Published Stories

Stories published in ‘The Hindu’, ‘Yentha.com’ and ‘Readers Digest’.

My Brother put out the Fire in me.

I was all set to be a true-blue arsonist, a rowdy-anarchist, someone Donald Trump would be proud of today.  But before you start to play with fire, you need to test it out. First on yourself. Then on friends. On negligent neighbourhood. On innocent bystanders. On siblings. On teachers, if you get them handy and still teaching. Well, I started it with myself gloriously by sitting the blaze out when I was only four months old. You heard it right. Just  a 4 month … Continue reading

Drying up in Lockdown

Were there any warning signs in the sky? Any doomsday stars? Nothing. Instead, we were rather unshakeable in our belief, even in the last minute, that Vijayettan would rise up like Moses, wave his magic wand, part the ocean, deliver us across, as he continued to repeat: “Hear my words. Beverages are essential commodities. Bevco will stay.” We went rapturous.  We also had statistics behind our back that told us drinkers were veritable Atlases shouldering our weak economy. Proud we were. Who could put us down! “Thou shall lock down!” Ji said. And … Continue reading

Life as a husband to a woman with a superhuman memory but…

“Manu chetta, that’s the 27th peg you’re taking this Christmas.” “Twenty-seventh! How do you know! Bullshit! Twenty-seven is a long stretch of your imagination. Don’t think I’d buy it.” “You want to hear out the split-up!” “What split-up Divya! You exaggerate a lot. How can I ever take 27 pegs in a week?” “Well, how many did you take the day before your college closed for the holidays? That evening, with your friends?” “Not a drop more from my usual stuff.” “Usual stuff! Bah! That means, your … Continue reading

A day with my new personal trainer, Mammootty

This is a new series in Freekick where you see popular characters from life and fiction walking across my only life, without anyone particular around me seeing their trailing glory. We sat glumly in our chairs, seething, boiling, wishing intently that a freak bolt of lightning might fall upon the other. Nothing of the sort happened. We just glummed for nothing. Actor or boxer, one must pick rudimentary lessons in behaviour if one ever wants to be something, especially a personal trainer. Shashi. … Continue reading