Nora, a British Bengali woman struggling with the aftermath of a family rupture, as well as difficulties in her career and relationships.

On her therapist's advice, Nora travels to Galle Fort in Sri Lanka, hoping to distance herself from the turmoil in her life. But the journey gradually forces her to confront memories of the past.

Set against Galle's colonial architecture, cultural history and layered relationship with trade, empire and migration, the novel explores grief, art, inheritance and the body's memory.

The Ramayana runs beneath the narrative as a recurring presence, drawing on themes of captivity, waiting and release.

"I wanted to write about the kind of grief that lingers," said Omar. "Nora goes to Sri Lanka to get away from herself, which is the one journey nobody completes. Healing isn't gentle. It breaks you before it remakes you."

Omar's debut novel, Like a Diamond in the Sky, was published by Zubaan-Penguin, while Dark Diamond was published by Bloomsbury in 2016.

She also writes the column Kundalini Rising for The Daily Star and is the author of Intentional Smile, a guide to positive living, and two children's books.

She has edited two short story anthologies by Bangladeshi authors and led writing communities Writers Block and Pen Warriors for several years.

An Ashtanga yoga teacher with a background in psychology, Omar has worked at Lehman Brothers and the World Bank. She is also the founder of Flow Fest, a wellbeing and cultural platform that has reached more than 40,000 people across Bangladesh.

Being Water was published by Om Books International in June 2026 and is available at Bookworm and leading bookshops across South Asia.