‘Get ready fast, we will be late’ Milind reminded me
I looked at the mirror to finish of my make ups. Maroon Shiffon sari I am wearing will attract quite lot of people, I hate the attention that people gives me when I wear this sari. I really hate to get ready for any parties unless it is unavoidable.
I put a nice bindi on my forehead that means I almost finished my makeup. To satisfy myself I looked at the mirror again. ‘You look really pretty in sari’ Milind gave me a complement.
‘I know u didn’t mean it, I look fat na’ I told him
‘ No in sari you look slim and nice, you should wear it often’ he said
We got into the car, Milind rarely gives me compliments, initially I used to get very upset but then I accepted it. Everybody in office will give me compliments, when I wear a new dress or a sari, but the thing is if I do fashion parade in front of Minlind but he won’t be able to tell me whether it is old or new, very bad observation.
I agreed to come for the wedding with a condition that we have to be home by 10. That means we need to leave the wedding venue by 9.45. We reached the hotel around 8 00. Party was already started. As per the Malayalee culture, bride has gone to change her wedding (white sari) sari to the wine color ‘Mantrakodi’. Milind introduced me to his colleagues. I looked around for a known face, nobody around, but I could see lots of Malayalee ladies around wearing heavy saris and lots of gold on their neck and hands. When I see some malayalees around I get bit excitement.
Suddenly I felt I know the lady who was talking and standing near to the door, her face looked very familiar to me. Very slim and fair, real sad eyes, she may be in her late 50’s. Wearing a very simple and elegant dark blue sari, doesn’t have many ornaments on her. I have seen her somewhere, I am sure.
We took a seat in the middle row. I am already bored; Milind left to get his drinks at the counter and I was left alone to be in my own world. I hate the loud music around; to be frank I hate everything in a party. Anyway this lady in the blue sari took me for a toss; it’s like I know her very close, that sad eyes, I know her for sure. I wanted to go and introduce myself to her, it really doesn’t matter much if u know her or not, I can have a malayam chat, but as usual I am double minded. I just sat there debating whether to go and meet or not, by the time I decided to meet her, lady was gone away from the door.
‘Ladies and gentle man, welcome to the wedding reception of Sanket and Anjali’ DJ announce the entry of the Groom and the Bride. I looked at the beautifully decorated stage to see the bride and groom. Boy is very fair and handsome. Girl too is pretty, wearing quite lot of gold on her. Very cute face but on the plump side.
Milind shared the information he heard about the girl, she is from Kottayam.. The lady was in the stage giving some instruction to the bride. ‘That lady near to the bride on stage is very familiar to me’
‘May be she is from Kottayam too’ he replied
The party was very grand, people were enjoying dancing and drinking and eating. On and of Milind joins me, he knows I don’t enjoy any of this. Loud music will give me a head ache in some time; we stand at the line to wish the groom and bride. 'i usually spend my time watching people around; this has become a habit for me to watch their body language, dressing sense ornaments etc. but today I am keeping all my attention to keep an eye on this lady.
Our turn came to wish, Milind’s boss was there close to the groom to introduce his newlywed son and the wife. More than the wishing, my interest was to talk to that lady near to the bride. She smiled at me and as any other malayalee I started talking in Malayalam.
‘Which part of Kerala are you from?’
‘Kanjiram in Kottayam’ she replied
‘When I was small we used to stay in Kanjiram’ I said
‘Ok what is your family name’ she asked me
‘Kunnath, we sold the house to a convent’ I replied
‘Oh my God, we were your neighbor, the next door to the convent we are staying’ she replied
‘Elsy aunty? ’ I was almost shouting
‘Yes dear, I forgot your name..’ she looked at my face
‘Seema, don’t you remember me aunty?’ I asked her
‘How can I forget you dear, you were around 12 when I last saw you, you look very different now, settled in Mumbai?’ she said
‘yes aunty, I am settled in Mumbai, by the way how are u related to Anjali ?’ I asked
‘This is my younger daughter Sona?’ she replied
I almost lost my voice, my best friend around 20 years back is standing here and I couldn’t recognize her. In the stage, people were rushing to wish the groom and the bride; finally I had no option but to leave the place.
I came down; I couldn’t take out my eyes from that girl at the stage. The smart little girl of 10, my best friend in Kanjiram is standing in front of me.
I still remember it was the beginning of summer holiday; we shifted to our new house. The beautiful house near to the river. We were very excited and happy but only problem was we didn’t know anybody around. The place we were staying was a high class locality, high class means who is not really bothered about anybody else around, since we moved from a village we expected the same culture everywhere in Kerala but it was totally different.
In few days we were very bored. The only place we could do time pass was the river side, but since the river was quite deep we did not know swimming we could only try fishing with the rods. No friends at all, we spent most of time near the river, the 25 cent land was covered with strong brick fence, the house was facing to the road, backside of the house was river and both the sides we could see houses but was not at all sure about who is staying there.
