Deep Ties

“The moon had been appeased. The sea grew gentle again. The butterflies danced in the space between the two. Peace had been made.” Ameenah, a child bride from Dimashq, or Damascus, yearns for peace her entire life. However, peace is as elusive as a little bird on a tree just beyond her reach. Apprehensive at first when she marries Fathi and moves to Aleppo, she finds happiness with him, his parents and his grandmother, who she “would make my own, cherishing that bond dear till my last breath.” Fathi keeps his promise to Majid, her brother, and sends Ameenah to school. However, Ameenah has a special gift, the art of doodling, of bleeding ink over the sheet in ornate lines and intricate designs. Through her doodles, she attempts to make sense of the violence that is soon to become a constant part of her life as she gets embroiled in the Syrian war, losing the ones she loves most in life. From then on, it is a constant struggle to use her doodles to give solace to childr...

“She stands at the window every night, a bystander to the life that surrounds her.” The haveli with the hundred doors, a silent sentinel that has stood over the decades, speaks of despair absorbed, heated discussions, reminiscences, of a family that “has gone through its own trials and tribulations.” The head of the Sharma family, Arun, is the breadwinner, passive and resigned to his fate. His wife, Uma, is the real strength behind the family, full of gumption and emotional fortitude, as she protects her offspring in various ways. “He handled the world outside the wall and she, within.”   Aruna, Bhavya and Charu are born in quick succession, but it is only when Dheeraj is born that Uma feels usefully productive, for she has produced the heir apparent. However, then comes God’s gift to Uma as Etti, Fanny and Gina make their appearance. Aruna, the eldest, separates from her first husband, the cruel Rafi after his “never-ending onslaughts on her persona”. ...

Do people get better at what they do as the years go by? Does a warrior woman get more mettlesome as more and more thunderbolts are thrown her way? If so, Mrs. Nalini Chandran must be one fierce warrior, at the age of eighty! When did it all begin? Did it start when she was a young girl, travelling around the country, finding wonder in everything she saw? Her father was a Railways employee, and he enjoyed taking his family around by train. Nalini and her brothers looked forward to these journeys, and they watched the world whiz by as they sampled the train food thalis that changed with every station they crossed. Her mother was the disciplinarian, who tamed her children with love, but her father was the one Nalini hero-worshipped, as he guided her into reading the classics, Shakespeare, the Bible and beautiful poetry. Nalini learnt Kathakali for seven years at a time when girls were not encouraged to go on stage and make spectacles of themselves, as a few envious...

The Piano #FridayFotoFiction The unearthly music echoed around. “She’s playing the piano again!” breathed Namita, rapturously.   A proficient piano player, Ujwala had performed across the country. However, after her beloved husband passed away, she had locked away the piano along with the love in her heart. “Ujwala, we long to hear you play again,” pleaded her friends. She had shaken her head. Two years flew by, but no music had echoed in the cottage. Till today. Ujwala welcomed the group in, as the music played on. “Who is the magical artiste?” asked Namita, surprised. “How well she interprets the world through her music!” added Annie. Ujwala led them in. They gazed at the delicate girl whose long fingers tripped across the keys. “Naina!” called Ujwala softly. The music ceased; the girl turned, smiling. “How well you play!” Annie suddenly stopped. Shocked, they gazed at Naina’s beautiful but sightless eyes. The Piano #FridayFotoFiction

What can Adam and Zach do to revive Christmas? Do read Snowbound by Olivier Lafont to find out. Print Length: 339 pages Publication Date: May 18, 2017 Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC Language: English Genre: Young Adult Adventure/Fantasy  Christmas is dying. The last Santa Claus had triplets who each inherited a portion of his father’s power, and that split is now tearing apart the soul of Christmas. Niccolo Vecchio, the eldest, has fortified the North Pole into a citadel of ice and metal. Santini, the middle brother, is in hiding somewhere in the Mediterranean. The youngest brother, Niccolo Piccolo, is raising legions to reclaim his inheritance. Two of the triplets will have to renounce their claim in the next forty-eight hours, or this Christmas will be the last one ever. And it’s up to Adam, underachieving teenager sub-ordinaire, and his brand new jock bully Zach to make that happen… It would be great if ...

Yours To Love Yours To Take by Reshma Ranjan A Heartwarming Saga of Love and Sacrifice Print Length: 202 pages Publication Date: July 21, 2017 Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC Language: English Available on Kindle Unlimited  Genre: Romance  As if losing her parents and her voice in a childhood accident wasn’t cruel enough, Anita Batra now has to come to terms with her twin’s death and help her sister’s partner get a new lease in life.  Adopted by the Verma Clan after his parents died in an accident, Dr. Salim Verma finally finds love and a chance to be happy only to lose it in an accident he himself survives.  When fate strikes a final blow and brings two strangers together, Salim can’t help but punish Anita and make her tread through the hell he himself was in, while all Anita wants is to help her sister’s partner start afresh, no matter what the cost.  Will Salim ever be able to ignore Anita’s resemblanc...

Frankly Speaking - An Evening of Immersive Theatre Script: Kirthi Jayakumar   Direction: Samyuktha PC Performed by: Keerthi Pandian, Kirthi Jayakumar and Aparnaa Nagesh It was a performance that left its audience with goosebumps, a performance in which the stunned lookers-on played a pivotal part, as, in a dim-lit room, to the background of staccato gunshots, three young women played out a macabre repertoire of genocide in various war-ravaged countries in the world. As they spoke, intoned, sang and wailed, the horror of violence and the anguish of death were keenly felt in every heart. At intervals, however, the quotes of Anne Frank acted like a balm, much akin to an oasis in the midst of tremendous turmoil. Kirthi Jayakumar is much like Anne Frank herself, as she strives to come to terms with a world where "men have lost their reason". Maybe, this is why she put so much of herself into 'Frankly Speaking', a touching piece of writing which wa...