Miss Calculation

Ranjana looked through the file and glanced up at Jha, her PA. "Who sent this request?"A diminutive figure, the large chair in the Ministry of Home Affairs of the state vested in her authority that she seemed quite capable of handling.

"Madam, the state head of the Nation First party," the PA replied deferentially.

To Be Still

Waves after waves
of one thought or another
animated and excited
strike me in succession.

My Beauty Queen

Every time you looked at me, I thought, ah, you love me. Love at first sight, it was, wasn't it?

But you were only seeing yourself. Did you like what you saw? That smile that caressed your lips, so slow, so full of love, admiring... Wasn't it me who made you feel that way? Made you feel like a queen? As if the world began and ended with you? Don't you owe it to me?

And Thus Flows Life

Radhika and Satvik looked at the antique showcase they had just bought with immense satisfaction. Rearranging the room to make space for it had been challenging, and it was with great regret that they gave away two low chairs to accommodate this giant piece.

"All your books can come here," Satvik said pointing at the two sides. "All my showpieces can take the inside shelves. We can keep the big Nataraja idol here in the centre."

The Blurring Days

Days merge into night
Dawning again in silence
Seasons come and go
Into each other they flow

Words

"Why? Why don't you tell me what's bothering you?" he pleaded with her.

She looked at him confused. "No, nothing is," she said, feeling as if he were assaulting her with that tone of his voice - an urgent demand, a persistent plea that wanted to grab her heart and open it violently. She felt her heart trembling and shrinking. "Don't imagine things," she said and turned away to continue pretending that everything was as should be.

Waiting for a Change

To wake up every morning
And to be the same
A routine that is comforting
And yet unsurprisingly inane!

Number Trap

From school days I struggled
Numbers making me feel strangled
Exponents, permutations, combinations
Triggering severe perspiration

The Voice From Beyond

"Hi honey."
The voice seemed so real that Priya jumped. Though she looked up instantly, she went back to reading the instruction for the pregnancy test.
"I thought you would have outgrown this behaviour now that you are older. Still behaving like a teenager!" the voice of her mother continued in that particular exasperating tone of amusement.
Priya had to look up and was startled to see her mother actually there. "I am seeing things," she told herself loudly and went back to reading.

Twilight - The Hour of Magic

The blazing sun
Showering light around
The dark night
The lights bright

When the Music Stops

"Very impressive singing," the message made her look at the sender a second time. The sender was a good singer himself.

So she replied, "Thank you. You sing very well too."

"That means a lot. I didn't know the song, but loved your rendition. Wanted to join your collab."

Possessed by Possession

"Do we really need this brassplate?" Suhas asked frustrated.

"It is ornamental and will look good in our dining room. And look at the price! It's a steal!" his wife Archana exclaimed. Suhas raised his eyebrows and rolled his eyes, knowing any argument against that logic was a waste of time.

Embers That Start a Fire

Daya stared at the television and felt tears stab her eyes. The collective sigh of disappointment in the room revealed how much everybody was affected by the space mission's failure. She could hear her mother-in-law chanting, no doubt, hoping for some miracle to save it. Her husband Nitin loudly slapped the sofa as the headlines repeated the disappointing end - or hopefully, interlude - to this much awaited event. Her father-in-law shook his head and got up, clearly having expected some such fate.

But Daya herself felt as if it were a personal loss, a loss that had its roots fifteen years ago, when she gave up her pursuit of education to pursue Nitin and eloped to get married to him. Shalini, a friend she had reconnected with recently, told her, "I had expected you would be somewhere in NASA, working on some space mission! Never expected you to give it all up for marriage!"

The Square Peg

Raksha glanced up as she cleared the dining table. "Don't you think you are a little too much in love with your phone?" she asked Arun.

"I don't come here to be nagged," he said sharply, without taking his eyes away from the phone.

She shrugged. "Not nagged, but surely, I can tell you when it starts hurting..."

He looked up with a twinkle in his eyes, "Hurting whom, you or me?"

Joy, I Choose

I sharpened my nails
I bared my fangs
I readied words
More hurtful than bombs

The Path that Forked

The path branched in two.
Leaving her thoroughly confused.

Could she straddle both at once?
Run back and forth one by one?

