Bharosa kyun jaane tujhpe
Aniruddha came home to Tulsipur every Friday since Patralekha was born as Trilochan wanted Bondita to stay at least three months till Patralekha was able to travel to Calcutta with them. They also needed to figure out how they would manage work and the baby together. Some of the things they were yet to talk of. Aniruddha in the meantime had made sure Bondita made up for the missed classes by collecting notes from Anil and bringing them for her as well as looking for a senior advocate for her to intern with. After a successful week of getting an innocent man out of jail, because he was caught between the revolutionaries, in the wrong place at the wrong time, Aniruddha was tired and drained, fed up with coming back to the empty apartment in Calcutta and counting the days till he got to see his daughter again.
Aniruddha reached Tulsipur late enough to find the house in eerie silence and only the rustling of dried leaves could be heard from the orchards. There was a nip in the air. Bihari greeted him at the threshold and informed him that dinner was waiting to be served. Aniruddha nodded and walked up to the bedroom to get changed. The nursery room set up for the children had the walls filled with crayon scribbles, thanks to Khoka's newfound enthusiasm to 'paint houses'. His bed was made on one corner of the room, where his nanny kept an eye on him while he slept soundly while the other side of the room was set up with a cot. The cot was empty, as expected when Aniruddha peeped in. Bondita would never leave her child in the care of another person for a good night's sleep. Something the Zamindars were used to in their lifestyle. He peered into the bedroom, carefully half-pushing the door making sure he made no noise.
The small creaking sound made Bondita look up from the book she was reading, her hands cupping her face. She smiled at him. The simple grey and red cotton saree she wore fell loosely over her shoulder and her hair was undone, with the sindoor on her hairline a little faded. The bags under her eyes suggested she hadn't managed to get a good night's sleep through the week. Patralekha lay asleep on the Kantha beside her, in the middle of the bed, surrounded by pillows. Aniruddha tiptoed up to catch a glimpse of his sleeping daughter.
"You are here." The happiness in Bondita's voice was inevitable even as she whispered and he nodded with a smile and put his bags down and rushed to the washroom to get fresh.
When he was out of the washroom, rolling the sleeves of his Panjabi up, he noticed Bondita laying the plate of dinner down on the bedside table.
"So how was the case?" She asked as he took a bite of the homemade delicacies.
"What do you think?" He smiled as Bondita nodded. "Congratulations."
"Any luck on my internship?" Bondita's eager question was met with silence.
"Umm. This needs more salt." Aniruddha pointed at the Potoler Dorma. Bondita frowned.
"Barrister Babu?" She asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. The senior you wanted seems to have his hands full. We will get someone else. Don't worry." He avoided looking Bondita in the eye.
"You are not telling me the entire truth, are you?" She asked as he looked up.
"Why will I…" he stopped at her glare with a sigh.
"I have talked to quite a few people and they don't want …" he stopped carefully.
"A mother and wife to work for them?" Bondita completed his sentence.
"They think it is a hobby for you, and your priority elsewhere will hamper their work." He shook his head as he eyed the sleeping child. "I knew this would happen. I tried so hard to convince them but…" A hint of guilt was evident in his voice as he left his food half-eaten. Bondita sighed.
"It is alright, Barrister Babu. I am used to not getting things easy. We will figure it out. Nobody can stop us, I promise." He sat down on the chair of the study table as she placed his hand reassuringly on his shoulder.
"And I know you have guided me through everything else, you will help me now."
He looked up at her words and smiled faintly, getting up to face her.
"How was your week?"
"Tired." She smiled faintly "She wakes up every night around midnight and doesn't sleep at all." She placed her head on his shoulder as Aniruddha smiled faintly, holding her hand in his.
"I am sorry I am not around much to help. These few months have gone by so fast…"
"Take me back to Calcutta." She said, closing her eyes as he hugged her. "I want you not to miss her growing up. And I need to get back to studying."
"Have you thought of…" he asked, placing his hand on her head as she nodded.
"Sampoorna didi offered to take care of Lekha. Bina Pishima's house is fifteen minutes away by rickshaw. And we can drop her off and pick her up between our work and college."
