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| Damayanti Bhattacharya |
Showing posts with label Damayanti Bhattacharya. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Damayanti Bhattacharya. Show all posts
Damayanti Bhattacharya
Fiction: Bond beyond Words
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| Damayanti Bhattacharya |
Once upon a time, there lived the Rays. Mr. and Mrs. Ray were known to be very strict and well-kempt, and were also known to despise keeping pets indoors because they believed that the pets would disrupt their daily routines. However, their children, Shayla and Raaj, deeply desired to have pets. Mr. and Mrs. Ray would always neglect this wish and would state that keeping pets in their household weren’t allowed when they were children, and they won’t permit it now as well. This would always leave the two siblings heartbroken, but they knew better than to bicker with their parents.
All of them had very busy routines. Mr. Ray was a professor and would leave the house early in the morning. Mrs. Ray was a home-maker, so she would reside in the house and take care of the daily household responsibilities. Shayla and Raaj had school towards the afternoon, so they would leave the house about one hour before the reporting time of their school. In the evening, Shayla and Raaj would return to their house, freshen up, rest in their rooms for a bit and then they would start studying. They were occasionally permitted to go outdoors and play with their peers, but this was a rare occurrence. Mr. Ray would come back by 7:00 pm and then they would have dinner. After dinner, all of them went to bed. This was their daily routine, even though some exceptions would occur, but very rarely.
Slowly, the two siblings had grown tired of their daily routine and would nag their parents to go on a vacation, or at least a road trip. After much procrastination, Mr. and Mrs. Ray finally agreed to take the children on a road trip. The children were overjoyed, they were about to go on a trip after such a long time! The preparation had started a few days before the trip. The children were deciding how they would click cinematic pictures to post on social media, Mr. Ray was checking up on their car, while Mrs. Ray was busy telling her fellow aunties about the trip and the places they would visit.
On the day of the trip, everyone was cheerful and excited. Everyone got seated in the car after loading their belongings. Mr. Ray started the car and they were off! They drove through the lush green fields and the dense forests. During the drive, Mr. Ray said, “There is a zoo nearby, shall we visit it?” “Of course!” came the reply from the children. So, Mr. Ray started driving towards the zoo. The path towards the zoo was mesmerising, there were tall Sal trees on either side of the road and the dense forests further added an aura of mystery. However, Shayla spotted something peculiar!
“Maa, look! Is that a… monkey?” she asked rather confused. Mrs. Ray immediately told Mr. Ray to stop and investigate what the small monkey is doing on the road. “It must’ve escaped from the zoo. Poor monkey,” said Mr. Ray. The siblings glanced at each other and silently made a plan. They realised this is a rather great opportunity for them to have a pet! “Maa, the monkey looks so small, it must be a baby,” said Raaj.
Taking the chance, Shayla added, “It would be very good of us to save it. It might perish if it lies here in the woods unprotected.” Mr. Ray frowned, “You know the rules, kids, and no pets.” “But papa, isn’t this what you taught us? To help living beings when they’re in danger, especially animals!” “I remember that, Shayla, but pets…”
“Dadi always used to teach us to help animals. Pity you’re not understanding me…”
Mr. Ray felt emotional as Shayla’s words struck a deep chord inside him, his mother’s teachings. For once, he stepped out of his monotonous life and said, “Alright then, let’s take this monkey home as our pet. But, only on one condition.” he added. The children were so close to having a pet, they were ready to accept any condition at all! “Once this monkey is grown up, we will return it back to the zoo. Are you able to promise me you’ll be ready to leave it and move on then?” The children’s smiles faded. Yet, they knew this was the only way they could have a pet, so they had to agree. After their agreement, the plan to visit the zoo was postponed and the monkey was brought to their home.
The children were very compassionate and empathetic towards their new pet, and treated it with utmost care and importance. They named the monkey, “Phooli”, and soon Phooli became the buzz of the neigbourhood.
It was a very playful monkey, but would refrain from hurting anyone or anything. It used to listen to everyone in their family and was very obedient. It had also imbibed litter training well! Even though Mr. and Mrs. Ray were initially hesitant about their decision, they also came to love Phooli over time. Shayla and Raaj’s friends were also very enthusiastic to see it at their house whenever they used to come over. Surprisingly, Phooli had silently observed and learnt some of the games the children and their friends used to play and it also used to play with them. The only thing Shayla didn’t like about it was that it used to steal her favourite chips!
With time and patience, Phooli had become one of the members of the family. It used to help Mr. and Mrs. Ray with household activities, and would also play with the children when they had time! However, the neighbours started to grow hostile because Phooli would accidentally pick fruits from their gardens, mistaking them for the Rays’ garden and would also enter neighbouring premises. As Phooli became a visibly adult monkey and the hostility of the neighbours was clearly noticeable, Mr. and Mrs. Ray knew it was time to return it to the zoo.