An Ode to A Reunion

The road seemed straight and clear
Her own path seemed to lead away
Turning sharply to a side
Leaving others behind to go their way

For Whom the Wedding Bells Toll

It was a simple affair, exactly as Rishi had desired. Only the closest family and friends in his favourite Krishna temple to witness his wedding to the lovely Sharmila were invited. His parents had arranged the match and he had met Sharmila informally in a cafe. He had communicated his willingness the same evening, but Sharmila's family had taken some time to respond, citing her professional commitments and travel as reasons for being unable to decide quickly. After the informal 'fixing' of the wedding too, her parents had preferred to conduct the wedding right away instead of delaying the actual event with a 'meaningless engagement'. "Can we have a simple wedding but a grand reception as we are going at breakneck speed," her father had asked politely, much to Rishi's mother's dissatisfaction. "We didn't ask for the wedding to be rushed! He is an only son, so we would like to call our relatives..." she had insisted.

Silence, the Strength

Waves upon waves
Constant, unceasing
Up they rise
Pulled down briefly
Only to garner strength
And rise up again

Wipe the Slate Clean

We decided we needed to make space in our house and optimise the use of existing shelves. It began with segregating clothes, into:
1. What we will definitely wear
2. What we wear every other day but should not because - yes, the cloth is soft and it was beautiful when we got it, but now it is beyond recognition and must absolutely be thrown
3. Grand, but sorry, too itchy, dazzling and not the kind we would wear ever though it looks brand new.

Master of Destiny

It was the March of 2050. He felt as good as new. "Medical technology is amazing," he told his friends. "You must try it. In fact, there is an app that tells you the condition of your organs, whom to contact, and even fixes an appointment with specific doctors who have the right equipment. They scan you, find you a match, grow new organs and replace old ones. That's it! That part is good to run for another fifty years!" he said.

Tides of Time

Does everything that begins

have to finally finish?

Every step forward

take you closer to the end?

Be it made of stone
Or mere skin and bone

Time to Go

"What more is there to live for, ma? It is time for me to go," 90-year-old Gagan told his daughter Shriya.

Shriya, herself 65, felt a stab in her heart. "Don't speak like this, papa!" She still turned to him with questions and his wisdom was a beacon light she couldn't do without.

Twist in Fate

Sona got up from the bed but had to flop back because of the way her head reeled. She called out for her husband Nilesh weakly and then shut up, her discomfiture aggravated by the pain that shot through her heart. There was no Nilesh to respond to her. She should have got used to it, given the way he had been travelling because of work. But he had still been just a phone call away.

When had the distance grown. When had they drifted so apart that she couldn't even call him anymore? How had she missed the signals? Or had he camouflaged them so well?

No. 101

Shraddha looked at the message from her brother Shankar with a frown. "Paapu is unwell, it seems. Mom told me today. Please visit, if you can."

She was puzzled that her mom had told Shankar this but not her. Was it because it had slipped her mother's mind that she also knew Paapu; was it because her mother didn't think the news would matter to her; or did her mother think that she couldn't be bothered with it? Why tell Shankar the news? What could he do, either? He had simply passed the buck to her, after all.

The Flipped Image

Ragini put the book down, a certain melancholy settling in her heart. Memories chased each other, leading to that moment of nothingness - the anti-climax when truth came calling, when reality proved to be far simpler and much farther than her imagination. Staring at the emptiness ahead, she had wondered at the power of her own mind in projecting a future that had no basis on the present.

Obituary to a Tree

With a resounding sound
More overpowering than the drill
That finally cut you down
Shaking the earth you fell

Behind Closed Doors

The moment Raksha entered the house, her two aunts who were visiting her parents slunk out of the house. She turned to look at her mother askance. Her mother slapped her forehead and went in. Her father sighed and said, "It looks as if we are keeping you getting married... So that we can enjoy life from your income."

Raksha didn't bother to reply, knowing how far she had travelled and how she had to just ignore these petty insinuations.

The moment flashed before her eyes, when she had stood alone, trembling, facing her greatest dread.

The Infidel

"What!!!!" squealed the girls. Reema sat with a smug smile, accepting the congratulations. "How? Where did you meet him? You dark horse!!! Sankalp! The hot actor! God, how, how, how?" They demanded that she share everything from the first meeting to their becoming a pair in great detail.

