Young Writers Society

THE RELATION THAT WAS NEVER MADE

Our story starts from a small suburban town Karimganj in some insignificant corner of India. The protagonists are- Mr. Sahai and his wife Mrs. Sahay. For 25 years, they have been living in an old Bombay style chawl. The chawl had very few tenants. It was built in some time during the British era. With peeling off plasters, crumbling walls with their gaping cracks, rusty iron stairs, this chawl is bound to teleport you to the grand old British past. Nothing seems to have changed about the chawl, thought a few modern age posh apartments had mushroomed in its vicinity, in due course of time.

There were few tenants, and most of the rooms were locked, and for obvious reasons. Employment was scarce in Karimganj. The locality was quiet , except for a gang of skimpily clad street urchins hollering about at noon. Sahai lived in a two- room apartment with his wife. Their son Gautam was staying abroad for 5 years. He was the CEO of FISCO TELECOM LTD. during this long time never had he called even once. Nor did he ever send any money. Mr Sahai had a small electronics repair shop. Days seemed reluctant to pass. Gautam was slowly rising fame .The media was full of him. The two sole means of recreation had also become tasteless to the old couple. Gautam had become an eyesore to both his mom and dad. Each award he won was a stab at their hearts. And why wouldn’t it be? The issue was never money. Sahai had never asked for a penny from him. The issue was that Gautam had totally forgotten his parents. He was ASHAMED of them, ashamed of being called the son of a miserable self-employed father. That was what stung them. One day the frustrated father burnt down all the newspapers which were meant for the kabadiwallah, and did away with the cable connection. His wife kept watching silent, sharing his pain. A sabziwallah passed by every day, with whom Mr. Sahai bargained at the top of his voice, only to buy a lauki and some potatoes. Onions—no way, they were too expensive. Every day the poor sabziwallah hurled abuses, which seemed like music to his ears, purpose of his existence.

Why don’t you do away with this madness and accept that he is never coming back? One day Mrs. Sahai asked.

Maybe be because I am his father.

And that was the end of the conversation.

Occasionally they were invited to wedding parties, wedding cards came, but they never went. Relatives called. The phone kept on ringing. No one ever picked it up. Gradually the phone calls also subsided. There was only one other object in the whole locality, which superseded them in years. It was the banyan tree right next to their chawl. It seemed to be getting miraculously younger and greener day by day. Mr Sahai looked at it, and remembered his own younger days when he was a robust lad. When friends, cricket matches, and clubbing circled his life. He used to look at his wrinkles, let out a deep sigh and went off to work. He owned a small repair shop just a few yards from his house. Needless to say, the shop was as small as his apartment. Broken TV sets, mobile phones with disrupted functioning, cranky radio sets, landline telephones lay piled in the shop-Satyanarayan stores. He worked 12 hours from10 am to 10 pm, only to earn about Rs 3000 a month.

It was a rainy Tuesday in the middle of July. Nothing was visible beyond the translucent haze, which seemed to gobble up the atmosphere. This downpour was straight-and unstoppable. The patter patter was almost bursting the eardrums. Doors and windows of every other apartment were slammed shut, except that of the Sahais. Mr sahai, while returning from work, found a small blacl pup.whic seemed homeless.he took it home.

His wife was allergic to dogs, their fur made her sneeze- quarrels followed-quarrels reached to such an extent that Mr. Sahai threatened to divorce his wife.

And that was again, the end of the argument.

(After 8 years)

The once little pup had now grown into a full-grown shiny black Doberman ,named Ghanshyam. Mrs Sahai was now not her former self. Her allergy vanished. Her sneezing stopped. The dog  was named Ghanshyam, now became the heart of the house. The sabziwallah still came, but no one bargained. Gautam's memories had been flushed out.he was past.

