Opaque (Part I)

“He is soooo cuteeeeee and really simple and very loving and caring… and...” she purred, unable to hide her disgust at her friend’s lack of interest...

“And he would want to get into your pants, and say, that this is not working” she stated without blinking.

Naiara and Miasha were friends from as long as they could remember. They had been soul sisters, and had been together for 24 years. Each knowing the other like the back of their hand.

“Mia, why are you being so neg about him?, you haven’t even met him, and moreover, it’s not like he is a despo as such ….. “

“Yea  nay-nay, absonfreakinlutely true, wasn’t this what you said about the last ummm , oh yea 9,no sorry 8 guys you were dating?” , she giggled finally, and threw a devilish smirk across at her friend, and ducked in time , as a pillow rocketed towards her.

“Nay”, she giggled , and went over and hugged her friend who was trying very hard to suppress a smile and maintain an angry face at the same time. “ Take your time love, I don’t want you to get hurt” she smiled and pulled away the strands that covered her face.

“Mia, haven’t you ever had the need to be with someone?”  Their expressions and response was such that anyone would know that it wasn’t a question that was asked for the first time. “Yea I have nay-nay, but the only problem is I don’t know how to let Johnny Depp know how I feel”. They burst into uncontrolled fits of laughter.

“So, tell me about him now “ Naiara broke into full details as Mia listened on.

                                          ***********

“It seems like  a work of a professional, detective, so far we have found no evidence against the murderer, no footprints, nothing, not even a strand of hair, it all seems to have been cleared, or this man just fell dead out of the blue sky”

“hmmmm, I need all of his details, family background, work, mistress, debt, etc . clear?”

“yes Sir, we are on it already”

                                            *************

“How long do we have to wait till I get to see him, gosh I hate men who cant be punctual, its so annoying nay-nay” she folded her arms and looked towards the entrance of the coffee shop where they had planned on meeting Kenneth. Nay-nay had begged Mia to come along and meet him, and moreover, nay-nay was the one who liked him, she wasn’t sure about him, and he seemed to be more of the friendly types. She wanted to be sure and hence had asked Mia to come along.

“Why don’t you call him and figure out where he is”, she stifled a yawn, and hid herself behind the newspaper..

“Do they have Johnny Depp naked on the front page, what is it, that you are so obsessed with in the paper”

“An uncle has been brutally murdered, it has been a week, and the cops are as usual clueless about the killer and the motive, the person was found half naked, and is said to have been choked to death probably with …… “

“oh pleaseeeee stop reading, gosh I wonder how you tolerate all this ??? “

“aww, im sorry squeamy, my dad’s a cop , I get to hear all the gore and stuff, so kinda used to it, anyways, did you call him?”

“no he texted, saying he’d be here in 5 mins”

Mia knew she was being watched, she kept the paper aside and glanced ahead, meeting his eye, she hated him the moment she saw him. He smiled at her. She averted her gaze, and looked at her friend staring at the same guy, he was walking towards them, with that ‘annoying’ smile plastered on his face. Mia saw nay-nay, shifing in her seat, absently adjusting her hair. Damn, so this is mr.9.

“heyyyyy ken”, Nay rose from her seat and hugged him “meet my friend Miasha, and Mia, meet Kenneth, Ken”, she said smiling. They both shook hands, and he sat down opposite Mia. She felt a shiver run up her spine, with his gaze fixed on her. He wanted to know more about her, and kept probing her for answers .

“Nay, I need to rush, just remembered I had some work to finish off at berry’s , i’ll catch up with you over dinner ok” She hugged nay and bade them both good bye and was almost at the door when ken called out to her.

“Hey Mia”, he ran over to her, she turned and looked over at nay, “its Miasha, for you, not Mia”, He smirked and ran his hand through his hair, “so Mia, I was headed to the same place as you, and thought it would be great if … “

“no thanks I have my own vehicle …”

“brilliant, you could drop me then” . Nay walked upto them and encouraged Mia to go along with ken, stating that she had some work…

‘Miaaaaaaa I think he has the hots for you’ she texted hastily

‘I thought you had it for him nay’

‘eeeeeee like I did for the previous guys, no no not him , you know how I am, and btw, am going to meet justin’

‘Justin??’

‘yea Justin, the guy who sings in our choir, he is cute ‘

‘fine, whatever, but I hate this Kenneth guy, so whatever’

‘hehehehhe, that's what makes me feel you guys should be together’

Mia read the last text and threw her phone on the backseat of her car, and sighed.

“so Mia” ….

“I already told you its Miasha”

“Mmm yea, so Mia, why are you so stuck up, you need to relax”

“I don’t think I need a bozo like you to tell me what I should or shouldn’t be doing, where exactly do you want me drop you?”

“Right here”

She slammed the brakes and waited for him to get out

“Mia, maybe when you cool off a bit, I would like to meet you again, only if you want to…it may seem strange to you, but I  like you, I don’t have reasons for the same, but I do. This is my number; i'll wait for your call”

He got off and walked over to the pavement and hailed a cab and took off.

to be continued ..... 