Reema obliged, adding all the little nuances - real and imagined - that she knew would gratify her friends' curiosity and also increase her popularity. The evening stretched but the questions remained unending. Still, mindless time compelled them to finally call it a day and leave. Reema walked with her friend Sahana to the two-wheeler parking and sat behind on the pillion. She had observed that Sahana had remained silent throughout and now couldn't help egging her friend, "Are you jealous?"

Written in Stone

It was a piece of rock
Standing atop a hillock
Surveying the lands below
Silent, with a majestic brow

The Poster Boy

Govind walked down the lane a couple of times, working off the steam of disappointment. He had been rejected yet again for the job he had applied because he did not have the right qualifications. And any attempt to start something on his own also became difficult due to the lack of the right papers and permissions.

As he took a turn, he felt hungry. He looked around to see if there were any food stalls and could find none. He stood at one corner and observed the people who passed by. He did the same at various points. Finally, he felt he had found what he could do - set up a food cart that would cater to the workers of the nearby mall. He started offering a simple fare, expecting only the cleaners and helpers to use it from. But as even the white collar employees started frequenting his stall, he added dishes and found his clientele increasing even further. He had to extend hours, as now people working on all three shifts sought his stall out. He employed two boys to assist him with the expanding business.

The Be All

It was a dreary day. Parul was glad when she shut the computer and got up from her place at work.

"Hey Yamuna, how about a cup of coffee?" she asked her colleague on her way out.

Yamuna looked up with tired eyes. "I really have to meet this stupid deadline tonight."

"Come, a coffee can't hurt! You look like you need it too," Parul tried to persuade her colleagye. She herself was not eager to get back to her lonely apartment, though she didn't want to linger in the office either.

But a Yamuna with a deadline was as good as having a monkey for company. She was jumpy, restless and constantly distracted. Well, maybe monkey wasn't the right comparison. They could sit still doing nothing, but not Yamuna with a deadline!

Sighing, Parul decided to take leave. Yamuna too seemed equally pleased to see her go. A chuckle escaped Parul as she realised that just for one moment, both had felt relieved to see the last of the other.

That only redoubled her sense of poignance, reminding her she had no one in this vast city that she had chosen to find work in. What a war she had waged with her mother to win this freedom to pursue her dreams, do her own thing, to make her mother realise that marriage was not the sole purpose of life.

But while work life wasn't bad, she missed her family, her friends, having familiar faces around her. She couldn't face the thought of yet another lonely dinner in her small house she had taken hoping to entertain family and friends. She stopped by a bar and ordered herself a drink and dinner. She shut her eyes to savour the drink, imagine for a second that she had company, and absorb the ambience.

When she opened her eyes, she choked on seeing a man sitting across the table.

"Hi, sorry, didn't mean to startle you! Do you mind if I join?"

She bit back biting words and nodded. "I don't think you gave me a choice there," she took in his appearance. Dressed in cauals, he looked smart. His accent was polished. And though he had taken a seat before seeking her permission, he seemed well behaved.

"I am sorry, I didn't mean to intrude but everybody else seems to be in a group. You are the only one sitting alone and with a chair to spare," he said smiling, taking the sting out of the insinuation that she seemed lonely.

"So are you," she pointed out defensively. "Alone, I mean," she clarified.

"Yes, so I am." He signalled to a waiter and placed his order, graciously asking her if she would like to order anything else. She shook her head. She may have ordered a second round of her drink, but she was not about to take that risk with a stranger sitting across her.

"I am here on business, have a meeting tomorrow," he launched into an explanation, telling her his name, the industry he worked in and the general purpose of his visit. She waved it away. "You are not obliged to explain. I am done anyway and shall leave in a few minutes," she said, trying to act cool.

As he waited to be served, he put her at ease by talking of general things. Soon, she was ordering her second drink and was deep into discussion about the merits and demerits of brands. When he invited her to share the meal, she helped herself to a small part just to keep him company. She didn't mind waiting for him to finish, and when he insisted on paying for her dinner and drinks, she agreed reluctantly.

She was exhilarated as she strolled down the streets aimlessly with him, glad of his amusing company, glad of company, glad to be out with someone other than her colleagues who politely included her in their jaunts during tea breaks but left her alone most evenings to fend for herself.

"You must be late, I am so sorry!" Puneet, that was his name, apologised.

