Chokher Bali,  A Grain of Sand….is a story set in late 19th century. It’s a story of love, friendship, desire, ego and deceit…it’s a story of entangled relationships. The book centers around Mahendra, Asha, Binodini, Bihari, Rajalakshmi & Annapurna. Mahendra, fondly known as Mohan, is the son of Rajalakshmi, pampered to the hilt. He is studying to become a doctor. Never sure of what he wants from life. But yes, his decisions are made by what others want. Confused? Well, he wants to have that thing in life which Bihari has.  He marries Asha because Bihari had decided to marry her. Mohan thinks he has modern in thinking but in reality he is simply “Insecure & Immature”. Where will this lead?Asha, Mohan’s wife, still a child ready to be molded in to any mold. She chooses her husbands love over her duties towards her home. She is an innocent waif and trust comes to her very easily. Will her trust & innocence give her something in life or would she end up being the loser?Binodini, the temptress. A widow, she has come to take care of her aunt Rajalakshmi but ends up envying what Asha has, i.e. a secure world, full of love. A life, which she can not dream of now. A life, which could have been hers, only if Mohan hadn’t jilted her.Where will her jealousy lead everyone?Bihari, Mohan’s, childhood friend, is the only sane character in this book. He is loved and respected by everyone. Unfortunately he becomes a pawn in the entangled game of love & deceit.Will he be able to come out of the mess? Will he be able to help his own people? Rajalakshmi, Mohan’s mother, she has brought up her son single-handedly. He is the apple of her eyes. She wishes that her son marries but she wasn’t prepared that this marriage might actually mean loosing the control on her son. Where wil her desire to control her son’s life would lead?  The book is the story of the world, where marriages are made in heaven and are for life. Where, widowhood is a punishment. Mohan & Asha, the newly wed couple, have created a dreamy world which has no place for a third person be it his mother or his best friend. Their world has no place for Mohan’s favourite aunt, Annapurna too, she moves out to Benaras. This dream world gets a reality check with the advent of Binodini.  Asha finds a friend in Binodini and very innocently names their friendship as Chokher Bali. But Asha isn’t aware of Binodini’s intentions, she isn’t aware that it’s only jealousy & hatred that her Choker Bali has for her. Binodini manages to attract Mohan towards herself. But is she sure of her feelings or is it just a revenge for her? Will Mohan fall for this temptress? Will he leave is well settled life for her?Does Binodnin harbor any feelings for Bihari too? Or the fact that at a point of time Bihari was in love with Asha is the reason enough for her to have him too? Or is just trying to prove that she can have any man she wants?  This is the world of Chokher Bali and to know more you’ll have to enter the world of deceit because am not telling you more….   When I had picked this book I had few misconceptions, lemme jot them down -          Its literature so it will be slow & I won’t survive -          Its literature so it will be slow & I won’t survive -          Its literature so it will be slow & I won’t survive -          Its literature so it will be slow & I won’t survive -          Its literature so it will be slow & I won’t survive   But am glad I picked it and finished it in one week flat. It is one of those few books which keep you glued till end. Not a single word can be skipped and not a single word looks out of place or useless. The book though set in older times can give any of the contemporary authors a run for their money.  It delves into many facets of relationships &how a single wrong decision can make your life a mess. There might be temptations enough but are they worth spoiling so many lives? Is jealousy a strong enough emotion to forget all other ties & relationships? The book delves into these many questions & more. It has an innocence which we can’t find in today’s stories; it has that magical & loyal friendship which we can’t find today; it has an unadulterated flavor of love & relationship which is rare to find these days and may be that’s the reason that I loved it. For me the book is basically a What-Not-To-Do with your life. And am sure that you all will love reading it as much as I have loved reading it. I might not be able to do justice to this wonderful saga of Love, Deceit, Jealousy & Friendship but am sure that the book will not fall short of any expectations, go grab a copy now.    The only thing I didn’t like about the book was the ending and I know those who have read it or seen the movie might agree with me. Its too limp an ending for the strong narrative.   ( )