If anyone could transform laughter to light, she did, Inga. Radiance upon radiance of laughter, chime upon bell chime of light sparkled and shone everywhere. It was as if the sky showered tiny star grains that scattered, glinting, on the hay heap we were cocooned in; they sparkled on the leaves of the jackfruit tree above and dusted my arms with gold. Who could resist such a dance of light.? I couldn't, I never could. Almost never. Rapa is born into a Tamil Brahmin family, full of dark secrets. She is brought up in Delhi where an 'English' education introduces her to literature that is both fascinating and foreign.

Her summer holidays are spent in the confines of the family home in Kerala, where she has for companion her cousin Inga. But as the two girls grow up, their lives change through a tortuous, pain-filled process. Forty years after her death, Rapa's husband has her notes published, the story of her struggles against her family, her marriage and her final encounter with Inga. A tragic tale of yearning and hope, of derision and rage, of miracles and dreams, of commitment and utter rejection.