Wings of Silence

Wings of Silence

Author : Shriram Iyer

About the Author : Bangalore-born Shriram Iyer, a management professional based in Melbourne, Australia, has authored several short stories, theatre scripts and screenplays for short films. Silver-medalist under the Shankar’s International Award in 1996 given by the President of India, Shriram is also a professional singer who has to his credit an Indian pop album, Is Dhundh Mein, (released in 2007 by well-known singer Shankar Mahadevan) as well as over 400 concerts in India, Australia, New Zealand and USA. Wings of Silence is his debut novel.

"A spellbinding story...the real winner in this exhilarating but tender tale is unconditional brotherly love that Shriram Iyer describes in mesmerizing and elegant prose." - Oswald Pereira, Bestselling Author, The Newsroom Mafia.

I cannot really wipe out the smile on my face, even when I sit to review this book. You know there are certain books that you just skim through and it doesn’t really make you happy and then there is “Wings of Silence”, which makes you respect relations, understand certain intricate details in relationships, and communicate without language.

So to start of with we are given a glimpse of Ajay Sethi, an ex Air India official, who was captured and imprisoned in line of duty, and later how he escapes with an injured leg. Here we can easily picture a man of few words, bound by discipline and duty , to whom “Failure” is a word he omitted from his life.

His two sons : Saurav Sethi and Raj Sethi, take the story forward. Raj, the eldest ,is born deaf, owing to which he has a difficult childhood, as compared to an ordinary child, or rather as compared to his younger brother Saurav Sethi, or the one with  a “Midas touch”.

Saurav becomes the son his Father dotes on, as he epitomizes Strength, courage, determination, ambition, focus – all what his father set his life by. The brothers are as different as chalk and cheese, and the same is well described by the author, with a description of their rooms, which in a way described their life’s.

Saurav, grows up to be the next Tennis Star, and in the meanwhile his brother is left out in the rat race. His father completely dotes on him and spends his “Life” completely dedicated towards his sons “tennis career”, whereas he completely ignored his elder Son’s need for acceptance.

As situations unfold, the brothers bond emotionally, and Saurav takes it upon himself to resurrect his Brothers Life, which was crumbling down, much to the annoyance of his father. He helps Raj become the Person Raj aspires to be, by being his constant support and guide. He is helped in this ambition by his “soulmate” Shalini, and his aunt Sheela.

Shriram Iyer has beautifully unfolded a Family for us through the pages of his book. A family with characters that will make you laugh, cry, and empathize with. Characters  you would be able to relate with.

His style of writing is such that it enables for a fast paced read. Events have been well researched. The triumph of the characters feels like a personal triumph for the readers.

Having said all of this , if you ask me what was it that I did not like about the book, id say (a very personal desire) , I would have been happy if all the characters got what they wanted. But well, in reality , that is something that would have been inappropriate. Are you wondering what im talking about??? If Yes, grab a copy of “Wings of Silence” , because this is one “hell of  a book”, and I would absonfreakinlutely want YOU to read it.

 For the AUTHOR, Hats off sir, for a fist timer, you are simply “Rocking”, awaiting your next book.

Oh and my Rating: 10/10 . (like you didn’t know it already)


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Two Minutes

<div style="text-align: justify;">
<blockquote>
This post has been published by me as a part of the <b>Blog-a-Ton 29</b>; the 29th Edition of the online marathon of Bloggers; where we decide and we write. To be part of the next edition, visit and start following <a href="http://blogaton.in/"><b>Blog-a-Ton</b></a>. The topic for this month is 'TWO MINUTES'.
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He told me of yellow flowers and meadows without boundaries,

Of cattle’s and farms and a dream,

Where I was his and he was “the one made for me”

Do you believe in love?? Do you feel it exists?? The typical “kahin na kahin , koi na koi, kissi ke liye bana hai types?? I did not till I met him. 

It was not love at first sight, there were no violins playing or any sort of signs, that the heavens are assumed to put in front of you, stating that he is the one. Nothing!!!. Just a casual hello, a cordial smile, some conversations over coffee, and a good bye. There wasn’t an urge to see him or hear from him again.

But somewhere, somehow, there was a feeling, a feeling of having known him earlier, a feeling that connected them both on a different level altogether. Was it love?? No not yet.

His company put her at ease,

They laughed over things that only they could understand,

The felt complete in each others presence

And yet , they were not in love.

Silence between them was comforting

There was no awkwardness

They could discuss about the stars and the moon

And about the shapes made by the clouds..

It was beautiful, yet undefined

Were they in love?? well not yet.

Their conversations unfolded their past,

Something which they never spoke about,

Was out for the other to hear.

Their fingers touched

And longed for each other

Yet they were not in love.

Their hands entwined themselves

And their eyes found each others,

A million questions fluttered through them, before their lips met

The questions were left unanswered, yet they had their answers

Somehow, they still were not in love.

Her eyes bore his stories

She was confused beyond words, of why he made her feel this way

His mere presence made her happy

His proximity to another female made her green with envy

And yet they were not in love.

