This Blessed House

Newlyweds Sanjeev and Twinkle are moving into the Connecticut home that Sanjeev bought for them before the wedding that their parents arranged for them in India. Sanjeev is a dutiful, organized, successful engineer who has been rising through the ranks at a Hartford firm. Before he married, he was lonely, solitary, and had never been in love. He finally caved to his mother’s suggestion that it was time to marry. Twinkle, naturally adventurous and curious, is earning her MA in Irish literature from Stanford University. Before she met Sanjeev, she had just been abandoned by an American actor.

While setting up their new home, Twinkle discovers the first of several Christian objects, a porcelain effigy of Christ that she finds, with a bottle of vinegar, left in one of the kitchen cupboards by the previous owners. Sanjeev rejects this Christ statue and all of the other items she finds, partly because he doesn’t want others to think they are Christian and partly because he sees them as trivial, profane, and silly objects destined to be thrown out of the house. On the other hand, Twinkle embraces the discovery and sets about on what she sees as a treasure hunt through their home, where she finds things like a framed paint-by-numbers portrait of the three wise men, a cross keychain, and a sizable statue of the Virgin Mary, which provokes an intense argument between her and Sanjeev.

Meanwhile, Sanjeev prepares for a housewarming party to introduce Twinkle and his new home to his co-workers, members of the local Indian community who took him in when he was single, and acquaintances. Sanjeev does most of the preparations for the party. When the evening arrives, he notices that Twinkle is the life of the party, enchanting his guests and persuading them to join in on the treasure hunt in their attic. Sanjeev is left alone to consider his marriage, his desire for solitude, and his future. After a wait, he sees Twinkle descend from the attic carrying a heavy but clearly valuable silver bust of Christ. She asks him if she can put it on their mantel just for one night. Knowing it will stay there for as long as they live together, Sanjeev follows her, carrying the object and his own changed understanding of what his future might look like.