Summary

“Karma” by Khushwant Singh opens with a scene where a man named Sir Mohan Lal is looking at himself in the mirror of a first-class railway waiting room in India. He criticises the poorly made mirror but admires his own  appearance. He then orders a drink.

Sir Mohan’s wife, Lachmi, calls a coolie to take her luggage to the train platform. She buys betel leaves for the road, then begins a conversation with the coolie and decides to eat while she waits. Lachmi tells the coolie that she travels with her husband but that he travels first class while she takes the inter-class.

Lachmi likes the conversation, because her husband rarely talks to her. Lachmi’s relatives do not visit her, as Sir Mohan does not like them because they are poor and illiterate. Sir Mohan and Lachmi live on separate floors in their house, have a distant relationship, and no children.

As the train approaches, Lachmi finish...