Asha was in the final year of her post graduation. She was
studying in a prestigious college in Delhi, and would soon be a full fledged journalist
in a few months’ time. She is the only daughter of her parents who are working
in two different cities ever since she could remember. Born into a traditional
family, in spite of the fact that her parents had a slightly ‘modern’ approach
to life, her extended family was way too traditional. They even had a problem
and had raised a few voices when Asha’s mother had wanted to work after her
marriage.
Asha was all of 23 years, and was at the best of her
potential, she wanted to go out and create revolutions, change the way the
country worked, cleanse the dirty politics in her country, and she was hoping
to fly high and achieving these backed by her degree in journalism and her
passion to fight for justice. The last time they met, Asha’s parents had
casually mentioned that she was coming of the right age to get married and that
they would soon start looking for good boys who would suit their social status
and background. She had dismissed her parents’ words with a wave of her hand
and had asked them to carry on with their plans, she was too engrossed in
planning out her career post her education – which newspaper she would join,
she did not wanted to be a part of the new generation tv channels that were
always conducting sting operations; rather she wanted to be a part of the
nations’ leading daily newspaper. She had always wanted to write, and that was
what she planned she would do.
Holi was fast approaching and she knew she would meet her
parents for the festival of colours, but what she did not know was that her
parents were bringing her a Holi gift, the photo of a very eligible boy – an engineer,
who was now settled in the U.S.- whom they had chosen for Asha. They only
needed her to look at the boy’s photograph - giggle, blush and run away into
her room, as is expected of a demure Indian girl.
Was she ready for a marriage, rest the fact that the one in
question is an arranged one. She was not in love with anyone, but that didn’t mean
she would marry just about anyone her parents chose, she wanted a say in what
kind of a man she would marry.
Guess she will just have to wait till Holi.
*********************************************************************************
Girls in India are caught in the drift when they reach a particular age. They suddenly face a dilemma as to what to focus on in their life, whether to make a career and ensure a living or to get married and secure their life. Girls who remain single after the so called marriageable age are frowned upon by the society and are considered a burden for their families.
A - An Arranged Marriage
B - Bridal Dreams
C - Cherubs From Heaven
D - Rusty Dusty Delhi
E - Ernakulam
F - Fretting Over F.R.I.E.N.D.S & Fiancé
G - Gratifying Rendezvous
H - Hospitality Crash Course
I - I Love You??!!
J - Journalism's Joy
K - Krishna
L - Love, Longing & Life
M - Milan - A Meeting
N- Noodles, Nimbu Paani & A Nice Guy
O - Online?
P - Phone Number
Q - Questions!
R - Risks
S - Some Soul Searching
T - Timeless Tableau, A Twist in The Tale
U - Union
*********************************************************************************
Girls in India are caught in the drift when they reach a particular age. They suddenly face a dilemma as to what to focus on in their life, whether to make a career and ensure a living or to get married and secure their life. Girls who remain single after the so called marriageable age are frowned upon by the society and are considered a burden for their families.
Throughout the month of April, thanks to the AtoZ Challenge, I am trying to portray the life of Asha, a common Indian girl with dreams and aspirations. Everyday we focus on one alphabet starting from A on April 1st till Z on April 30th. Stick with me till the end of the journey and do tell me what you think of my writing and my Asha.
A - An Arranged Marriage
B - Bridal Dreams
C - Cherubs From Heaven
D - Rusty Dusty Delhi
E - Ernakulam
F - Fretting Over F.R.I.E.N.D.S & Fiancé
G - Gratifying Rendezvous
H - Hospitality Crash Course
I - I Love You??!!
J - Journalism's Joy
K - Krishna
L - Love, Longing & Life
M - Milan - A Meeting
N- Noodles, Nimbu Paani & A Nice Guy
O - Online?
P - Phone Number
Q - Questions!
R - Risks
S - Some Soul Searching
T - Timeless Tableau, A Twist in The Tale
U - Union
I really enjoyed your piece and look forward to finding out weather Asha will meet and marry this "boy in the photo." Great job.
ReplyDeleteThanks for coming by :) :)
DeleteDo keep coming back to check what happened.
Take care.
Here from the A-Z challenge...great to meet you!
ReplyDeleteHi Rebecca,
DeleteThanks a bunch for stopping by. Hope to see you around more often.
Great start to your story. I'm looking forward to reading more. :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks Stefani...
DeleteI've already posted A, B and C. Hope you read them all :)
I cannot wait to continue this story with you... catching up so long.
ReplyDeleteStopping by from A to Z Challenge.
Thank you :)
DeleteI hope I can live up to all your expectations.
And finally I've made it back to the beginning, now to read the rest of the story!
ReplyDelete