One day, It happened, that Mrs. Sahai’s sister Sheela dropped by to meet her.She was from an affluent family in Indore.Not that she was particularly ill-mannered,but the possession of a vast property naturally carried an air of haughtiness about it. Her son Rakesh was going to be married .She enquired about Gautam."What are you waiting for,sister,well, if money's a problem..." without thinking, Mr Sahai said his wedding was already fixed."oh! I can't wait for that day!".She finished the tea a nd left,with the same air of haughtiness she had come with,leaving a sign of her opulence- a silver-gilded and wood-carved wedding card on the table.

“What did you do? How are we going to show our face to the society?” the old lady broke down into tears, her frail structure shaking convulsively.

“I swear if he wasn’t my son I would have chopped him to pieces and fed them to Ghanshyam !” Mr Sahai growled.

“But what now? ” The convulsions were now subsiding.

“Call him.”

“But you know he won’t pick up the phone.”

“Just call him, tell him his father is on his deathbed and wants to see him settled before he dies”

His orders were followed and Gautam accordingly rushed home. He was insensitive, inhumane, but not enough to let his father die on him before fulfilling his last wish. He arrived just the week after he was called. He looked like he sucked corporate life like people breathe oxygen. He looked corporate, he smelt corporate, and he even had his own private jet, which landed right on the barren next to their derelict house. People kept staring in awe at the barren piece of land. He wore rimless glasses, a Rolex watch, a beige suit and white linen shirt, with semi coloured aviators clinging to the collar. He was well –built, a little stocky, and clean-shaven, with button eyes. Conversations with his parents were as cold as ever. Small questions and curt replies followed. Why Ghanshyam barked at him every time he saw him, it is still not known. Matrimonial columns in newspapers were combed, and ultimately a girl named Meeta was zeroed upon .22 years of age, wheatish complexion dark expressive eyes and an expert in cooking and north Indian classical, she was in every sense, a sarvaguna sampanna. Engagement followed and very few relatives were called-especially sheela mausi. What to do, Murg Masallam was a must, and onions were still very expensive. As 21st century convention demands, the two parties met and the boy and the girl were sent, to talk alone.

Meeta and Gautam were walking side by side Adarsh gardens.

“I shall have to leave day after tomorrow.” this was Gautam’s start to their first conversation.

Poor meeta didn’t know what to say

“Busy work schedule. Nothing to do.”

Well...then can I get your contact number?

“Yes” Gautam gave his contact number

They didn’t talk about anything more significant that day.

When Gautam went home, ghanshyam was still barking at him.

The "day after tomorrow” came. Gautam was packing his bags, when his cell phone vibrated. Meanwhile, Mrs. Sahai had come to his room to tell him that dinner was ready. His flight was at 1am.she suddenly became suspicious on seeing him smiling and whispering on the phone in a strange way. He bit his lips and kissed the phone. She read from his lip move movements-love you sweetheart. Gautam suddenly hit upon his mother. Taken aback, he didn’t know what to say.

“Mm...Mom...boss, boss had called... ” then he laughed in an awkward manner.

Mrs Sahai, staring with stone eyes, and a frozen posture, said "dinner’s ready" and left. That night she cried her heart out, digging her face on a pillow. She did not go to see Gautam off to the airport. ”Slight headache” was her excuse. While he was opening the gate, Ghanshyam still kept barking at him.” God knows what is wrong with him, never behaved this way.

What followed was that Mrs. Sahai was victimised to two constant weeks of nausea and vomiting. Meeta, was very homely or ‘gharelu’ by nature. She herself offered to stay back to serve her mother-in law. Every time the old lady looked at her, she wondered whether to tell or not. Meeta did everything, from changing the bed sheet, to cooking, to helping her go to the loo. She couldn’t make out why her mother in law was getting frailer and sicker day by day. Doctors were consulted, but all in vain.

One day, Mrs Sahai called Meeta to her bed, took her hands in her own, and asked” what do you expect from this marriage beta?”

“What makes you ask this, Maaji?”

“Just tell me”

“Well, I just wish he treats me well, never hurts me, and gives me the true dignity of his wife, which I am sure he will give.”

“And love, don’t you want his love?”

Meet’s cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. After all, she was her mother in law.

