Page 119 - Till the Last Breath . . .

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Kajal Khurana

Kajal was the third daughter of a rich business family based in Punjabi

Bagh, New Delhi. Aseem Khurana, her father, dealt in converting
unsuspecting animals into bags, shoes, clothes and the like. Getting into

fashion and leather designing seemed like obvious career choices for the
two elder daughters in the family. Kajal, younger by ten and twelve years to

her sisters, was the spoilt one. By the time she entered college, both her
sisters were happily married and, more importantly, incredibly successful
businesswomen. The leather factory now had showrooms and boutiques all

over the northern region. Money was never an issue. The smallest car she
had ever driven was a puny Volkswagen Beetle that cost her father a small

fortune. In spite of the abundant money and the cradling comfort, Kajal
grew up to be a very sensitive, simple girl with a magical voice and a
penchant for reading. She never shopped, never hankered for an iPhone or

that awesome-little-black-dress-for-the-party-next-weekend, and was never
comfortable in chauffeur-driven cars. Her only loves were music and books,

which she indulged in with wholesome passion.
No one expected her to choose science after her tenth board

examinations, but she did. The bigger surprise came when she cracked the
entrance examination and made it to a premier engineering college. Her

parents—not really impressed with their daughter getting into a boys’ field
—wanted her to go to London and study literature. But she was dead set on
studying engineering. Her sisters, headstrong and no-nonsense, asked her to

chase her dreams and make something of herself. They were sure Kajal
would bring in the next wave of technology.