Milte hain hum juda hone ke liye

Milte hain hum juda hone ke liye,

Uss gham main bhi ek alag sa nasha hai,

Kyunki uske har alfaz main tumhara naam hai.

They spent days together, and now it was time to leave,

A feeling of loneliness crept inside her,

But she wanted to be strong and pretend,

She hugged him good bye

And thought she would get over him

But she was wrong

As her every thought was going back to him.

And yet she was not in love.

She dreamed of yellow flowers and meadows

She dreamed of being there with him

She was afraid of being hurt,

And realized it was the same for him,

He had many plans,

And she was nowhere in them

She was hurt to realize , that maybe it was only she who was in love with him.

Of flowers and meadows,

Of cattles and farms

A dreadful night, and it all came crashing down.

He was to go far away from her, far away from this world

As death sought his soul

She ran towards him,

And held him in her arms.

“I love you”, she whispered in his ears

Their eyes met, their fingers entwined

She prayed for two minutes more of his life.

Death bowed before her love, and granted them 2 decades

But they still were not in love.

They were in something beyond,

Beyond something

That even love couldn’t comprehend.


<div style="text-align: justify;">
<blockquote>
The <b>fellow Blog-a-Tonics</b> who took part in this Blog-a-Ton and links to their respective <b>posts</b> can be checked <a href="http://www.blogaton.in/2012/06/rules-and-reminder-for-blog-ton-29.html"><b>here</b></a>. To be part of the next edition, visit and start following <b><a href="http://blogaton.in/">Blog-a-Ton</a>.</b></blockquote>
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"Love aaj Kal"

Many eyes looked at the couple, who were lost in each others eyes, oblivious to the world. They held on to each other, unaware of the glances and smirks.

“oooh, im gonna watch it soon” crooned a girl, staring like the rest, at the Movie Poster.

Once Again

This post has been published by me as a part of the Blog-a-Ton 27; the 27th Edition of the online marathon of Bloggers; where we decide and we write. To be part of the next edition, visit and start following Blog-a-Ton. The topic for this month is 'Once Again'.

Ek baar phir is dil ne kisi dil se pyaar kiya

Ek baar phir isne apne khuda se shart lagayi,

Ki iss baar aey , khuda

mEre dil ko na dhuka

Mujhe pyaar se hai pyaar

Uss shabd se na bada meri nafrat

Meri mohabbat ka kar thoda izzat

Ussey meri muhabbat ka ho jaane do yakeen

(Once again this heart fell in love

 Once again, it ran a stake with the lord

 That this time around, lord

 Don’t hurt my heart

 I’m in love with the idea of love

 Don’t increase my hatred towards that word

 Do respect my Love

 And let him realize that my love is true )

She sat nibbling on the end of her pen, when he walked towards her. She looked up, and closed her diary, and sipped on the coffee,  which he had bought her. She smiled and looked at him. He smiled back.

“Chale”,(shall we), he smiled , as he crushed his cup, and aimed it at the nearby bin, it missed and it fell.

“mmmm”  she left her coffee unfinished, and sat behind him, on his bike.

The Devotion of Suspect X

When you are presented with an opportunity to read something that has apparently been a “best-seller”, having sold over 2 million copies, you would obviously not let go of that, right?

Title: The Devotion of Suspect X

Author: Keigo Higashino.

                                               

About The Author: Keigo Higashino was born in Osaka. He started writing novels while still working as an Engineer and won the Edogawa Rampo Prize for writing at age 27. The Devotion of Suspect X has sold over 2 million copies in Japan and has been made into a cult film.

Do I like this book: Hell yes! Having read snippets about the book, we realize that the story revolves around a single mother (Yasuko), and her Daughter (Misato), and how their world turns upside down, when her ex-husband (Togashi) returns after 5 years. The novel starts of, with a murder being committed, and that takes up 2 chapters of the book, and you are left with wondering, what comprises the remaining chapters. However, the author has interwoven his story with such brilliance, that you would not feel like letting go of the book without a complete understanding of the story.

The Land of the Wilted Rose

Mental Note to Self : Never (NEVER) READ a book, you accidently clicked on to REVIEW.

About the Author : Anand Ranganathan read Chemistry at St. Stephen’s, Delhi, and thereafter went to Cambridge for his BA in Natural Sciences. He stayed on at Cambridge for his PhD and post-doctoral studies. After returning to India, he joined the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology at Delhi, where at present he is researching tuberculosis and dengue, among other things. The Land of the Wilted Rose is his debut novel.

My Rant on this book : Honestly, i was putting of reviewing this book, until I got a reminder from BLOGADDA about the same. I could review it in THREE WORDS … “WHAT A MISTAKE”

Are we still reading for more??? Alright here goes : SO I was a little apprehensive as to how to review this Book, especially as I was having a tough time reading the same. So then I force myself to start , and turn the pages(read), and well the only thing that kept running in my head was , the authors reason of wanting to come up with this novel. We all are accustomed to Gandhi, and having a “White Mahatma” did not clearly make any sense to me.