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The road back home...

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It was a beautiful autumn evening in his adopted city.  Vinay walked through the endless green lanes of the northern sectors, bathed in a golden sunlight. He was heading towards the lake that reminded him so much of the Dal that had marked his family outings in childhood. He appreciated Chandigarh for the thoughtfully planted trees that were currently adorned in yellow and orange and his thoughts went to the Chinar trees of his native land that shed leaves gracefully, covering the streets in a veritable carpet of pastel shades. He was thankful that after fleeing from their ancestral home almost two decades ago, his parents had settled here and not in a bigger metro. Coming from the town of Anantnag, about 50 Kms from the capital city of Srinagar, he had felt more at home here than in the refugee camps of Jammu or the bustling streets of Delhi. Despite being the capital of two states, Chandigarh still retained a rustic charm largely because of the greenery that was dilig
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An Unfinished Conversation...

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Their eyes met across the busy café at the busy Bangalore airport and suddenly, the twenty five years of separation was reduced to a short physical distance that either of them could cross in less than a dozen strides.  Anish raised his eyebrows and gave a tentative smile, Shruti took a moment longer than him but her smile, when it came, was more confident. A moment later, Anish stood up and walked to meet the one love of his life. “Journeys end in lover’s meetings” Shruti remembered the line from Twelfth Night and realized she was blushing a little. ‘Forty eight and as stupid as ever’ she said to herself as she stood up to greet Anish who seemed in two minds whether to offer a hug or shake hands. She pulled him in for a quick hug and then held him at arm’s length to look at him. “Oh my God, you look so different now, what’s with the beard?” she said laughing. He shook his head smiling and scratched his salt and pepper french-beard absent-mindedly. “But you look about
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Location: Pune, Maharashtra, India
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To be or not to be?

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It was a cool January evening.. w ell as cool as it could be in Mumbai.  The weather was pleasant, the breeze was nice and the Sun did not really make you reach for your sunglasses. You could walk on the street without the suffocating humidity that is a hallmark of any coastal city and that in itself was a big relief. Aman and Maya were walking down the road leading to Versova beach. They stayed in an apartment close by and this was a regular weekend routine for them. Fridays were meant for partying with friends and Saturdays for finishing the pending chores but Sunday evenings were meant for just the two of them. They had been married two years last December and had got into a comfortable space with each other by now. Work kept their weekdays occupied but they made sure they enjoyed the weekends to the hilt. Life was fun when you were young and earning well and did not have to think about owning a home or running around kids or any of the other worries that kept mos
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Location: Versova, Andheri West, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
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Are you a V-----?

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The clanking sound of cup with saucer added to the round of chatter and laughter in the room. ‘I have to admit Mr. Siddharth, you are a great host. And Rashmi beti is so well mannered, wo kya kehtey hai….. sanskaari. She’s a gem. We were looking for a girl like her who could fit it into our family.’ ‘Thank you so much, Manish bhai sahab. We, especially Rashmi’s mother have nurtured her with values along with good education, so that she can easily catch up with today’s times.’ ‘So have we brought up our Ansh. And it’s high time we let these two kids do the rest of the talk, so that they can get to know each other well. If they have a yes, probably we will get to celebrate.’ Manish grinned looking at both.  Parents of both families left the room. They both sat in silence for a couple of minutes. ‘So you have done engineering from Noida?’ Ansh finally broke the ice. ‘Yes, papa wanted me to have at least a qualification, some exposure, so that in t
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Location: Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
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The Fault in our Stars

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Sejal was a 27 year old who had never been in a committed relationship. She had never wanted to be in one either. Marriage was not one of her priorities in life although her parents were after her since the time she had finished her studies and started working. She kept on postponing till the time she happened to meet an old friend from school. It was a chance encounter at a common friend's place and there was an instant connect between them. Milind had been a popular guy in school and his charm seemed to have only grown in adulthood. He came from a well educated family and was working with an IT company. They became good friends instantly and as time passed, her affection for him started getting stronger. After couple of months she took the bold step of asking him out and they decided to date each other. They were in a happy and mature relationship, going to office together, hanging out with each other's friends and taking care of each other's needs. Everything
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Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
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The Balancing Act

The alarm rang.. It was 6 a.m. Her eyes were puffy, and she felt nauseous yet Shipra dragged herself out of the bed.  Her mother-in-law had malaria so she did not have the luxury to rest herself. After all, the older woman always treated her like her own daughter - packing her dabbas for work, helping her indulge in her hobby, making her favorite dishes - she treated Shipra like the daughter she never had. So Shipra had to return the favour when her mother-in-law needed help. Though she had never liked the amount of pampering she had given her son! She gave him everything in his hand from his handkerchief to water so much so that her husband Vishal had never done any household chore. Shipra missed a helping hand. Back in her own home, her dad and brother helped mom and her in each and everything, be it cooking, cleaning, dusting; her dad even braided her hair sometimes. But here, things were different. Being a working woman, she could use a little help from Vishal but she knew he
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Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
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Temptation..

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It was Thursday evening, and looking out of the window, she was surprised that it was already dark. She had been working on an article for the weekend edition of the daily that she used to write for, and had come home early today to finish it before dinner. But it looked like she had lost track and taken more time than she had intended to. Aman should have been back by now, she thought. He was her live-in partner, boyfriend, best friend and family all rolled into one. Both of them had moved to Mumbai from different cities, each in search of their own dream. And had ended up finding each other. She had always been a little on the wild side, running through relationships with the capriciousness of the fabled Mumbai monsoon. She had broken many hearts, and got hers broken too, but in Aman, she had found someone she could settle down with, at least for a while. With his thoughts running through her head, she dialed his number.  “Hello” he answered and then as if h
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Location: Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
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