Ravi Srivastava

“Once Again.....” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #195

ONCE AGAIN…… “And now I request Mr. Sadanand to read his paper on “The Global Perspective on Tax Evasion.” Mr. Sadanand rose smilingly from his seat to loud clapping by the audience, comprising the top experts from the field of taxation from all over the world, as the Presiding Officer said these words. As the Chairman of his country's tax department, he knew that his views would be listened to with great attention, as indeed they were, and as he ended his address there was once again a thunderous round of applause. Mr. Sadanand bowed gracef...

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“A Full Turn” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #139

                                       A Full Turn                                             “Grow up, man! How long will you keep...

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“The Search” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #132

The Search When he returned from the congregation, he was very excited. He thought that he had finally found his mission in life. “Are you there, God? It is me, and I will find you," he said. If others in the past, and some even in the present time, could find Him, he would also do so. The day’s speaker had said---and the sacred books also told --- that once you had seen Him, you were in perpetual bliss, perpetual ananda. He reverentially took out His picture from its frame and holding it in his hand approached his neighbors. “Have you see...

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“An Unkind Sunday” by Ravi Srivastava

An Unkind Sunday It is Sunday morning and my first feeling as I wake up is of joy. No rush for going to the office, no rounds of discussions with clients, no preparation of briefs and, above all, a round of golf in the afternoon. But the euphoria vanishes the moment I recall that Shaila will be coming at around eleven to make, as she is fond of claiming, my favourite style of coffee for me. It is not that I don’t like her company; she is intelligent, a good conversationalist and is highly regarded in the college where she holds the post of a...

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“A Piece of Cake” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #104

A Piece of Cake “Are you coming tonight?” Pratap asked. “No, I am not coming. You know I don’t’ like parties; certainly not your type of parties.” “Ok, man. Suit yourself. But you are missing a lot of fun.” I sighed, as I replaced the receiver. I wondered why he persisted in calling me every time he was either hosting or going to a party. He knew very well that I was not very fond of the sort of people he mixed with. Pratap and I were class fellows and were good friends, despite the vast difference in our family background and temperaments. ...

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“The Declaration” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #103

The Declaration The appointment letter from the SAV College was brief. It stated: “This refers to your application for a teaching post in the Economics department of our college. The Governing Body is pleased to appoint you as a Lecturer in the Department of Economics in their college. You should report to the Principal within a week of the receipt of this letter. The appointment is subject to your furnishing a declaration that you do not take any alcoholic beverage." I was very happy. The unemployment level in the country was very high, a...

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“A Friend in Need” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #100

A Friend in Need I reached the Crown Palace hotel as early as one o’clock though the time fixed for our lunch was 13:30. Since I had a full thirty minutes to wait I sat in the lounge and picked up one of the glossy magazines lying on the table. My mind was not, however, on the pages of the magazine but on the unfairness of my bosses who had posted me to Mumbai. I had requested them to post me at Delhi as I had to look after my old parents who lived in a town close to Delhi, and though the Director had assured me that he’d look sympatheticall...

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“The First Step” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #98

TW: suicide The First Step   Lata woke up with a smile. The morning was bright. And why not? It was the morning of their wedding anniversary. Surely, she thought, on this special day Rahul would come out of his obsession with the Spiritual, and be a normal human, a normal husband. But will he? Lata thought of that fateful boat ride on the mighty Ganga river five years ago which had changed the entire tenor of their married life. #   Lata and Rahul had been married for twenty years now. The first fifteen years of their mar...

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“The Guest House” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #96

The Guest House I was sitting on my favourite seat, near the edge of the well when I heard the sound of a car stopping at the gate, followed by laughter and merry voices indicating the arrival of a group of tourists. Soon I heard the sound of the door opening. The well at the edge of which I was sitting was in the rear of the bungalow. It was very deep and had not been cleaned for the last twenty years. There was an accumulation of dead, rotting leaves in its water the stench from which came up in waves. I was however way beyond being affect...

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“The Peepul Tree” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #90

The Peepul Tree Today again, I saw the old man sitting on the bench under my peepul tree. It was the third day since my return from my Kolkata PG, and every morning I had been coming down to the condominium park for my morning jog and yoga. And on each of these mornings, I had seen the old man sitting under this tree; he was always alone and in a pensive mood, and though I often thought that I’d sit beside him and talk to him, I could not muster enough courage. Why, I thought, should I intrude upon his thoughts? But today I suddenly found my...

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“A Matter of Perception” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #89

A Matter of PerceptionThe intercom buzzed. It was a call from the tower guard.“Sir, Mr Mohan Kumar is here to see you.”“Mohan Kumar? Do I know any Mohan Kumar? Give him the phone, let me talk to him.”“Uncle, I am Mohan, Raman Kumar’s son. You used to call me Micky. Do you remember?”“Oh, Micky? Yes, yes, I do remember you. Well, come up. I am on the sixteenth floor.”Mohan Kumar was the son of my late cousin, Raman Kumar. Till about thirty years ago, all of us, brothers and cousins had lived in a joint family, but then all of us went out to di...

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“The Way Up” by Ravi Srivastava

As the big car stopped, the driver rushed to the rear door and respectfully opened the door. An old man and a nine-year-old boy got down. Telling the driver to come back after an hour, the old man held the boy’s hand and both walked to the beach. The boy started his morning jog and exercise while the old man started his usual morning walk. After half an hour’s walk, the old man sat down on his favourite bench on the strand road which ran along the beach and soon was joined by the young boy. This was the usual routine with the two; they spent...

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“The Terrace” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #86

As she stepped out on the terrace, the cool breeze of an early March morning caressed her face. She and Amit loved this part of the year; the winter was gone but the severe summer was still some way off. She breathed long the fresh air and turned to look at her flowers. The winter this year had been very severe and so the arrival of spring was eagerly awaited. She wondered how these tender flowers and herbs that she had so fondly planted on the terrace of her new apartment had survived this harsh winter. She had many flower pots on her terra...

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“An Off Day” by Ravi Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #85

An Off Day - Ravi Srivastava After thirty years of working in India’s corporate sector, I called it quits and set up a consultancy service in partnership with a former colleague. The new enterprise flourished almost immediately, due to the fact that we had a set of very competent juniors. And so, both of us attended the office on alternate days, giving us plenty of time for leisure as well. On one of my off days, I decided to visit Ramgarh, a town close to where we lived. Ramgarh was where our family had lived when I was in school and colleg...

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