Protidaan: Chapter Thirteen

I will be forever grateful to Bibha for walking into my room in the morning. She looked stressed and sleepless and wanted to speak with me. I shook my head, murmuring, “Not now,” as I hid my head in some papers, trying to appear busy. Bibha refused to leave.

“It is about Lata.” She finally said. I looked up at her, quite irked.

“Oh, did she send you here to advocate for her?” I taunted Bibha. She shook her head.

“I don’t want people to misunderstand her because of me.” Her words made me frown.

“Because of you?” I asked. “What do you mean?”

“I can’t tell you. Lata will. Hear her out.” Her eyes travelled to the door where she stood, behind the curtain. I inhaled.

“Bibha, if this is one of your tricks to…”

“It is not, shotti bolchi Dada. Hear it from her. It is not what you think.” She didn’t wait for me to protest as she ran away, and Lata stood at the threshold. I looked back at my papers. She was still at the threshold, as I eyed her.

“Will you need a mic to explain things to me from there?” I scolded, prompting her to come inside the room.

“You said you didn’t want to see me.” She complained softly, her voice choking in her tears.

“It is too late for that, isn’t it?” I shrugged without sparing her a glance. She stood there for a while. “Will you speak up?” I said again. The suspense was killing me. A part of me wanted details. Details of who this person was, how they met and what made Lata like him. Another part of me wanted to distance myself from all of this and concentrate on how it might affect her future.

She looked intimidated and unsure. She eyed the doorway twice before whispering that the letter was not hers. I wasn’t sure what she meant. Did she think all of us were fools? It was found in her notebook by Kakima. The obvious question was who it belonged to.

“Didi.” She murmured almost in a whisper.

“WHAT?” I stood up from my chair as she stepped back, a little intimidated.

“First, promise me you won’t scold her.” Lata looked up, teary-eyed. I frowned, disturbed. She was facing everyone’s wrath quietly for Bibha? It made no sense. Why would she do that? Who did Bibha correspond with? She narrated the tale of the teacher to me in sugar-coated words, making him sound almost perfect. I immediately wondered what she left out, or perhaps she was repeating the exact words Bibha taught her. Now I was disappointed in both of them. I walked away, leaving her still in tears in the middle of my room. I needed to think.

I was about to take a walk to clear my head that day when I saw Lata’s Kaka in Thamma’s presence.

“Her Kakima tells me we should look for a groom.” I stopped at his words and eyed Thamma’s unreadable face.

“She is studying now.” Thamma shook her head, raising her brows. I walked towards them.

“Yes, but such things spread rumours and…” Kaka stopped at my sight and was about to get up to greet me when I stopped him.

“That is no solution,” I said, making Thamma look up at me with a frown. “I will talk to her and make sure she learns a lesson. Such things won’t be repeated. I take the responsibility for it.” I spoke as Thamma frowned some more.

“But, do you know who it was for?” Kaka asked, a little disturbed. I shook my head. He left soon after. Thamma stopped me as soon as he was gone.

“Do you know something?” She asked suspiciously. “What Lata had done...”

Was to save your honour… I wish I could tell her that. Instead, I reassured her that it wasn’t Lata’s. It was her friend’s. That wasn’t Lata’s handwriting. Thamma nodded, partially convinced. She told me to scold her about the bad company. I couldn’t tell her further, so I walked away.

That evening, I summoned Bibha to the library when everyone was done with dinner. I rebuked her for being an emotional fool, for believing everything a man said, and reminded her that our status and class are very different from his. For the first time in my life, I saw her protest. She said he loved and honoured her and would go to any lengths for her. I slapped her. I had never raised my hand to her before. She was always the most pampered in the house. Her sudden rebellious streak scared me. I was responsible for looking after them. What would I tell Dada if he ever came to know of this? And Thamma? She would be so angry. Bibha stood there for a moment, not able to comprehend what had happened, and then she retorted at me that I didn’t care for her. Only Lata understood her. I tried to check my voice and reason with her. The love she read of in books didn’t feed hungry stomachs nor give what one needed to survive. Before she knew it would fly straight out of the window. She smiled the most sarcastic smile I have ever seen.

“What do you know of love?” She had asked. I was quiet. Not because she was right. But because I wasn’t answerable to her. Yes, perhaps I was no fool in love like her. And my love has its limits. But for the three years that I knew and the many more before, when I never realised, I had felt the feeling she was now familiar with. She shook her head, teary-eyed, and walked away as I tried in vain to stop her. I knew she wouldn’t listen to me.

