When the secrets are discovered..

Author: Diwakar Narayan

Author Introduction - A former teacher of English Grammar (though I have started forgetting the basics now) and a great admirer of English Language, I took on blogging to show my skills to the virtual world and nick-named myself as Infected Mind. However, having stepped in, I found that I deserved less than the place of a fish in the ocean. Since then, I have been trying to polish my skills to attain the position of a fish. I have no great job and high education to boast of. Philosophically, a God hater who wants to see how life could be, not believing in Him at all.

The Story:

Sandhya’s story:

Deepak, my husband, was the only soul mate I had in days of abandonment and solitude. In those days, he was not my husband; neither did I expect that I would be married off to him so soon. My dream was such that he would enter my room anytime, hold me up and throw me on the bed. The strong desire to have him squeeze and thrash me always whirled in my mind. Day and night, I wandered in my little nest; locked from outside and looked at his picture I was given. Marriage was a fantasy word to me then, and physical intimacy was needed by every inch of my body.

I remember a morning when my father came to me and said: “Sandhya, I have something to tell you. The priest has advised us to keep you away from this house if your future was to be amended. Your mother has cried the whole night at the very thought of sending you away from us, but we are left with no option but living in your absence for one year.”

On hearing the words of my father, I had created havoc in the house, which I faintly recollect now; and that very evening, I was sent to an old bungalow which was very far from my home so I could spend one year of my life…

...alone!

On the way to my new abode, my father had explained to me that my leaving home was because of some bad forecast that the priest had made about me while inspecting my Janm-Kundli[1]. The only way to bring fortune to my future was to send me away so that the kul-devta[2] could be made happy and his blessings could be obtained.

I had finally given up to the wishes of my father and agreed to be a victim of the great teachings of Hinduism.

When the auspicious day of the completion of the fateful year shone to light, from the bungalow I was taken straight to a wedding hall. I was asked to be silent till vermilion was applied on the blank space parting my hair and I touched the feet of our kul-devta to seek his blessings.

Since the moment I was out of the cage, I had wanted to talk badly. In the lap of my mother, I had wanted to hide my face and cry. But before I could speak a word, my lips was sealed as my father signaled me to remain quiet and made me nod to a promise that I should not open my mouth till he allowed to. The reason of such a demand, he was to explain later.

Immediately after taking the blessings from the kul-devta, I was taken to a palanquin which took me further to my husband’s home. A long journey it was, on the shoulders of four men who carried the palanquin on foot and by the time, I reached my in-laws’, it was already dusk.

Though allowed now, I had not a single chance to speak to anyone while the formalities of receiving a bride were done at my new home. Before long, I found myself inside a heavily decorated room and was advised to keep sitting on the bed with the front of my sari covering my face till my husband arrived. The wait was finally over when I heard the footsteps of someone entering the room and soon I could feel two manly hands taking me in their grip; and then he whispered in my ears, “Sandhya!”

I still sat with my face covered, as advised. When he took the sari off my head to see my face, I instantly recognized him. He was the same person whom I fantasized about while in bed in days of my one-year prison. Before I could say a word, he put his finger on my lips and said, “No! There is no time for us to waste in talking. Just look into my eyes and allow me to praise Almighty for having blessed me with such a beautiful wife”. In no time, I fell in his arms, feeling him all over my body.

At some time that night, I got to know that his name was Deepak. Deepak Sharma.

All the desires I had of the man were fulfilled and I was a content wife within months. As days passed, I started forgetting the nightmares I had of the time I spent alone.

Two years passed quickly. Our second anniversary was due. Deepak had been a wonderful husband since he had first made me his woman. A splendid house, plenty of riches lying in the drawer, a dozen servants to always be on their toes doing the household work and calling me malkin[3] every time they addressed me… what else does a woman need? During the day, I was pampered by all the family members and at night by Deepak.

While the preparations were carried out for our second anniversary, I had an idea to surprise him.

**********

Deepak’s story:

Sometimes, I try to think from the point of view of a common man of the country. What does he think about the political system that we have been slaves of for decades? Does he confide in any political figure or does he abuse them behind their back? In the situation that we are currently in, who are we to blame – the system, the politicians or ourselves? If there is a slightest chance that the system can be improved, someone has to take charge and I have chosen myself for it.

The other day when I visited Ranjit Babu for funds, he refused: “See, Deepak, many who are fighting the elections have approached me for funds, but I have decided to stay out of it this year. The number of wannabe ministers has increased by leaps and bounds this year; and if I am to provide funds to all of them, I will be on roads in no time.”

I knew it was useless to reason with him. So, I came back. Running a campaign is always frowned upon with a view that that the candidates must be spending their black money on it and tricking the voters by providing them aids. But no one can imagine how difficult it is to run a clean campaign with no funds. Had people turned so deaf that they could not hear what I promised to them?

Though, with not much funds, I was happy to see the large number of attendance people registered in my rallies. When I had visited the slums of my constituency, it was so utterly painful to see a young lady crying and narrating what had happened to her one year old child. The canal running in middle of the slums had gulped her baby and before he was discovered, he was already dead.

There are things which need amendments and they are in high numbers. People have been accustomed to getting blank promises and never seeing them fulfilled. But I am sure they would listen to me this time and give me a fair chance to server them for the next five years.

