Chandrika, who graduated that year, didn’t think in terms of post graduation as la affair Roopa gave the clue to her father’s mind and the family’s finances, and so, thought of a job for an occupation.

“Sit still until we fix a match,” Janaki was dismissive. “It might help improve your complexion a bit,”

“What if I work?” said the daughter spiritedly.

“I don’t want any complications, that’s all,” Janaki appeared firm.

When Chandrika persisted, Ramaiah, however, relented and persuaded his wife, “You have to change with the changing times. Moreover, some boys have started preferring employed girls for their brides.”

After a couple of unsuccessful attempts, Chandrika got an assistant’s job in an export firm for a salary of two-fifty. Her first take-home pay, however, enabled her mother to appreciate the virtue of having another earning member in the family.

~~~~~~

Hardly a year passed before the ‘changing times’ stared the Ramaiahs in their faces in their complexity as ‘the other earning member’ of the family turned out to be an erring soul of the household.

Chandrika declared that she would like to marry her colleague, though of a lower caste, and Janaki threatened to jump into the well to spare herself her daughter’s shameful alliance. Ramaiah though tried to reason it out with Chandrika by saying that if she married out of caste as none would marry Roopa Besides, it won’t be in her own interest either, to live with someone from a lower caste as adjusting to married life in an alien milieu will be all the more difficult. When the time comes for finding matches for her children, shunned by both the communities, she would realize that she had a cross to bear. Better she gave up the idea, for her own good.

Given her own disappointment, Roopa was empathic to her sister’s feelings and felt that she could understand the true import of Chandrika’s predicament.

“What to do now?” said Roopa to Chandrika having led her out into the backyard.

“I wish I weren’t in love,” said Chandrika stoically.

“That’s neither here nor there,” Roopa was solicitous. “After all, you’ve to decide, one way or the other, isn’t it?”

“I may end up being the Buridan’s ass, unable to decide whether to first drink water or eat oats and thus perish in the process,” Chandrika was melancholic.

“Why not try and forget him?”

“Of course, time would do that for me,” said Chandrika, “but life without him is not what I wanted.”

Roopa kept quiet as though inviting her sister to give vent to her feelings.




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