"Does Pishima know?" He asked as Bondita smiled.
"Surprisingly she managed to reassure Kakababu that it will be better for Lekha than staying with Koeli didi if he sends her there."
"Well…" he was about to speak again when the silence of the night was interrupted by the deafening cry of Patralekha. Before her, Aniruddha couldn't imagine that a child her size could be so loud.
"Oh no." Bondita looked like she was on the verge of crying.
"You know what, you sleep tonight. Let me take her." Aniruddha was quick to pick up a rattle and shake it at the crying child. Patralekha seemed annoyed by the sound as her crying increased. Aniruddha picked her up.
"Are you sure?" Bondita asked as he nodded.
"Absolutely." Aniruddha tried to hush Patralekha by cradling her. She stopped for a few seconds, sobbing, then started wailing again.
"This is what I am here for." Bondita nodded at his words a little amused and sat down in the middle of the bed, hugging her knees, as Aniruddha paced the room with the baby in his arms. She didn't seem to care for his tries and wouldn't stop crying.
"She must be hungry." Aniruddha inferred after futilely trying for half an hour as Bondita shook her head. "She was fed an hour back."
"Good lord. What is wrong with you?" Aniruddha exclaimed almost helplessly as he started humming a lullaby and Patralekha sobbed.
"She does this for an hour every night. Then she doesn't sleep at all." Aniruddha looked terrified at Bondita's words.
"This wasn't happening last week." He exclaimed.
"Well, this is a new week. We have grown up a little, haven't we?" Bondita smiled as he shook his head and continued cradling her and singing.
"Try to hold her up. Rest her head on your shoulder. She likes to look around more than at the ceiling." Bondita instructed as Aniruddha did as he was told. Patralekha rested her tiny head on his shoulder, supported by his palm and continued crying, her shrill voice now closer to his eardrums as Aniruddha hoped for the best.
"Somebody stop the child from crying. What is wrong with her?" Trilochan shouted, worried, from the corridor as Bondita smiled, eyeing the helpless father in Aniruddha, trying in vain.
"The effort is on Kakababu." She shouted back as Aniruddha looked at her annoyed, making her stop shouting and smiling.
"The whole house is awake," Trilochan shouted back.
"The war is in full swing, it will be over in an hour." Bondita giggled.
"Hush." He put his finger on his lip as Bondita imitated him with a nod. Suddenly Patralekha stopped crying as Aniruddha looked alarmed at Bondita who was equally surprised. Aniruddha was standing close to the dresser and Lekha seemed to have caught attention to something and stared in awe.
"Oh, who is that? Who is that?" Aniruddha whispered, bringing her closer to the mirror as she looked elsewhere. "Is that the prettiest, smartest, bestest girl in the world? Is that?" Bondita leaned back on the pillow with a smile as Patralekha cooed back to her father. Aniruddha kissed her soft head with a smile and continued to entertain her in the mirror with conversation. He glanced at Bondita due to her lack of response and found her fast asleep on the bed. He smiled.
"Looks like we put Maa to sleep. Will our turn come soon or do we plan to stay awake all night?" Aniruddha found Lekha staring at him.
"Let's go sit in the study with Baba then, let me tell you stories." Aniruddha tiptoed out of the room with her to the study as Bondita slept peacefully after days.
Aniruddha was yawning all day but refused to let Patralekha out of his sight as Khoka played on the mat and Lekha lay in the cot fiddling with her toes and fingers as he watched over both the children in the study room while their mothers ran the house.
"I am sure I kept it somewhere." Binoy shook his head.
"Yes, and the question is where." He heard Trilochan rebuke.
"It is alright. We will find it." Ashapurna reassured.
"You always lose the keys, Baba." Bondita sounded helpless.
"You have become so careless, Binoy."
"This really isn't helping me, Dada."
Aniruddha shook his head and smiled at the children. He missed this homely bickering in Calcutta. He eyed the corridor as Somnath seemed to escape from the scene.
"Som?" He called out as his brother sat down beside his son to check what he was scribbling.
"How is work going?"
