As the darkness of the previous night cedes, a new day popes up;ladden by the rays of the bright sun. It’s still very early in the morning in Samirpur. Samirpur, a dusty small town, otherwise surrounded by rural hamlets. At the midst of this city is a grand but old house in quite a dilapidated state. Inside this house is Riya who sits on her bed; with her eyes glued to the Clock on the wall opposite her bed. A rather plain and undecorated room but for a life size portrait of Riya and her friends in a conference on the ‘poverty in India’.
In a moments time, the clock strikes 6.Still an hour ahead of Riya’s usual waking time. But today was different. Perhaps she didn’t even sleep properly the last night. A mixture of excitement and sadness didn’t let her sleep. Today’s gonna be a very important cum emotionally charged day for her. It would be the last day of her School. They are having their boards in a months time.
As she hears the ticking sound of the Clock, she just couldn’t wait more. But nor did she wish to go out of her room as yet. Because it’s her Grandma’s prayer time and mamma’s(mother’s) cleaning time. And if she is to pop up into the scene now, her grandma would take it as Riya’s acceptance of her cliched proposal- Riya to join her in the prayer. Her mother would not shy away either from commanding her into making the morning tea and help her in cleaning the veranda before going to School. Realizing the repercussions of her movement out of her room, she decides to wait for an hour. And what else can be a better way to kill the time then listening to her favorite podcast. To make sure that the folk outside don’t get the slightest hint of her waking up, she picks up her headphones. Plugging in the headphone, she starts the podcast.
An hour passes in no time. And comes Riya’s long awaited signal: her mother shouting: ‘Riya, Aren’t you awake yet; God knows what will happen to this girl”.Now, Riya can open her door and get ready for the most awaited ‘Last day’.
