He was always known as an achiever. The idealistic go-getter who never failed to attain his goal that was the way he was, even in his school days! Born into a comfortably well off family, belonging to the privileged class, he was taught right from his childhood that he was extra blessed by god. He was lucky to be born into the "highest" caste/class of people But that extra blessing also brought with it some "responsibilities" towards the very social set-up which gave him the status of belonging to "god's chosen few" . And redeeming others seemed to be a very important part of the cosmic plan that god had for his people
All of this, his personal & social identity really did not bother him on a conscious level he was at ease with whatever the role he was expected to play in society and never questioned its logic that is, until he met her .she was like a whiff of fresh air .embodying the freedom of the sea and the freshness of spring. He had gone to a very prestigious Ivy League Business School to do his MBA & she was his classmate there.
With her, he learnt to laugh and sing aloud, with her he learnt to set his heart free from the prison of social roles. The exceptional success that he achieved both in his academics and his career during the 2 yrs that they were together made him realize that God did not grudge human beings their happiness that God did not create the social divisions or the rules
Soon it was time for him to return home and, as he had feared, his family refused to even consider her as a prospective bride .she not only belonged to a different class and caste but to a different culture altogether. In their eyes, any such union was a sin in the eyes of God and a bad example to the rest of the world.
When she saw the toll this emotional turmoil was taking on him, she asked him to go back to his roots, to his family, to the beliefs and values he grew up with. If their goodbye was what God wanted then so be it .
Today almost 18 years later, the society sees him as an ideal man .but deep within he suffers from an undying sense of guilt guilty of not having enough courage to stand by the very person whose love was strong enough to let him go and seek a life free of controversies and guilty of not belonging fully to the people around him(except perhaps his children)
A part of his being belongs wholly to her even today (though they never met again after saying goodbye) a secret corner of his mind where she lives on even today, where he finds most solace and comfort even today!
#1 by neetha nair
does it actually matter to others ? was i not the responsibility of the parents also to see that their son would have been happier ?Why is it always that the children are expeted to compromise with the needs of elders? just because the parents gave birth to them and braught them up? in the way in which THEY wanted? To fulfil their desires as parents? hmmm- i wish society starts thinking a bit different
#2 by rajesh singh
this story is just a real life for so many people
#3 by Ashish Tiwari
nice post and completely euphoric write up….keep up the good work…..i wont say someting similar but yh you”ll find some match in my blogs……tk cr and keep writing
#4 by SHEKHAR BHATTACHARJEE
some guys cant mix up the world………my dear frnd Sarita………..i wud appreciate ur hard job ……….nice writup with so emotion …….keep it up………….my frnd……….do write n visit………my best wishes………tc
#5 by Karthik - Dexter
Very well composed Sarita, you made us live the entire 2 years in such a short story… :-))
BTW was that a real story?
#6 by sandhya kulkarni
I think.. at present what he regret in the past ..it shouldnt reepeated with his kids.. so it can remoove his guilt..in such away..I hope…!!
#7 by Think Tank
Nothing unusual as such. A lot of people who like each other end up not marring to each other because of many reasons. Caste/culture is only one of them. And they too carry a kind of same ”guilt”. Similarly, everyone carries many kinds of guilts inside him/her, if one truly looks ”inside”. Guilt of harming / hurting someone un/intentionally, guilt of not making friends with someone, guilt of making friend with someone, guilt of not working for some company, guilt of working for some company, etc, etc, there is no limits to how many kinds of guilts can be there. As such what they did in their time, it seems was necessary for their parents happiness, and it should be fine. This is why, we should take care that we never fell in love with anyone
Very nicely writtne.. (Rahul)
#8 by Life traveler
#9 by Life traveler
#10 by Deepika
As I was reading this post it brought tears in my eyes,all the while i kept on thinking why only me n why always me till I read in ur post there are many in this world living with a guilt of not being able to stand by their love.a brilliant depiction of human emotions,responsibilies and hindrances in life.
#11 by Manojkumar Nair
very true sarita..its a very realistic sketch, often occurs various part of the world….it requires lot of courage to break that GOD GIVEN and SOCIETY GIVEN label..i believe its all society given….and god only wants everyone to enjoy and spread the true love..but as you mentioned most of tthe people are not brave enough to identify and live it..all they do after 20-30 yrs is just remembering those moments..which he could have lived even today!!…nice write up,amazingly true.
#12 by shikha sharma
Great Saritaji, as usual even this one has come out to be a master piece…Really nice post!!
#13 by Nilesh
Complications like this usually occur if one does not follow his heart. It is difficult to live life like this in a lie. Wish you a happy belated deepawali.