“Well...to me love is nothing but mutual adjustment, mutual understanding, nothing else. Mere liye to yahi pyaar hai, maaji”.

Then Mrs. Sahai lay down on her bed, and closed her eyes, wishing never to get up again. She could no longer bear to see Meeta’s face.

Mean while ghanshyam and meeta had become the best of friends. For the first time, she had found a true companion, that too in an orphaned Doberman. They used to play with Frisbees, when Meeta did her riyaaz, ghanshyam used to sit beside her quietly, listening. It’s a mystery what head or tail he made of the words.

“main to teri jogan ban gayi radhesyam”

Bed ridden Mrs. Sahai used to listen to her sweet voice and felt at peace. Now she could finally perceive her way to heaven. Mr Sahai remained as grumpy as ever, wishing Gautam would come back as soon as his work was over. He didn’t like the idea of his daughter in law staying in their house in the absence of his son. However, he too admitted that Meeta was a jewel of a girl. Gautam couldn’t have got a wife better than her.

Meeta had tried to call Gautam several times, but everytime the phone remained ‘busy’ or ‘unreachable’. Meeta wondered how busy he remained. She pitied him.

“I wish Gautam’s boss wouldn’t exploit him so much” she mumbled to herself. As days passed she naturally began to miss, then began suspecting. She rang his number so many times that he ultimately had to pick it up.

“Yes, what is it?”

“Nothing, just...I was missing you.”

“You useless woman! Can’t you see I am busy ?Another voice was heard, over the phone “leave the phone darling. I’m waiting.” It appeared to be a woman’s voice. Sounds of nudging and pushing followed. this is outrageous .I am in the middle of an important conference. You....don’t you ever call again!!!”What followed was a beep and that was that.

The cell phone dropped from Meeta’s hands, and she feel down with a thud. No, she didn’t faint, neither did she cry, she was dead. She was breathing, still dead. Her eyes were wide open, unblinking

It seems she lay there for over a hour.mr Sahai was in his repair shop, and his ailing wife was long under the spell of sedatives. The day was scorching hot and humid in the middle of august. Not a leaf moved. As evening drew near, Meeta finally started regaining her senses. Feeling claustrophobic, she rushed to backyard behind the water tank. Ghanshyam was sitting there lapping up the delicious curry which Meeta had made that day, forgetting the world around him. Packets of Pedigree lay in the kitchen, but Ghanshyam wouldn’t have any of it. Even stones cooked by Meeta were welcome to him. Meeta was his world. As Ghanshyam went on quenching his appetite, Meeta stared at him with loving eyes. The dog had been her only friend, her only companion during the moments of her fatal solitude, her only partner in innocent crimes, like stealing guavas from the Bhatias orchard two-three lanes away from their chawl. Her eyes welled up in tears of elation. Gautam and his hurtful words were now a distant dream. The humid, windless day now tended to melt around her. A cool breeze started blowing, and the sky was stained vermillion, with a drowsy sun, impatient to hide itself behind the clouds, and go to sleep. It was 7 in the evening. Mr Sahai was still in his shop, and Meeta could hear her mother in law snoring. Her feet slowly began to creep towards Ghanshyam. Tinkling of her anklets reached Ghanshyam’s ears. He let out a slight woof of joy. Meeta picked him up, and Ghanshyam began licking her nose. She held him tight to her bosoms, sped to her room, and bolted it. Anyone can guess what followed. After an hour of romping, snatching , licking ,biting and kissing, therein lay Meeta and Ghanshyam under the bed, Ghanshyam still licking away and sniffing her breasts, nipples and bottom ,and Meeta taking it all in. Her shapely body was clothed with bruises and saliva. Her newly ironed peach coloured blue bordered-crisp saree lay on the other side, all creased and dirty. Her delicious black curls were tangled, and there were imprints of her teeth on Ghanshyams’s ears. At last, she could feel her cravings satisfied. Ghanshyam had provided her with what Gautam had deprived her of. She was his now. The two sinners lay there, unaware of the clock ticking away.

