Out Of The Window

Visual Prompts are a great way to spark ones creativity by providing a beginning to the thought process but suggesting no concrete end. Stories can be built around visuals with interesting details. They are effective because the same image can evoke different moods or emotions in different people. A single visual therefore can be a part of many stories which are based on different themes or belong to different genres. Here is an attempt at creating a story based on a visual: Until that unfortunate night, Alyssa’s life was perfectly normal. The lively and free spirited young girl in her early twenties had just got her dream job. Every morning she would leave home looking forward to her day at work. She would turn the key and start the engine of the orange car which she dearly loved as it was previously owned by her father. She would drive the car down the familiar streets and turn around the same corners to reach the shady spot where it would patiently wait for Alyssa till she w...

Poetry is a form of communication and expression. It carries the ability to convey meaning or leave a significant impact with the use of a few words. There are several types of poetry. Haiku is a short Japanese poem form which is constructed based on syllables and phrases. It consists of three lines which have five, seven and five syllables respectively. There is no stress on grammar or rhyme scheme while writing a Haiku. A Japanese haiku is often based on the theme of nature. It presents an image or a moment in time in a striking manner. Here is my attempt at writing a Haiku: Deep and dangerous The raging sea water plunged And kissed my feet Enchanted by bright light Blazing, bold and beautiful Wings and life burn down  Tiny drops of clear glass Sitting on tender green blades Fading with the warmth A hard shell washed away Onto a sunny coastline Betrayed by the sea Deserted dark earth Drilled deep under the thin cr...

It is common for us to perceive faces in various objects. One that I notice in daily life is car headlights. Some cars look happy, some angry and some sad. This tendency to interpret a random stimulus as something identifiable is known as pareidolia in psychology. This phenomenon gives immense scope for creativity and imagination. Here is an attempt to build a story around one image of a tree that appears to be grumpy: The morning rays struck my hard and wrinkly surface, waking me up from the cold of the night. I have lived in the backyard of Padma's house since the day she tenderly picked me up from the nursery when I was only a month old. I found my home, the nourishing soil of the backyard gave me strength. The excitement to grow, to branch out and reach the sky was not restricted to me. Padma too eagerly waited for the day she could tie a swing to one of my strong branches and rock with the wind. Each morning Padma would water me with care and I would thirstily absorb all ...

Elephants are creatures that have always captured my fascination. I fell in love with them when I first met one at a temple. Their gentleness and community harmony is something I admire. The other day when I came across a photograph of an elephant from Sri Lanka, I couldn't resist painting it. I also attempted to write something about it. Magnificent and sunless denizens Cohesive as the deciduous canopy Distinct patches of colouration Like the light beam on the forest floor A cluster of rocks in a woodland The deep roots strengthening their trunk Towering shadows over the trembling earth Grazing on the flourishing flora Growls and bellows traversing miles Mustering all the tuskers of the tear shaped land Trampling the cognizant monsoon grooves Leading to a weary victory of a reviving basin Rounded earth prints, a mark of pride A symbol of ceremonial jubilation Majestic masters of robust ivory Beauteous souls epitomizing the integrity o...

Every story is unique yet every story is the same. Plot, characters, setting, themes and conflicts are important elements of every story. They are the threads that weave a beautiful and meaningful story. One of the books I read recently and loved is The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh. The story spans a century beginning in the late nineteenth century. In the expanse of 115 years, several characters enter and exit but each of them is closely linked to the other. The plot is built on the story of one character, a young boy of twelve whose life in intimately connected to the stories of several other characters. The series of events which affect the central character, Rajkumar push the plot further. Beginning from the experiences of Rajkumar working in a tea stall in Mandalay in 1885, a time when the British were annexing and attacking territories. The Kingdom of Burma is defeated by the British and the beautiful city of Mandalay is ransacked. This is the beginning of the many drastic chang...

Paints, brushes, canvases and paper are things that make me happy. Playing with colours is my favourite hobby and it lightens my mood at any given point in time. My love for painting was not inborn, it had to be discovered and developed. It all began with my first day at a drawing class.  I clearly remember sitting in a small room with five other children with new drawing books, colour pencils and pastels. We waited for our teacher with excitement and apprehension. She came in and she told all of us to draw a mango and colour it while she was gossiping with her neighbour. I began working intently on the task assigned to me. The pencil was gripped tightly between my fingers and I drew a misshapen mango. After several tries, I was satisfied with my mango. I began coloring it with my new pencils. I was completely absorbed in making sure that the yellow colour did not cross the grey lines. I was also worried about the pencil tip breaking, they were my new colour pencils and I...

Roundabout speech is an indirect way of expressing an idea. Common objects have concise terms by which they are referred to but there may be numerous descriptions for that object which make it identifiable even without mentioning its name. It seems like an uncomplicated task and it truly is unless one wants to make it slightly challenging to guess. It is amazing how our mind perceives the most simple form of a stimulus. It extracts the most basic form out of a complex whole. It became challenging to talk about simple objects in descriptive terms without giving it away easily. Here goes my attempt: 1. Sharp edges, crossed across each other. Inseparable and synchronized movements, eating its way through. 2. Soft on one end, hard on the other. Always rubbed against a hard surface, puffing clouds of dust when hit against a wall. 3. Three sisters moving in circles. One being sluggish, one being swift and the other in between. 4. It comes in different shapes, colours and sizes. E...

Imaginary friends during childhood were our best companions. The curious and inquisitive young mind finds comfort and solace engaging with the imaginary friends that cater to specific needs. All these wild fantasies gain physical form through various characters in cartoons, comics, stories and books. One of the first characters that I longed to meet in real was Oswald the Octopus. The big blue friendly octopus was all that I looked forward to while coming home from school. The tiny black hat added to the gentlemanly qualities of Oswald. The fun loving and caring nature of Oswald got him many friends. My favourite part of the episodes would be when Oswald would sing to Winnie while playing his Piano. “You know Winnie, I am so glad my friends are friends again.” – Oswald in Friends Indeed As I grew older, I read Tinkle like every Indian kid. I still remember most of the stories I read and all the characters. One of my most loved characters was Butterfingers, Amar Sen. I could relate to ...

The cold breeze came in through the gaps in the curtains of the balcony. A cane swing swayed with the movements in the air. The smell of coffee wafted from the kitchen through the hall whose walls were adorned with photographs.   Tara poured her coffee into a mug, the only one she used among the many she had. She sat on the swing with the mug of coffee in her hand thinking about all the events of the day. She closed her eyes and her daily routine played out in her mind. Every detail of the day was clearly visible from the colour of her toothbrush to a faint voice that she felt every morning calling out to her though no one was visible. A lot had happened in the last year that Tara had not expected would have the outcome that it did. A few years back she had been a student, studying what she loved. Life events fell into place chronologically. Now she was a working woman, the term ‘work’ was not particularly appealing to her. She, Tara who believed that anything that one enjoy...

Her fragile hands pounded at the soft mound  With calmness on her face she made a sphere Deftly she worked with it, flattening it to perfection Tossed onto a sizzling surface back and forth, Till it reached hungry hands  She smiled through the smoke and watched, As her creation became a sense of satisfaction. Each day we come across so many little things in life. Some are noticed while most go largely unnoticed. Satisfying our hunger is a primary motivation and we cease to recognize the importance of  those who help us with it everyday. Be it our mothers, fathers, househelps or cooks, their care, concern and love deserves to be reciprocated and appreciated.