#14 by Sharath gowda
Very well written ………..guess we all have our “girl from yesterday” the one who is going to torment us for the rest of our lives.
#15 by sharmila m
Datz d beauty of luv …to let go let go let go…..BEAUTIFUL.
#16 by p k
traditionalism…at times proves to be the bane of love….ghar…jaati…samaj etc etc ke naam par kitne hi pyar janam lene se pahle hi dafan ho gaye…..jyada dukh to tab hota hai jab achhi naukari wale lakde ko ek blank cheque ki tarah dekha jaata hai…fir na hi pyar aur na hi khuda aisi jagah yaad rah jaate hain…. maa baap kai baar bhavanaon ko nazar andaaz kar apni marji laadtne hain…aur iske liye emotional blackmails bhi use kiye jaate hain….sarita u have written wonderfully…just awesome…u have a gr8 way with words.
#17 by Shiny Vikas
sarita..very true..at times we r just going thru the so called forces by soociety ,family..and yes..we do miss so much…and i alwz feel we need to stand up and make up our choice…if u really believe its rite..after all haert takes u whr ur mind can nevr reach frnd..as usual sarita a very nice piece of writing…have a fabulous day .
#18 by nitin bhatnagar
very well written…loved it
#19 by Apurva P
Presented nice. You are good, people do make such “sacrifice” though to burn forever. I can”t understand how those parents! could find comfort.
A story that keeps on repeating in our country. What class we want to create…with broken hearts and minds? Is social status so importent? Anyways, atleast the guy must have learnt hope does not project it back to his children. That can change one family alright.
Wishing happy diwali
#20 by FLIGHTOFFANCY
Anchored in the womb,
and a prisoner in the tomb,
The short span in between,
Offers fredom unforeseen….
So spread your wings,
Don”t be afraid to fly,
Freedom unto those,
Who are willing to try….
#21 by waseem n
we r so bound by the rules of the society tht we forgo the most important things . sad but true . nice post.
#22 by hina sharma
lovely presentation to a very real and common situation, many people sacrifice their love just to fit in the social norms, i m not sure how many regret for their decision….. but still in my views what he didi is not completely wrong man is a social animal and we have to stick to some social rules,no matter how much u r sacrifice for this….. life is like that only. kABHIE KISI KO MUKAMMAL JANHA NAHI MILTA, KANHI ZAMEEN TO KANHI AASAMAN NAHI MILTA
#23 by Pradeep
You are always known to present things by your heart and this one is not the exception either… As far as my views on the post is concerned I will say the hero had not acclaimed something good in my eyes by doing “Balidaan” of that sort…. we do claim we are fast growing in terms of our education, our living status, all round development.. but is it the real case actually ?? aisi education ka kya phaayda jab hum aapne dilo main, aapni soch main, aapne najaraiye main badlaav na laa saken… “He” would have won a pat on his shoulder from me, had he atleast try discussing the issues with his parents before giving up finally..afterall imp. decisions family main sabki consensus se liye jaate hain.. you had very beautifuly summed up with the lines “but deep within he suffers from an undying sense of guilt”… nice one sarita
#24 by Pradeep
I am a firm believer of famous old saying “Pothi padh padh jag mua, pandit bhaya na koi, dhai aakhar prem ka, padhe so pandit hoe”…. Isn”t it ????
#25 by sweta dutta
very nicely expresses…. i think its very rare nd precious to come accross true love in our life even many remain deprived of true love … so i think the hero of the story shud have given value to the true love he was so kucky to get once in his life…….
#26 by sunshine
He’’s no winner …. his goals are all in the material world. But when it comes to happiness it is the internal world that matters.
#27 by Pradeep
Aur haan… I am a firm believer of famous old saying “Pothi padh padh jag mua, pandit bhaya na koi, dhaai aakhar prem ka, padhe so pandit hoe” ..….:)))))…. Isn”t it ????
#28 by Pradeep
Comment to main de chuka aab dubaara comment dena padega kya :).. To start with I will say a very nice write-up / story from you. You are always known to present things from your heart and this one not an exception either……As far as my views on the post is concerned I will say the hero had not acclaimed something good in my eyes by doing “balidaan” of that sort… We do claim that we are fast growing in terms of our education, our living status, all round development.. but is it the real case ??? … aisi education ka kya phaayada jab hum aapne dilo main, aapni soch main, aapne najaraiye main badlaav na laa paaen…. In my opinion “he” would have won a pat on his shoulders from me, had he atleast tried discussing the issues with his parents… afterall imp. Issues sabki consenses se liye jaate hain family main… U had very beautifully summed up with the lines “but deep within he suffers from an undying sense of guilt” ….That was my views on your post.. what you say ?
