Pia’s Magical Pia’s Magical Night Night

VS EE

ONCE UPON A TIME, a young girl named

Pia lived in India. Pia grew up in the slums of Mumbai,

India. This was her life; she knew

nothing else. She grew up in a small hut, where rats ran

around her feet, and she slept on a

burlap mat.

Even as a child, her favorite time of the year was mid October, when they would celebrate Diwali, The Festival of

Lights. While she always loved celebrating in their

small community, she always envied the people who were able to attend the Melas Fairs, where they could see jugglers,

snake charmers, eat sweet food, and ride

Ferris wheels and elephant, but most of all Pia wanted to dress in

the fancy, colorful clothes they got to

where.

Now, as a young woman, Pia still dreamed of

attended a Melas Fair, but she new she could never afford the fancy

clothes she would need to where. Pia decided

to go for a walk to watch the men set up the fair that would be happening tomorrow. She told her mother

she would only be gone a short time, and when

she finally made it there, the smells of

sweet food were everywhere, and she watched as elephants were being led in. Pia smiled, knowing that the people who were

able to go the fair would have a good

time.

Pia decided to start to head back home, when a woman approached who had pale, pale skin and

white blonde hair. When the woman spoke, Pia could not understand a word she said. Pia was so startled,

she just shook her head.

The woman then motioned towards the Melas Fair, but Pia just continued to shake her head. Without saying

anything else, the foreign woman took Pia’s hand and led her down the street. When they reached

their destination, Pia was still very confused.

They entered a shop full of bright colored saris. The woman

finally let go of Pia, and started talking to the shop owner in a

strange language. Within minutes, the owner had taken Pia to the racks of the clothing, holding up different colors and

styles. After only a few minutes, she helped up a shiny red sari that Pia instantly fell in

love with. The owner must have known what Pia was

thinking, because she once again grabbed her hand and

led her to the back of the store. “Try on,” she said in

Hindi. Pia went into the back room and put on the sari. She

loved it, but new she could never have it. Dressed in the Sari, Pia went out to show the

woman and owner, but the woman was already gone. The owner smile, “She paid for the

sari for you. You look beautiful.”

Pia was stunned. The foreign woman had bought her the dress? It didn’t seem possible. The owner

smiled and continued to speak. “She said to tell you to enjoy the Melas fair.” Pia

was still stunned as the owner reached across and placed a small red Bindi in the center of her

forehead.

“She also left you this,” and the owner handed her a pouch of rupees. “Go now. Have fun.” Pia

thanked the owner, and made her way down the street to the Melas fair. Was this really

happening?

Making her way through the crowds at the

fair was overwhelming. It was dusk, as

Pia paid for some food. She had Henna

art done on her hand and arms, and

watched acrobats and snake charmers.

It was everything she had ever

dreamed of. Pia made her way towards

the dance floor, where many people

were dancing and enjoying themselves.

Her eyes fell on the most handsome

man on the dance floor. He was about

her age and talking to a group of

people. Their eyes met, and Pia smiled

and quickly looked away.

The man approached her smiling. “Hello. I’m Tushar.” Pia was in

shock, but was still able to introduce herself. They spoke for a few

minutes, and then decided to explore the

fair a little bit more. They rode the Ferris wheel, and ate spicy

food. After watching the acrobats for a few

minutes, Tushar and Pia made their way back over to the food. They

sat together and talked. Tushar was from a

family in Mumbai who had money, and were

considered upper class.

They were having fun, but soon Pia realized what time it was. Panic set in as she realized her

parents were probably worried about her. She told Tushar, but when she offered to walk her

home, she ran. Pia was embarrassed, and didn’t want Tushar to know she was from the slums. She dodged her way through the crowd, and when she was finally out of the festival, she changed back into her old, dirty clothes and

made her way home. What she hadn’t realized was that in her attempt to get out of the fair, her

red Bindi had fallen off.

The next morning Pia walked back towards the fair. It was early in the morning, but most of the fair was already gone. The Ferris wheel she had rode just a few hours before had already been taken away. The smell of spicy food was replaced with that of garbage. People were going on about their day, but someone caught her eye. She saw Tushar ahead, talking to a group of people. In his hand, he held her missing Bindi.

Pia froze with fear and panic. She duckedher

head down, hoping Tushar wouldn’t notice her.

However, he caught her eye, smiled, and ran over to her. He didn’t seem to notice her ragged clothes

or appearance. Instead, he handed her the Bindi

and said “Pia, you are the most beautiful, incredible

girl I have ever met. Do not be ashamed of where

you come from.” Pia blushed and tried to hide

her smile. “You don’t understand…” she said. “No, I do,” he replied. “I

want you and your family to come stay with us in

our guest house. I have a proposal for you...”

A week later, Tushar proposed to Pia after gaining her father’s consent.

Pia’s father found a new job working for Tushar’s father and was able to make enough money to find

a better home for his family.

Within a few months, Tushar and Pia were married.

They lived happily ever after!

Image Sources• http://www.planetizen.com/node/35269• http://www.seattlepi.com/globalhealth/151540_mariam08.html• http://media.lonelyplanet.com/lpimg/5415/5415-8/preview.jpg• http://nimg.sulekha.com/Others/original700/india-camel-festival-2009-10-31-8-10-8.jpg• http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/65/1f/3d/evening-arati-prayer.jpg• http://cdn.wn.com/ph/img/45/0a/9543ac80860e40bed935e710ff16-grande.jpg• http://www.beginningwithi.com/images/india/IMG_7419.jpg • http://nimis540.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/red-sari.jpg• http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:6GqjXwEskVPaSM:http://www.jaqueshouse.com/pictures/bindi_5.jpg• http://www.sakida.com/henna_artist.jpg• http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:Oy4dbcEoXra43M:http://lh4.ggpht.com/_c4QneBzuNgw/SpOl9FzkWZI/AAAA

AAAAAeE/EpZvX9OtmL4/SameerDattani124_thumb.jpg• http://www.webindia123.com/personality/men/samir_dattani/samir.jpg• http://farm1.static.flickr.com/116/292404002_e0be21b4ec.jpg?v=0• http://movies.indiatimes.com/photo.cms?msid=4667150• http://vrindas.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/indian-wedding.jpg