"Oh, fine Dada. Boudi said you'd be leaving soon. Khoka will miss Lekha."
"Yes, her internship is to start soon. She has already missed out a lot." Somnath nodded.
"Have you heard from any seniors?" He asked. “Boudi said you have been looking.” Aniruddha shook his head as his face looked worried.
"Don’t worry, you will surely find someone who will see her abilities for who she is.” Somnath made him look up “There are people out there who appreciate talent.”
"I am not so sure." Aniruddha shook his head. “Frankly, I haven’t told her this, as she would worry, but all my resources are exhausted, Som.” He shook his head. “I don’t know what to do.” Somnath cleared his throat. "I know I am not in a position to understand your career nor suggest but..."
Aniruddha smiled as he looked up at his brother. "You are family, Som, any suggestion is for her best interest and is always welcome.”
“Boudi always calls you her Shikshak.” Somnath shrugged.
"So?" Aniruddha frowned.
“Will it be too tall of me to suggest that you take her in as an intern?” Somnath asked, standing up with his hands in his pocket. The bickering outside had reached a point of intense argument as everyone looked for the keys.
“Somnath.” Aniruddha shook his head “I am not that senior or experienced.”
“But you do have interns, right?” Somnath asked. “Your Kingston degree and four odd years of experience here…” Aniruddha nodded.
“But Bondita is different. She deserves the best.”
“What Boudi deserves, Dada is respect for her skills. And nobody can do that better than you. Also, obviously, you are not that experienced but you dared to take up cases others refused. How many at your age have their names on the paper? You always win some and lose some, that’s life. You always told me that. But now, Boudi would like to have her Shikshak Babu making her Haathe Khori into the world of law. Just think about it.” Somnath smiled as he turned to leave.
“Som.” Aniruddha made him glance over his shoulder. “Thank you.” Somnath nodded. He then ran for the portico, hoping none of the others saw him and dragged him into the frantic search for keys. Aniruddha smiled and then focussed back on the children.
"Lekha finally slept. We need to pack. There is so much to do." Bondita sat down on the study room couch as Aniruddha looked up at her. "Asha is in the room with her."
"You are sad," Aniruddha stated as she nodded.
"I will miss home terribly. So will Lekha." Bondita sighed as she looked around the study room.
"She is a child, Bondita. And we will come back home like we promised once your career settles. She will have a childhood in the family like you want. A few more years..." Aniruddha reassured, holding her hand as she smiled faintly. "Well, let's cheer you up with some good news." He cleared his throat.
"You found an internship?" She asked, wide-eyed.
"I found you an internship." Aniruddha's words made Bondita look up as he smiled.
"You said nobody agreed." She frowned. "Did you bribe someone?" She made him laugh.
"No I just happened to forget, there was one senior of yours who was more than willing to trust your capabilities as a Barrister." He shook his head, folding his arms across his chest. “Just your Barristery, not your other sides.”
"Who is that?" Bondita frowned, getting up from the bed.
"Barrister Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury." Her eyes widened a little at his words. "He would like to have you as an intern." Bondita’s eyes shone.
"But… Do you think it is a good idea?" She asked unsurely.
"Better than begging people to believe in you when they write you off for being the best wife and mother." He shrugged.
"Best?" Bondita smiled at his words.
"Best to me, I don't have anyone else to compare you with." Aniruddha chuckled as she narrowed her eyes at him.
"Then we must have some rules." Bondita nodded as he looked up. "Rules?"
"Yes. We need to make sure our professional relationship as a mentor and intern doesn't reflect on our relationship at home and vice versa." He smiled at her words and agreed.
"Okay, you don't want to be recognized as my wife, I understand that." Aniruddha agreed. "I have taken up two more interns, they wouldn't know. I promise."
"Yes, I want people to see my capabilities." Bondita nodded.
"Very well. You can join the internship as soon as we get back or you can take some time to study first."
"I want to start as soon as I can." Bondita shook her head "There have been a lot of delays already."
"Alright, Bondita Roy Chowdhury, welcome to your first real work. I will see you on Monday." Aniruddha extended his hand as she took it with a firm shake. "Thank you, sir." She smiled.
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