“ Ajabdeh!”
“ Maharanisa!”
“ Maaaaa”
“ Daadisa?”
The palace echoed with
the cries as she lay breathless, in his arms. His world had frozen. His
Ajabdeh was gone. He had grown into the man he was with her. She was the part
of his life he was always thankful for. She made him believe Love and Family
existed for good. She was his strength. Rana Pratap sat like a stone watching
her calm face as Mewar cried for its queen.
He had failed to give her any happiness, he felt.
500 Years Later…
The Fort of Chittor was a special attraction for tourists.
The story of its bravery and sacrifice was famous. As a student of history, most had the dream
to see the place and today her dream was coming true. She walked into the fort, with five friends
and classmates. They got busy clicking pictures as she looked for a tour guide.
She finally found one and called out to them.
“ Mahek, Purvi, Disha! Come! He’s gonna show us around.” She
straightened her backpack.
“ This is the Vijay Stambh… the Kirti Stambh… Meera Maa
Temple.”
Mahek was opening her shoes as she stared at her friend
looking around.
“ Survi? You not going inside the temple?”
“ No you carry on, I will Look around…” She stared around
the place and looked at the blazing sun with a frown. Then she took out her
bottle and a cap. They were back soon and the last place to visit was the
Kumbha Palace.
As they walked up the steps she wondered how the place
looked familiar. Ever since her father’s untimely demise, all she did was follow
her dreams to be an archaeologist. Maybe reading too much about a place made it
look familiar. They stepped into the ruins.
“ Yeh tha e zamane mein yaha ka shaan ab toh pata bhi na
chalta ke kitne manzil thee, sab nasth ho chuka.” The guide spoke up as they
looked around.
“ I think four, see three are clearly visible” Disha spoke
up.
“ How come? There can be three and a roof too.” Purvi spoke
irritated at Disha’s know-it attitude.
“ What do you think Survi?” Mahek asked. She was unusually
quiet.
“ There were five, yes five, with half a roof In the
Ranimahal making it five and a half.” She spoke unmindful.
“ Where on earth did you read that?” Mahek’s eyes widened. “
As far as I know no one knows this.”
“ I dunno Mahek.” She looked worried. “ I must have read it
somewhere.”
“ Or she imagined it.” Purvi laughed.
“ Yaha se ayiye.” The guide stepped into the corridors.
They crossed the corridor and she felt as if someone was
calling her, but it was not her name…
“ Ajabdeh…” She had no idea why this name came back time and
again like voices in her mind ever since she read about Maharana Pratap’s
consort. She shook off the voices.
They walked into the ground with a large open area and some
broken walls. The guide was about to speak up when she heard a “ CLASH!” like
someone clinked two metals together. She turned around to the sound and saw no one. The sun is driving me crazy, am
not feeling well. She heard it again, this time it was more like … swords
clashing? But how on earth will she know how swords clashed.
“ Yeh tha akhara aur Dangalsthal.” The guide spoke up as her
eyes widened.
“ Dangal? Yaha… pass mein koi astabal bhi hai kya?”
“ Nahi Babyji, asthabal toh… ab toh sab nasht ho chuka…”
“ Survi! Now, where did you read about that?” Mahek was
frowning.
“ Mahek… I… am not
feeling well… you people continue, I will take a cab and leave.”
“ Aree Survi….” Mahek called in
vain after her.
“ Bhaiyaa yaha se Chavand kitna dur hai?” She asked the driver
feeling a little better.
“ Ek der ghanta toh lagega….”
“ Hum abhi jaa sakte hai?”
“ Haan Kyun nahi…”
“ Chaliye…”
She took out a diary from her backpack where she scribbled
down her findings. She read out the marked page.
“ Maharani Ajabde Punwar died in Chavand, the capital of
Maharana Pratap, in a moderate hideout.”
She sighed. She never told anyone about these voices and
flashes. She was scared they would end up taking her to some medical help. She
had seen strange flashes ever since she was a kid, dreamt that she was lost in
the jungles, trapped in a hut, and many other strange things. But the voices appeared only after she came
to Udaipur and bought a book on the Maharana’s personal life. Her thoughts were
broken by the car horn.
“ Hum aa gaye.”
She got down at the sight of the simple two-storey house in
ruins. This was his capital, he and Ajabdeh Punwar died here. She walked inside. Not many tourists were there but she could hear a few birds. An office of
the ASI was adjacent to the main house. As she entered the dark cold room, her
vision blurted. She took it as coming into darkness from the sunlight thing
but no, the flashes were back, this time more prominent. She could see curtains
on the jharokhas, red and yellow, a couch, and a bed. She could hear her own voice
giggle. And a kid’s.
“ Ranaji…. Ranaji…. Pratap!” She was calling someone. Survi
had goosebumps at the vision as she felt like she would faint. She caught the
nearest pillar, to balance herself.
“ Are you all right ?” Came a voice behind her. She stared
at the door palely as the light reflected his shadow then his face appeared
before her. Dark brown eyes. “ You okay?”
He asked again.
“ I’m… dizzy…. Fine…. I need some fresh air.” She managed as
he held her shoulders giving her support then took her out of the place. “ Are
you here alone?” She nodded a yes.
“ Then let us sit you down in my office and I will get you
some glucose to dehydrate you… Miss??”
“ Survi Joshi.”
“ Pratap Singh” Her eyes widened as she heard her own voice
again in her head. She shut her eyes.
“ Are you feeling unwell Ms Joshi?”
“ You… You are… “
“ The Curator of the Museum, ASI officer.” He smiled.
As she sat sipping her glucose she asked “ Umm… what are the
places to visit relating to Maharana Pratap? I am a student of history too.”
“ You are?” He smiled pleased. “ Wait I will write down the
places for you, and advise taking the glucose everywhere. You won’t find people in
most places.”
“ Thank You, Mr Singh.” She managed. “ You are from here
only?”
“ Yes actually… am kind of a royal too…” She saw him smile
humbly.
“ Royal?”
“ Yes, my maternal side is from the Punwar Family of Bijolia.
We are family to…”
“ Ajabdeh Punwar?”
Her heart skipped a beat.
“ Yes, Maharani Ajabdeh Punwar. My home is in Bijolia, and we
have business in Udaipur, but History attracted me so, I am here!”
“ Bijolia…. It’s…”
“ Maharani’s birthplace, there are palace ruins. Kunds,
Mandirs… You can see them too…” He added that to the list.
Comments
Post a Comment