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Chapter 2
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Diwakar Bhardwaj was very fond of his mother Radha, and learnt many a thing from her. She used to take him to her parent's house in Siliguri. She was born to Barun Battacharya and Rukmini on 13th September, 1920. They were devout and God fearing people. Barun was a well educated man, and spoke English very well, as in those days, one could not get through life, without knowing the language, as Englishmen, flooded the hill stations in summer, and let their bungalows be looked after when they were away. Barun's ancestors came from a village on the river Ganges that flowed through Bengal. They thrived fishing in the river and became prosperous. When the missionaries came and started schools, they sent their children and had a decent education, and were able to join the services in the Government and railways. On this railway, the grandfather of Barun traveled from his village to Siliguri, and took a piece of land on which many local people already lived. In those days, the Government run by the English, transferred land rights to those who could pay the land rent. Ashok Battacharya was a good man, and did not oust the people living on his land, and they helped him to build his first home, where be brought his wife from the village, and they had a large family, and many grew up and joined the railway, and some went to the tea estates to work as supervisors and accountants. People mixed with one another and each practiced their faith, and joined in one another's festivals. Thus by the time Barun was born, on 21st March 1885, it was a harmonious place, and the currents of ideas flowed freely and people prospered. In this environment, Radha Battacharya was born, went to school in a convent run school, and learnt the things that were taught in the school, as well as all the things about her family's past from her grandmother.
It was into this fertile pasture of humanity, did Diwakar enter as a child, and absorbed a part of it into his own life. Respect for his neighbor, and reaching out to those in need was something he learnt from his mother. He roamed the hills of Siliguri, with his cousins and he was familiar with all the ferns and fauna of the place, and they would pick plants and re-plant them in their own courtyard, and grow flowers of different colors and kinds. Radha's mother had her own vegetable garden where she grow most of the things she needed for her kitchen. The neighbours would bring other stuff, and she would buy from them, thus the community lived by depending one one another's skills and trade. Sometimes, the village women, would bring colorful blankets and garments, and the Battacharyas would buy them and adorn their home.
On 15th August 1968, Gopal and Radha found a nice girl from Kolkata belonging to a rich and educated family. Her name was Anjali Roy. She grew in a family who copied all the mannerisms of the English and were very particular with their table manners, and etiquette. Anjali drew from the upper class all these qualities, she was sober, independent, spoke good English, as well as her own language. She was well versed in the literature of her Bengal, and was familiar with the activities of the stalwarts of her time and those of her parents. She brought to the Bhardwaj family all these qualities, and it was a sweet mix of old and new. Diwakar with his down to earth attitude and simple in his way of life, and Anjali with her sophisticated city life. She found it hard to exist in far away Sikkim, and soon Diwakar decided to move to Siliguri. It was in this Bhardwaj Nivas he brought his young wife, and she ruled the roost with the help of her Maid, and all the servants and was busy with the social activities of the town. She mixed with the Anglicized crowds of Independent India, and her day was dotted with many appointments, and she was in great demand, in the social circles of Siliguri. Diwakar and Anjali became very important citizens of this town, and when Diwakar was transferred to Bombay a year after their marriage, Anjali could carry on with her engagements and did not miss her husband much. She loved him very much, and kept in touch on the telephone and Diwakar came home regularly, almost every month.
When Diwakar was in Bombay, on a transfer, he used to go home to Sikkim regularly, and one day, they decided to sell their property there, in Sikkim and move to Siliguri, and buy some land and build a house. This way, they could be close to the mother's house and it would be safe for Anjali, when Diwakar had to go on transfers. He used to get regular income from his grandfather's estate, which was being run as a public company by now. Diwakar received a large chunk of shares in the Company, and received regular dividends. His father, Gopal Krishna had retired, and lived in their own house in Siliguri. So Diwakar built a new home, and called it Bhardwaj Nivas. It had a huge gate, at the entrance and a grassy path leading upwards to the bungalow, built on the hill top, with a view to all that beautiful land that surrounded it, with is green sloping hills, dotted with tea plantations. In between were small hamlets with their own vegetable gardens and flower gardens, and the whole land was so idyllic, and peaceful. The birds of the air, built nests in the trees, where all types of fruit trees grew, and fruit and vegetables were plenty. Some people in the remote villages lived with their ancient habits, and some of them had non vegetarian food habits, and lived on animals which they hunted and had domesticated, like hens, pigs, and goats. They domesticated cows and lived off the milk and the milk products, and sold the excess stuff to the town people and the economy thus developed and soon, traders from far away cities of India, started to build shops and commerce developed. National banks had their branches. The town developed fast, after India gained independence in 1947. Diwakar was seven years old, when India became independent.
