Nandkumar, we call him Nandu is a soft-spoken, wheatish, stout built. His mustache, Ray-Ban sunglasses, and bullet motorbike reminded me of Salman Khan’s Dabangg. Nandu cleared BPSC(Bihar public service commission) and posted as BDO in the nearby block from my hometown. Nandu’s father was a headmaster in the middle school in my village. I grew […]
Category Archives: Fiction
Fine
Apka fine Katega, shouted traffic constable. Kahe Sirji? I asked. Singal cross Kiya hai, he replied. I was rushing for my tuition class and, he was standing right next to the Jwalaheri Market crossing. The red lights hardly work, not today. The constable Gurjeet Singh Ji was adamant about putting a penalty. I was more […]
Mili
Mili lived life on her own: like a butterfly, independent and break free. Money was in abundance, thanks to her parent’s medical profession. I met her at a friend’s party in Delhi, I guess in Lado Sarai barsaati(rooftop). I was impressed by her confidence, and it was she, not weed or alcohol. She told me […]
hope
‘I have a girlfriend, stop marriage related conversation’; screamed Akash. It has been a daily sermon: anybody or everybody would end up giving him marriage counseling. Be it the milkman, maid, vegetable vendor, or barber. Akash is in his early 30’s and a well-groomed, small-time boy. He was among the early ones from his village […]
faceless
You will find me everywhere: Traffic signals selling flowers, begging. At a restaurant serving your meals. At your home helping with cleaning and cooking. At midnight fixing potholes or before monsoon many fts down under cleaning sewage system. We are faceless; we have no voice. Police, politicians, people everyone considers us invisible. Nobody cares about […]
IAS
I want to become an IAS officer, said Mahesh. A tall, healthy fellow wearing thick glasses welcomed me as I picked my Uber from the airport. I was returning from an early morning connecting flight from Mumbai. Mahesh is from western Karnataka and studying a bachelor’s in history from correspondence. He asked me where I […]
Maasi
Come during day time, don’t take the late-night train, my maasi looked worried as she uttered this. She lives in a village which is 3 km from the nearby railway station. Summers in Bihar are painful because of heat, mosquitoes, power cuts. I was done with my class 8th exams and had 60 days of […]
breath
I can’t live with your parents, said Nandini. Ishan and Nandini got married after seven years of courtship. The intercaste marriage took a lot of convincing from both sides. Ishan met Nandini during their bachelor’s degree. Both work at consulting now and are financially settled. Nandini’s great grandfather fought with Britishers during the Champaran movement. […]
highway
Ramkumar would be 5 ft tall, wearing a black kurta pajama, turban, and loverly smile on his face. He looked perfect for Instagram, just I had no smartphone, and we were in the Orkut era. He was preparing the fire as November evening gets much colder in north India. I was with Ashish on our […]
Bidi
Ahmed looked younger than his age. His broad face, long beard, and dyed hair made him unique. Paan was over his face like a lipstick. I wonder if he was waiting for a passenger or someone he could talk to at midnight. I was smoking Godan Garam, beating Delhi’s winter after finishing a plate of […]