The effect of the sedatives gradually ceased. Mrs Sashay opened her eyes. She called Meeta thrice. No answer came. Normally this didn’t happen. She wondered where she was, tried to get up, but fell down on the bed. Mr Sahai returned late from work, at midnight. He knocked the door several times. Getting no answer, he grumbled his usual grumble. “God knows where this girl is!” he went towards the kitchen window to see if Meeta was there, and called again. To his astonishment, the back door was ajar. That too, at midnight. such carelessness on Meeta’s part was outrageous. He at once decided to send her back .going inside, he found Meeta’s room shut from inside. Ghanshyam was also nowhere to be seen. He didn’t want to wake her up, lest she should have fallen asleep. However ,his tremendous appetite made him knock the door. He had no idea where dinner was kept and could not wait for it. “Meeta! beta” He heard barking .he couldn’t understand. inside, Meeta, listless, was at once jolted to her senses, on hearing Mr Sahai’s voice. She took about ten full minutes to somehow wrap the saree around her ,button up her chemise and tie her petticoat. she pressed the matted curls behind her ears. It hurt like hell. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door. Looking at Meeta, Mr Sahai at once sensed something uncanny. Ghanshyam, habitually jumped on his lap. on the niche beside Meeta’s room, lay the Frisbee. Mr Sahai picked it up, and threw it hard backwards, Ghanshyam ran off.

“What was Ghanshyam doing in your room ,Meeta?”

Meeta with terror –struck eyes blurted out some confused words.

“I...um..Gh Ghanshyam wouldn’t eat today. something ..was wrong with him. so I took him to m..y room to make him eat something.”

Her tousled hair, unkempt saree, the bruises ,everything ,smell of dog urine....everything showed that she lied.Mr Sahai began shivering with fury. “you filthy woman! W..with a dog! didn’t even spare a poor dog!”he slapped her with all the force his body could accumulate. Meeta stood there, frozen. inside, his wife was getting bewildered. Mr.Sahai was no more in his senses. with blood-tinted eyes, he was going to grab her throat, when ,in a flash she stopped him mid way and pushed him away.

“Yes, I am a filthy woman !i was filthy till yesterday .I yielded to your son’s promise, that he would return .I BELIEVED in him.that’s what made me filthy. now i am purified. what you see, what you think, is all true.i am no longer that filthy gautam’s woul’d be wife.he cheated on me.i cheated on him.deal is over!”

Mr sahai felt his ears turn hot. Inside, Mrs. Sahai was going livid.the conversation was loud and intense enough to clarify what had happened.she could hold her breath no longer. the kennel services were called.they arrived at once in the next morning, ghanshyam was taken away. “Poor dog has gone mad.not safe these days” was what neighbours were told. Meeta listened to his barking and struggling,and banged the door with all her might,but to no effect.mr sahai had somehow managed to lock her up.meeta wailed all afternoon. meanwhile,it was also discovered that Mrs. Sahai had died.coffin was called and she too was taken away, without any mourning, without any ceremony.mr sahai sat on the backdoor stairs till late evening,stll as if he no longer lived.crickets started singing.meeta had also stopped crying.

Mr sahai got up mechanically,reached for the telephone,when coincidentally,it rang. it was Gautam.

“hello dad.just called to say that plans changed.it happened suddenly..couldnt get time to tell you erlier.dad i am going to marry Pansy.she’s my co-worker.we love each other very much.the wedding’s on the 30th of this month.i’l send the card by parcel.you and maa are invited.bye.”beep sound followed.the receiver fell from the old father’s hands just like it had fallen from meeta’s.he couldn’t be sure if he was even alive.

What followe was,Father in law at once onlocked the door,rushed to meeta,fell at her feet, then after some time, began stroking her head with the little fatherly affection that was left inside.

“i lost both my sons, and my wife.now i don’t want to lose my daughter.”

They were both crying, but this time they were tears of joy. one relationship had given away to another.