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San,
Thank you for making the piece work. I use Firefox at home for obvious reasons. You have some work left to make your fonts and format work in that browser (the way they do in IE). Take your time. It is not a showstopper. Firefox is quite virus-proof, but at the same time, it can be some-good-stuff-proof too.
NoMM,
You ask:
‘How did a mother like Kirti raise a son like Sunil?’
I wanted someone to ask me that. I was so tempted to write that part, but in a short story, you know the limitations. Anyway, this is my take on why Sunil was the way he was:
After his father died, Kriti could not spend a whole lot of time with Sunil. She was mourning. Besides, Reeva was only 11 months old and Pallu was three. Sunil most probably grew up at/with his grandparents during that time and began to resent his life. His grandparents, perhaps, spoiled him because they were rich (the mention of ‘Loreta’ and ‘Lady Shri Ram’ was for that purpose). By the time Kriti geared up to handle all three children by herself, perhaps it was too late in Sunil’s case.
If you are not keeping count, I am. This is my fourth story in a row without a female villain.
In regards to my own tantrums, don’t you think they are too miserly?
Pacifier,
If you are in the US and you chose to write to me at
Occult,
‘Bh’ is correct. I will make sure I will not make that mistake again. Thank you for all the enthusiasm you have shown. Oh, it helps.
Mokshya,
Like your Login ID, what a significant question you ask. This is what makes me come back to Sajha again and again.
I can give you a million reasons why Ashim went to Raman’s house that afternoon. Like, seeing his friend at Dr. Bhatt’s clinic triggered it, plus the conversation with Kriti which made him sympathize with his friend even more … plus, he was incited when he caught his sister getting off Raman’s bike … plus, he woke up pissed that day and his Vinaju’s boss only made his day worse … plus, being drunk only added to all his anger and confusion. But as someone who created Ashim, I believe my argument should be more reflective.
Ashim is a man (after all), who has a man’s ego. He takes Sunil’s loss as a team defeat because he was a part of that ‘Elina struggle’ all through. Of course, he cares about and sympathizes with Sunil, but more than that, for him it is his fight too. When Sunil loses, he loses, as a team. Think about it, there was never any prize for Ashim in that fight; for him it was always about honor and conviction. For men of code (that Ashim was) there is nothing more precious than that. Men of code are usually driven by their un-miserly impulses. Am I talking too much? I will stop.
Dipika02,
Welcome and thank you for the kind words. Before responding, I always check on people that I am not familiar with, so I Sajhoogled you. Good to know that you are one of the new writers here. Welcome again.
So far, I have only read your first writing. I saw glimpses of brilliance, but you seem to write from your heart. When you write from your heart, with the story, comes the message. I hear there is a saying among
If you have a message in your story, just hint it and move on, you cannot dwell on it. Leave the rest to Deepak Chopra.
Be more cynical, I beg. A regular person observes what he sees because it is there; a cynic observes what he sees because he is there.
You think I understand my one-liners myself? Of course not.
Amber,
Oh, Amber, oh dear Amber, only an excellent writer like you can offer such goosebumps-hatching compliment. I will not lie. In the morning, I check responses to my thread even before I check my office emails or my hotmail messages. I had read your post early in the morning. The day turned out to be beautiful. Thank you. Keep on writing, you are very natural. BTW, your ticklish ‘crybaby’ tease tickled me.
Amazing,
Thank you so very much. You are so kind. So, how was Prashant Tamang’s concert? I am scared to ask this question in Sajha, but since you are very nice, I will have to ask you this:
Mr. Tamang does not compose music. He cannot read music. He does not play any instrument. He is not a lyricist. He is not a part of any band. He does not have his own songs. How does this person become concert-able?
Don’t get me wrong, I am not arguing or insulting those who went to his concert, I just want to hear your take who obviously feels otherwise. I have absolutely nothing against Prashant Tamang and I wish him nothing but the best. I am just puzzled by the premise. Why is our penchant for art tied with our nationalism? Isn’t that an unwarranted compromise?
Timetraveller,
Thank you for making Dec 2, 2007, my day in Sajha. I had never seen so many threads of one person in the front page. It was nauseating. The logical answer to your question is Rohit uncle. Thank you and good luck with your finals. Then again, the way you are, you don’t need the ‘luck’ part.
Gahugoro,
Read and tell. Thanks.
Riten,
Oh, I wish. Oh, I wish. I was reading your comment somewhere up there … You had written, “I am afraid I have not read works of xxxxxx or yyyyyy or zzzzzz. Mero kami, uuniharuko hoina.†That is the way you settle an argument. Your last sentence did it.
Thank you for the kind words. And don’t stop speaking your mind. It helps people.
Teso vae Deep le dhokaa diyo haina ta ending maa? I really don’t think so. It ended exactly where it should have ended.
Sheetalb,
You are different than Sunil. People like Sunil will never ask the question you asked. For people like Sunil, what the world does not know about them is their reality. They don’t confess as long as they know others don’t know. Thank you for reading. Just out of curiosity, what do you think he told his mother when he came home with broken fingers after that table tennis match? (I left that part to reader’s imagination).
Thank you for the suggestion. However, I don’t know why, to some extent I want to disagree with you. I think how ‘Gholera Khelney’ is played was optional in the story. I was sharing with you each player’s temperament by explaining how he was reacting to the game itself. Ashim and Raman played by the code, because that is who they are. For Prabhat, fun is an integral part of the game (he is joking even when he is losing). For Sunil the game was all about winning marbles. Sunil was the best among the four, which means he must have tons of marbles at home, but he is not willing to share any with Ashim. Having said that, I completely understand where you are coming from. I will keep that in mind.
Ratobhaley,
Thank you, Veer Ratobhaley. You never cease to amuse me. My tantrums are my frustrations facilitated by the edit button. I blame San.
Oho,
You write: “Kriti telling her son to go fight Uday is the most deep thing in the story.†Say no more. That to me is 1/3rd of the story. I can go on and on about why she said it, but I know that you have figured that out. Thank you for reading, and read you do. Honestly. Thank you.
Pjna007,
Oh, it’s a friend’s club, and welcome. I get very jittery when someone tells me they read me for the first time. I am glad you liked it. Hope to see you more in Sajha. Thank you for the compliment.
Godzilla,
Thank you for reading.
Edited because of a huge misunderstanding with a friend.