Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

“A Rishi and an Apsara” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

They said, whoever loves the maiden shall surely face hell. Whomever touches her in a passionate way, will die. Was the maiden the cause for their grief? No, but whoever brings her forth to a life (apparently) worth living, shall perish. The maiden was one of the apsaras from heaven. Bewitchingly beautiful. They were sent to break the meditation of the Rishis - those who vowed to live a celibate life for as long as they lived, as long as they were destined to be born. They would bewitch them so they broke the vow of celibacy and fell from ...

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“In this land where you exist” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

There was an eerie silence, but through that noiseless plethora came a seemingly high-pitched ringing, that which could barely be heard. Jennifer heard a scuffling noise which she didn’t ignore. Could you free me from this horrid place? It was as if Alice had heard her. “No, you have to suffer this in silence,” Alice said harshly. Tears streamed from Jennifer's eyes. “No, don’t leave me here!” Jennifer said out loud. Her words echoed back to her…”Leave me here…” The silence was uncanny. And it loomed over her. When she closed her eyes, sh...

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“A glimpse into the past” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #285

Jay's life till now had not passed simply as lightly as a breeze. Jay was in his 50 vampire years. Or more. He had lost count after the first 45 years, soon after he had met Myra. He knew about a lot of things, and he was more careful as compared to the rest of his kind. The streets he was walking through were dark, dingy and messy. Beggars sat begging there in the mornings but not at nights. An i.v. drug abuser sat there, getting high and having the time of his life. Jay wondered if he would make a good meal. He needed the blood, but the...

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“The Geriatric Counsel” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #285

The summer wind was cool. Mrs. Ray's arthritis was acting up. The first 30 minutes after getting up in the morning was brutal. Thereafter, walking along with everyone else made things a little better for her knees.She would cloister with the other older people in the monastery just after waking up, groaning as she went. Saayaa would be a patient listener to her problems, problems of the same nature everyday. Mrs. Ray had become a widow recently. Mr. Ray had been a part of the Geriatric Counsel of the town. Nothing in the village happened wit...

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“Sooner, or later?” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #283

'Help me fix this,' Stan thought.Stan tried to unlock the lock with the rusty key.The hinges were rusty too.The trunk opened with a creaking sound.He uncovered a picture of him and Stephanie, taken 12 years ago. "Go get her, dad," Leah said, hushed. Stan walked to the graveyard, pausing for a while before he started walking with renewed vigour. Till he reached the hospital. The doctor was getting Stephanie ready for dialysis. End stage renal disease. But that was not all. Stephanie had Alzheimer's. "Ah, Stan," she said tearfully. "How co...

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“The past” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Be careful what you wish for.When Seeta asked Rama to catch the golden deer for her, she didn't know Ravana would carry her away.Whatever it maybe, in her next birth, was that why Krishna would come sparingly to his Radha, tormenting her when he was away so that there would be no golden deer she would run after, so she would just run after him so she'd ultimately be safe?Be careful what you wish for, Poppy thought.Because you may get everything you wished for and maybe more.Myra had given her a wishing spell for her birthday. Wyatt didn't kn...

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“Dogs and what not :)” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #279

15 dogs stared at me like I was their next meal. Saliva dripped as they growled at me. Should I charge at them before they charged at me? Should I run? Should I let them have a go at me and drink up their blood?I didn’t know if drinking blood from a different species worked. Another question I had to ask of Jay.Nope I waited too long. I closed my eyes as they howled and just as they went for the kill, "Poppy! Here!" Someone shouted and I clutched at the vine that was attached to the pulley with a heavier weight on the other side. Just like t...

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“Childhood long lost” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #277

“Maasi, you don’t have to look after me anymore,” Jagrut said.Hena caressed his arm over the blazer and said, “Those whom I have helped grow up mean a lot to me, child. Stay well at London and sometimes come visit me at Shimla.”Jagrut laughed and said, “That is why I came to you, maasi, to get your blessing!”“Bless you child,” she said, “Grow up and be the son your parents would be proud of.”Jagrut took Hena maasi's leave and a few minutes later, Hena heard a car drive away.Hena covered herself up in winter clothes. A sweater over her saree,...

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“Wicked blood's draught” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #277

I was busy fixing my hair when Jay arrived. My luscious black hair fell to my waist. Jay looked radiant. “It’s my marriage, Popsicles,” he said. “With Myra. You know her.” I looked away from the mirror (vampires can see themselves in a mirror – because you see, light doesn’t travel from *within* us right?) and said, “You mean your bewitching witch? Yes of course I know her, but that’s not why I am mad. I am mad at you because in the two years you turned me, you never told me Myra was not *just* your pet!” I pouted. It was just then that Myra...

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“Devrishi” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #276

Warning : Heartbreak, True factsI don’t remember anyone who wasn’t living in the slums, or getting orphaned at a young age or dealing with a congenital disease, telling me that their childhood was glum. I had none of these, I had great parents, and yet, my childhood was utterly depressing. I had no friends till I was in Class nine. I remember having a best friend when I was in Prep and Class one, but ultimately I had lost them. I barely spoke to anyone..So I won’t waste my time narrating my childhood days. I will just begin from the day I go...

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“Mary Ollen's Diary” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #276

Mary Ollen's diary When we were little, we always were together – we were neighbours, you see. I wanted to weave a happy ending through the entries in my diary. We laughed together, played together, studied together and married each other. It was all going well when he had a stroke in his youth – my dear poor Mike – and following that he lost his ability to walk. So it fell upon me to raise our two kids and earn bread for our family. We had come to Russia a while back. We had to go far off from the place where we grew up, to avoid those snak...

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“The Next Realm” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #275

So many of us have lived a life, unafraid of each other, surrounded by loved ones who would pick each of our complaints and not rest till they have been resolved. So many of us were given, or in fact, handed out pleasures in this life that our ancestors worked so hard to get to begin with. I say this because I want to impress upon the fact that some of us – boy, we were born lucky. My grandma would get up early in the morning and give the pigeons and the sparrows some uncooked rice grains to eat. Only then would she prepare a meal large enou...

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“Vampire adolescence” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #275

"There, kitty kitty kitty!" Jay called out to his pet animal. The black cat curled its tail and stretched out its body before looking at us meaningfully and meowed ever so softly telling us to follow it. It smartly led us to the club. It is said that black cats can sense the creatures of the dark. Which was not why Jay had one. He was not afraid of other creatures of the dark (himself being a vampire), he just wasn't adventurous enough to get into a fight or have an interesting meeting with the others. Better safe than sorry. I objected, b...

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“Lessons” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

Submitted to Contest #261

It was all dark, all-consuming. She was choked mentally. Dumb physically. Blank in the mind – till she started thinking of terrible things. She had a nervous lump in her throat which stopped her from talking. She was afraid of the darkness numbing her tell-tale horror stories, because of its deepness and what she felt like a tangible girth – on the one hand, she would be glad because it stopped her from thinking terrible, terrible things – on the other hand, its motionlessness and depth scared her. She was silent. Breathing in, one breath at...

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“The new and old” by Priyanjali Bhattacharyya

She was a little tipsy when she held his hand and declared, “I think I like you.” He was not amused. “It's okay, you are drunk. A little,” he said. She bent conspiratorially and said, “Are you afraid?” And laughed. “No, are you?” “A little,” she admitted. She looked at him. The absence she had felt for so long seemed to find its release in the newness of the situation. She had known Anurag for ages. Heck, he was handsome and tough and everything a girl needed. But he was not ready to commit. Not since his on and off ex-girlfriend ended th...

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