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Solentine English version

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  The birds chirped as loudly as they could, making a noise of their existence. Flapping their small, colourful wings, they hurried in and out of the dense mango foliage. Big, juicy, saffron mangoes hung from the branches. A pop of orange in a sea of green. The sunlight that filtered through the canopy, sketched mosaic patterns on Nirmala’s papery skin. ‘Hey, shoo away!’ She tried staving off the birds, with a stick, from her wheelchair. ‘What makes them so happy? Crazy birds!’ The angry woman spat on the ground in a fit of vengeance. The wave of disgust that surrounded her, for some time now, didn't seem to wash over the birds. In their distasteful company, the warblers still continued to be merry. Yet, their merriment didn't dissolve her discontent. She kept whacking the stick on the mango tree to scare them away. In all the tussle of keeping herself away from the little joys of life, a bright yellow mango fell on her dull, messy maxi. The sight of the fruit made her dr...
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Solentine Gujarati version

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  પક્ષીઓ   જોરથી કલશોર કરી તેમના અસ્તિત્વ ની હાજરી પુરાવતા હતા . તેમની નાની , રંગબેરંગી પાંખો ફફડાવતા આંબાવાડી ની અંદર ને બહાર મસ્તીથી ઉડતા હતા . મોટી , રસદાર , કેસર કેરીઓ ડાળીઓમાંથી લટકતી હતી . જાણે લીલા સમુદ્રમાં નારંગી જહાજ !   છતમાંથી ચણાઈને આવતો સૂર્યપ્રકાશ નિર્મળાની પાતળી ચામડી પર વિવિધ ભાત રચતો હતો . ' અરે દૂર દૂર !' તેણીએ તેની વ્હીલચેર પરથી પક્ષીઓને લાકડીથી દૂર કરવાનો પ્રયાસ કર્યો . ' આટલા ખુશ શેના થાવ છો ,   મૂર્ખ પક્ષીઓ ?' જાણે પોતાનો ગુસ્સો થૂકતી હોય એમ એ જમીન પર થૂકી . અણગમાની જે લહેર એની લાંબા સમયથી સ્પર્શી રહી હતી એ હજુ પક્ષીઓને અડી હોય એવું લાગતું ન હતું . તેની અણગમતી હાજરી છતાં નાનકડા લડવૈયાઓ હજી પણ આનંદી રહ્યા . તેમના આનંદથી તેણીનો અસંતોષ ઓગળ્યો ન હતો . તેઓને ડરાવવા તે આંબાના ઝાડ પર લાકડી મારતી રહી .   જીવનની નાની નાની ખુશીઓથી પોતાની જાતને દૂર રાખવાનો પ્રયત્ન કરતી હતી ત્યાં એક રસાળ પીળી કેરી એના ગંદા ગાઉન પર પડી...
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Blind not blinded by

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  "Woof! Woof!” Betty, darling take care. Oil spillage has made the pavement slippery. "Thanks, Romeo. Your timely warning barks are exactly what this blind, bonny mass needs to reach eighty! Good dog, Romeo!" It is appreciation and pats like these that keeps me going. The pain is excruciating, but Betty and I have been through a lot, and this feels like a needle in the hay. We have broken our limbs together, seen the inside of an operation theater, confined to our room in a neatly-wrapped bandaged bundle, and many others atrocities conferred upon us. But to be the blind Betty's helper dog, is what brings me to my paws every day.  Dark times necessarily do not end with light. They just turn a little less dark. Oh, forgive my fur! Like me, it sheds philosophy these days. Old age, you see. ‘You see’ is such an overused phrase that the ones who can actually see, can't see what harm it inflicts on those who are deprived of it. Now, you see, I'm a philosophical, o...
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Who is she?

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 Appearances can be deceptive. My image in the mirror was telling me that. "Who is this woman staring back at me?" My numb self knocked on my mental faculties. "Clueless." Jumped the answer to my pursed lips. The mirror image portrays a woman with strewn hair and bruised nose. Her dry eyes, hollow like a parched well give a distant glance. To no one in particular they are propelling fire. A sole earing dangles from an overladen lobe. It is symbolic of the weight of guilt bearing her down. ***** "You are the best thing that has happened to me in my entire lifetime." Paritosh kissed Charvi's forehead. She closed her eyes in absolute bliss. In her ears, she could hear the shenai and happy giggles of her younger sisters. Paritosh had sneaked into her room just before the pheras and the two enjoyed a private moment to themselves before the week long celebrations began.  Charvi could not have asked for anything more. A degree in landscape architecture, a mar...
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The Redemption

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 The glowing morning sky welcomed its partner for the day, the magnificent sun. The gentle rays kissed the misty sky, waking it from the lazy slumber of night. A flock of black birds hurried past the lovely scene, sprinkling a dash of grey to the fawning sky. Their fluttering wings, entering and emerging from the foamy, cotton-ball like clouds. Jeevika, too, shuffled in her tattered razai. She covered her face to avoid being enveloped by the warm, yellow rays. "Jeevi, beta it's 7pm. Dadu, has to go to find work." "Daduuuu, little more." Smiling at Jeevika's request, Bhanu went out to sweep the courtyard. A thatched hut surrounding by a parched courtyard was not much of a work to be done. Bhanu collected the dry twigs and leaves in a cane basket which he would later hand to the farm owner on whose land he would till, till for next 3 months. It was the end of summers and soon every landlord would employ dozens of helping hands to reap the benefits of their har...
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Birthday, that was not on his Birth Day

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 The jet-black skies poured heavily. Big, fat raindrops break into millions of droplets as they hit hard surfaces. A teardrop, too, lost its way as it glided down her anxious cheeks. It was 11 pm and the house was glowing in the warm light of his birthday candles. The flickering flames created dancing shadows on the ribbon-adorned walls. The aroma of freshly baked cinnamon, and banana cake, joyously meandered through the kitchen. The icing had to be done. But she just didn't feel like moving. A heavy stone hung from her heart. It pulled her down by every minute as the clock was nearing 12.  What if the rains drown me, she wondered. What if like those big, fat drops my dreams, too, are shattered, she continued to fight her decision to write the letter. The ruled paper stared back at her. In the past hour, she had picked the pen innumerable times, only to lay it down on the paper without scribbling a word. A sudden gust of wind doused a few of the flickering candles. She rushed ...
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Aakansha finds Aakansha

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 It was a clandestine affair. An affair I could never let go off. The rendezvous engagement  was all my heart yearned for. This love, this involvement had given me my identity, my sanity. I was in love with both of them. You got it right- both of them TOGETHER! Why does it has to be choose one? "Aakansha, pick one- the red or white." "Only one- doll or car." "Choose one, Aakansha- science or arts?" "Aakansha, you can't have both- career or home?" Why can't I have both? A little of both the worlds. A scoop of every flavour. But no. In life, it had to be only ONE. One love. One home. One purpose. One life. Yet, here I was in love with both of them. The inborn conditioning had not helped. I fell for them despite all odds. In fact, I never realized how and when the fall, befell me. I had bulbous reasons for being the agar of this growth. Each of them had an attractive profile. He, let's call him Peter, the steady, blank space who absorbed...
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