Yellow Watermelons  by Ajit Chandrasekhar   Yellow watermelon with four servings on steel plates   Mahadev was a farmer. His farm was near Gopalpur on the Orrisa-Chatisgarh border. The nearest town was Rourkela which is about one hundred kms away. He had a family. His wife was Sharada, and he had two children, a son, Harish, and a daughter, Nisha. He grew vegetables, fruits and even some grain such as wheat and rice. One year, the entire Orrisa State was faced with a severe drought. There was very little rain. Most of Mahadev’s crops failed, except a few watermelons which were saved. There was a severe water shortage and most people had very little to eat. Mahadev gave his watermelons to his neighbours, and as he was giving the last watermelon, his wife Sharada was very angry. ‘How can you give all the watermelons away. What about me and my children? You should have kept at least one watermelon for the family.’ Mahadev tried to explain to...

The Watermelon Story: Interview with Ajit Chandrasekhar  on 'Yellow Watermelons'   Read the story here. Print.Able: Good Morning Ajit. Thank you for sharing the story about the farmer’s family in Orissa. We have some questions for you.   Print.Able: Why did you set the story in Orissa? Ajit: Long ago, when I lived in Mysore, someone told me a story about watermelons in Orissa.   Print.Able: Have you ever yellow watermelons? Ajit: Yes I have. Print.Able: Did you like them? Do they have a distinctive flavour? Ajit: Yes, I liked them a lot. They taste very different from the pink watermelons. Print.Able: Are the weather phenomena, the drought and the cyclone you write about in the story based on fact? Ajit: Yes, that is quite common in Orissa. Print.Able: Have you ever visited Orissa? Ajit: Yes Print.Able: Where did you go, and when? Ajit: We went to Bhuveneshwar, Puri and Konarak and also saw the battlefield at Dhaulagiri on the banks of the Daya River where Ashoka f...