Chapter 3
As Nakusha walks through various corridors of the house she remembers Baaji guiding her around the house and recalls this particular room to be Duttas.
Nakusha a little hesitant on looks the partially open door of the room, after a significant pause she enters the room. As she walks in she sees Dutta facing the mirror pulls off his black kurta and throws it aside. Duttas eyes catch Nakusha through the mirror. Seeing that she is just about to turn away and leave the room Dutta stops her. – "
Rukh!"Nakusha startled by that voice a little was under the impression that dutta had not noticed her and she would return later at a more appropriate time. As Nakusha begins to feel a certain growing nervousness lifts her eyes momentarily to see Dutta turn to face her. Stood at a distance..his eyes invite her into the room in a very dominating way. Abiding by this gesture of his Nakusha takes a few steps into the room and stops.
Hearing his footsteps approach Nakushas earlier encounter with him flashes by past her eyes filling her with a insecurity. Watching him approach Nakusha begins to take shuffled steps back away from him as he gets closer, his eyes upon her in a very profound manner.
Noticing the shaky expression Nakusha Is carrying Dutta stops for a moment, takes a very curious look and Nakusha. just as he is about to break the silence the bleep of a mobile phone interrupts. Reaching into his trouser pocket dutta takes a look at the phone display, pressing a button on the phone he puts the phone to is ear his eyes still on Nakusha who finds her way out of the eye lock..dutta could see that Nakusha was about to use this interruption as a means of leaving and uses his eyes in a very expressive fashion telling her to stay right where she is. Nakusha a little unsure, fidgets with her fingers nervously as her eyes follow dutta as he walks across the room. Watching his back walk towards a distance into the room, dutta opens his wardrobe whilst he talks business over the phone. Nakusha scattering her eyes around the room now as she could see nothing more of what dutta was doing as his posture was in the way, waits nervously.
Before she knows it her eyes takes a glance up at dutta who stands before her..in his hands something that gets her attention. It was a pink duppta similar to the one had before he had taken it away last night. A little confused Nakushas eyes look up towards duttas eyes which insist she take It. Nakusha unable to react to the situation hesitates for a second and then finds herself reaching for the material in his hands. As dutta watches Nakusha take the duppata from him, there was something about her that caught his attention. Those green eyes, that innocent look on her face. Almost in a lost state the man on the other side of the phone has to repeat himself twice to get Duttas attention.
Snapping out of this small phase dutta goes back to his conversation..his eyes still lingering on Nakusha ..who looks towards him for a moment..and then turns to leave the room.
…….. As Nakusha steps out into the corridor, looking at that vibrant pink material in her hands. This gesture of his forced her to think twice…maybe he wasn't as she had first perceived.
A month or so on and Nakusha has really bonded with Damodar. She looked after him more like a daughter would than an employee. His medicines, food, what was good for him and what wasn't she had account of all. Walking in with damodors afternoon tea Nakusha is a little cautious of entering, as it had been some time since Dutta had entered the room, she didn't want to intervene. Getting closer to the doorway Nakusha takes a chance and slowly walks in only to find the room fall to an awkward silence. Both dutta and domodar looking towards her Nakusha sensed that she had interrupted some sort of feud. Duttas eyes carried a heated anger and damdor well per character he seemed to look stubborn in whatever the subject manner was. Nakusha is just about to apologise but before she can do so Dutta takes a glare at Damdor who lay at his bedside and walks of in a stride out of the room.
Nakusha had sensed that Damodors relationship with his son was not of the norm, apart of her wished that she could help but It was too much of a personal matter. As Nakusha put the porcelain cup of tea down on the bedside table next to Damodar she new that under that smile of his was a lot of pain.
…
Corridors of the house, Dutta walks out of the room and his fast footsteps take him quite a distance before he finds himself stopping. It was Bhalu dada, his farthers closest friend. Dutta didn't know much of this man, just that that he was very close to Damodar and somewhat unique in characteristics. Dark skin tone, bushy moustache, expressive eyes. His attire very 60's, long sleved black silk shirt and gold chain around his neck.
"Kya reh..dutta tu..phir se jagra kar ke aayay tu bahu ke saath..???"Dutta roles his eyes irritated at the way bhalu dada would always insist on getting involved and more annoyingly he was right they did have another argument. Taking an irritated sigh duttas eyes filled with an certain conviction his words were more of a riddle than anything that really made sense. Moving his eyes to his right shoulder where bhalu dadas hand rested, dutta takes a serious look into his eyes as he speaks.
"Boleyey anpe dost ko ke dutta shri ram patil use itne aasani se marne nahin dega." Bhalu dada a little confused takes his hand off dutta shoulder for a second letting him walk past.
….
As Bhalu Dada enters Damodars room he walks into Nakusha helping domdar drink his tea. Sitting down the wooden chair in a very relaxed manner as every Bhalu dada adds a hint of humor to everything.
"Kya tu yaha aaram se chai pee raha hai aur vaha tera raja mere ko dhamki de kar gayay hai.. Bol raha tha ke tere ko itni assani se marne nahin dega.. "bhalu starts to laugh but Damodor notices how the mention of him passing away upsets Nakusha. Eyeing Nakusha from the side Damodar asks her to give the two of them some space.
Waiting for her to leave Damdors explains himself,
meine bas dutta to itna hein "kaha ke aab mera yey ilaag karvana band kardena chahiyey, ab toe doctor ne bhi keh diya hai ke kuch nahin ho sakta. "Bhalu dada disagreeing shakes his head at the situation he always seemed to find himself in. Before he could make one of his comments Damodar had asked Bhalu to make note of his following words.
