Category: Writing

The following is an extract from the chapter Reminiscence of the novel / screenplay adaptation Autumn Crocus

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Kim had never thought that someday someone would write something like that for her. Not someone like Brandon anyway. But he did. Life is such; no one knows who means what for whom.

The two keep looking into each other’s eyes. Holding on to each other forever seems to be the only dream they have. Holding on to each other’s hands is what they surely are. As ever, Kim is the one who can’t help but speak:

‘If I’d met you earlier, I would’ve been a different person.’

Brandon smiles, almost patronizingly, and nods in disapproval:

‘If you’d met me earlier, you would’ve wanted me to be a different person.’

Kim smiles. She now loves the way Brandon playfully rakes up her past at every opportunity. She also knows that her smile never fails her. At the worst, it makes Brandon smile too. And that always has been a good platform to start with.

‘Brandon, do you love me?’

Brandon breaks into a big smile, almost a grin. He takes Kim’s hand and kisses it, while still smiling.

‘What is so funny?’

‘Oh no, nothing. I thought it’s good you asked. Or else all my poems for you, all my flowers for you and all my time for you would never have been able to let you know that I love you.’

Brandon grins again.

‘But you’ve never said that to me.’

‘Have you?’

Kim pauses and thinks. Yes, maybe even she’d never said those words to Brandon. Strange, none of us ever used those words, she wonders.

‘Would we be getting married?’

Brandon is taken aback by the suddenness of the proposition. This doesn’t seem to be the right time for the talk, if he were to be asked. He takes a moment or two too many to come up with his answer; and allows Kim to speak up again.

‘You’ll be free in two years anyway.’

Brandon’s face suddenly changes contours. It is a promise broken by Kim. Kim realizes; but allows Brandon to simmer. She wants an answer. Everything else can be taken care of later.

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The following is an extract from Chapter 1: Jyotiben Thakkar of the novel The Shaking Minarets

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Jyotiben was busy doing her usual prayers in the front room. Usual because not only were the prayers usual but also was the simultaneous practice of listening her son and daughter-in-law berate her in the other room.

It was hard to get what the two were talking. But she never had to trouble her ears much for things that were meant precisely for her.

” She won’t even die so soon”, she heard her son tell her daughter-in-law in the other room.

Perhaps Bharat was still very angry about yesterday evening’s fight with her. Or perhaps he was angry for the fights between them since last many years now. After all, Bharat would fight with her the moment he remembered her presence in some corner of the house.

But never before had Jyotiben seen Bharat as much at the brink as he was yesterday. Accordingly, things had never quite reached the brink as they did yesterday.

“But Bhavna is now married. She’s not a part of our family. What did your family ever give you after you got married”, Bharat yells.

“Because my family had nothing to give. We were Vanjaras. But I will give my daughter her share. Because I can and because Bhavna has an equal right over her father’s property”, Jyotiben fights back.

There is a lull for a while as everyone searches for words. Jyotiben continues with her eternal prayers as Bharat gives her a piercing stare.

Just as Bharat seems to be about to say something, Jyotiben speaks out what she couldn’t have told God.

” If I had known that you’ll turn out to be so wicked, I would’ve asked God not to give me any more children after Bhavna.”

“Shut up”, shouts an insulted Bharat. “Look at you. Have you ever done anything for me? Still sitting on father’s property like a snake.”

“But this is the snake that had fed you milk. Not the lizard that is standing beside you”, Jyotiben refers her daughter-in-law Jigna.

“I said shut up. And don’t force me to get nasty with you. You know that I can do anything”, Bharat threatens.

Jyotiben was sitting in her chair in the front room as TV blared popular matinee soap operas from the bedroom. As in most middle class Gujarati families, the front room wasn’t exactly full with furniture. In fact, apart from the chair in which Jyotiben spent almost her entire life and a small table in front, all that the room had was a netted sofa, an open cupboard, a couple of folded chairs, a sewing machine and a cabinet to keep chappals and shoes.

But that hardly spoke of the Thakkar family’s worth. The house itself must be worth about Rupees thirty lakhs!

“I don’t want to talk any more about the house. I won’t give it. Why are you shouting at me if you’ve lost money in gambling”, Jyotiben gives it back to Bharat with matching vigour.

“Shut up you illiterate. What do you know about stock markets? I’m telling you, don’t force me to get nasty with you. Sign these papers now.”

Bharat forcibly holds Jyotiben by her shoulders and tries to make her sign the papers. Jyotiben, always a very strong woman, fights with all her will and manages to free herself amidst the struggle.

Immediately Jigna jumps in, as she senses that her husband is not reaching anywhere in his pursuit.

“You’re more than 70, what do you need the house for”, she asks.

