Skip to main content

Vanity : A short story by Smita Chanda Roy

 

It was one of those days which awaited the test of my patience. I was early more out of habit than of co-incidence and the otherwise buzzing airport wore a grim look that day. Spring was just around the corner and the wind was carrying its aroma. Having an hour to spare, I decided to visit the duty free section of the airport. I am not a shopaholic in the least but the mere thought of myself walking down the aisles of numerous counters where high end luxury brands were put up for sale gave butterflies in my stomach. I wanted to taste how it felt to be privileged. I had imagined myself wearing a Gucci or a Chanel and practiced posing in front of a mirror. In my mind, I had posed for the Vogue and had already been featured in the Forbes list of thirty most influential people in the world less than thirty years of age. Such are the pleasures of my imagination!

                    No sooner had I entered the Michael Kors counter than a lady dressed in white caught my attention. She resembled some distant relative of the queen in her attire and style. She appeared to be demure carrying a bottle of chardonnay. She seemed to have stumbled upon opulence through serendipity. I could imagine her sitting by the fireplace sipping red wine in a rainy winter evening while Mozart played on her gramophone. You could say she had an old world charm. Contrary to her appearance, her behaviour was puerile. The twinkle in her eyes when she touched the limited edition vanity purses, the elegance in her smile as she smelt the leather and the grace which emanated from her voice, soothed my soul and I found happiness just by looking at her. Her grandeur was multiplied manifold when she decided to purchase all the limited edition purses on sale. Rubies and sapphires glistened on her plum fingers and she blushed every time the sales lady complemented her on the way she would look when she styled herself with her newly bought babies.
            I admired her in silence. My desire to be a lady reached its brim within a span of just a few minutes. Her charisma hypnotised me and transported me to the land of my dreams. My reverie was interrupted by a fellow customer whose “excuse me”, teleported me back to this hell of a reality. I finally glanced at my watch. Half an hour was still left before a giant structure of aluminium and steel and what not would throw me back to my roots where I will stay buried in the mud. I decided to head out of my haven. A Murphy radio was perched at the corner of the exit door. It played a song.

“There’s a lady who’s sure

all that glitters is gold

And she is buying the stairway to heaven”

 

 

Bio:-
I am an ex-student of Swati Ma’am. A writer by choice, teacher by profession and graphic designer by sheer luck, I try and give shape to complex emotions on paper. ‘Live and let live’ is my motto in life. 


Connect with us on social media:-


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

SDG Story Writing Contest : SDGs by Meerab Butt, Bloomfield Hall School, Pakistan

  A civilization rides on the shoulders of its youth force. And when the question is of existence or sustenance of the planet as a whole, the children and the youth of the entire world need to come together, think together and act together to make that possible. Let us read what some of them have to say to us through their stories on SDGs, ponder on what they are trying to say, act accordingly and try and change our ways of life. Perhaps this is the only way we can ensure that human civilization is not wiped out of the face of this Earth .

SDG Story Writing Contest (1st Prize Winner) : Who is the Best---The 17 SDGs by Rumish Ali Saif, Seth Anandram Jaipuria School, India

  A civilization rides on the shoulders of its youth force. And when the question is of existence or sustenance of the planet as a whole, the children and the youth of the entire world need to come together, think together and act together to make that possible. Let us read what some of them have to say to us through their stories on SDGs, ponder on what they are trying to say, act accordingly and try and change our ways of life. Perhaps this is the only way we can ensure that human civilization is not wiped out of the face of this Earth.