Pulling out a pen from the chest pocket of his shirt bhalu dada finds a pcies of paper from his trouser pocket and puts it down on the table before him.
"Bol kya likhna hai..?"Looking up at Damodar for a second Bhalu dada had this strange feeling in his bones..as he hears Damodar say
"vashiyat.." Hearing a slight tweaking of the door moving damodor trails his eyes towards the entrance of the door and catches Nakusha walking away just as his eyes had noticed her. maybe she had overheard.
An hour or so later and as Bhalu dada walks out of Damdors room the likes of baaji, Nakusha and baabi were all waiting worriedly in the lounge of the haveli. Having heard that damdodar was writing his will none of then wanted him to loose hope of life in this way. As Damdor walks into the room, seeing baaji pace the room up and down, Nakusha and baabi sat worried. Baaji is the first one to walk towards Bhalu Dada.
"Kya hua kaka..? "Noticing the way bhalu dada seemed to be looking past him at Nakusha more than anybody baaji has to ask twice before he gets an answer.
"Bhau ne apni vashiyat likh di hai.. pausing noticeably there is a noticeable hesitance on bhalu dadas face before he completes his sentence.
Aur us vashiyat ke mutabik woh chahte hai ke Nakusha unki bahu bane.."An tense silence of disbelief in the room, shocked phases.. baaji is the first one to react pulling that piece of paper out of bhalu dadas pocket to read for himself.
….
Sometime later baaji takes a seat next to Nakusha who is sitting in silence.
"Naku mein jaanta hai ke yey tere leiyey kitna mushkil hai lekin ek baar soch le…agar kaka tere ko kuch vakt ke leigyey apni bahu ke roop mein dekhenge aur aur une is baat se kushi hoti hai toe is mein galat kya hai naku. ? Unke pass ab kuch hein hafte hai uske baad.." Baaji was asking Nakusha to play pretence for the duration of time Damodar was alive.
Nakushas eyes tearing up she takes a look towards the entrance of her room and sees bhalu dada and even her mother with the same reassurance and plea.
….
Sometime later, Bhalu dada walks Nakusha into Damdors room, a calmness on both of there faces but it was obvious that Nakushas had been upset earlier on. Damodor notices this, his eyes calling her to his bedside. Nakusha sits down on the bed close to him and traces a smile. Damodar not convinced, looks from Bhalu to Nakusha the once. "
In logo ne ..koi zabharzati toe nahin ki?"Nakusha nods a no..
"Agar tu chahti hai..toe mana kar sakti hai naku." Damodar watches Nakusha nod a no again. Examining her eyes closely Damodar pauses before he goes on. "
Shayad meri yey khwahish swarth hai.. apne bete ko kush dekhna chahta hoon uske leighyey ek aisa jeevan saath chordna chahta hoon jo uske zindagi mein pyaar bhar de. Aur itna hein nahin..jab se tu is ghar mein aayi hai..jabse meine thuje dutta ke sath khada hua dekha use pal se jaangayay tha ke tum dono ek dusre ke leigyey bane ho." Nakusha happened to look into Damodars eyes and saw something very meaningful but it all seemed to be too much of a fairy story for Nakusha. She could never see herself as the wife and love of somebody like Dutta Shri Ram Patil. Before Nakushas could rethink Damodars fatherly eyes caught her attention. she couldn't let him down, taken a nervous yet calculated swallow Nakusha turns her face to bhalu who nods reassuringly.
A slight silence in the room Nakusha watches Damodar glance towards the circular table and chair at the distance. On top of the table was rested a sliver dish covered in a white material. Damodars eyes directed Nakusha to the direction, thinking for a moment Nakusha slowly gets up from the edge of the bed and walks towards the table. Sensing Damodar and Bhalus eyes watching her Nakusha slowly uncovers the plate to see its contents.
A red bridal saari, with mangalsutra and an ornate container of sindhoor it was now for her to make the decision.
Morning breeze enters Nakushas room, standing in front of the mirror, nakusha dressed in that red saari given to her by damdor, her hair left loose on her shoulders wet nakusha looks into the mirror for a second. taking a glance down to that silver dish that sat on her dressing table. She looks the three things that sit in the plate and her eyes set on the small picture frame that sits amongst other things in the plate. carefully picking up the wooden frame, Nakusha lays eyes on what was a very sophisticated image of Dutta Shri Ram Patil. It was a strange feeling even looking at the image, it seemed unreal almost as if she was touching and experiencing something forbidden to her. Carefully putting down the image on the side of the dressing table, nakusha feels her hands shake as she draws towards the mangalsutra. Black-beads articulated in such a form that they were beautiful. a heart taking a strange rhythm Nakusha picks up the mangalsutra and encircles it around her neck, moving away her hair from the back of her neck which would get intagled. Pausing for a moment nakusha looks down at the sindhoor container, closing her eyes for a second helps her shake of those nerves that had build and more importantly that ethical question of weather she was right or wrong to be doing this. Reopening her eyes nakusha feels a certain moisture in the cups of her eyes as she looks down at the silver container. Flicking open the container with her shaky fingertips Nakusha takes a little of the red power on her fourth finger, pauses for a second to look at that portrait on the table and then fills her parting.
Feeling her eyes film gradually nakusha..takes a calming breath and turn around only to find her mother stood behind her.The look of pride in her mothers eyes and an encouraging glow in those eyes of hers Nakusha hugs her mother tightly..
...
Edited by jagrutid - 13 years ago
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