“रॉय अंकल?!” मी अचानक त्याला बघून म्हणालो तसा तो मागे वळला. तो मला ओळखण्याचा प्रयत्न करत होता. इतक्या वर्षांनी बघितल्यामुळे त्यानं मला ओळखलं नाही, यात आश्चर्य काहीच नाही. शेवटी मीच ओळख सांगितल्यावर त्याच्या चेहऱ्यावर आनंद पसरला. “कितना बडा हो गया रे तू. यहीं बैंगलोर में रहता है क्या?” “नहीं अंकल, अब पुणे में रहता हूँ. … Continue reading रॉय अंकल
Fiction
The boy who never left
Avijit had a peculiar habit. He lived in the present, earned in the present, paid his EMIs in the present. But mentally, he spent a good part of his day somewhere in the 1980s. “Papa,” his daughter Anaya said one morning, “did Wi-Fi exist in your golden childhood?” Avijit looked up from the newspaper, adjusting … Continue reading The boy who never left
The Lighthouse
“Rajaram, leave this file on Sadashiv Ji’s table. Let him review too”. Pradeep summoned the office boy, waving the blue file in his hand. The work at the Axis Traders office was a small, quiet and routine affair every day. A staff of about 25 people dueled with client files and export numbers all day. … Continue reading The Lighthouse
The cost of a wish
He sat alone in the fading twilight near his window. He could see the hustle of the new year party in the courtyard. He knew he wasn’t invited, and he wouldn’t attend even if he was. This is exactly how he had spent the New Year’s Eve for last so many years. As he reminisced … Continue reading The cost of a wish
मृत्यूच्या पाऊलखुणा
“इथून जवळच आहे आता. हे शेवटचं वळण”. कर्जतच्या हिरव्यागार निसर्गातून आपली गाडी दामटत जयू म्हणाला. “पुढे एक ढाबा आहे, तिथे जेवणाची ऑर्डर देऊन पुढे जाऊ. तो सगळं काही आपल्या पत्त्यावर आणून देईल”. ढाब्यावर दारूसोबतचे स्नॅक्स, डिनरला बटर चिकन, नान, बिर्याणी, अशी भली मोठी ऑर्डरच त्यांनी दिली. सगळं काही एका तासात जयूच्या बंगल्यावर पाठवण्याचं मालकानं मान्य … Continue reading मृत्यूच्या पाऊलखुणा
The Mirror in Room 407
I don’t believe in ghosts. Not the supernatural kind, anyway. The ones of regret and memory? Those I’ve wrestled with all my life. So, when the receptionist at the hotel warned me that the previous guest in Room 407 had a “supernatural encounter,” I smiled politely. Corporate travel fatigue is worse than any ghost, I … Continue reading The Mirror in Room 407
The Business Pitch for Sainthood
It was raining in Mumbai. Not the charming drizzle that inspires poetry, but the relentless, bucket-over-the-head sort that turns streets into rivers and replaces fancy cars on streets with life-boats. Rohan Kapoor, 34, investment banker of some repute and notoriety and proud owner of a penthouse in Parel far too big for its occupants, was … Continue reading The Business Pitch for Sainthood
The Burden of the Rose
"We’re restructuring, Jatin. You’ve done well, but your role is… well, redundant.” Jatin was not prepared for the words his boss spoke that morning. The sentence rang in his ears like the hollow clang of an iron gate closing. He had been one of the top performers in Sales, meeting or exceeding targets, diligent in … Continue reading The Burden of the Rose
The sound of thought 