Days passed, and with it months and years, but they were not blessed with a child, and Anjali felt a bit let down. They consulted many doctors in the town. Anjali was not much aware what was happening in Diwakar's life in Bombay, and she trusted him whole heartedly, and one day in 1980, Diwakar took Anjali to Bombay to consult a doctor who was well known in the city, and had tackled many cases of infertility, and was considered as the expert. Many tests were done, and all proved that Anjali had dysfunctional ovaries, and there was no hope. Anjali was very distraught, and could not accept the fact that medical science could do nothing for her.
It was in this climate of despair, did Diwakar bring something he thought would be a light shining in her dark night of her life. Supriya's child had completed a year, and she was looked after by her grandmother in Nashik. Diwakar brought the baby, and in a most tactless way, told his wife, they could bring up this child. When Anjali came to know that it was the child of Diwakar, she wanted to know who the mother was. Diwakar was not allowed to tell the whole story, but had to shut up, when he announced her name was Supriya. Anjali had made up her mind, that she will not accept this child, whom Dwakar said was called Naina, as her child. She would tolerate her however, as she was the child of her most loved man. She could not digest the fact, that the man, she had come to love so deeply could have done it. She was young and had got all things in life for the asking. Only this was beyond her wishes, and she had to submit to her fate, as she knew that separation at this stage would be not acceptable to her own family, as it will put them in poor light. So she buried herself more and more in her social life, and let her husband the space he needed to look after this new child. When he was not at home, it was the Maid who mothered the child, and Anjali was just there to supervise, and instruct the maid, what she had to do. The child grew and never knew what a true mother was in her whoe life Yet in spite of all, she was taught to love Anjali as her mother, and this the father imparted to her, from the very first moment. This child received all the love a father could give. He taught her the rudiments of the English language, and Anjali taught her all the table manners, right from the start. When the child was grown enough to sit on a chair, she was given a place on the dining table, and had to eat with the fork and spoon, with a little bit of assistance from the Maid.
Previous Chapter
Next Chapter
Diwakar Bhardwaj was very fond of his mother Radha, and learnt many a thing from her. She used to take him to her parent's house in Siliguri. She was born to Barun Battacharya and Rukmini on 13th September, 1920. They were devout and God fearing people. Barun was a well educated man, and spoke English very well, as in those days, one could not get through life, without knowing the language, as Englishmen, flooded the hill stations in summer, and let their bungalows be looked after when they were away. Barun's ancestors came from a village on the river Ganges that flowed through Bengal. They thrived fishing in the river and became prosperous. When the missionaries came and started schools, they sent their children and had a decent education, and were able to join the services in the Government and railways. On this railway, the grandfather of Barun traveled from his village to Siliguri, and took a piece of land on which many local people already lived. In those days, the Government run by the English, transferred land rights to those who could pay the land rent. Ashok Battacharya was a good man, and did not oust the people living on his land, and they helped him to build his first home, where be brought his wife from the village, and they had a large family, and many grew up and joined the railway, and some went to the tea estates to work as supervisors and accountants. People mixed with one another and each practiced their faith, and joined in one another's festivals. Thus by the time Barun was born, on 21st March 1885, it was a harmonious place, and the currents of ideas flowed freely and people prospered. In this environment, Radha Battacharya was born, went to school in a convent run school, and learnt the things that were taught in the school, as well as all the things about her family's past from her grandmother.
It was into this fertile pasture of humanity, did Diwakar enter as a child, and absorbed a part of it into his own life. Respect for his neighbor, and reaching out to those in need was something he learnt from his mother. He roamed the hills of Siliguri, with his cousins and he was familiar with all the ferns and fauna of the place, and they would pick plants and re-plant them in their own courtyard, and grow flowers of different colors and kinds. Radha's mother had her own vegetable garden where she grow most of the things she needed for her kitchen. The neighbours would bring other stuff, and she would buy from them, thus the community lived by depending one one another's skills and trade. Sometimes, the village women, would bring colorful blankets and garments, and the Battacharyas would buy them and adorn their home.