I was in a way relieved to know that the letter wasn’t Lata’s. But Bibha? Was she naive enough to believe that they could have a potential future just because they liked each other? By midnight, lost in my thoughts, I was sure of it. This man was after our family inheritance. He didn’t love Bibha. He just persuaded her to believe him. Naive as she was, she was easy prey to his plans. If only Bibha could meet someone worthy of her and see for herself that she deserved better. I stopped pacing. I needed to snap her out of this. It needed to be done before she left for Calcutta for college.

Lata walked into my room the next morning, putting the Panjabi down on the bed while I combed my wet hair in the mirror. She stood there, prompting me to eye her through the reflection as she cleared her throat.

“What is it now?” I turned to face her.

“I… sewed your button back.” She said, looking away. I sighed. I remembered giving her the Panjabi. She sewed back all of Ananta and my missing buttons, as Bibha never bothered, and Thamma’s hands trembled nowadays.

“Umm… about the… letter…” She stopped as I glared at her.

“What now? You two have done enough already.” I rebuked.

“Meet him once.” Her words came almost sounding like a statement, not a plea. My brows shot up.

“You only tell me not to judge people before knowing them, Deb Da. If Didi likes him…” I had made her stop. I didn’t want to be part of this. I didn’t want to hear anything further on this topic, ever again. I made it clear to her, and she shook her head, a little disappointed. I reminded her that instead of supporting Bibha’s stupidity, she should have been wise enough to talk her out of it or perhaps let me know. She was quiet and looked away. Unlike Bibha, she didn’t respond. Instead, she kept saying I should meet a person before rejecting them. I ended up scolding her. That prompted her to walk away from my room.

I met the man the next week, in secrecy, in the forest, just as Lata wanted me to.

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...

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...

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...

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...

Purnota: Chapter Forty One

Kalindi stood looking at the Ganga in the distance as Trilochon watched her. It was later in the night, and the stars were veiling the clear summer sky. A cool breeze blew from the Ganga, relaxing Kalindi’s restless heart as she took a stroll. Trilochon had spotted her in the garden from his balcony and walked up to her. She did not turn as he came up behind her and cleared his throat. “I apologise for storming off like that.” He was the first to speak. Kalindi inhaled. “Have you heard that she went to borrow a saree from Bouma to wear to some party?” Kalindi spoke rather monotonously. “Yes, Bouma said so.” Trilochon cleared his throat. He left out the part where Asha enthusiastically told him about Bondita blushing and her idea of telling Bondita to confess her feelings. Instead, Trilochon added, “The senior is very influential. He can have some good contacts for Bondita. Perhaps enough for her to get a job in Kolkata, like you wanted.” Kalindi could hear through his unconvincing...

His Wife

" Where is the Kesar, Rama? And the Kalash?" Ajabdeh looked visibly displeased at the ladies who ran around. " They are at the fort gates, and nothing is ready yet!" She exclaimed. She was clad in a red lehenga and the jewellery she had inherited as the first Kunwarani of the crown prince. Little Amar ran down the hallway towards his mother. " Maasa Maasa... who is coming with Daajiraj?" His innocent question made her heart sink. " Bhanwar Ji." Sajja Bai called out to him. " Come here, I will tell you." Amar rushed to his Majhli Dadisa., " Ajabdeh." She turned at Jaivanta Bai's call. "They are here." " M... My Aarti thali..." Ajabde looked lost like never before. Jaivanta Bai held her stone-cold hands, making her stop. She patted her head and gave her a hug. The hug gave her the comfort she was looking for as her racing heart calmed down. Jaivanta Bai left her alone with her thaal. " Maa sa!" ...

Life and You

" Maharanisa! Maharanisa!" The maid-in-waiting ran through the quiet Rani Mahal as Jaivanta Bai, who was sitting in front of the Lord in her room ever since she was back, rushed out of her room, followed by Sajjabai and Veerbai. " What happened?" She asked, her voice calm, but her heart thumping. " Kunwarsa is here... with Kunwarani... She... She...." The maid sobbed as Jaivanta Bai rushed to the room. She stood at the door as her eyes could not believe what she saw. Kunwar Pratap was soaked in her blood as he laid her down on the bed, shouting, " Quick. Rajvaidya..." His eyes stopped at the door as Jaivanta Bai rushed to be beside the unconscious Ajabdeh. The Daasis and Sevaks were running about soon enough. Sajja Bai gasped at the scene. So much blood. Kunwar Pratap had not noticed anything except her calm, unconscious face. Now that he noticed his blood-soaked, red hands, he stared at them as though in a trance. "Kunwar Pratap! Tell me w...

RAABTA

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