"No, it's ok. I can get back whenever I want," she said.

"No curfew?" he asked with a chuckle.

She looked at him enigmatically, and changed the topic, "I would like to rest my feet a bit."

"I am staying nearby, we could go for coffee at the restaurant there," he offered and she nodded. From there to his room and to his arms...it seemed like natural progression.

Breaking away with great reluctance a little later, some of her loneliness abated, she refused his sleepy offer to spend the rest of the night with him. She stepped out of his room, headed home, shocked but not regretting that one moment!

When she got out of the cab and looked at the dark, silent house she lived in, her desire to run back to the near-stranger was a strong impulse that she fought hard. Those few moments with him had not changed anything for her. It had been at best a diversion, but she was back here, to this lonely place she had chosen.

When she called her mother that morning, she stunned herself as she reluctantly told her mother, "You mentioned there was a boy in this city... I would like to meet him."

The Missing

Thirty-year-old Ashwin checked his watch impatiently. He was excited, beyond words. He was going to spend time with his classmates from the first school he had studied in till class 8. They were going to spend a couple of days in a beach resort. It was not the resort that mattered, but the time he would be spending with these long-lost friends.

A Drop in the Ocean

I walked by the beach
When a drop fell on me
Meeting an untimely death
Vanishing from the face of earth
**
It set me thinking
How like us it is
One among million
A drop in the vast ocean

Mighty when in a mob
Striving to be more than a drop
To follow a lifecycle
To dry up and then be reborn

To meet its destination
Right at birth
Or to travel far
Crossing several hurdles

Sometimes to reach the goal
At times being waylaid
Coming to an abrupt end
Only to come back again

Does it want to escape?
Blow like the wind?
Roar like the fire?
Be at peace like the ether?

Like us does it too seek
To be something other than it is?
The drops makes me wonder
Are we all the same?

The End of the Endless

My grandfather sowed the seed
Look how strong is the tree,
Even though he is gone, and so will we
This will stay forever sharing its bounty.

Social Extreme

Anger, anger, anger
At perceived offenses
At opinions that differ
At those we see as the other

Crossed Wires: Part VIII - Short Romance

For earlier parts, click here:
Part I
Part II 
Part III
Part IV
Part V
Part VI
Part VII

The sense of deja vu pressed Barkha down. Dheer, the prospective groom, sat where Sumesh had. His parents seemed like simple people who were willing to go with whatever decision their son took. Dheer seemed friendly and easy going. She just had to utter a word and all his attention turned to her immediately with evident interest. But she couldn't think of saying anything of interest, confining herself to answering questions directed towards her. No questions arose in her mind about his work, interests, personality. She had no curiosity about the kind of person he was. Though he had even features, he made no impression on her heart. Because it was already preoccupied with thoughts of another, one who had been distracted by thoughts of someone else when he had come to see her!

Crossed Wires - Part VII: A Short Romance

For earlier parts, click here:
Part I
Part II 
Part III
Part IV
Part V
Part VI

"So, this is it?" Prateek said as he got up and shook Barkha's hands. "I think the content has come out really well, what do you say Sumesh?"

Sumesh nodded curtly. Barkha smiled in relief. The emotional drain was too hard on her.

"Make sure the payment is on time, Sumesh. Barkha, once it is launched, we will have to consider other content, of course... Blogs, case studies, marketing content... the whole works, you know."

Crossed Wires - Part VI: A Short Romance

For earlier parts, click here:
Part I
Part II 
Part III
Part IV
Part V

Her mother's observations worked on Barkha's mind. What concerned her more was, whether Amrita too had noticed her aversion to discussing Sumesh and how she had interpreted it. That night when Amrita and she prepared for bed, she brought up the topic of Sumesh. "He seems quite popular at work. Even the girls in my office titter when he is around..." She smiled.

Amrita smiled back and said, "Only you seem resistant to his charm."

Crossed Wires - Part V: A Short Romance

For earlier parts, click here:
Part I
Part II 
Part III
Part IV

Amrita entered the dining room sulking. Barkha glanced at her and then continued helping her mother set the dinner table. Shikha was amused and teased Amrita, "Storm in lovers' paradise?" Amrita was not amused. She served herself food and went back to her room with the plate, shutting her mother and sister out.

