Confrontations

The two shadows met at the darkest corner of the Rani Mahal late at night.

“Hua kya hai… jaldi boliye.” He looked around, alarmed lest the guards see them.

“Wohh, humne yeh socha ke aapko suchit kar de ke Shyaam mandir bolke hum Jija ko kaha le jana chahte.” Her voice had a hint of anxiety in it.

“Matlab? Subah aapne hi toh Dadabhai se bola…”

“Haan Dadabhai Shakti,woh islie kyunki hum nahi chahte thee ki woh ya Jija jaane se mana kare…”

“Par le kaha ja rahe hum unko?”

“Jaha sab kuch ka aanth hua tha wahi se nayi surwaad karvane.” She smiled faintly.

“Kya? Vrindavan? Asambhav. Dadabhai nahi jaenge waha.” He shook his head vigorously, making it a point that it was impossible to convince an adamant Kunwar Pratap.

“Ve avashya aenge, unko aana parega. Jija ke liye.” Pur’s voice was loud and clear as he stood there watching her leave.

“Ajabde bhabisa ke bhaati yeh bhi sherni bann rahi, hei eklingji hum ko dadabhai ke krodh sebacha lena.” Shakti murmured a soft prayer.

At dawn, two Palanquins left the Ranimahal as Jaivanta Bai whispered a small prayer, watching them go.

“Bhai Shakti yeh hum kaha jaa rahe?” Kunwar Pratap was restless on the forest path as he reigned over Sarang. “Hum ko srighraa Shyam mandir pouchna, Ajabde…”

“Hum aap ko bhabisa ke paas hi le jaa rahe hai, jaha woh hai….”

“Hum kuch samajh nahi paa rahe Bhai Shakti spastta se boliye.”

“Pur Behena. Hum ko itna samay kyun lag raha hai Mandir pouchne mein?” Ajabde called out softly from her palki.”

“Ohho Jija woh humne ek dusre mandir ke baare mein suna toh hum waha pehle jaa rahe bas.” Pur tried to sound normal as she said a soft prayer.

“Humari putri ko lekar woh Samanth putri kaha chali gayi… agar usko kuch ho gaya toh?” Pur’s tensed mother paced the room, stopping at Dheer Bai’s entry.

“Hum bhi yehi soch rahe thee, bhagwan na kare… par sach yehi hai ke woh dono toh sautan hai, ek dusre ke prati….”

“Dheer Behena.” Sajja Bai’s firm voice made her stop.

“Waise toh sautan hum aur jija bhi hai, par jija humse behen se bhi zyada sneh karti. Aur Ajabde humari jija ki parchai hai bhabisa aap ko koi chinta ki…” She stopped watching a fuming Dheerbai leave.

Ajabde’s heart skipped a beat getting out of the Palanquin. Those white marble stairs brought back horrifying memories of the day that changed her life, changed her. One by one, she made her way up the same stairs to reach the porch he had left her at. Pur smiled at her, saying, “Aap yaha rukiye hum abhi aate hai Jija.”

“Ji.” She managed to find her voice and smile faintly, watching Pur go.

Breathing in deeply, she closed her eyes. The Temple complex. Those stairs. Her Daata’s last breath. Ghrina karte hai hum apse… prem marr gaya hai….. His words had haunted her sleep.

“Ajabdeh?” A shiver ran down her spine as she heard his voice behind her. No. She was not Ajabdeh anymore, she was Baijilal. She wiped away the lone tear and straightened her face to turn and face him. Kunwar Pratap’s eyes twinkled a little. With the memories of his biggest regret. He had left her unheard; he had been the reason her father.

“Hum e puja ke liye vilambh ho raha…” She started to excuse herself as he blocked her way; he just could not let her go. Not this time.

“Ajabdeh humari baat suniye. Hum e pata hai humse bhool hui hai, humne galti kiya, sambhavta aisi galti jiski kabhi sapne mein bhi apne humse apeksha nahi kiya tha.Hum sshama mangna chahte hai Ajabdeh… hum….” A lone tear trickled down his face as she looked up at his face, hands folded, he was looking down in shame.

Ajabde smiled, making him look up at her eyes; they were unreadable. She walked past him, turning her back to him as he turned, confused, “Ajabdeh?”

“Sshama? Kis baat ki sshama maang rahe hai aap Kunwar Pratap? Bijolia ki Samanth se bhala apko kaisi….”