#29 by ShivendraMohan Singh
Very nicely described the love of a responsible citizen, jo unhe chahiye tha vo to nahi mila lekin vo pyar ko ek garima de gae…jitna sunder ur garima yukt pyar tha utna hi sunder dhang se likha gaya ye blog tha, i love reading your blogs…and this was a real gem….
#30 by satya raut
the story is nice , yet cliched , that he is not happy , that she is away , awful and suffering ….real life is different ……more than love stories ,marriages …proposals and the rest of the ”done to death ” themes !!!
#31 by diwakar sharma
Nice one. Close to reality….
#32 by diya bharadwaj
wow wonderful post!but though there was a good ending of the story i think the girl was really a good and sweet.bcoz she allowed him to go back to his own place if some one other i mean some other girl was i her place then she will obviously dont tell him to go to his own place.and your post is really wonderful.thanks for sharing.
#33 by tanuj neogi
“Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought..” - Shelley..This is the core of all the love stories of world..Had they lived happily for ever, it would have been a fairy tale but not a love story..Sarita would not have felt any urge to write this piece..The niche that the ”man” in this story still maintains for his one time lover is actually a vaccum which the sunlight tries to penetrate without any succes..And all the love stories under the sun grow around this vacuum only..The narration is as beautiful as usual..
#34 by lata ojha
Lovely story..or say..reality in the form of story..
Rules of society [which has been created by us only ] rules our life..strange na..
#35 by anvesha
Restrictions of family,society n responsblts,i knw few of dem,its great dat he is well sttld atleast,bt most of dem aftr leavin deir luv chose a path wer nethr dey can be happy nor deir family,very nice post….$
#36 by Vaidehi S
A beautiful story. And truly has a close resemblance to reality. I guess one tries to weigh his/her interests on one side of the scale and responsibilities on the other. If responsibilities and social status weigh heavier than our preferences then our life wends in that direction. It is indeed really hard to stay balanced on this scale. Nice post, Sarita.
#37 by venkata ramana
Faith in Love is superior to love of faith but not many can ever dare to be fairful to one’’s love .Not prisoners of mind but enslaved to older love,love of the familial roots and bonds.Yet,your hero wins for he still swears ,breathes and lives to keep up the biding of his lady love [who set him free to lead a life of ”freedom”,if servitude it seem to true ”lovers”.Very nice one.Exemplary too Mam.
#38 by gene deby
facts of life , very well portrayed through a story……it is a pity, that mankind can allow itself to be enslaved like this in false bondages, created by its own refusal to see the truths that matter……..
#39 by Moe M
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#40 by Aameen Khan
hey………..what a beautiful story………. but what he did, he shud not… and you know onething…….to some extent half of the story i feel its mine, but the end is different……..as she is my wife today… and i have been thrown out of my house by my parents.
#41 by Gopi Goswami
nice short story…(but sadly too short)
#42 by Swati Garg
Very sad after reading it.
#43 by HariOm Chawla
A story with conventional end, beautifully weaved, Sarita. However, even if he”d married his love, he won”t have been complete and would have to leave many things ……….As rightly said, there are two tragedies in life, one is not to get your heart’’s desire, the other is to get it!
#44 by Shivendra Mohan Singh
Oh… marvelously knitted wonderful love story not even a single loose point….i m just ignoring the true love between them but seeing your writing ability, who depose their hidden love.
#45 by Laxmi
“kuch paane ke liye kuch khona padata hai”…….juz came to mind…………specially the “ideal one” has to sacrifice more than others ……..very nice short story
#46 by Bo
how sad to see some people still have to live such a way in 21st century? i feel so sorry for those who can”t live the life they want. what is a life after all?
#47 by Rahul Malhotra
HE OR SHE OR MOST OF, ATLEAST IN OUR COUNTRY, HAVE MORE OR LESS SAME STORY TO SHARE… SO THIS IS LIFE AND THIS IS TO STAY AND WE ALL HAVE TO BE HAPPY WITH IT!!!
#48 by shabbir abbas
very nice yaar……………….just imagination or real one????????
#49 by rasheed
beautifully written the bitter truth of the society, we find thousands of similar kinda casses in our societies. Due to so called society culture and religion rules that has been imposed on people makes them retrieve from whatever dreams and whatever wishes they possesses in their hearts. very unfortunate for those who cant even take a stand for the ones whom they love…. but again as u mentioned in the frist para responsibility part comes in between, towards society culture family and towards that very parents who brought you up, but agian another questions arises i.e. how much moral fiber towards our social caste/class which is full of hypocrytes is justified? ……lovely writeup sarita always love the way you write things looks like a movie running in front of us…. Is it inspired by the real life story of someone??
#50 by snehal
very nice story ….good work