” Yes, I’m more than 70. I don’t have many years left. So can’t you wait even till I die? And who are you to tell me about my house. Even Dollar has lived in this house longer than you! You are the one who has turned my son against me”, retorts Jyotiben.

Bharat really was at the brink today. He was not only sick of the daily fights between Jyotiben and Jigna but also of his life in general. Now that he was in line for losing his job because of market retrenchment, thoughts of the huge money lost at stock market was tearing him apart.

But nothing could’ve been more agonising for him than losing even the physical battle with his mother. Even Jigna, whom he loved at times, had never fought back when he beat her. So how could he take it back from a woman who has since ages never been more than the caretaker of their pet Dollar. He slaps Jyotiben hard and almost strangles her.

“If you don’t sign the papers NOW, I’ll kill you”.

This had never happened before. It had even Jigna stumped. Soon Bharat realizes what he had done and releases his grip over Jyotiben’s neck. But instead of being worried about the old lady, both were worried about how Jyotiben would react to it. After all, it was not long ago that Jyotiben had called the entire apartment in the house when Bharat had tried the same thing.

But this had never happened before. Jyotiben was crying. And much to the horror of the couple, her cries kept getting louder. A panic stricken Bharat threw a glance towards an equally scared Jigna. Bharat knew that the apartments was full of great admirers of his father. And everyone from the young to the old treated Jyotiben like a mother.

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The following is an extract from I Am Ahmedabad, a collection of short stories

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And I am not even allowed to talk. What the hell, I don’t agree to any conditions. I want to talk.

She looks at Akhil, who’s walking ahead, and then suddenly kicks him behind his right knee. An unsuspecting Akhil is completely thrown off-balance. His effort of holding on goes in vain and he falls down with a splash in the little stream that they were crossing. When he recoups enough to turn back to Rashi, he sees Rashi in complete ruptures. He shakes his head in mock anger as he realizes that it was only a prank by Rashi.

There were many more of those as they walked ahead. Rashi was particularly excited by the realization that the rains were so heavy that at times she just couldn’t raise her leg enough to be able to kick Akhil from behind!

If she can be this excited in my company here, why do I struggle to be even in her inner ring of friends back there? But then, even that can’t be true. Otherwise why would she share her most inner thoughts with only me? Or is it because I’m so far from her world that she thinks I’m absolutely safe?

Is she taking me as the Mr. Right-Now till she too finds someone who can give more? Am I on the same trip again?

Oh come on; don’t spoil it by getting bitter again. No one has ever managed to understand women anyway. This time, just enjoy till it lasts.

They might’ve got used to the rains, but they still had to look out for a shelter to spend the night. And after a further walk of about half an hour, their hopes seemed to be answered in the form of a dilapidated structure. It was difficult to tell if it was a temple that never got built or had something to do with hunting. But whatever it was, it looked a good place to spend the evening.

Under the shade, they take out their dry pair of clothes out of the million-layered polythene covers. And amidst incessant grins and accidental brushes, they help each other change into dry clothes.

There was only a little dry square on the ground. Akhil spreads a bed sheet on the ground. And then starts searching the rucksacks for their dinner. They still had 3 days to go and the remaining munchies resembled a serious miscalculation. Akhil gets a little concerned. But not for long. There’s always a way out for everything.

As he takes out satchels of soft-drink concentrate, he smiles at Rashi’s unusually lost look towards the continuing rains. And for once, Rashi only wanted to talk with her own self.

Whatever I might say, I have cheated mummy. It’s just that she might not ever find this out. I hope she doesn’t notice any change in me.

Hope Niki does not forget to send the e-mails to papa using my account. But what if papa and mummy have already found out that I’ve not been to the marriage of Niki’s cousin? Will they take me back?

What the hell, they don’t approve of anything that I do anyway. I’ve enjoyed every bit of it and I’m not going to be sorry for it. Who knows if I’ll get to be just as carefree with the guy they ask me to get married to!

Suddenly, she feels Akhil come from behind her and kiss her on the cheek. He then brings forward the food plate with his right hand. It was the usual two-minute noodles, a little namkeen and apple. And then the other hand carrying a glass of the usual orange juice. As she turns her face a little to thank him, she could not miss his loving smile. He looked very strange in that ever-growing beard. But then, on the only two occasions when he could have shaved, she was the one who had stopped him. He looked in a good mood as he winked and kept smiling. She had never seen him like this.

Why can’t Akhil and I get married?

She shivers at the thought. She’d thought about him earlier too. But this was different. It was no longer an idea; it seemed a realization!

She smiles, not wanting the thought to slip out from her face. But the sudden surge in love slowly starts getting better of her. And as her heart starts palpitating, she turns around and hugs Akhil hard. It was one of those mood swings that Akhil understood too well. He bends down a little to kiss Rashi on her head. He rests his chin on Rashi’s head and looks away at the magnificent rains.

