Arunlekha Sengupta
Illustration by Aditi Chakraborty
All around Tinni were smells that she had known all her life. They had been characters in the narration of her life. Invisible characters. She was never really aware of the smells as she was living her normal 12 year old life, but now, kidnapped, trapped, bound and gagged, those smells came back to befriend her – the heady smell of the rotting champa flowers of her grandmother’s abandoned backyard and the stench of mould from the se…
Protiksha Ukil
Four twinkling eyes stared into the infinite night sky, counting stars and making shapes by joining them. “Mon, do you think that bright red star over there will last forever?” Mona gurgled with laughter and answered, “Of course, silly! But do you know what will outlast that star’s life?” Vishal’s head moved from right to left. “Haha, its our friendship! Don’t u think so too?” Vishal’s eyes dropped, and his starlit face clearly showed signs of gloom. A voice from the little…
Monolina Bhattacharyya
Sei Somoy...those days or those times! Yes, those were the days. Most of us who have gone beyond “those days” live in a mental capsule where time has become frozen memory. We re-live, cherish, reminisce, and remember...those days... in our gatherings in a plush living room in north America over a glass of wine or scotch. Gone are the carefree days, as we grapple with the realities of moving on, fulfilling our aspirations, living the dream, and yet we want those days…
Somjeet Dutt
Coming to life from a green vine around a tree,
The just born gourd blinked with glee
On seeing a world so wide and bright,
It wished to grow wings and take flight.
All curious to see the baby,
First arrived the cabbage and carrot family
Followed shortly by his distant aunts,
Shuffling came the beans and egg plants.
All of them cried out in fright
“It can only be a demon’s curse,
“Oh dear, Oh dear, what a sight!”
He could not have be…
Asmita Mukherji
Tracing the flight of a butterfly across the garden from his veranda, the sound of the creaking gate distracted Piku. The sunrays presented him with a familiar silhouette – Dadu. As Piku ran down the stairs, the doorbell rang and Minati Masi opened the door.
Piku spotted someone accompanying his grandfather and immediately took refuge behind the sofa. He had had too many unknown people testing their muscle power on his cheeks and was wary of strangers now. “Come Joga Da…