Sahithi felt her bum burn and snapped out of her thoughts. The teacher was staring daggers at her sending chills down her spine. It was obvious he had spanked her but she couldn’t understand the fear she felt with this teacher. There was something odd about him that rang alarm bells in her mind.“First you insult me with your insolence. Then, you start day dreaming. Who do you think you are?” she gulped at those words.“Sorry sir. I was distracted.”“Oh yeah?” he sneered. “Solve the problem on the board and I will let you be ‘distracted’.” He stressed the word ‘distracted’ making her blush in embarrassment. This had never happened before so she was a bit ashamed. Still, she gazed at the board and was a bit shocked to see what was written there. “Move to the teacher’s table and explain your solution.”There was only one word on the board – Ca

 Sahithi lost count of the time as she stared at the book, turning pages without really reading anything. She just wanted to get this over with.“Tell me,” the professor asked suddenly. “what the author says in the first page.” She was startled by the sudden question. “Do you think you can fool me by turning the pages?” he was far more perceptive than what she had given him credit for. “Read the pages aloud from the beginning.”She knew there was no escaping this time. As she read the words aloud her eyes grew wide in shock at the blatantly negative portrayal of the varna system. It was worse than what was given in textbooks prescribed by the board of education. “India is divided into four castes which are based on birth.” The book started. “It is a rigid system which cannot be changed. Lord .... was responsible for challenging this system and the Indians should be grateful that he removed o

 The Annual parade was a big event where all the staff and students were involved. This was the first cultural event in the year that aimed at bringing the best from everyone. Since Sahithi had decided to put her head down, she tried to gather some information about the mega event.“What is this parade the principal talked about?” she asked Amulya who was sitting beside her.“It is a mega event that kick starts the academic year.” She replied. “It is divided into two parts – outdoor event and indoor event.”“The outdoor event is done by the selected members from the staff and students.” piped in Betsy. “Since you are a transfer student, you will be in the indoor event.”“Selections are done based on how well the staff and students have performed in the previous year. This is usually done at the end of the academic year and the selected members get practice sessions before

“And so what appeared to be a bilateral issue slowly mushroomed into a world war,” Sahithi barely stopped herself in time from speaking out her thoughts. She still had almost six years to complete before she got out of this institute for good. She shook her head at how tolerant she was becoming to everything. “I just wish I can remain the same when I get out here for good.” She mused. “That will happen only when you graduate.” She blushed, realising that she had spoken aloud. “That is exactly what I wish for, sir.” She replied. “To graduate.” “Yes, yes. That needs to be seen.” He remarked, resuming the lesson. “The league of nations failed miserably to stop the aggression of a nation against another. In short it was one of the reasons for the second world war.” He looked at Sahithi with an amused eye. “Sahithi has something to refute this I suppose?” “I agree that failure of the League of Nations to enforce peace was one of the reasons for the Second World War.” She started surpri

Sahithi lay on her bed completely exhausted. She had never felt so demoralised in her life; winning and losing were part of the game but the way everyone behaved here shook her to the core. She recalled the meeting with the captains and shuddered.“WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING OUT THERE?” he had shouted at them furiously. “Do any of you even know what Kho-Kho is?” they had been too stunned and afraid to answer. He had glared at them for a few seconds and then she felt approaching footsteps. She could only hear the captain walking towards the team. When he sat beside her, her heart had jumped into her mouth.“What were you thinking?” he had asked in a soft tone, fondling her b*****s with his hands. “Were you playing for glory?”“I....I....” she had stammered unable to say anything.“Do you realise you are playing a team game?” his calloused, rough right hand strolled into her T-shirt feeling the bare skin, making her face go red in embarrassment.“Yes, but....”“But you wanted to be ce