Vining Vistas

Not very excited at the ‘new mail’ notification blinking on her screen, Asha reluctantly opened the email expecting it to be a letter from the Bharat Jagaran, accepting her resignation. Her mom called her suddenly and Asha left the laptop as it was and made a mental note to read the mail once she was back and also to return Milan’s call.

Mrs. Banerjee, the nosy neighbor had popped in to gather spicy gossip in the pretext of meeting Asha’s parents and also to congratulate her on finding a suitable boy to get married to. She suppressed a smirk when she thought about how she had ‘found’ the suitable boy. A good half an hour was spent in exchanging pleasantries and other pointless chit chat; much to her distress. Asha secretly wished for this irksome neighbor to leave her family in peace and not try and find information to feed the grapevine that would be buzzing about how rich Milan’s family is, and how lucky she is to catch him before any of the other eligible bachelorettes did. After a round of piping hot tea and a plateful of Kerala style banana chips, Mrs. Banerjee got up to leave.

Back at her laptop, she took her phone to call Milan, then decided to deal with the email first. The mail was not only from Bharat Jagaran, but also it brought good news. Mr Desai, her hero from the newspaper, had offered to her a position at their soon to be opened office in Michigan, and wanted to know if she would possibly accept the offer there, as they were facing an acute shortage of good journalists with a flair for Hindi. She was literally jumping around her bedroom, and ran out to convey the good news to her parents, who were also elated at this new turn of events. Sleep would now be more peaceful than it was for the last few days, as she could now sleep without blaming Milan or his love for her; for now she was close to her destiny and she could feel it.

Now she knew that Milan was in her destiny, that Bharat Jagaran would soon be a reality, much like she always wished for, the only thing being she would now be living in Michigan instead of in New Delhi, but she did not mind. The bigger picture definitely looked better and less cloudy now. A silent minute was spent thanking her Lord for giving everything she asked for; she realized the truth in the words of Paulo Coelho – “when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it”.

She couldn’t keep her drooping eyes open for much longer, before slipping into a peaceful slumber, dreaming of magical vistas in Michigan with Milan. Her Milan.



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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
V - Vining Vistas