Chinamma is a stout lady in her early 60’s. She had a few chickenpox marks on her face. She was wearing a red sari, jewelry in her ear, nose, and a gold chain on her neck. She was not an ordinary fish seller. Her basket had a fresh catch of Pomfret, Bhetki, Rawas apart from …
Category Archives: Fiction
vice
There lived a powerful barber. The rulers would bow to him during haircuts and shaving. Those were the times when kings ruled the province. The acting ruler of thrown was a demon. He had all the vices. All he cared about is leisure: whoring and multiplying his wealth by putting more taxes. King could walk …
walk
The sky had dark clouds painted over it. It could rain at any moment. But for a kid wanting to meet his grandma, how much it mattered? My grandma lived in our ancestral village by herself. It was not big of a deal to take such walks. We had no such traffic back then and, …
Appearance
It was 8 am and, mercury was at its peak, Delhi summer. I had last night’s hangover. I had met Matt during my Portland visit a couple of years back. Infrequently we were exchanging notes over email. He was in India for his Ph.D. thesis and wanted to meet me today. In 2008-2009, Gurgaon was …
Boondi
Boondi grew up in the Balangir district in Orrisa. Her father was a government school teacher. After finishing class five, she qualified for Navodaya Vidyalaya and studied at a government subsidy. She stood among the toppers throughout her schooling. During vacations, she would visit her home. News about people dying of hunger, surviving on eating …
Mahant
Vikas was eight years old when his father passed away in a road accident. Born in a lower-middle-class family with no income, his mother ended up working at houses in a nearby colony as a cleaner. She worked hard and, Vikas continued studying at the English medium school. He was among the class toppers. Poverty …
rickshaw
Machine thore hai jo button dabaye aur phurr se chal Diya, mehnat lagte hai isme babu. Munni, reena sabki saadi dekhi hai babu. School se college tak, Ek baar mayakee Bhi le Gaye the Gupta Ji ki bete ko. Abb to lagta hai pura janam ji liya, Abb wo baat nahi reh gaye duniya me. …
hero
Hero Banoge? Bhaiya star hai, screamed the guy sitting few seats away from me. I was returning home from south ex in a DTC bus. I wonder what made sardarji say this, was he intoxicated? I got down at the Punjabi Bagh club bus stand and walked towards Paschim vihar, not without gulping some paani …
Dayan
Bahar mat Jana(don’t go out), screamed my maasi. I was five years old then and, I had kajal smeared over my forehead as a protection toolkit from bad omen. Those days killing of widows on the pretext of Dayan was common. It was a piece of daily news. Was it a way to get rid …
Bakri
Budhiya ka dimag kharab ho gaya hai, screamed Renu. Budhiya is Boodhi Dadi; she celebrated her seventieth birthday last month. A stout lady with a potbelly, showering all her elderly love on Gulabo, her dear goat. Gulabo, the goat, is the purpose of her life. The love and care Boodhi Dadi has for Gulabo are …