Chai at Midnight

About the Book

Chai at Midnight is a fictional abstraction of thoughts ruffling though a young man’s mind as he is caught up in frenzied encounters after meeting an appealing woman during a monsoon midnight. This happens at a small and remote railway station while he waits for another train and yearns for a cup of chai. What follows is a concoction of drama played out for a few seemingly endless hours in the middle of somewhere, nowhere. The theme portrays the contrasting and raw emotions of thrill, unspoken humor, defiance, desire, and valor that travel back and forth through his mind with supersonic speed despite the grave circumstances. In a philosophical sense, the book may inspire readers to explore the restorative potential of their cherished memories and face any crisis with constantly self-engaging lightheartedness.

About the Author

Dr. Vibhakar Kotak is a research professor in neuroscience at New York University and has lived with his wife and two daughters in New Jersey for more than twenty years. He did his early schooling in East Africa and later earned his PhD in India. In addition to many scientific papers, reviews, and book chapters, he has published a set of poems: Chameleon (Outskirts Press). These poems—illustrated with his hand-drawn color cartoons of nature, animals, and musical instruments—are aimed at introspecting human energies associated with violence, pomp, success, racism, war, fear, and guilt. In this fictional Chai story, the author aims to discover how the potential and speed of human thought is heightened in parallel with life-threatening situations, which create a window of positive balance for his mind.