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Quirks of Life - #ATOZCHALLENGE – Q (2026)

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  She walked in icily without even saying a word. Zoya was totally at a loss. How do I tell her to dust the walls properly? Will she sweep under the sofa, the bed, and even the cupboards? How do I tell her to go easy on my glass cutlery? She seems to break something or the other. While all these thoughts played in her mind, the very preoccupied Zoya was in a moral dilemma of her own. Am I being too demanding? Or am I being fair? Sahina, the house help, had successfully gaslighted her into believing she was being unreasonable. Her mind game? Just look emotionless and rigid. Let the opposite person feel it is acquired stoicism from a very fraught life. She was poor, and she obviously did not have it easy. Her excuse was perfect. Sahina’s plan worked. She managed to clean the home superficially, earphone in her ears to avoid any of Zoya’s instructions, and then dashed off to her next employer. The furniture was still dusty; the vessels had a film of grease; and the washr...
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Please Hear Me, Brother! #ATOZCHALLENGE – P (2026)

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  “Why is it so tough for me to say anything without being judged?” Karishma just said what Jay never wanted to hear.   It felt like a sudden drop from the 10-foot ceiling! A hard one. He didn’t respond. The only thing she got was a cold stare. The emotional overload began to rise for Karishma. She had had a long day, and from the moment Jay walked in, he kept noticing imperfections in things. Why is the dim light on when it isn’t even fully dark? Why are you having such chilled water? Don’t you think the centre table is too much in the way? Let’s move it to the side. Her mind wasn’t prepared to process chores at the end of her very busy day. But he wouldn’t relent. She did tell him a few times. Listen, Jay. I am not in the right frame of mind. Let’s do this whole fixing-the-situations thing some other day. “You have this whole, its-too-much-for-me phase when I try to tell you anything. When the hell are we supposed to resolve these things, Karee?” “What is...
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Optimistic About Opal - #ATOZCHALLENGE – O (2026)

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  “You get the best beef burgers in this outlet, Akash. They may not be as good as they are your side, but you won’t regret it.” “No problem, Alisha. But if the meat isn’t as per my liking, I will surely have an opinion on it and you might get to hear it till her flight arrives, tomorrow night. Works?” “Baap re, I’m scared. Let’s order a veg burger instead. Let’s pin the criticism on the green dot, then.” Akash dramatically nodded his head in a traumatized no. His expression growing graver with each nod. “No points to you for overacting. Come. Let’s go. This is the only evening we have. Tomorrow, Opal will be back and we won’t be able to do our hangouts.” Opal was Akash’s girlfriend, a self-proclaimed South Delhi fashionista who liked to sport famous brands in clothes and jewelry. She was the daughter of Shrutika Kataria, a rags-to-riches socialite single-mother who had built her own brand of rings. Fate led her to cross paths with a Hyderabad-based engineer who worked ...
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Nobody Genius - #ATOZCHALLENGE – N (2026)

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  His frail and fragile frame sat on his lone cot. The apple that lay in his dish was slowly browning. Still good enough to consume, yet not desired. The 80-year-old Kishore Garodia sat by his bedside nursing himself back from an upset stomach. His water consumption was measured. Anything in excess of a litre would lead him to lose the essential electrolytes he needed to preserve his aging frame. Rakshit, the intern from the government hospital, saw the ORS missing from the table. It triggered in him a surge of concern that came out as anxiety, and a checklist that was reinforced repeatedly by his medical college HOD. “No, no tell me. Should I ask the staff to get you ORS?” Kishore looked on calmly. The only answer he could give was a muted no. He lacked the strength to placate the young doctor’s fretful tone. “Your doctor’s prescription, Kishoreji, I hope you have everything that is on it?” Geeta, the caretaker interjected with the better intention of taking stock of the situatio...
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Mine? The Mirage of Scarcity - #ATOZCHALLENGE – M (2026)

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  “You won’t be using this extra iron will you? Then I will keep it.” Kavita claimed ownership of the iron even before Anita could reply. Anita and her husband Shyam were cleaning their home for Diwali. A lot of unnecessary and unused utensils that were stashed away were removed. And Kavita, their neighbour always developed a need for anything they didn’t want. Later, over a cup of chai , they talked. “She’s grown up in a frugal home, Anita.” “Who?” “Kavita, of course. Didn’t you find her acting strange?” Anita raised her brows and nodded quickly in assent. “Yes, it did look a little over-the-top and unnecessary. She’s doing a job and getting a good salary. Then why this financial insecurity?” “Like I said, her frugal life. Her mind is trained to fear scarcity. I am sure she must hoard a lot of unwanted things in her home out of the sheer fear of losing them.” “That’s not a happy place, Shyam,” Anita concluded. “One should always express gratitude for what they have...
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Luck By Chance - #ATOZCHALLENGE – L (2026)

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  “I think I’ll switch jobs yet again.” Brinda thought to herself. Her backstage work as a designer’s apprentice was quite thankless. She kept getting pushed around by models who thought they were Aphrodite herself. And the designer tantrums were another story. “This industry is so fake. I thought I would create a revolution with my designer choices, but I’ve become just a flunky to all these entitled twats. I’m soon losing my own identity. Cannot do this for long.” “No problem. Just this last show and we’ll see what else we can do. You just hang in there till then.” Ajay placated her after listening to her tirade. They had been the best of friends for five years and had recently taken their friendship to the next level by becoming 3AM buddies. He was her go-to person when she needed to take a decision that would lead to a big change. Brinda headed back to the workshop and looked at the delicately woven dresses. Mrs. Rita Khanna, the designer would throw a fit even if a stran...
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Karma - #ATOZCHALLENGE – K (2026)

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  The grand mirror in their walk-in closet saw them standing side by side—he was checking the fit of his Armani blazer one last time, before leaving, and she touching up her lipstick again trying to match it closer to her cocktail dress. They drew each other closer, not so much out of fondness but to see how they looked together, as a couple. They had to make a lasting impression, and an impeccable one . Milan Kothari, a successful businessman, was to attend a Diwali party at the mansion of another big-wig. The who’s who of the city would be there. Any misstep would deliver a huge blow to his carefully curated image. His wife, Amisha Kothari, dutifully allied with him through the optics.   “I believe in results. Excuses are for losers.” His chest puffed with pride upon getting yet another audience in the party, where he could talk about his achievements. He talked about fast-tracking his way into success by his sheer intelligence and out-of-the-box thinking.” Alina, another co...
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