They've paid with French philosophers, Joan!

1. You were aware that they were trying to corner you over your introverted nature from the schooldays.

Let them do so.

2. They were trying to assess which British political party was closer to her.

These had been settled on the torture-surveillance, as soon as Antara learnt her narrative, around 2019. 

"Of course you were scared of British men and women, given the Nazi Holocaust."

It was decided no one in India or elsewhere needed to know the above.

3. What happened inside Asansol AG classrooms?

"In between classes, they moved with ease between the desks."

It was probably an allusion from 2021, again not meant to be publicly shared. 

Antara was not 'in-between classes', she possibly couldn't "move with ease between desks". 

How terrifying would it be if she did that, everyone would allege that Antara couldn't connect to or identify with any European stance, she was just sniffing around.

4. They were trying to gather their thoughts that 'upper-strata' behaviour was not real.

That, too, had been discussed in the allusions. 

'Upper-strata' behaviour was taught by Antara's parents, certain older relatives, and endless batchmates. It was real, Antara was not caught in any deceit.

For example, back at Brabourne Hostel during Junior College, Antara had gone to a batchmate's room, her mother had come visiting earlier that evening and brought Bengali food over. 

As Antara entered the room, the batchmate had said, "Look at you, with your nose all crinkled up, going sniff-sniff, what were you, a cat, always sniffing around?"

That was an example. Antara had to tell that batchmate that her room was reeking of food. 

There was rice, fish curry, chicken curry on her desk, in generous proportions, but she didn't offer any to Antara. The latter didn't ask for it either, waiting for the hostel dinner bell.

How difficult was it? Don't sniff around in other people's lives, protest when it was outrageous, don't eat anyone else's food unless it was offered.  

The US authorities wanted to keep the Ukraine narrative for US citizens, it was their call, their priorities. Antara didn't dislike India till the Aadhaar fiasco tore her apart.

Fallen people have dignity, how else would you make that point?

5. Let us guess. Except at the workplaces and among close relations, Indian men didn't offer instructions to Antara about 'upper-strata' behaviour. Hence the workplaces were attacked, as were Antara's parents.

The problem with the Housing boys could be discussed in terms of how they managed their 'adda'/chatting sessions. 

In the evenings, the chef and one of his buddies would lie on their back on the concrete top of the underground water reservoir. What did it mean, they had German backing? Wasn't German intelligence either with S&P Global or elsewhere but not accessible to people?

Or was German backing merely about disliking Antara, which was fine with her, history was on her side, not with the Germans. 

In later years, around 20-25 of these Housing young men would sit under the water reservoir tower, on weekend mornings, gazing at the apartment where the chef and his folks lived. 

Wow, self-explanatory to say the least, Eisenhower and his buddies loved Indian men and would give them the legit lease! 

It would explain the US military's reluctance to liberate the Nazi death camps.

On those occasions, Antara usually hid at the other side of the water reservoir tower. 

"Why were you hiding," Ajit would say, "these chaps were ruffians, no need to fear them."

"I don't want them to see me, you go across that broken wall to the shop, I'd be behind this tree, they wouldn't know I was there but I could hear what they were saying."

6. But Ajit understood the need to protect yourself. So that the lease didn't become visible to everyone.

Another 'adda'/chatting session was the concrete benches (don't even...) at the corner of the football field. In summer, they'd raise a plastic roofing for it, could you believe it, only for chatting on summer afternoons?

The implications? Make sure the torturers were unsentimental, when allusions work was being done.

7. Such 'benches' for 'adda' were called 'rock' in Bengali. They didn't want to hear about the gulag. You brought it up at HT, during an editorial meeting, a one-to-one?

They've paid with French philosophers. 

'A rock feels no pain. And an island never cries'.

June 22, 2026.

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