Khushi Mohunta

Khushi Mohunta is an Indian author, poet, and editor working across literary prose, poems, and cultural writing. She is the author of Waist Number 42 (Notion Press, 2020), a debut novel that examines school bullying, obesity, and mental health in contemporary India. She has worked professionally in trade publishing and editorial roles at Penguin Random House India and HarperCollins India, contributing as a copy editor to both fiction and non-fiction titles.
Her poems have appeared in Madras Courier and Poems India, while her prose has been published in Icy Tales, Imperium Publications, and The Speaks Group. She has also contributed features to newspapers, The Indian Express, Ahmedabad Mirror, PNN Digital, Sangri Times and to magazines, Da Parrentico, mapabear, and Wedding Affair, with work appearing in Needle Magazine (Issue V: Desire), The Parthenon (JSLH’s first student-run blog on literature, mythology, history, and art; where Khushi was the co-founder and editor), and The Freewheeler (the annual literary magazine of Shiv Nadar University’s English Department). Khushi has also performed her poem, “Chai ki Rajneeti: A Domestic Democracy,” at the Jaipur Literature Festival 2026.
Her writing reflects a deep engagement with personal and social experience, particularly through explorations of identity and belonging. Khushi has held editorial leadership roles as Editor-in-Chief of The DPS Times and The JSLH Dispatch. She received the Bronze Award in The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition 2021 by The Royal Commonwealth Society, London. She is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in English and continues to write poems and literary prose.

Please record a voice note introducing yourself and upload the same here (max 60 secs | include name, current location, experience details and education)
Hi, this is Khushi Mohunta from Sirsa, Haryana. I completed my schooling at Delhi Public School, Sirsa, followed by a B.A. (Honours) in Liberal Arts and Humanities from O.P. Jindal Global University, and an MA in English from Shiv Nadar University.
I am the author of Waist Number 42 and write poetry and prose. I have worked in trade publishing with Penguin Random House and HarperCollins Publishers, contributing as a copy editor on fiction and non-fiction titles.
My work has appeared on platforms such as The Indian Express, Ahmedabad Mirror, Madras Courier, Poems India, PNN Digital, Sangri Times, Icy Tales, Imperium Publications, Da Parrentico, mapabear, and Wedding Affair. I have also performed my poem, “Chai ki Rajneeti: A Domestic Democracy,” at the Jaipur Literature Festival 2026. I’ve served as the Editor-in-Chief of The DPS Times and The JSLH Dispatch and was awarded the Bronze Award in The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition 2021.