SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

“JINNAH” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #95

  TW: death Mohammad Ali Jinnah and his friend Sasisekharan were casually chit-chatting over a cup of tea in a small hotel opposite the bank where they were employed. Suddenly Sasi got a phone call and he got worried and turned panicky. The tea they had ordered was not even completed, before then a phone call came and disturbed him. Sasi told Jinnah that his cousin just now called him and said that she was in hospital. In his hurry and horrified mind, did not bother to ask why and what of things. He ignored his tea and immediately stood...

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“FATHERS ARE ALWAYS RIGHT” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #94

Vasant recently joined a political party. He was told that people could make quick money once you became popular in the party. Vasant was a good orator. That was the reason, he was picked up by local party brokers for stage shows. Earlier, he did not take side of any particular party. He would be on the stage as and when any party wanted to hold meetings. He thus became a crowd puller and got established that way. He knew the art of retaining the crowd for a longer time. No wonder! All parties had an eye on him and were trying to drag him in...

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“A CYCLE RALLY” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #93

Mahendran was very happy that he did well in the interview. He was waiting for letter of appointment from authorities. After a long crucial waiting --- when he forgot almost all about it, he got the letter. He was highly confident it was for his appointment only. He strongly believed there was no system of announcing about rejection of offer from any government department. In spite of knowing it, he was filled with suspense and with a great thumping heart, he opened the letter. On reading the very first few words, “We are pleased to inform y...

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“OVERNIGHT MIRACLE” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #92

Krishnaswamy was known for his angry moods. At the slightest provocation, he would resort to high decibel howling and shouting. No rhyme or reason. Always bent upon venting out his moods. His wife Shantala was always worried about his nature of getting upset over anything and everything. Such a man could never have friends … only foes and foes. His own children also did not dare to approach him. They always used a via media … through their mother. They placed their indents to their mother who in turn would gauge her husband’s mood and t...

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“A LETTER” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #91

Shankaran was cleaning his room. Suddenly he stumbled upon a book. He took it in hand and kept it aside. He said aloud. “Oh God! I totally forgot about this.” He called out his brother Lakshmanan and asked him to return the book to the local library. He told him. “See this is urgent. It is already overdue. I was busy with Appa’s medical treatment and in my frequent rounds around hospital and medical shop, I totally forgot about this book. Though I started it, I did not complete it. Doesn’t matter. Please return this immediately. If they insi...

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“UTKAL DIWAS” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #87

Praful caught hold of Chotu and asked him about Utkal Diwas. The small boy otherwise unaware of the day, knew that it fell on a holiday. Without understanding the significance of the subject, he could easily talk about Utkal Diwas as was taught to him by his school. Both Praful and Chotu made a good pair, happy and playful. Praful a young aspiring guy looking for an employment was very fond of his nephew – Chotu for his innocence. Nephew was after all a small boy of seven years with an eye and ear for spicy news. Praful caught hold of the bo...

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“WREATH VERSUS BOUQUET” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #86

Muthu Karuppan alias Muthu was unhappy as his father declined to render monitory assistance. Muthu wanted Rs 15000/- His father was angry because instead of getting multiple times of 15000/- from his wife’s side as dowry, his stupid son married a girl from a poor family without a paisa in the name of dowry. Now he was begging from others for assistance. A man without any common sense! The worst thing ever to happen was that the new bride was a dumb girl. For that very reason Muthu should have demanded lakhs of rupees as compensation. But on ...

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“CITY LIFE” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #85

Meena was happy that her husband Krishna was now a healthy man. At times, a freak line of doubt would occur that he should not cancel the leave and go back to work at Delhi. Last year when he was transferred to Delhi, he felt very happy. He thought, he was blessed one and on top, a chosen one to be at the capital city. But his happiness did not last long. The high cost of living, long hours of commutation, heavy traffic jam, extreme weather conditions…. Nothing suited him. He simply wondered, how so many people, that too, lakhs and lakhs, ca...

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“KILLER DISEASE” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #84

Murugan was frantically looking for some helpers. In another ten days his vast rice field would be ready for harvest. If could not arrange for people to harvest, the entire labour spent in these last five months would be a total loss. What about the monetary loss! How was he going to repay the loan taken from the bank? More than anything else, just to be a silent witness for the terrible loss occurring right in front of him would be a mental torture. He was not ready for it. He must do something than helplessly watching it perish. He just co...

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“NO NEVER. I WILL NOT.” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #83

Mohini was once very stubborn that she would never step out of this island nestled in the group of Car Nicobar Islands. But today she was nudging her husband to go to mainland India. The island Kamorta, which she hailed as a paradise on earth, everything about it was very beautiful. What with tall coconut trees, bushy green woods, swinging winds, roaring waves striking the sandy shores, the receding waves leaving behind small fishes, clouds with the help of sunlight painting the sky with varied hues and designs… all so enchanting and ever de...

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“RAIL TICKET RESERVATION” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Mahadevan was very busy. His daughter Sunaina’s marriage was about to take place in a month’s time. He was a bit vexed and tensed. His wife Sharada was quite cool. Generally, mothers would be quite perturbed and worried and fathers would be quite casual. Here it was reverse. Sharada tried to comfort her husband saying, “Why do you bother so much? Everything about marriage has been outsourced. As long as we can foot the bill and afford luxuries, marriage is only a matter of yet another family function. All we need to do is put up a happy-go-e...

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“MISFORTUNES NEVER COME SINGLE” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #81

Perumal alias Peter was at cross-roads and was in a grip of utter confusion. He was holding his daughter Sherlie and was wondering what should be his next step. His ex-wife so sarcastically lashed out her tongue that rendered him speechless. “You both husband and wife are made for each other. You ditched your first wife and picked up another one. And now you see, she did the same to you. She deserted you and went away with another guy. Now it is your problem how you take care of your child. Thank God! She left you with only one kid to bother...

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“A FRUIT BOWL ” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #80

Parameshwaran was keen on going back to his village, primarily for attending the annual festival connected with his family deity. Why his family deity? It was actually their village deity … Veera Aiyyanaar deity for the whole village of Arasaanikuppam. All those who migrated from Arasaanikuppam and those who did not – but well settled in their own village generally would assemble a few days before the grand festival day and perform all rituals meticulously and celebrate the occasion with fanfare. The pomp and grandeur depended on the amount ...

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“ROHINI AND HER WOES” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #79

Rohini was busy in her work. In these few months, she had earned a good name in her circle of colleagues. The hotel owner had set up this Indian restaurant with the fond hope of catering to the taste buds of locals who had shown interest in trying different dishes. This was mainly due to the popular Television show on Super Chefs. Even ‘Junior Chef’ was an acclaimed programme on TV Channels. Indian dishes hitherto not known to the local Americans had become very popular. Small girls and boys also knew the names of regular Indian dishes like ...

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“WATCHMAN” by SHYAMALA BHUVANACHANDRAN

Submitted to Contest #78

Giriraj was insisting on his grandson Motilal to learn about his ancestral and traditional art of pottery. But Motilal was least interested in it. “Who would meddle with mud and clay? What a nasty and ugly activity!” He disliked it. He preferred painting to pottery. Giriraj tried to convince him that the potters’ wheel was the oldest and still the best of all inventions made so far known to mankind. “You should feel proud to be belonging to a potters’ family. Learn this activity as your hobby. It need not be your source of livelihood.” “No,...

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