The Beauty And The Brain - Episode 1 - Serial with Weekly Episodes

I'm sure all of us will get hooked to this Saturday serial! Swetha seems a mix of Aishwarya Rai (grey eyes, tall and a beauty pageant winner) and Nafisa Ali (the model who committed suicide when her relationship/s fizzled out).
Smooth start. Let's all fasten our seatbelts as Varalotti takes us speeding on highways and dangerous hairpin bends on hilly roads - interspersed with a few accidents.
Sharada

Dear Sridhar,

The serial starts very breezily, but before we reach the end of the first page, the roller coster ride starts !

The reference to the nest egg being built with out Uncle Sam knowing about it, is very interesting – a reference to your profession, Sridhar ?

It is sad to see her “crumbling “ when Rakesh ditches her, all the more because she has no parental support as well. You described her as looking vaguely vulnerable in the beginning, but now she looks to us clearly vulnerable without a moral support.

You read our women’s day declarations & are motivated to prove to us that a woman will ultimately emerge a winner under the most trying circumstances as well - thankyou, Sridhar. That is the stuff we are made up of !

Love & regards,

Chithra.

Hello Sridhar,

A new serial
new characters
new names
& a good start.

Sad to see how women never suspect their partners once in love & loose everything at the end. Maybe that's why Pre-Nuptial Agreements are more popular in the west; atleast it safeguards against ending up penniless, homeless, etc.

Though Swetha lost all the eggs in her nest, hope she'll retain herself and emerge as a winner; cause she is a winning package herself.

Looking forward to a wonderful reading again, Sridhar...........

Dear Varlotti/Sridhar,

I made it a point not to miss your serial this time round! I read the first episode with great interest.

To me, the story sounds very contemporary and familiar, having read a lot of cine-buzz that is available on the net these days! The imagery is all to vivid: it is ofcourse Aishwarya Rai and Salman Khan:)

Now there is a week long suspense...You have kept us hanging in there , just like your protagonist's life(!) I hope you will not kill her off with the first episode itself? That would be too cruel, both for Swetha Patwardhan and me, who admires Aish!!

I have not read any of your previous works and hence have no idea about your writing style. Therefore, I am looking forward to reading the further episodes with much anticipation.

I have one question though! Why 'Rakesh Khan'??! Rakesh is clearly a Hindu name, I even looked it up, in case I am mistaken!! But the surname Khan is clearly muslim...uhmmm.....will the story ahead unfold this little mystery??

Anyways, all the best to you and to us too, who are eagerly awaiting for the story to enthrall us:)

Dear All,
I left Madurai on the 9th March and returned only today morning. And I was bowled over by the kind of responses, and the number of responses my second serial has evoked. Three days of absence has made my desk overflowing with work. Considering the time and patience, you ladies have given in reading my work, it will not be fair unless I reply each one of you individually in the order in which the responses appear in the thread. Please give two days to complete my response.
Thanks a ton for your eager participation. Your encouragement and enthusiasm will surely make me to write more and improve the quality of my work.
At the same time I wonder whether I have raised the expectations way beyond my competence. Please pray for me that I should be always upto the mark set by you.
with warm regards,
varalotti

Dear Prathi,
Originally I had planned to stop the episode at the right place. But then, you see, The Haunted House, is still haunting me. So I stopped the episode at the right place. Have some nails left, because you may need them for biting for another 10 or 11 episodes.
Is Swetha dead or living? Could be either way. Like the film Kaakka, Kaakka the whole story could be a flashback during the final moments of her life. You know I love the flashback technique.
I as an accountant would love to keep my options open.
Thanks Prathi, for your nice words and thanks, for you were the first to respond.
regards,
sridhar

Dear Varloo,
thanks for the nice words. I am happy that you have acknowledged there is enough scope for suspense. But don't expect anything similar to The Haunted House.
There the house was haunted by poltergeists. Here your mind will be haunted by the subtle undercurrent of love.
regards,
Varalotti

Hello Sudha,
I am happy to see that you got the message loud and clear. A celebrity's life is much more riskier than ours, because she will not have the luxury of time in taking some of the crucial decisions of her life. Especially film-world celebrities will be normally intellectually shallow but emotionally very sensitive. (the real life Aish is a golden exception to this rule). In fact the whole story is premised on this fact. And I am bringing in a man of strong intellect to correct this imbalance.
When such an emotional person loves, she loves fully with body, mind and soul. And that kind of a love creates an eternal dependence on another person and when that person does not deserve that kind of love... there could not be a worse disaster.
Thanks Sudha, for the nice words. It has increased my responsibility tremendously. Let me do my best to justify your expectations.
regards,
sridhar

Hi Purnima,
thanks for those stimulating words.
Yes, this serial starts with something that is hyped up in the media quite often. But the media usually distorts the truth, especially when it comes to the suicides of celebrities. This serial will attempt to tell the inside story and in that process bring out the truths about a celebrity's life and lifestyle. There will be some lessons to pick-up especially for those whose ambition is to become an Aish or Madhuri Dixit one day.
You have said "Thank you for being with us." Indeed I should thank you all for being with me.
Stay tuned.
varalotti

HI Varalotti,

It is great to have you back after a short break. I was really beginning to wonder why you have not responded to all the replies as you are usually very prompt! I should admit that i missed my 'guide' and a 'great writer'. I caught hold of the womens' era of this month, just for reading your titbit - Husband's fantatsies. It was, i should admit totally hilarious. Gwarsh! how the wife would feel??? Do such people exist? I mean, i wouldnt mind if my huband was 'dishonest' in this matter, even if he wants to fantasise any women, let him do so in his own mind! i Dont think i would liek to really know about it :). Your story as usual had such a twist and a funny ending. Over all i really enjoyed the article! Please keep it going...

Also, your articles on tamil magazines etc- could you PLEASE translate it t english in IL? I am not too fluent in reading tamil, and i DONT want to miss out on any of your stories!!!

Thank you once again!

Purnima, Mangalore