“Hum Bijolia ki Baijilal se nahi, apne patni se baat kar rahe hai.”

“Patni?” Ajabdeh smiled, facing him. “Kaisa Patni?”

He looked away as his face showed guilt.

“Kahi aap uss patni ki baat toh nahi kar rahe hai na jo aapke bharose, Bijiolia se yaha aayi thi. Jisne hamesha yeh socha ke chahe duniya uske viprit khadi ho jaaye woh hamesha aapko saath paegi.”

“Ajab….” He looked hurt like a thousand daggers stabbed him.

“Kya aap uss patni ki baat kar rahi hai, jiske laakh kehne ke uprant aapne uska ek baat tak nahi suna? Jiske marte huye pita ke baare mein sunnke aap ne ek baar bhi Bijolia mein pao tak nahi rakha? Keval islie kyunki sambhavta kisine ek chitthi se jo arop lagai thi aapko woh sahi laga…. Kyunki islie ke aapke liye apne patni ke sacchai ke upar tha apke chotima ka aarop?”

“Hum aisa…” A tear trickled down his face and made her heartache.

But she was not weak anymore.

“Ya phir islie kyunki aapko Pur Baisa se vivah karna hai aur aapko apne patni ka samarthan chahiye tha?”

“Bas Kijiye Ajabdeh, bohot bol chuki aap.” He was clearly cross with the last straw.

“Haa Kunwar Pratap, hum bohot bol chuke, lekin aapke bohot bolne se bhi hum apko yeh kabhi nahi keh paaye, apke jhute aarop sunte rahe hum. Sochiye Kunwar Pratap agar aapko aisa lag raha hai sacchai se, toh humko unn jhute arop se kaisa laga hoga? Sochiye ke uss beti ko kaisa lagajab aapke karan apne aakhon ke samne usne apne pita ko….”

“Ajabdeh, hum … hum e pata hai…” He tried to compose himself to say everything he had planned to, all night.

“Jaiye Kunwar Pratap. Aj Kunwarani Ajabdeh Baisa aapse kehti hai, kar lijiye Pur Baisa se vivah aur yeh samajh lijiyega ke aaj ke baad aapki patni bas ek wohi hai, Bijolia ka Baijilal aapko aapke sabhi uttar dwaittyo se mukt karti hai.” She took three steps back as he stretched out his hand to her.

“Nahi Ajabde, nahi…”

“ Maar chukka tha aapka prem, aj maar chuki Kunwarani Ajabde Baisa.”

She turned and took the same stairs down to her palanquin without looking back as he stood there like a statue, this time, alone and helpless, watching her palanquin go.

“Hume shama kijiye hum asafal huye.” Pur’s soft voice made him wipe away the coming tears and turn to her.

“Aap unke piche jaiye, unko aapki avashakta hai.” His voice was calm and composed as he stared at the roads leading to Chittor.

“Ji?” Pur asked, confused.

“Hum…” he smiled faintly “, Jaante hai apne Ajabdeh ko, woh… Hum e dukh deke dukhi na ho aisa ho nahi sakta….”

Pur stood silent, staring at his unreadable face, dumbfounded. She had expected an argument, maybe an ugly one too. Never had she imagined the Bravest valiant Kunwar Pratap to be silenced by Ajabdeh Baisa. And here he was once again worried for her. Pur left in silence as Shakti placed his hand on Kunwar Pratap’s shoulder.

“Sabha bulaiye Ranimahal mein bhai Shakti. Samay aa chukka hai Chotima se kuch jawab mangne ka.” His eyes reflected the fury Shakti had expected.

“Ji Dadabhai.”

“Hum wohi karenge jo aap chahti thi, Ajabdeh. Hum aapke liye yeh yudh bhi jeet lenge jaise pehle jeete thee. Aapko hum yeh yakeen dila denge ke hum kabhi aapka haat nahi chorenge. Yeh Kunwar Pratap ka vachan hai, Kunwarani Ajabdeh Baisa.”