Barkha and Shikha exchanged glances. Barkha shrugged and the two sat down to have dinner. "Is dad going to be late?"

Crossed Wires: Part IV - A Short Romance

For earlier parts, click here:
Part I
Part II 
Part III
"Hey, it was great walking down the market road that evening. I never thought shopping could be fun. BTW, you haven't mailed me the details about the services you offer," Sumesh pinged Barkha.

Barkha was startled. She remembered his request well but had not taken it seriously. She did not want to take it seriously, in fact, fearing any unnecessary interactions with him. Thirdly, of course, she did not have his conact details and was above asking Amrita for it.

Crossed Wires - Part III: A Short Romance

For the earlier parts, click here:
Part I
Part II -

"Barkha di, you have to be home on time," Amrita warned her sister. "I am nervous, and I need you," she added plaintively. Barkha was no proof against such a plea and she rushed back home to help her younger sister get ready.

Amrita had got a red with gold salwar set ready, but Barkha put it back in the wardrobe. Amrita's wardrobe didn't seem to have what she was looking for and so she went to hers. She came with a seagreen shimmering crepe sari contrasted with a red embroidered blouse. She was amused at how shy Amrita felt when putting on subtle make up that discreetly highlighted her features and combed her hair such that it framed her lean face.

Crossed Wires:Part II - A Short Romance

Read Part I of Crossed Wires before proceeding


"He wants to meet you," Shikha looked confused as she informed Barkha. "Alone..." Her expression turned questioning, hopeful that Barkha may have the answer.

Barkha shrugged, surprised at the request. A faint ray of hope sprang in her heart though she pretended to be indifferent. "Whatever for?"

"I don't know, his mother seemed very uncomfortable when I probed. He wants to speak to you..."

Crossed Wires: Part 1 - A Short Romance

"Which one?" Sumesh asked, trying hard to seem indifferent but clearly eager.

"The girl in blue," his sister Priya mumbled to him, looking across the rows of diners at the wedding dinner they were attending.

"Both are in blue," he said puzzled seeing the two girls seated next to each other.

Priya slapped her forehead. "One is blue, the other is in indigo."

The Elusive Future

"Madam," the agent, Vikram, smiled. "Your investment in one of our products is maturing madam..."

"Yes, that's right," 43-year-old Bindu smiled and responded.

"We will process it and make sure it reaches your account within 10 days. But meanwhile ma'am, we have this scheme which has been doing very well in the market. If you put in, let's say, about 2 lakhs annually for five years, it will start giving you returns from the 8th year for the next 15 years. So if you see..." And he quickly did a back-of-the-envelope calculation to tell her how she could earn an annual income of x amount, draw a loan against the amount and the final maturity amount with the bonus.

The Puppet

Shankar grinned hopefully at his colleague Sadhana as she walked in and placed her bag under her seat. She smiled and waved, making his heart somersault. He waited for her to finish her morning ritual of drinking water before turning to him and narrating some adventure or incident - she found spice and thrill in even the most ordinary, and managed to make it sound exciting enough for Shankar also to want to be a part of it.

The Poor Copy

"We have been waiting for you all day," Shilpa said with wide-eyed wonder seeing her nephew at the door. Raj was looking dapper in his grey suit, white shirt and red tie. His cropped hair highlighted the leanness of his face, his sharp jawline a proof of his efficiency and focus.

He smiled sparingly and walked in past his aunt with a nod. "There was cocktail and dinner after the full-day seminar, but I couldn't refuse your persistent invitation," he said, smartly weaving in the fact that he was giving up something better for having dinner with them.

A Veil of Waves

They rose and fell, night and day, without respite. Sometimes in the middle of a hot day, they lay down dull awaiting the next breeze to rouse them again. Sometimes, in that dull moment, they sank to the bottom, pulled down by undercurrents. They rose this way and that, they were pulled this way and that. When the sun and the moon shone, when the the bright light brought them under the spotlight, they rose to capture the glory and imprison it forever. But when the orbs were covered and darkness fell, they touched new lows, grumbling and complaining.

Awaiting Inspiration

Not inspired by Mother's Day
Not inspired by any other tale
Staring blankly at the white page
I wonder what I can write today

Discarded and Refused

You throw me after use
Sometimes on the road
Sometimes in the woods