Harry gulped. His heart pounded inside his chest as he reached his hands into the air. He had gulped the liquid from a forbidden bottle. The genie had told him clearly that the Bottle of Blues will take him back to an era, which he had escaped after a lot of struggle. But what was … Continue reading Confession of Guilt
“Where do you think you’ll go?” Amina asks with concern. “Back to my village. I can’t afford rent in a city without a job,” Ahana was one of the many employees laid off by a loss-making startup. The doorbell breaks the silence in the room, and minutes later, Ahana is unpacking her bags. “I was … Continue reading Petrichor
The place hasn’t changed much in a decade. But an intriguing sight greets me. Two dogs are lounging around in the chairs which the senior Smith couple used to grace. I push the gate open and see a young girl serving their food in bowls on the table. “I haven’t seen you here before.” “How … Continue reading Stretching beyond life
She freezes at the mention of ‘Mother’, and abhors paeans being sung to motherhood. She tried hard, very hard to recall a moment of acceptance, when her mother climbed up from her dinosaur mindset, and accepted her in a positive way. She couldn’t, however desperate she was to wish that such a moment existed. Father … Continue reading Wistful
There’s no water on the desk. She needs to get another bottle from the refrigerator, but feels inadequate to do so. The fatigue is unusual, but medical reports are fine. Maybe … she is tired of doing things she doesn’t want to do but is compelled to do. Weekend Writing Prompt #315
How I wish the book was never found….. It contains recipes for potions used to cure village folk. The healers were worshipped, and charged a king’s ransom for healing poverty-stricken patients. Amanda, the oldest maid in the palatial household, mentions boxes full of gold bars in hushed tones. She’d earned the honour of visiting the … Continue reading Dis-ease
The sequence of events matters in establishing the cause-and-effect scenario. It’s the meat of the story. Promos are just crumbs thrown around to build up an appetite. The words ring in my ears as I listen to different versions of an unusual incident. It’s a lesson in building narrative. What’s scary is the impact these … Continue reading Storytellers’ Nightmare
Why has she not woken up today? The alarm rang half an hour ago… His granddaughter asks him to open a box, and he indulges. The slap from a toy trapped inside shakes him up, but he smiles and moves away. The beaver slap comes in the form of a message from his wife, “Just … Continue reading No prying rights
A young man from a premier management institute says “My father told us we can only do well in jobs, not business.” Anita suffers injustice in her marriage because her father once told her, “You are neither beautiful nor a heiress, so do as you are told to do.” Nyla, a qualified gynaecologist, is a … Continue reading Yellow Bellies
Another award function, journos pushing around for bytes, broken statements scattered around with no resemblance to the spirit of the conversation. He is tired, dog tired of celebrating a successful persona, a persona built painstakingly to meet expectations, a persona that’s not him. It reminds him of the plastic excitement of puppies who escape with … Continue reading Dog tired
Creative Experiments and More 