My Everything

Kunwar Pratap stormed into the Mahal at Gogunda amidst uncertainty and chaos. Happy faces of the chieftains and soldiers welcomed him as Rawat Chundawat, and some other chieftains stopped the ongoing Raj Tilak. A visibly scared Kunwar Jagmal looked clueless at a visibly angry Kunwar Pratap. Rani Dheerbai Bhatiyani hadn't expected Kunwar Pratap to show up, that too, despite her conveying to him his father's last wish of crowning Kunwar Jagmal. Twenty-one days after Udai Singh's death, she was finally close to a dream she had dared to dream since Jagmal was born. He was not informed about the Raj Tilak as per Dheerbai's instructions. She eyed Rawat Ji. He must have assembled the chiefs to this revolt against her son, against the dead king. No one except them knew where Kunwar Pratap was staying. It was for the safety of his family. " What are you doing, Chotima?" A disappointed voice was directed at her. She could stoop down so low? For the first time, an anger...

Purnota: Chapter Thirty Six

Bondita opened her door in the usual hours of the morning and found Thamma and Jyatha Moshai on the couch in their living room, sipping tea. She had half sat on her bed, leaning against the pillow all night, imagining her plight when she faced Aniruddha in the morning. What if he did not think of it as much as she thought of his actions? What if that was his uncomfortable way of comforting her because she was upset? But what about his eyes, his gestures? Had she misread all of it? Bondita blushed to herself the moment she remembered how his eyes followed her around for the past two days. Bondita was hurrying through her daily chores, eyeing the clock, for she would be late for work and overheard Trilochon lament about things not changing since Binoy left. He thought that things were getting better at home, but as soon as Aniruddha had left for Sunderban, Binoy informed him that he had changed the attorney in charge of his case. Bondita frowned slightly as her hand stopped at wearing th...

Purnota: Chapter Thirty Five

“The bride is older than the groom.” Aniruddha heard one of the older villagers speak in a judgmental tone. “No wonder the higher castes don’t attend such atrocities.” He eyed the younger man he was talking to, who smiled. Aniruddha was sitting beside them on a bench in the open courtyard of a house where the wedding rituals were taking place. Tirio and Tumdak were playing rhythmically in a corner as some women danced to the tunes surrounding the new bride and groom. The men sat on the other side of the courtyard. “Forget about the Brahmins, we don’t expect them to come.” The younger man shook his head. “As for traditions, what is wrong if the bride is older?” He smiled sheepishly at the older man. “What’s wrong? Everything. Master Moshai, you can be educated, but our ancient traditions have reasons. The groom must be older than the bride. It has some reason.” He shook his head. The teacher, in turn, educated the man that it was a perfectly normal Santhali ritual to marry older wo...

Purnota: Chapter Thirty Seven

“Why will Bondita not come for Holi?” Asha asked as she inspected the colours, Abir, Pichkiri and balloons Somnath had ordered from Baro Bazaar. He shrugged. “She is scared of colours, I think.” Asha smiled, a little amused at her clueless husband. “She is not ten anymore.” He looked up at her words with a sheepish smile, “Well, I never saw her play Holi, perhaps Dadabhai knows the reason.” Asha contemplated her husband’s words. She did not share a relationship with Aniruddha frank enough for him to share things about Bondita. It would be easier for her to ask Bondita instead. “If you wish for her to come,” Som said, like he could almost read her mind, “Perhaps you can invite her. She won’t say no to you.” Asha nodded. “It will be good to have the whole family together. It's not been so since the wedding.” She smiled. Som agreed as he matched the list with the things. “Yes, and Baba will be coming too, he told me not to tell Jethu, but I was surprised by that.” “Maybe because he an...

Purnota: Chapter Thirty Eight

Trilochon was so overwhelmed that Binoy came for the Pujo and Kirtan on Dol Purnima. Their neighbours, friends and acquaintances had all gathered in the Thakur Dalan, first for the pujo when the idol of Sree Radha and Sree Krishna were worshipped in the Dalan, and Horir Loot of Batasha and Naru were distributed. Unlike in the village, people here, especially children, did not fight over the Horir Loot . Bondita and Batuk took part in the ritual like they used to as kids, counting the number of Batasha each of them had, amusing the elders who reminisced about their childhood and how Batuk snatched Bondita’s share and ran as she chased after him, shouting. The Kirtan followed the pujo, the tales of Sree Krishna’s prowess, his Leela and Radha’s sacrifice were sung with the sounds of Dhol and Khanjani . It followed the devotional songs praising Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and his praises to Lord Krishna. Bondita not only liked the stories of Kirtan but also how the crowd joined in the singing and...

