The title story “Parijata” is a poignant tale of a hapless widow who worships Lord Krishna with stolen flowers. The ravings of a man whose marriage is on the rocks, the plight of a progressive working woman pitted against an incompatible husband who imposes his own outmoded beliefs on her, the frustrations in government service, the intrigues in a multinational company, the tense drama in the Intensive Care Unit of a hospital – the stories spin around some of these themes with an ineffable, mystical quality that makes one think. Perhaps the greatest gift of the author is to catch a cresting emotion and ride it.

P Sundaresan