They knew it would be hard to leave Phooli and move on, especially considering that it had become a part of the family. Mr. Ray was disappointed that there wouldn’t be someone to help him carry his paperwork and to drink tea with, Mrs. Ray was sad that there wouldn’t be someone who would provide her company, and the children were upset because there would be no one to play with them indoors. Yet, they knew this was the correct time to return Phooli to the authorities.
So, they went on to return Phooli to the zoo. The green fields seemed dull, the trees didn’t appear as enchanting as they did when they first arrived. Everyone was disheartened- the elders just refused to show it whereas the children expressed their sadness.
Initially, it was very difficult and heart-aching without Phooli. The Rays used to think about it all the time. The children missed the way it used to spend time with them and Mr. and Mrs. missed the way Phooli would lighten their stress. But deep down, they knew that they had to let go, to move on without it, but they just couldn’t bring themselves out of denial. Over time, just like sand slips through our feet when hit by a wave, the memories of Phooli started to fade. Even though the family members still missed it, their regular lives took over and they started living their monotonous life again.
The Sky’s the Limit
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| Damayanti Bhattacharya |
In the early 20th century, there lived a girl named Herald Watson in the heart of a small village named Portree, Scotland. She was a very creative and vibrant child and she had a keen interest in music. Whenever she would have some leisure time, she would often think about the various melodies and the endless possibilities of creations a human can make with his or her voice.
To Herald’s surprise, her school had recently introduced singing lessons which any student could attend for free from the grades of 6-12. Luckily, Herald used to study in grade 7 and she excitedly asked her father to enroll her name. Her father was initially a bit hesitant, doubting Herald’s ability. However, once he realized how motivated and determined his daughter was, he happily enrolled her for the singing lessons provided by her school. On the day of Herald’s first singing lesson, she was a bit nervous but was also ready to give her best. Yet, the day had other plans for her.
Once the class started, the students present in the room had to sing the melody taught by the new music teacher, Ms. Camilla Williams. One after another, the students sang the taught melody and the teacher was partly satisfied, considering it was the first music class for the students. Once it was Herald’s turn and she started singing, Ms. Camilla gave a frown of disapproval and waved her hand, ordering Herald to stop.
Ms. Camilla spoke up, “Miss Herald, may I ask you why you chose to take these singing lessons?”, Herald was taken aback by the teacher’s sudden question. Nevertheless, Herald replied, “Miss, I really like music, I want to take it up as my career and-” Ms. Camilla didn’t let Herald finish her sentence and said, “Miss, please don’t be upset but… if I have to be absolutely honest, your voice is too hoarse and doesn’t sound too pleasant to the ear. I don’t want to discourage you but you should pursue other interests.” The brutal honesty, the sharpness, the words themselves pierced through Herald’s heart like an obsidian needle. She was in complete disbelief, her very determination shattering into pieces.
After school, Herald’s father stood near the gate to pick her up. However, as soon as Herald walked up to her father, she burst into tears and declared she didn’t want to continue the singing lessons. Herald’s father was shocked and asked Herald about what disturbed her. Once they went home, Herald had a session with her father about the words of Ms. Camilla and how it had badly demotivated Herald. Herald’s father was heartbroken, and also disappointed by Ms. Camilla’s lack of generosity. It was Herald’s first day, of course her voice will not be as good as a professional singer, wasn’t the teacher hired to train the students?
Herald’s father gathered himself and finally declared that Herald will now take personal singing lessons and follow her passion, and that he will also motivate and be by Herald’s side forever, as long as Herald is true to herself about her motivation and efforts. Herald, even though badly hurt and demotivated, promised to always chase her dreams until she succeeds. The grind initiated; Herald started attending personal singing sessions. At first, Herald’s voice used to hurt since she was sculpting it to her own accord. Her voice would often be cracked up and even extremely hoarse, but she didn’t look back even once. She gave it her all, practiced daily and later followed all the steps of healing her voice after the treacherous sessions.
Slowly, Herald started noticing some changes in her voice. It was smoother and the occasional cracks were reducing day-by-day. She felt motivated again, followed by her father’s endless support. One day, she saw a poster of a singing competition which would be taking place in a hall situated just 500 meters away from her home. She ran home and informed her father right away. Her father reached out to the organization and successfully enrolled Herald’s name. The competition wasn’t a very professional one, it was more like a friendly game. However, Herald knew that this was the chance she could truly understand her efforts had paid off or not.
The competition took place and all the candidates sang mesmerizingly, and so did Herald. After the anchor announced that the results were out, all of the participants waited anxiously to know the winners. Surprisingly, Herald had become the runner-up in her very first singing competition! Slowly, Herald grew more and more confident and her father had also started to reach out to bigger opportunities. After a few years of hard work, Herald finally got a chance to audition for her dream league, “The Winter Fest”. On the day of the audition, she performed well and all the judges had positive opinions about her and she was selected to participate in the fest. This was the first time she realised what she was truly capable of, and what she could really do if she was motivated and tried her best.