Purnota: Chapter Thirty Four

“You are cheating, he can’t play!” Bondita was attracted by the commotion downstairs as she opened the window of her room. She walked out to the balcony to inspect it. It was Sunday, and Padma had promised to make Chicken Curry, knowing Bondita had invited Tapur to join them for lunch. In the courtyard was a group of boys, probably Sidhu’s friends, with a broken pipe for a bat, a wooden plank for a wicket kept between two bricks and a rubber ball, arguing over a game of cricket. Bondita’s eyes stopped at Aniruddha, marking a line with chalk and then measuring feet using steps to mark the boundaries. Bondita looked amused at the sight. “Batuk. You went out fair and square; give me the bat.” Bondita put her hands on her waist as she commanded. Batuk refused to part with his new bat. Som frowned at his brother. “She is right; it was a clean bowl. Give her the bat!” Som commanded. “I was not ready.” Batuk shook his head. “She knew that.” “It's still out.” Bondita frowned. Aniruddha wal...

Towards You

The Afghans, after Sher Shah Suri's untimely demise, were at loggerheads for power. Their troops near Mewar were now led by Mehmood Shah. They secretly captured territories in the forests and waited to attack Mewari camps when the time was right. Rawat Chundawat and his spies had confirmed the news, and Udai Singh sent a warning to Mehmood Shah to withdraw his troops from Mewar in vain. Now that it was out in the open, it was time they declared war. Mehmood Shah had limited resources in Mewar. His internal rebellion against his commander did not help his cause. His spies clearly suggested that in no way could he win, especially with Kunwar Pratap leading his troops. He was having second thoughts about the war. It was then that one of his aides suggested a perfect plan. Maharani Jaivanta Bai had decided to go to the Mahakaleshwar Temple near the outskirts of Chittorgarh, in the forestlands of Bhilwara. They had travelled a long way and across the Gambhiri river that meandered during...

The Difficulties

“The best of our characters are often reflected in our children.” Kunwar Shakta had visited the court at Udaipur after a Turk marriage offer was turned down by Rana Udai Singh for the third time for one of his Princesses. The Ranimahal at Chittorgarh buzzed with rumours of him warning his father about the consequences of enemity with the Turks and also about the impending doom of Mewar. He had apparently irked Kunwar Partap by suggesting a peace alliance with the Timurids was beneficial to Mewar. Rana Udai Singh, in his anger, had banished him from his court. Kunwar Shakta had sworn not to be associated with the royal family any further and to join allies with the Turks. Rawat Chundawat was calm enough to pacify the angry prince and offer him to shift to Bassi and give his decision a second thought. However, Kunwar Partap had refused to abandon Chittor, defying his father’s orders for a shift to the newly founded capital with his Ranimahal. He wanted to stay at Chittorgarh, which...

Scheme of Things

The ousting of Shams Khan and his troops from Chittorgarh earned Kunwar Partap Singh overnight fame across the land as tales of his bravery made their way through the dunes and hills, across rivers and borders to lands far and beyond. At thirteen, he had commanded an army troop to take over the fort of Chittorgarh and restore Mewar’s borders to their former glory. People started comparing him to his forefathers, the great Rana Kumbha, who built forts across Mewar and his grandfather, Rana Sanga, who had united all Rajputs against external threats. As bards sang praises of the prince, gossip soon followed. Gossip was the most entertaining one could get in the mundane city lives and village gatherings, and it often travelled faster than the fastest Marwadi horse. So alongside the tales of his absolute bravery and how he hoisted the Mewari flag on the fort, were the stories of how his life was in danger, the king and queen did not quite get along and how he was made to live in poverty by ...

Endless

Kunwar Pratap reached the Dangal. Ranima had ordered Ajabdeh to practise regularly. She was nowhere around since he woke up that morning. He had assumed she was with Ranima for the morning prayers, but then she was not in the Dangal on time, either. Ajabdeh was never late. He felt a little uneasy as he picked up the sword. A thunder made him look up at the gloomy sky as he felt the first drop of rain. A little wet, he ran through the corridors. Ajabdeh had woken up feeling unwell. He was sleeping after a tiring day, so she decided against calling him and, more, worrying him. She bathed, hoping to feel better, performed her puja and went to the gardens for some fresh air. Still feeling uneasy in the gloomy weather, she decided that playing with Parvati might make her feel better. After some talk with Bhago and playing with Parvati, she stood up from the floor and felt dizzy. Bhago caught her hand. " Are you all right?" " I just felt a little dizzy. I don't know why...

RAABTA

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