Few days passed, our cleaning lady will tell about the left side house stories and tales about the drunkard ‘Moti’ (that’s the name of the person) and his wife Elsy and his two children, Kannu and Sona. Somehow I was very fascinated about this ‘Moti chettan’. One day I climbed our fence to look at their house and this little girl Sona saw me. She climbed her fence and started talking to me. She was younger to me for 5 – 6 years.
In between both the fences there was a wide canal because of that either of us could not manage to reach each other’s houses. If at all either of us has to reach each other’s place we have to walk from the road around 15 min. I liked her so much, very talkative and very knowledgeable and very smart and proud.
I have never seen any other family members in the compound. Always Sona will be making so much noise to her worker Velan. The bad words she use I wonder where she learned it all from. She calls her father by name and very proudly talks about him. ‘Moti is having his own travel agency or something. She talks about their adventurous stay in England and how Moti violated the rule there and all had to run for their life etc.
She became my best friend. Every day we meet at the same place, she in her fence and I in mine. We do fishing together but again she from her fence and me from mine. We even share food through a wooden bridge that we invented, the moment she comes to the fence she will give a whistle which she taught me too, I call her to my house, but she always say her mother won’t allow.
She kept on pestering my mother to send me to her house for a visti. Finally, mom agreed, house was very huge. Very nicely maintained and everything was bit different inside the house. Rooms were all on darker side, the lighting, the furnishing everything inside the house was very different, I knew all were at home including Moti but nobody came out to receive me other than Sona. We spent so much time in their drawing room, Sona brought for me Chips and coffee and then she invited me to see her room in her second floor.
While both of us were going inside to her room her mom came out. She was crying for sure, a very fair lady and I have never seen anybody so thin. She asked me about our shifting and where I am studying etc. , while passing the staircase I saw one gun hanging. Out of curiosity I asked her about the gun. She said it’s her fathers.
Her room was very huge. Kannu was there already, upset on something, crying. Sona locked the door from inside and we spent time in seeing the photos in the album. As a matter of fact, even Sona’s mood was not the same as always. I spent around half an hour more in their house then I left, while leaving I met Moti in the drawing room. Very dark, red eyes and very fat, exactly as I imagined him.
Sona rushed me to the gate and told me to come to our meeting place in the afternoon. I felt very weird about everything in their house. I didn’t tell anything to my mother because I know she will never allow me to go there again. That day onwards Sona started telling her misery of life. Drunkard father who beats his wife and kids. Sona he treats his as a boy, never beats, but Kannu he beats a lot. Also he doesn’t like anybody coming home.
Their mother tried to kill herself many time, now he doesn’t allow her to come out of the house at all. Something like house arrest. Velan and his wife takes care of every house needs. The day Moti doesn’t go to his office you have to expect something very bad. I really felt bad for the little girl but what can I do to help her? I just listen to her patiently.
My holiday ended and I went back to my hostel. I kept on writing letters to Sona, I didn’t dare to send it to her house but I send it along with letter to my parents. She replies the same way. She write and give to my mother along with their writing they post her letter. She tells everything to me, and one day she told me that his father tried to kill his mother with the gun.
I came for my Onam holidays, again she called me home and I went, this time Moti was on a tour. The situation in the house was very different, very pleasant and all were in good mood doing what they want. Kannu, Sona and myself put ‘the flower bed’ we usually put during Onam. I ate lunch with them and I slept in their house in the afternoon. Around 4 Moti came to the house. I could hear the loud noise of fighting in the drawing room and his mother’s loud cries. Kannu suggested that we just hide.
Within 5 min we heard a gunshot. All were scared to death. Sona was literally shivering, she opened the door and ran down and all two of us followed to see her father in pool of blood, and the gun in his hands. Mother crying bitterly. Velan and his wife just staring at Moti and just standing, within no time police came and they declared him dead. Within no time the house filled with people, all neighbors. I was almost in a shock and I couldn’t understand what really happened.
My father came rushing home and within no time I was sent back to my hostel. I wrote to Sona many times but it never reached her I believe, I never got any reply also. Our house was sold off because of some water logging problem we shifted to another place.
Even if I lost touch with Sona, she never left my heart. I remember her on and off, I was sure I would meet her again in life. And today.. I was really happy that I attended this wedding.
‘Shall we move?’ Milind at my side
‘No I just want to meet the bride’ I replied
Milind was sort of shock, usually we are first one to leave any parties and today I am telling him to stay back, my limit time of 9.45 has become almost 10.45 already and still I wanted to stay back?
‘Do u know her?’ he asked
‘Yes I know her, she is Sona’ I replied
He knew everything about Sona, in fact he knows all my friends in childhood, collage days.
The rush to wish was almost over. Photographer is busy clicking photos of the bride now. I waited patiently; finally she came down to me. I just hugged her tight and even if she didn’t knew who I was she also hugged me back so tight.
Then I introduce myself as ‘Seema’. She was almost in a shock, eyes totally filled; again she hugged me tight and then told me on my ear ‘I knew I would meet you again, please keep everything secret as nobody knows anything’
We exchanged the numbers, kept on promising to meet again, happiness filled in me finding an old friend whom I always wanted to meet.. Milind looked at me with a half smile and the watch. It was 12 already!
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