But he’s an untouchable, Shirin.’ ‘He’s my Untouchable Prince Charming, then. Only I am allowed to touch him.

— Renita D'Silva

Every family has secrets, Rena, and they’re there for a reason.

— Renita D'Silva

Have you been reading those books that clueless illiterate UJA in charge of the lending library lets you borrow?’ ‘No, Ma.’ ‘Then what put you in mind of devils possessing nuns to take over the church?

— Renita D'Silva

I wash the clothes, rinse them and then scrub them again. Will that square little box do that? I am not using any fancy machines when my hands will do.

— Renita D'Silva

I watched the rows and rows of chap pals left by devotees outside the Hindu temple and wondered if the homeless boys who sometimes steal our chickens ever steal them, and if they do, are they punished, and if so by whom?

— Renita D'Silva

She liked the way a ray of mild autumn sun infiltrating the thick cluster of trees caught a reddish orange leaf swirling in the wind and transformed it golden yellow. She liked that it wasn’t a leaf she recognized, that she could name or associate with her past.

— Renita D'Silva

Sometimes, it is easier to leave things as they are, rather than to fight, go against the flow.

— Renita D'Silva

There’s a great drought in my village. People are dying. The price of rice and pulses has rocketed. There is no water anywhere. And here, people are complaining about the rain...

— Renita D'Silva

What am I doing here, Rena? Why am I dancing to the tunes of that old hag?’‘You are saving your family.

— Renita D'Silva

What better hiding place than an old, woodlice-ridden album of photographs!

— Renita D'Silva