The Glow from Within

- Ravi Ila Bhatt

On a six-hour flight from Mumbai to Singapore, Sameer, a fitness-obsessed marketing executive, was settling into his window seat. He was busy adjusting his noise-canceling headphones, hoping to avoid any interaction, when the passenger for the middle seat arrived.

She was an exuberant Indian woman, dressed in a bright, block-printed kurta. As she navigated into the narrow space, her arm accidentally brushed against his.

"Ofo, so sorry! These seats get smaller every year, don't they?" she said with a wide, genuine beam. "Hi, I’m Kavita. How’s your flight going so far?"

Sameer gave a curt, barely-there nod and stared intensely at his iPad screen. He wasn't in the mood to be "trapped" next to someone so loud and, in his mind, "unhealthy."

But Kavita wasn't easily deterred. She nudged him gently. "I’m headed to see my niece’s graduation. It’s my first time in Singapore! Have you been?"

"Work trip," Sameer muttered.

"Aiyyo, so serious!" she laughed, her voice like a warm melody. 

At one point, seeing her enjoy a dessert, Sameer couldn’t help his judgmental streak. "Kavita ji, don't take this wrong, but aren't you worried about your health? You have so much energy—wouldn't you feel even better if you... you know, leaned out a bit?"

Kavita let out a hearty, infectious chuckle. "Beta, I’ve been 'healthy' since the day I was born! People see my size and assume I’m lazy or have no discipline. But I walk five kilometers to school every day and manage fifty screaming ten-year-olds. I don’t waste my time obsessing over a weighing scale because I have too much living to do!"

She winked at him. "Actually, I think of this extra 'me' as a protective layer. If I were any thinner, I’d be so fast and charming that my poor husband wouldn’t be able to keep up with the trail of admirers!"

Sameer laughed—a real, genuine laugh this time. "Do people really chase you?"

"All the time!" she joked. "Mostly because I’m a good listener. People tell me their life problems before they even know my last name. Maybe it’s because I’m comfortable in my own skin, so they feel comfortable in theirs."

By the time the plane touched down at Changi Airport, the cabin felt lighter. As they stood up to get their bags. 

As Sameer walked through the terminal, he looked back at Kavita, who was busy helping an elderly lady with her carry-on. He realized that despite his gym-toned body and expensive clothes, he had felt small and dull next to her. She was, without a doubt, the most beautiful person he had ever met.

Moral

We should be confident about ourselves. Heart beauty matter’s much more than Physical beauty.