A Little After Three

Also, I don't know what Parthaab's problem is, since the story has nothing to do with divorce. His "feticide" rant is especially baffling.

Hi, Laju. I liked both A Little After Three and The Balcony, but I thought A Little After Three was better. The story seems to work better with first-person narration.

I think Western audiences will be able to relate, since “forbidden love” is a universal theme.

Hello Cobra and Parthaab,

Thanks for reading and sharing your comments, best Lajwanti

Hello Typhoon,

Thanks for reading and your comments.

I am glad that you liked the structure of my story and am pleased that I could portray the character as trusting.

Hope to share more of my writing.

Best,
Lajwanti

Divorces in India are no easy affair for the MALE. Gender-biased laws have been made since recently by Renuka, a notoriously feminist minister. When a woman is angry at a man and wants a divorce, she usually lies, and makes false charges to have him and his family jailed, without appeal or bail. Domestic Violence is hyped by feminist groups internationally, but this too is not borne out by studies, which attribute equal violence to the female too. Blackmail is norm - alongwith the emotional trauma of undergoing a divorce. In a corrupt system like India , that means a pot of money, and social ostracisation too – mind you, for a young, growing, citizen of the country. Divorces should surely be made easier and simpler than this?

Alimony causes even more financial commitment on the young male – whatever for? For the ‘crime' of divorcing? Some say that alimony could be an invitation for a female to divorce – and even marry in the first place! Alimony is surely a thing for the past generation of divorces?

A word on feminism here may be in order. Feminists take media sympathy from ‘facts’ that are controversial really. For eg., let us take female feticide. In reality, four times more adult men actually commit than women! Is it because women cannot bear to see their daughters grow up anything short of a princess? And the gender ratios that are quoted in India , cannot explain the widespreadedness of feticide, because in some countries, the proportion of males is actually less! And yet, feminists continue to use the media to gain sympathy – sometimes using genuine reasons ( like minority female literacy for eg.), to get unreasonable gains.

To counter the menace of feminism, we hardly have a Male Right Movement going in India yet. In addition, it is not fashionable to the media yet. Male Rights in western countries have gained some momentum in the past few years, though.

Stupid story of a weak hearted woman. I suspect she died in the end. That was probably a wise move. She saved so many lives from suffering her presence.

Lajwanti,

This was a very interesting and brisk read.

I like how you didn't dwell on the backstory much, but instead dived right into the action. The character is very trusting and naive, [re: homeless will help her], and one hopes that she doesn't come to any harm.

I like how she goes through the escape options available to her. Methodical.

Would love to read more.