In When Goodbye Begins: life takes over, author-filmmaker – Geeta Lal Sahai actively involved in mental health advocacy rips apart the stereotypical existence. These five stories are about mental health, innumerable lanes and layers of memories, childhood abuse, infidelity, betrayal, hopelessness, and hidden emotions. There is pathos, feelings, inner conflict and stoic acceptance.
In the title story – When Goodbye Begins, a middle-aged woman, caught between her dreams and the present reality of being a caregiver to her husband, walks on a tightrope. Through her eyes, we experience the broken and painful world of people with Alzheimer’s and their families. In Walking on Ice Sheet in Pencil Heels, the story captures the protagonist Sheena’s struggle with her identity and the frightening and fascinating world of bipolar disorder. In Death of a Memory, Rashi facing betrayal and infidelity, fights with her memories to face the world.
In another story – If Only I Could Tell, the author recounts the painful and traumatic world of the child sexual abuse survivor who keeps running away from love, people and self. Caught in the web of childhood abuse, the author, through her protagonist, poignantly shows the long-term ramifications of broken trust and bruised body.
In all five stories, Geeta exquisitely crafts the inner turmoil of her characters. The world of characters in these stories is gripping, and there’s a world within a world. $1.35 on Kindle.
