After wowing the fashion circles of Paris and dressing Hollywood stars like Nicole Kidman, fashion designer Ritu Beri has turned writer with a book on her life that will be launched in a limited edition of 100 copies priced at Rs.100,000 each.

"I can't be presumptuous enough to write an autobiography but this book looks at the 15 long years I have spent in the fashion industry. It is about my years in Paris, where I come from and my personal life," Beri told a news conference here Saturday where she previewed the book.

"Firefly - A Fairy Tale", which will be sold in Paris at the new Louis Vuitton flagship store and through Beri's own store here, combines various pieces written over the past three years by the designer on diverse aspects of her life, glossy pictures and paintings and humorous anecdotes.

"The book is in four parts - my inspirations, my years in Paris, my travels - because I think we grow with every journey we make - and my personal life," said Beri, who was clad in a short black dress matched with long black boots.

Also present at the preview was Beri's "good friend", Bollywood star Akshay Kumar, who said he "wouldn't usually be caught at a book launch but was dying to read Ritu's book".

Asked about the book's title, Beri said: "Fireflies have their own glow. Like a firefly, I want to illuminate the world with my own light. And my life has been a fairy tale, every experience is a fairy tale for me."

But what about the high cost of the book that would put it beyond the reach of most people? "Well, Penguin commissioned a book by me, but then they ran away when they found it would be too expensive. So I decided to publish it myself and we had to price it at Rs.100,000 even if we have to sell it without making profit.

"If it's successful, I can reprint it and price it in such a way that more people can get it."

But Beri admitted that writing did not come easily to her. "It wasn't easy but I wanted to document the last 15 years before I forget about them. I just wanted to say everything the way I felt from my heart."

And she said she had no plans for another book in the near future. "This one was so tough, I need to take a break."