On a somber morning, Maya and her husband Manigandan make their way to the crematorium to collect the remains of their beloved one, whose essence lay within the charred logs. As per their custom, they both pour ice-cold milk over the ashes and bones, seeking to offer a soothing balm to the departed soul.

With tears streaming down his face, as Mani gently collects his father's ashes and bones in an earthen pot a compelling voice echoes softly inside Maya, "Pick me up, pick me up “ urging her to reach for an unburnt piece of her father-in-law's strong and resilient backbone.

She obeys her inner voice and places the bone reverently on her forehead, eyes, and then holds it close to her heart. A heartfelt prayer escapes her lips before she passes the bone to her husband's waiting hands.

Maya, who had never seen her husband sacredly silent, could feel the weight of his unspoken emotions. Gripping the earthen pot tightly and grappling with many questions for the almighty in their hearts, they both take a heart-wrenching walk to a secluded beach where the salty breeze were going to witness a painful farewell to the most loved member of their family.

The monsoon waves of the Arabian Sea crashes relentlessly upon the shore, and an inconsolable Manigandan chants Vedic mantras and recites poems he had penned for his dad’s birthday. Watching Mani swiftly releasing the ashes and bones of his dad into the ocean, Maya, unable to stifle her piercing and uncontrollable scream, breaks down and wails from the depths of her heart, mourning the loss of her Guru, guide, and philosopher – her dear father-in-law.

The pain of not being able to say goodbye weighed heavily on her as she tearfully recounted the frantic moments when he collapsed on Mani’s lap, giving his son his last blessings before closing his eyes and completely forgetting her presence.

Perhaps the ocean was not able to bear Maya’s sorrow and something unimaginable happened.

Mani gently shook Maya’s head, which was resting upon his chest sobbing. He directed her gaze towards the shoreline and says with calm assurance, "Looks like Dad heard you, Maya." His words compel her to open her eyes, and to her astonishment, the backbone she had held at the crematorium had returned to the shore.

In a moment of sheer joy and disbelief, she cries out loud, "It's impossible, it's impossible!" She races towards the backbone lying quietly in the sand, seized it with her eager hands, cradles it close to her heart, and once again presses it against her forehead.

Despite her initial disbelief, she realises that, against all odds and the tumultuous tides of the monsoon season, this particular bone has returned for a reason.

Maya then turns her head towards Mani, and like a child, silently asks through her eyes if she could keep the bone. But Mani’s lips softly whisper, “Let go”.

With a heart heavy with love and gratitude for her father-in-law, Maya bids a tearful farewell and releases his backbone into a wave that embraces her. She stands there, eyes locked onto the ocean waves, and loudly declares to Mani that if the bone returns again, she would keep it forever.

But it did not.

Though disappointed, a strange kind of peace washes over Maya as she starts walking back from the shore. She tells Mani that she has never felt so intimately connected to life before. Listening this Mani gives her a faint smile.

After six months of mourning, Maya and Mani begin to heal and realise that it is only through witnessing death and experiencing anguish we learn to appreciate life.

Then, one fine evening, Mani tells Maya that he has a secret to share, something he has kept locked in his heart for six months.

Maya gets nervous, and begins to imagine many things; she worries it might be related to Mani's health. As her mind races with apprehensions, Mani calms her down, and his revelation fortunately turns into a balm and not another wound for Maya.

Holding her hands, with the same old faint smile on his face, he gently tells her, "I watched you closely Maya, the day Dad died, and I instantly felt you would be the one finding it difficult to get through this toughest phase in our life more than me. When you were inconsolably crying with closed eyes on the beach, it was me who quietly removed the bone from the earthen pot and dropped it on the shore, so the credit for bringing you closer to life should go to me and not to the ocean."

Maya's thoughts take a long pause and then she smiles brightly, with tears of joy rolling down her cheeks, and her heart is astonished by Mani’s unwavering love and care for her even after a quarter-century of shared married life.

.    .    .