In the light of a solitary torch, the severely rainy evening made even moments look like years. As, with the glass in one hand and the food plate in the other, Akhil’s shoulders start feeling the burden of his stretched out arms. But he does nothing. The solitude is finally broken when Akhil hears Rashi sobbing. Before he could react, Rashi suddenly breaks down. Initially nervous, Akhil just rubs his chin on Rashi’s head a couple of time before resting his cheek there; and allows her to cry her heart out.

Rashi kept crying for the whole evening. And kept raising her hands to apologise. Every time she would do that, Akhil would take her hands in his, kiss them and give her a smile. But she would find herself crying even more.

As Akhil fed her the dinner, she kept her hands locked behind Akhil. Almost like a little girl who worried that her father would vanish the moment she freed her hands around him. Finally, with her head on Akhil’s stretched-out right arm, she goes to sleep, hugging Akhil ever so tight.

Just a few feet away from them, it was pouring heavens on all sides. The thunderstorm was loud and the gushing wind very vocal, but nothing could shake either Rashi’s sleep or Akhil’s thoughts.

I don’t know what it is, what it will be,
But this once I’ll let it be what it will be.
What have I got that I ever prayed for?
So this once I’ll let it be what it will be.

When Akhil opens his eyes in the morning, he could see trees till some distance through the continuing rains. Must be 9. As he turns on his side to go back to sleep again, his eyes are arrested by the glimpse of Rashi’s right bosom through the undone buttons of her shirt. He pauses and admires the amazing infiniteness of a woman’s beauty. Especially, the infiniteness of its meanings! Soon, he shifts his eyes to his angel’s face. And for a moment, he struggles to find the woman he liked in the child with short hair that was sleeping by his side! He pushes back Rashi’s disheveled hair, bends down to kiss her forehead and then retires back to sleep.

As usual, he wakes Rashi up in the morning. I’ll just come; he tells her as he keeps a knife by her side before disappearing in the rains. She understood the lingo; she’d herself made use of the same words every morning.
With ruffled hair over her happy face, Rashi curls within her bed-sheet. All she could see and hear was rains.

This is so beautiful. And I thought the best thing would be to wake up in a big, round, cushioned bed with lots of pillows and silken sheets, and being served everything I wanted right there in the bed. Or is it because I’m still excited about my first time?

Come on, money is important, I can’t deny it. But then, there are so many filthy rich women who are so bored in life that they have to go for younger male keeps. Wow! That gives all the more reason for it. Now I’ll definitely marry a very rich man and have many cute and dark men as my keeps!

With a child-like grin on her face she brings the bed-sheet over her head and curls playfully on the bare floor. And soon takes her head out with a smile. Life is beautiful.

She looks towards their rucksacks. Akhil wanted to carry as little as possible. Hence they’d taken along only 2 extra pairs of clothes and an equal number of underclothing, for an eight-day long trip. But who needs them now anyway, she blushes. The rest was filled up by a million varieties of food and beverage concentrate items, medicines and navigational tools like torches and ropes. Not that she was counting the stuff while she stared the rucksack.

Is Akhil the one? How would I know? I mean what does one look for in a life partner? He’s a nice guy and he’s now proved to be a great lover too. But what about all that talk of that special vibe? Oh come one, it’s all trash. I mean so many guys give out that special vibe. What about them?

But if Akhil’s not the one, then what the hell was I thinking when I did with him? What about all those thoughts of saving it all for that special someone? Was it all bullshit?

Suddenly she could sense that last night’s edginess was returning. To compound the misery, as she looks over her shoulder towards the lashing rains, she knew that from then on, it was going to be the walk back home. Walk back to the world from where she wanted to run away. And the more she thought about it, the sicker she felt.

They walk hand in hand in the rains, with Rashi looking at the ground and Akhil far away. Soon, Rashi stops Akhil by pulling his hand. And as Akhil turns towards her, she takes a step ahead, wraps her arms around him and rests herself against him. Akhil was now getting used to that.

After a few minutes of togetherness in the splashing rains, Akhil takes hold of Rashi’s face in his hands. And as he looks straight into her eyes, he breaks their promise.

“Why are you so sure that once we reach back home, life would not be like this ever again?”

Rashi could not believe her ears. How could the man read her so well? Tears roll down her cheeks in a hurry as she too breaks her promise of a silent sojourn.

“I don’t know. I think I love you but I’m still not completely sure of you. I’m not sure if I would be taking this ahead when we return. I don’t know why. I think there’s something wrong with me. I can’t take it anymore.”

Akhil tries to say something but Rashi forces her face into his chest with great vigour and breaks down completely. Akhil doesn’t say anything. He just gives her a tight hug to reassure her.

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