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The Ambrosial Hour

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Worth reading 😎

Kakoli G is a talented storyteller who creates beautiful characters. In this novel though, they struggle to emerge in the plot's fast pace.

Synopsis

The story takes you through the heart-rending journey of Aditi from the Holy city of Varanasi where she was born and brought up, to Delhi as naïve young bride and the turmoil she faces trying to adjust to her new life in the walled city.
She seeks his divine intervention, only to be reminded that she has no option, other than to tread this thorny path, but could seek solace from the fact that he would be her guiding light at each dark juncture in her life’s journey.
Thus reassured, Aditi surrenders herself to him and steadfastly surges ahead.
In the process,​ she experiences the extraordinary power of human thoughts.
She shares the same roof with her philandering husband and his family, yet she maintains her dignity and a distance from their negativities and base thoughts.
She chooses silence as her weapon to sharpen her intellect, built her mental strength and help her focus on carrying out her duties fruitfully.
She uses quietude as her trump card and finally emerges triumphant.

The Ambrosial Hour by Kakoli G is a short, character driven story that follows Aditi’s family as the repercussions of ego, wealth and exploitation trickle down the generations. The characters are well-rounded, yet the author’s fast-paced prose leaves the readers wanting more. In many instances, Kakoli G tells, rather than shows, the inner motivations of the characters. Though engaging, thought provoking, and a pleasure to read, the author should consider making space within the narrative for the pro- (and an-) tagonists to share their voices with the readers.


Kakoli G’s novel weaves together the threads of spirituality, karma, and motherhood within the mundane framework of family politics and ego trips. The resulting tapestry is a rich testament to the choices of each individual character: the ones they chose to act on, and the ones they chose to abandon. Each character, from Aditi the mother, Arun the husband, Aditya and Ajita the children, Rumi the lover, and the un-named matriarch (instigator of the inter-generational tension) are fully developed and draw the reader in. As such, the potential for tragedy and hope to coexist are believably portrayed in the various scenarios envisioned by the author.


Where The Ambrosial Hour struggles is in the pacing and speed with which Kakoli G shares the story of Aditi’s family. In the novel, time jumps (both forward and back) in huge chunks, leaving the reader disoriented. At 84 pages, the book is short, and could benefit from an extended look into each of the characters. This would allow them to take readers further into their inner worlds, to hear more of the pro- (and an-) tagonists voices, rather than the narrators’ renditions of their life story.


The pages of The Ambrosial Hour by Kakoli G, flew by. In part because of the length (84 pages) but mostly because of the beautifully rendered characters who invite us, the readers, to join in the unfolding of their lives. Throughout the book, however, I found myself wanting to hear more of Aditi’s voice, Arun’s or their children’s. Kakoli G is without a doubt a talented storyteller, and could greatly enhance the strength of her novel by loosening the reigns and sharing more of her narrative beauty. 


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The Ambrosial Hour

Written by

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Synopsis

The story takes you through the heart-rending journey of Aditi from the Holy city of Varanasi where she was born and brought up, to Delhi as naïve young bride and the turmoil she faces trying to adjust to her new life in the walled city.
She seeks his divine intervention, only to be reminded that she has no option, other than to tread this thorny path, but could seek solace from the fact that he would be her guiding light at each dark juncture in her life’s journey.
Thus reassured, Aditi surrenders herself to him and steadfastly surges ahead.
In the process,​ she experiences the extraordinary power of human thoughts.
She shares the same roof with her philandering husband and his family, yet she maintains her dignity and a distance from their negativities and base thoughts.
She chooses silence as her weapon to sharpen her intellect, built her mental strength and help her focus on carrying out her duties fruitfully.
She uses quietude as her trump card and finally emerges triumphant.

THE AMBROSIAL HOUR

Prologue

The Supreme One was looking at a soul approaching the luminous mass. It had finished one more of its journeys on the planet and had successfully risen above the karmic web spun around it on that journey. There was one more test it had to take before it could move to the higher level and there would be no need to take birth again. In this journey, it would have to take the female form.

It would be absolutely necessary to don the garb of a woman and take this ultimate test of patience and perseverance. It would be a necessity to be a mother for the soul to exhibit the selfless state – the supreme sacrifice that came along with this role.

A woman, a mother, could face the tough challenge and life’s unpredictability and also rise above all the odds placed in her path steadfastly. A mother is a

formidable combination of calmness, compassion and ceaseless courage. Being a mother is a role that would foster and assist in creating the correct cosmic connection and help enter the spiritual realm.

PROLOGUE

For a woman, after she receives and conceives, it is a long penance of nine months when her mind, body and soul work in tandem to create a conducive atmosphere for nurturing another soul and giving it a form. It does not stop with that. The austerity continues well after the severance of the umbilical cord.

Motherhood is a life-altering event, when she is no

longer the centre of her own universe. She is quite contented conceding that position to her children. Every step she takes is a cautious one. The wellbeing of her creation takes precedence over everything.

The message was communicated to the creation by its Creator.


Chapter One

He was humming to himself as he parked the car in the basement.

What a wonderful life he led. Monday to Friday was spent slogging at the office. Weekends were reserved for his paramour. He pressed the calling bell. She opened the door and went inside the house without even looking at him. She had always been busy looking after the kids.

As he entered the room, she asked him, “Tea or coffee?”

He replied, “Tea.”

She nodded and went to the kitchen to get it.

He looked at the infant and the toddler sleeping on the bed. Such a lovely sight, so peaceful. He thought of

their mother, his wife. Such a blooming idiot. Under her very nose, he was carrying on his affair, yet she seemed so oblivious to what was happening.

He thought of his mother. How well she understood his needs.

THE AMBROSIAL HOUR

“Son, don’t marry a professional. You needsomeone to look after your home and hearth. We will look for a girl much younger than you, who will be able to attend to all your needs.”

What she meant was: We will get a daughter-in-law who will be financially dependent on you, and no matter how much you torture her physically or mentally she would

find it difficult to part ways.

They had found her—a college lecturer’s daughter,who had to seek early retirement due to his frail health. She was in her final year of graduation, came from a small town and belonged to a family with a modest income. She matched all that his mother and he were looking for.

She handed him the cup he had asked for, went into her room, bolted it from inside, let the tap running in the attached bathroom, stuffed the end of her dupatta inside her mouth and finally let the tears overflow. She had to be careful, lest her sobs disturbed the two children sleeping peacefully on the bed.

It was six years now, and every day was a struggle trying to look for something positive to wake up to. The first time she had confronted him, he had denied

it.

His mother came to his rescue, “Leave the house immediately if you can’t trust your husband. All he has done is spend a couple of nights with his friends in the beach house.”

2

KAKOLI G

Her husband took the cue, looked at his heavilypregnant wife and said, “I am not going to take this kind of behaviour, Aditi. Prove it, take it to court, do whatever you feel like, but remember, in future, once more I hear this kind of allegation, you are on your own.” The water bag had burst almost immediately.

Aditi had looked at her infant daughter in her arms, in a blissful slumber, completely unaware of what she

would have to face. She had gone through all the options she had. Not many.

The Ambrosial Hour

Written by

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About the author

Kakoli's travels to a myriad of towns, be it on work or leisure, made her a keen observer of the day to day struggles and aspirations of the Indian woman. A kaleidoscope of memories and insights gleaned from her interactions with a large diaspora of society have found expression in her writings. view profile

Published on September 28, 2018

Published by

20000 words

Genre: Literary Fiction

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