She trained hard for many months before the competition started. In the initial rounds, she captivated all the judges’ minds by her beautiful voice. Her voice was no longer the one she had earlier- it was changed, it was sculpted. She had effortlessly reached the semi- finals. However, there was a break so Herald decided to visit her grandparents. When she was travelling, oh no! Her car…it got into an accident.
It was the most miserable tragedy Herald could ever even have a nightmare of, she was rushed to the hospital. Her frontal lobe was damaged and her speech became… incoherent. She was shattered, the last broken shards of determination about to fade away, but she remembered her father’s words, “Herald, the sky’s the limit…” She had come so far, could she back off now?
However, even though her father’s words motivated her, she knew that the reality was far more disappointing and that she would need significant time to fully recover. So, she was ready to start afresh and to come back stronger than ever. After a few days the doctors released her from the hospital and she came back home. One day, Herald subconsciously started humming her favourite song and she came to her senses…she realised she was healing! She knew there was a chance she could do it, she just needed one thing, that was…some divine intervention?
Herald started humming a few lines, initially, and within a few days could feel a marked improvement in her vocal quality. She healed rather miraculously and within a few weeks, her voice was just as good as new. When her father saw this, he immediately rushed to the event organisers and requested them to enroll Herald into the competition again. He also submitted her medical reports that declared her medically fit to sing. Initially hesitant, they eventually agreed and let her in.
On the day of the competition, Herald was equally anxious and eager. Her father as well as her grandparents had come, not only to see her win but also to motivate her, to comfort, and make sure she gives her best and doesn’t break down. After a few candidates, it was Herald’s turn.
Herald slowly walked up to the stage, the anxiety kicking in. She slowly picked the mic up and walked towards the audience. She knew she could do it, she knew she had the capability… all she had to do was to focus. She waited for a few seconds, gathering herself and then finally, she started the singing. The audience as well as the judges were thrilled and delighted on hearing Herald’s voice and style of singing. Once the results were out, Herald knew that even if she didn’t acquire a position, she gave it her best. The anchor started declaring the runner-ups. When Herald heard the name of the 1st runner up, she had almost given up but… “Herald Watson, 1st place” declared the anchor and Herald’s family instantly burst into cheers. Herald refused to take the win alone and requested the other competitors to share the glory.
Fiction: OCEAN EYES
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| Damayanti Bhattacharya |
Once upon a time, there lived a boy named James. He was very enthusiastic, athletic and had a very sharp mind. Even though he was almost an all-rounder, he was most popularly known for his key feature- his sparkling blue eyes. His eyes were as blue as the ocean, and whenever he would step out in the daylight, his eyes would shine like the ocean glistening under sunlight. He always caught the eyes of the crowd with his ocean eyes and slowly gained maximum fame because of it. In his family, there was- his mother, his father and his little sister, Sarah. James and Sarah were very close siblings, they shared everything with each other and always supported each other no matter what. James was academically brilliant and was also very good in athletics. He was also very popular in his class and had a large friend circle, leading to much laughter and joy during his school hours.
He was very friendly and thus got his way with almost everyone he had to meet everyday. However, at the age of 14, James’ father had to transfer to another country due to work-related commitments. This ultimately led to their whole family transferring to the new area, forcing James and Sarah to quit their old school. Once they were settled in, the two siblings were enrolled in a new school named ‘Bluelock Highschool’. James was initially a bit upset about having to leave his old friends but equally eager to make new ones along the way. He had already made two very close friends over the first few days of the semester- Ron and Oliver.
One day, it was their mathematics class test. Everyone had settled down beside their assigned seatmates and as soon as the teacher started noting the questions down on the board, everyone hurriedly scribbled them onto the paper. However, James was not clearly able to see all the questions. But as it was a supposed test, he couldn’t ask for help from even his seatmate! He had struggled for almost half-an-hour, which only gave him the next ten minutes to finish the ten questions.