On 15th August 1968, Gopal and Radha found a nice girl from Kolkata belonging to a rich and educated family. Her name was Anjali Roy. She grew in a family who copied all the mannerisms of the English and were very particular with their table manners, and etiquette. Anjali drew from the upper class all these qualities, she was sober, independent, spoke good English, as well as her own language. She was well versed in the literature of her Bengal, and was familiar with the activities of the stalwarts of her time and those of her parents. She brought to the Bhardwaj family all these qualities, and it was a sweet mix of old and new. Diwakar with his down to earth attitude and simple in his way of life, and Anjali with her sophisticated city life. She found it hard to exist in far away Sikkim, and soon Diwakar decided to move to Siliguri. It was in this Bhardwaj Nivas he brought his young wife, and she ruled the roost with the help of her Maid, and all the servants and was busy with the social activities of the town. She mixed with the Anglicized crowds of Independent India, and her day was dotted with many appointments, and she was in great demand, in the social circles of Siliguri. Diwakar and Anjali became very important citizens of this town, and when Diwakar was transferred to Bombay a year after their marriage, Anjali could carry on with her engagements and did not miss her husband much. She loved him very much, and kept in touch on the telephone and Diwakar came home regularly, almost every month.
When Diwakar was in Bombay, on a transfer, he used to go home to Sikkim regularly, and one day, they decided to sell their property there, in Sikkim and move to Siliguri, and buy some land and build a house. This way, they could be close to the mother's house and it would be safe for Anjali, when Diwakar had to go on transfers. He used to get regular income from his grandfather's estate, which was being run as a public company by now. Diwakar received a large chunk of shares in the Company, and received regular dividends. His father, Gopal Krishna had retired, and lived in their own house in Siliguri. So Diwakar built a new home, and called it Bhardwaj Nivas. It had a huge gate, at the entrance and a grassy path leading upwards to the bungalow, built on the hill top, with a view to all that beautiful land that surrounded it, with is green sloping hills, dotted with tea plantations. In between were small hamlets with their own vegetable gardens and flower gardens, and the whole land was so idyllic, and peaceful. The birds of the air, built nests in the trees, where all types of fruit trees grew, and fruit and vegetables were plenty. Some people in the remote villages lived with their ancient habits, and some of them had non vegetarian food habits, and lived on animals which they hunted and had domesticated, like hens, pigs, and goats. They domesticated cows and lived off the milk and the milk products, and sold the excess stuff to the town people and the economy thus developed and soon, traders from far away cities of India, started to build shops and commerce developed. National banks had their branches. The town developed fast, after India gained independence in 1947. Diwakar was seven years old, when India became independent.
Days passed, and with it months and years, but they were not blessed with a child, and Anjali felt a bit let down. They consulted many doctors in the town. Anjali was not much aware what was happening in Diwakar's life in Bombay, and she trusted him whole heartedly, and one day in 1980, Diwakar took Anjali to Bombay to consult a doctor who was well known in the city, and had tackled many cases of infertility, and was considered as the expert. Many tests were done, and all proved that Anjali had dysfunctional ovaries, and there was no hope. Anjali was very distraught, and could not accept the fact that medical science could do nothing for her.
It was in this climate of despair, did Diwakar bring something he thought would be a light shining in her dark night of her life. Supriya's child had completed a year, and she was looked after by her grandmother in Nashik. Diwakar brought the baby, and in a most tactless way, told his wife, they could bring up this child. When Anjali came to know that it was the child of Diwakar, she wanted to know who the mother was. Diwakar was not allowed to tell the whole story, but had to shut up, when he announced her name was Supriya. Anjali had made up her mind, that she will not accept this child, whom Dwakar said was called Naina, as her child. She would tolerate her however, as she was the child of her most loved man. She could not digest the fact, that the man, she had come to love so deeply could have done it. She was young and had got all things in life for the asking. Only this was beyond her wishes, and she had to submit to her fate, as she knew that separation at this stage would be not acceptable to her own family, as it will put them in poor light. So she buried herself more and more in her social life, and let her husband the space he needed to look after this new child. When he was not at home, it was the Maid who mothered the child, and Anjali was just there to supervise, and instruct the maid, what she had to do. The child grew and never knew what a true mother was in her whoe life Yet in spite of all, she was taught to love Anjali as her mother, and this the father imparted to her, from the very first moment. This child received all the love a father could give. He taught her the rudiments of the English language, and Anjali taught her all the table manners, right from the start. When the child was grown enough to sit on a chair, she was given a place on the dining table, and had to eat with the fork and spoon, with a little bit of assistance from the Maid.
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