Wails echoed through the corridors of the armed forcescolony as the bodies of the brave departed souls reached their homes. People ran alongside the vehicles decorated with bright and fresh marigold, lilies and roses. It looked so colourful that people could mistake it for a Ganpathi visarjan but for the huge portrait that adorned the front of the vehicle with a white and red coloured garland. Patriotic songs played full blast as people along the road showered them with flowers. Col Vijay Tiwari wished that this patriotism remains ever after and all those mothers who are showering the flowers also shower their blessings and let their child go to fight for the motherland.Sadly, that nationalism is slowly becoming bereft and being restricted to moments like these. Retired Col Vijay Tiwari knew how to mask his emotions and years of practice had made him perfect. He put up a stoic face as the vehicle finally reached and stopped by the Tiwari house. The only person who could see through the exterior was his mentee and right-hand man Sanjay. He quickly stepped before the crowd who had made their way to the Tiwari house showering flowers and the journalists who were waiting for any freaking piece of news to make headlines and nothing beats a headline like “India’s women in uniform walk shoulder to shoulder with men in uniform in life and death”. The trps would shoot up and the headlines could be run the whole day. Sanjay politely joined his hands asking the crowd to step away and he strongly pushed some people away who refused to listen. He felt someone grabbing his shoulders from the back and he immediately turned to see his mentor losing his foothold. Sanjay quickly turned to hold him by his waist and made him sit on a nearby chair as he sprinkled some water.Sanjay in his entire career had never seen a weak Vijay Tiwari and he probably understood that this was a weak father and not the armyman. Minutes passed by as he watched Vijay Tiwari sat there unmoving. The buzz around was growing and the rest of the family-Kanchan, Chacha, Chachi , the entire Malhotra family stood expectedly looking at him. Finally, Sanjay sat on his knees next to his mentor and nudged him “Sir, Its time to bring her home”. Vijay finally looked at him and blinked and then gently nodded giving him a go.
People watched as the coffin was opened and pale, still face of Suman came into view covered in a white shroud. A loud wail went up in the air as a generally sombre and composed Anjali Tiwari rushed in pushing everybodyaway and fell on her daughter’s body holding her lifeless body close to her heart and sobbing looking up at the sky before the rest of the family gathered around her grieving for their beloved child and trying to calm down the hapless mother. Slowly Vijay Tiwari got up from his chair and with a little help from Sanjay walked towards his beloved child’s body and lifted his shaky fingers to run along the silky hairs of Suman’s head. She was cold and hardened now but looked peaceful and he felt she was trying to grasp all the love father was trying to shower on the daughter one last time before the final goodbye.Suddenly Anjali held his wrist and sharply told him “Stay away, stay away from my daughter. You knew the dangers of this mission and still you let her go. You are my daughter’s murderer. I never stopped you from going anywhere neither did I stop you when Suman wanted to join the army but you have snatched away my only child and I will never ever forgive you for this”. Vijay had never seen this side of Anjali but he understood today, the pain of a mother losing her child is something he can probably fathom but not feel. Slowly he walked away from Suman and sat on the cold white concrete steps of the house watching the entire sequence of events.
It was late in the night and there was a chill in the air and in the hearts of the Tiwary house. Vijay Tiwari made his way to the terrace to Suman’s room when he saw Kavita Malhotra trying to pacify Anjali , two mothers united in grief were trying to find solace in each other’s arms. He looked at Suman’s room to feel her, hold her as he ran his fingers over each and every small item which identified Suman. He finally took in his trembling fingers a small photo of Suman & Shravan together in uniform and unable to control broke down in tears. He clutched the frame and sat on Suman’s bed as his tears drenched his shirt . It was a while later that Sanjay followed him to the room and wrapped a light coffee coloured shawl around his shoulders. Sanjay finally asked, “Could you have stopped this?”Vijay looked at him for some time and then nodded a “Yes”. Sanjay a little surprised asked “So why did not you stop her? Is it because of duty or something else”? Vijay composed himself a little and said “My daughter loved her profession and country so much that she would have gone anyways. But she loved somebody else as well and that was Major Shravan Malhotra. I have seen her struggle through those gruelling months when he had come wrapped in the tricolour.She fought to keep her emotions in control and do her duty but it was killing her inside. She missed Shravan terribly and he was her breath, her blood , her reason to live. I could see her loosing the battle everyday losing focus,loosing appetite, losing the zeal to live. The night before she left, I had pleaded with her not to go in the dangerous terrains where we already had so many casualties but she had told me –Papa let me go, I am feeling claustrophobic without him. He is alone and he is calling out to me. We are together in seven lives in our hearts, in our souls, in our blood, in our breaths. If you want me to leave this world happily let me go Papa. Fulfil my last wish, do not stop me from going to him”. Sanjay sat next to him, holding him by his shoulders, afather torn between a daughter and a lover, as the night grew dark and silent.
