In this episode of the Girls that Create podcast on Word of Mom Radio, host Erin Prather Stafford welcomes author and technologist Dr. Afarin Bellisario. Bellisario, the author of Silenced Whispers, shares her thoughts on bridging the East and West, technology and the humanities, and the power of courage and personal agency in storytelling.
Listen to the full interview with Dr. Afarin Bellisario on Word of Mom Radio.
Born and raised in Tehran in a family with its feet in the past and its head in the future, Bellisario earned her Ph.D. (and an MBA) from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and led a successful career in high-tech and international business in the U.S.
In Silenced Whispers, Bellisario draws from her own upbringing in an Azeri family in Tehran and true stories shared by elders, including her Russian great-grandfather, to transport readers to Iran at the dawn of the 20th century. She vividly immerses them in the life of Gohar, an Iranian woman battling for freedom—her own and her country’s.
Gohar’s journey unfolds from her early years in a small desert town to her central role in the complex dynamics of Iran’s quest for modernization while resisting foreign influence. Silenced Whispers explores profound themes, including love, transformation and the relentless struggle for personal agency amid a rapidly changing world.
About Dr. Afarin Bellisario
Born and raised in Tehran in a family with its feet in the past and its head in the future, Afarin Bellisario earned her Ph.D. (and an MBA) from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and led a successful career in high-tech and international business in the U.S. But writing had always been her passion. Having written professionally in pre-revolutionary Iran, she has published op-eds in major papers and an essay, Movies with my Aunt, as part of the anthology Love & Pomegranates.
Today, she mentors startups, teaches, and writes about the clash between tradition and modernity and how the past can shed light on our future. A music lover, she is a Cambridge Chamber Ensemble board member and writes for their newsletter while continuing to travel to new and familiar destinations globally.
Silenced Whispers is her first novel.
Connect with Bellisario at www.afarin.net.
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