A donkey’s life
It feels like being whipped. And you are the donkey drawing the cart. The orders come at you fast and furious— like the searing pain inflicted by sharp lashes. And they draw blood. Working under people who…
Love under the bloody gateway
I see a black dusty blanket, full of holes, placed in one of the recesses of the monument, as I cross the Khooni Darwaza one morning. The Khooni Darwaza or Bloody Doorway is a huge gateway which…
A surprise at my door
I am in a hurry as it is already ten minutes over my scheduled time to start for work. I quickly stuff my lunch box into my backpack, and also an umbrella as some showers are forecast.…
Buried in the sand
“I was admitted in the hospital with an oxygen mask on my face when my seven-year old video-called me,” he said. “All five members of my family had been detected positive for COVID, and except for my…
Callousness in a crisis
It begins drizzling just as I step into the campus gate. The raindrops come as such a relief in this heat, that I don’t bother to hasten my pace. Soaking in the pleasure of the raindrops falling…
Let sleeping dogs lie
It is hot as I walk to work, and I know it will be hotter by the time I get back. The month of May is like that. The lane between the hospital wards and my lab…
The clean and the unclean
My mobile phone rings while I’m in the middle of work. It is the delivery man from Amazon. I had ordered some computer peripherals which were slightly expensive. Since my landlady’s house was out of bounds due…
The bloodsuckers
It was around 7 pm. I had flown from Nagpur to Delhi that afternoon. Then got on the airport metro to New Delhi metro station. Next, walked into a group of haggling auto rickshaw drivers, all quoting…
Comfort for the soul
My fingers automatically go towards the green icon among the apps on my phone. Bigbasket. It is like a daily ritual now. Get bored. Scroll through Bigbasket. Add to the list. Order when the list is long…
The dance of death
Every morning on my way to work, I cross this long line of cycle rickshaws, autos and parked cars. And in seven minutes as I cross that patch, I overhear bits and pieces of conversations which give…
