The guests arrived on their annual ten day vacation to their favorite resort. These guests were no ordinary mortals but beautiful dolls, created with clay or paper mash. All was well with the dolls. Their resort was the 7 staired stand that adorned the living room of their hostess. The stairs looked like decks in a ship. Their hostess was an Indian lady who celebrated the festival of Navratri (Nav in Sanskrit means nine and ratri means night).

The dolls hogged the limelight during the festival. These dolls known as ‘Golu’, represented gods, goddesses and human folks. The dolls depicting human folks occupied the fifth, sixth and seventh decks. The entire fifth deck was occupied by a marriage troupe that remained busy with traditional Hindu marriage rituals. The sixth deck at one end was occupied by village folks with tiny tots perched on their waists. The other end of the sixth deck was occupied by a young dancer named Menaka. The space in between was occupied by an elderly grocer couple.

These dolls remained stay put in their places from sunrise till the hostess called it a day late in the evening. During this time, socialites and friends visited the hostess. They paid compliments and greetings to the dolls. After calling it a day, the hostess switched off room lights. Then, till sunrise the dolls went around the deck and meet fellow dolls. Mr. Grocer was fond of spending time mostly with the marriage troupe. He was also seen consoling the crying tots of the neighbors.  Usually, Mrs. Grocer also accompanied Mr. Grocer everywhere. But this year in particular, Mrs. Grocer seemed sad. Mr. Grocer asked her,” Honey, why are you not meeting anybody in this vacation? Everyone is enquiring about you.” Mrs. Grocer said,” I do not want to meet anyone. I see small girls everyday dressed in traditional dresses holding the hands of their mothers while visiting our hostess and greeting us. How I wish I had a daughter of my own whom I could cajole and pamper!” To this, Mr. Grocer said,” O honey, that we don’t have children is a reality we have accepted long back. You have always been practical about this. Don’t be upset and come with me.” But Mrs. Grocer refused and remained in a sombre mood throughout the vacation.

Meanwhile, the hostess treated the dolls with gastric delights. She was lavish in offering various lentil dishes, rich puddings laced with milk, dry fruits and seasonal fruits on all the ten days. On the tenth late evening, after offering heartfelt thanks, she instructed them to pack up for the return journey. Just then Mrs. Grocer realized that Mr. Grocer was not around. She assumed he would have gone to bid goodbye to others. She heard some noise from the dancer Menaka’s room. She went close to her quarter. She couldn’t believe at what she saw there. Mr. Grocer was lying on the dancer’s arms looking at her while she was serving him a glass of water. Mr. Grocer told her,” What would I have done without you Menaka?” Mrs. Grocer was left agape. She went back to her quarters and started sobbing.

Menaka came running and called out to Mrs. Grocer. She said,” Mrs. Grocer, please come with me. Mr. Grocer…..”. She had hardly finished speaking when Mrs. Grocer  said,” Shut up! Are you not ashamed of seducing men who are the age of your father?” Menaka stood still and tried to make sense of what Mrs. Grocer said. She said,” Mrs. Grocer, please do not judge a book by its cover! I did not seduce your man nor did he run after me. He has been like and I have seen him like a father only. As Mr. Grocer came to bid his goodbye to me, he looked sad. He said you were not at all happy during this vacation. He was in pain when he described your sadness. As he spoke, he suddenly fell unconscious. I lifted him and sprinkled some water on his face. When he regained consciousness, he asked for some water to drink and thanked me.” 

A sea of relief descended on Mrs. Grocer and she rushed to meet Mr. Grocer. He was resting and opened his eyes. He told her,” Honey, look at Menaka. You wanted a daughter, right? Isn’t she like our daughter?” Looking at Menaka, Mrs. Grocer’s eyes welled up with tears. She said,” Indeed! Now, I have someone to pamper!” Menaka stood there smiling with her hands folded and head bowed!

All is well in the doll’s world now!