The realization that he had only one minute to solve each equation hit him like a freight train and he quickly solved as many problems as he could. Once he returned home, he reached out to his parents about the matter. His parents neglected the negative possibilities and tried to calm the frightened boy down by explaining that this problem was occurring due to his seat being at the back and that they will talk to his class teacher to change his seat. Soon, James’ class teacher shifted James’ seat from the back to the third bench, but the problem kept persisting. His condition grew worse by the passing days and close to the point of seeing almost nothing but a blurry piece of scribbling on the board. James finally mustered up courage and decided to take matters in his own hands, as he knew reaching out to his parents would be of no use. He also asked his sister for help, considering that she was indeed interested in Ophthalmology. His sister had heard James and had concluded that all his signs add up to the possibility of him growing into partial blindness, laced with an audible concern in her voice. The thought of becoming blind scared James, the mere thought of even being able to only sense objects but not see them clearly made his body tremble and shiver in fear and led his hands to growing ice-cold and numb in horror. He immediately consulted the web, and his jaws dropped when he saw the same thing written there. The words ‘Partial Blindness’ burned into his very brain, leading him to always stay frightened and frustrated. His sister had talked to their parents and only then, they took James’ condition seriously and decided to visit an ophthalmologist. The ophthalmologist studied his signs and came to the result that sooner or later, James will indeed go partially blind. He also told the family that if they had consulted treatment facilities a bit sooner, James could have gotten a possible full recovery. This fact made James’ parents hearts shatter into a million pieces due to getting stabbed by the dagger of guilt, grief and horror as they knew they were the ones who had ignored the signs. The doctor also advised to help James learn writing in an aligned manner without the need to clearly be able to see his writing which will help him when that unfortunate and dreadful moment will take place. James was completely heartbroken- How could he possibly top in class without the ability to even properly read anything without external support?
What about his athletic feats? Will he just let his talents and ambitions go to waste? “No, this can’t be. This is just an awful nightmare!” James thought to himself, but deep down he knew he couldn’t fool himself. He knew all of it was real in his very presence of being. But he also knew that no matter what, he’ll succeed one way or another. He was determined to chase his ambitions, no matter how exhaustively he had to practice for he was not scared of working hard and tirelessly. The next day when he went to school, everyone was shocked by the breaking news. The news spread like wildfire that James, the boy who had the prettiest eyes was about to lose their value forever! James initially felt ashamed, even though he knew it wasn’t his fault, but he soon overcame it with the love and support provided by his best friends Ron and Oliver.
The first semester exams were knocking on the door, which made James equally nervous and frightened but also somewhat heightened his anticipation of testing his skills. Soon, the day of the first exam approached. It was his favorite subject, English. However, when he gathered all the study materials to sit down and start his study sessions, alas! His English book was nowhere to be seen!
He quickly contacted his seatmate and it turned out that his seatmate accidentally took James’ English book to his dwelling! This led James’ behavior to grow into a manic frustration and nervousness. His anxiety built into a fever pitch by the passing minutes. While he was listening to the lecturing of his father, an idea came into his mind. He quickly called Ron for help. Ron agreed and came to James’ dorm to provide him with his own book.
“B-but I asked for a copy of the book. How will you study now?” James asked with curiosity. “Oh, don’t worry! I have my brother’s old book at my home, I can read from there!” Ron reassured James and left. James and his parents were equally impressed and grateful towards the selfless act of the boy.
James did face some difficulty in the exams, but the training and practice did pay off as he got straight A’s in all the subjects! His parents were extremely proud of him, but the thing which mattered most was to see the smile of sheer joy on his sister, the person who has always been on his side’s face.
Just before the winter vacation, their school planned to arrange an annual sports day. It was a really big event which showcased the school’s history and legacy, as the school had been awarded ‘Best Annual Sports Day Celebration’ multiple times in a row. Even though James was a really good athlete, he was scared to approach the teacher because he thought that he would be nothing but a total failure due to his partial blindness. However, he knew his best friend Oliver was a really good athlete and had his own team. He was hesitant to reach out to him at first, but after procrastinating a lot he finally followed his heart. He talked to Oliver and asked if he could help him regain his confidence and take him in the team. Oliver asked James to display his skills and a normal sprint around the whole track in only one minute. And to his surprise, James did it in only fifty-five seconds! Oliver was even more impressed by seeing how smoothly James could do a baton exchange, indicating he could participate in the group relay race. After seeing some of the tricks James had up his sleeves, Oliver promised James that he was going to train him, guide him and enroll him in their group. James trained exhaustively hard for the final day, regaining his confidence and composure while on the field.
Even though the other few group members were not really happy with James being on their team, seeing his incredible skills in front of their own eyes, they completely stopped whining about it.
The day finally arrived. Everyone was extremely excited and the air was heavy with anticipation and mystery. James and his team on the other hand, were extremely calm and composed. They didn’t rush anything, and they knew deep down that they had practiced hard enough to win a prize and their efforts were what mattered to them the most.
Finally, the teams for the relay race assembled. There was the eagle team, the parrot team, the macaw team and the capybara team. Among all the teams, James was in the Eagle team. Soon, they took their positions in the field. Unfortunately, the first athlete had a late start but he did manage to pass the baton to the next sprinter, who raised their position from last to being third. Then, it was Oliver’s turn. Oliver tried his best, but he couldn’t help to overtake the other players. Meanwhile, James in the anchor leg realized that if they wanted to have a prize, then he had to give his best and run faster than ever before.
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