Bhayānakam | A student weak at Math, a professor who might be crossing the line, and a row of tamarind trees on a college campus – the perfect setting for Bhayānakam (Horror), don’t you think? Meghana Chandrashekhar pens a story.
Adbhutam & Bībhatsam | Abha Iyengar’s ‘Blue Sky’ addresses the rasa Adbhutam (Wonder) and is a story of hope after misery. Her second story, ‘Inner Room,’ focuses on the rasa Bībhatsam (Disgust) and is set in a beauty parlour. Read on.
Sringāram | In a work of flash fiction, Anuradha Kumar gives the rasa Sringaram (Attractiveness) a different facet. ‘Her Beautiful Face’ is the story of a man, and a woman with a beautiful face.
Raudram | Pazhani, the conductor of 17M, is very angry today, and as the bus courses through the long, crowded Mount Road of Chennai, has innumerable reasons to lash out at the passengers. The emotion of Raudram (Fury) is brought out in a story by Vani Viswanathan.
Vīram & Śāntam | Dipika’s first story ‘Honour’ reflects the rasa, Vīram (Courage). It examines the courage of a brother and a sister, a brother who follows the norms of his community and a sister who breaks such societal norms. In her second story, ‘Breath’, Dipika touches upon Śāntam (Peace). It’s a flash fiction on a little boy’s relationship with his grandfather.
Raudram & Hāsyam | Hema’s story ‘Mala’s Marina’ is about a little girl who sells bajjis at the famed Marina Beach in Chennai, a little girl who is a witness to nature’s fury. This is a piece that has the rasa Raudram (Fury) as its theme. ‘Mismatched’ is based on the rasa that’s quite the opposite, namely, Hāsyam (Mirth). A girl brings her boyfriend home to a rather strict father. In the end, the father and daughter share a laugh. Find out just why.
Sringāram |When the sparks fly between a man and a woman, you know it is the perfect setting for Sringāram (Love). Vinay Krishnan writes a story that unravels this beautiful rasa.
Pramila, mother of convent-educated and Engleesh-speaking Jyothi, often goes down the memory lane in her extended monologues. N.Shobhana pens a story that touches on the role of English in upward mobility for Indians, the concerns of urban, nuclear families and the pride of a parent in her child.
Ameena is taken by Sadashivan’s commitment to the revolution, the ‘book with the red cover’ and his ideas about the capitalist institution of family – she becomes Mrs. Revolution. Read on to know their story, written by Jenny Sulfath in Malayalam and translated by N.Shobhana.