“no, aman, complete media ban… that’s it… what?!! main ne kaha na, nobody, no newspaper, magazine, channel.. no a no b, no z… no one. i want complete silence for a while. please make sure that happens.” he finished his call abruptly, picked up his jacket, shrugged it on smoothly, and turned to leave the room. “khushi!!!” he called out, obviously in a hurry, “khushi, where are you… i’m getting late!” “thahriye… ek minute, ek minute,” she rushed in from…
“helena ji, nobody’s looking, come quickly, have another jalebi!” khushi thrust a crisp orange jalebi at helena and stood in front of the elephant, holding up her pale pink dupatta so a passerby wouldn’t notice what helena was up to. it didn’t occur to khushi even for a moment that her slight frame and translucent dupatta might not quite accomplish the task of “hiding” helena. helena finished her jalebi and nudged khushi with a playful trunk. “no more! nahiiin, not…
the sun had almost disappeared beyond the tea estates and the faraway mountains. the last rays of light remained, there was an orangey purple hue in the air, on the green tea bushes, the winding paths, and far flung homes and hamlets. khushi’s tiny diamond nose pin glinted for an instant as she turned her face to take a look at herself. she would have walked away after a cursory glance at the mirror, but then her eyes seemed to…
“kk! you look dazed… are you hungry?” salman asked khushi from the front seat of the ambassador car taking them toward margharita tea estate where they would be staying at the guest house. salman’s parents were at a garden nearby, he had wanted to make sure his boss stayed at the best place around here. salman had grown up in assam. he loved the place, in fact, he was almost proud of it… it’s natural beauty, the richness of the…
the jalebis were large with so many swirls in them, they were orange and hot and sticky. even though the tears blurred her vision, khushi was determined to count the number of spirals on the one right on top. a whole heap of jalebis sat before her. she could feel their sweet succulence, their crumbly crust she knew would crack under the most gentle pressure from her teeth and out would flow, no pop, the delicious… khushi swallowed… warm, perfectly…
INDEX “take it off,” he said softly placing her hand gently on the dark red fabric. khushi almost winced at the urgency in his tone, a demand yet a need that made her stomach muscles clench. take it off? what was he saying? the fabric was rough against her skin. she felt her fingers move and clutch a handful of red, she felt her breath shudder. his hand lifted languidly and went slowly toward her face, she could feel…
her wrist felt tiny in his grip. and for a fraction of a moment he had the overpowering urge to stop right there, turn around and pull her into his arms. to hold her against him and feel her yield, adhere. to bury his face in her hair, to softly stroke her skin, to tuck back that always errant curl on her forehead, to brush his lips tenderly on her forehead and say, “shh… shh… don’t worry, i am here.…
INDEX The brilliance of iridescent white light strangely did not hurt the eyes. It was wispy, blurred and shiny all at the same time. Three woman sat in a wide semi arc. It was hard to focus, but even without actually knowing you knew, they had benevolent sparkling eyes and kind satisfied smiles. It you concentrated hard enough you could see the flashing silver payal on one ankle. The second woman held a cup. A pristine white cup from which…
INDEX “khushi?” asr stared at the girl in his arms tears beginning to stream down her cheeks. “what’s the matter… don’t cry like that…” his voice grew urgent, “i didn’t mean to hurt you, i was worried… are you upset about what i said… you know i didn’t mean that, you know…” “i know you didn’t mean it,” khushi said and looked up at him, then with a sob, she started weeping again. “enough!” he spat out sharply through…
INDEX akash came tripping lightly down the stairs humming a song to himself. “don’t you love her madly… don’t you need her badly…” he could hold a tune well and in college he was always the one chosen to sing whenever the need arose. shyly pushing back his glasses on his nose he’d sing obligingly, never one to fuss or demand attention. “don’t you love her waaayyys,” he let his voice lengthen the note enjoying its essence… he did…