Radha... a character sketch!!!

For Radha, the last couple of years have witnessed a sea change. As she sat in this genteel restaurant named Olive Beach off Brigade Road in Bangalore with its blue-cushioned, white straw chairs, pebble covered floor, lit candles and even a few trees inside, she all of a sudden remembered her first date in her sleepy hometown of North Lakhimpur. The contrast was stark. She still remembers the tartan table-cloth which had food stains from the previous patrons or the aluminium foil wrapped glass tumbler with a few plastic flowers thrown in to serve as the only embellishment to the ambience. As she started her dinner with the fig and orange salad and the meze, her mind unpredictably meandered. She remembered ordering butter naan and kadai chicken on her first date which she found more appetising than the beef risotto or the crostini that was being served presently. Two years back she never imagined she would consume beef, but today, if she made apparent her reservations, her acquaintances would tag her ‘old school’ or ‘conservative’, she knew. Her pretty face, well endowed body and probable small-town virginity gained her much popularity in the hushed conversations of the boys of her college and earned her a nippy well-off boyfriend even while she was ‘committed’ to this guy from her hometown, who, on getting the news over the phone, did little but surrender to the inevitable and to his helplessness. Her present boyfriend bestowed her with label dresses, shoes and posh dinners. She warmed his bed in return, without any qualms. This was in utter difference from her previous boyfriend who was content with a few smooches and an occasional fondling of her breasts. It is always give and take, she told herself, many times over. However, she was certain about one thing. She might not remember today’s dinner few years hence, but she will never forget the first date she had when she was truly full and essentially burped after dining out...