In my personal life, there was something special due. It was my second anniversary. She looked like an angel when I first saw her dressed as a bride, and again I wanted to bring those moments back. A week ago, I had visited a jewelry shop and ordered an expensive necklace for her.

“Are you getting married, sir?” the jeweler had asked when I chose one from the brides’ collection.

I had smiled and answered him: “No, it’s my wedding anniversary.” It seemed that it was hard to believe for him that someone could gift so expensive a necklace on an anniversary. Men are supposed to stop loving their partners after they get married.

I was different.

**********

Sandhya’s story:

On our first marriage anniversary, Deepak had taken me out to some foreign land. With mountains and forest spread all over, it was a romantic and memorable day. The trip came as a surprise, for three days before the due date; he came to me and said: “Let’s pack our bags, we are going out”.

“Now? Where?” I had asked with a sense of astonishment.

He did not answer and stood there for a while and then asked, “Can’t women do a thing without reasoning?” Smiling, he left the room.

Now, it was my turn to surprise him. I prayed to God that he had not already planned something. A couple of days later, I learnt that there were plans for him and some of his subordinates to visit a place and stay there for some days. When I had asked him about it, he answered so: “The country needs me so eagerly that I must overlook my personal needs and wants and spend more time in her service. Yes, I will not be home for a few days.”

Men are pretty irresponsible when it comes to the important days of their lives. Historians know when the world war began and ended, when Hitler was born and killed, but they have little time to remember when they got married and when their child was born. Sensing the same trait in my husband, I asked him: “So, are you not available on our second anniversary?”

“Oh Sandhya! How can I not be? I am there for you whenever need arises.” Such was his reply.

Another thing I dislike among men is their tendency to change the course of thoughts in seconds. Today, they advocate one thing and tomorrow they seem to support something quite opposite the first thing. When you ask them, you are sure to expect the typical answer. “Please not mix these two things dear, my love to the nation and you are incomparable.” Deepak tried to justify when I had counter-questioned him on his changed response from the first time.

Post his departure, I called for the florist and ordered plenty of roses of each color he dealt in, to be delivered in the evening of the anniversary. The plan was to decorate the room exactly as it was on the weeding night and to cover the bed with roses. Deepak was returning late in the evening, so I had enough time for the preparation. The formal cleaning of my bedroom was done by the servants of the house and I had to give it a final touch.

A day before, I started searching for the raata[4] I had worn on the marriage day. When Deepak had undressed me, he had said: “This raata is the first piece of cloth that I have seen on your body. As I take this off you, I wish to keep it with me from now onwards. It has the sweet smell of you that draws me near you. In days where you will not be with me…” I had put my finger on his lips as it was hard for me to listen to what he intended to say, but I could sense what he meant.

I knew the raata was somewhere in his briefcase. He had many of them and it was to take a lot of time to open each of them and search for it, but it was worth it. After half of the total number of briefcases was searched into, I finally got the raata. I was overjoyed and kept looking at it till all the past memories had flashed into my mind.

There came a wide smile on my face and now it was time to keep it aside and put the briefcase back in its place. The moment I took the raata off, I noticed a picture of Deepak with a girl, unknown to me, which had been lying beneath it for not sure how long. My hands started trembling and I could feel some sort of choking around my neck. I stood up violently and threw myself in bed. I was unable to think what to do next. For some time, I lay on the bed senseless and when I regained my senses, I went back to see the picture again.

When I took the picture in my hands, the first thought that came to my mind was to rend it in pieces. Deepak must have had a secret affair with this lady, for the posture was objectionable. But was he capable of doing so, provided he had such a beautiful wife at home and was a man of morals? Was there a chance that he engaged himself with the girl before our marriage took place? Or, was there a chance that someone was blackmailing him? Such were my thoughts that time and many a storm broke in my mind and subsided in that short span of time when I sat there looking at the picture.

I fixed my eyes on the picture for one more time. Something hit my mind all of a sudden. I sensed to have seen the picture somewhere. Maybe the pose, not the girl, for I was sure that the girl was unknown to me. But somehow, the picture was familiar. I stood up and sank in a chair nearby, with the picture held close to my heart. The ceiling drew nearer and nearer and soon, darkness overtook me.

**********

Deepak’s story:

Staying out of my home town was always difficult for me. However, for the campaign I ran, it was necessary to visit the remote localities and address the people there. They are least aware of what is happening in the country and it becomes the responsibility of us politicians to let them know what they are deprived of, how they are tricked into casting their votes in favor of corrupt people. Since the party workers had already arranged for a few rallies in different villages, I agreed to stay there to avoid the trouble of travelling too much.

During one of the rallies, the police had taken into custody a middle-aged woman who was behaving strangely, running here and there among the people who sat to listen to me. She screamed and abused somebody, which I was unaware of, and it was troublesome for the policemen to arrest her as there were no lady constables on duty there.

Upon the completion of our campaign in those areas, I enquired about the lady in a casual chat with the locals. “All her family members were killed by Maoists one night. She survived because she had gone to her parents’ home for some days when this happened. Maalik[5], when she went to the police station to lodge a complaint, she was refused an FIR. Since then, she roams around the village all the time and we try to stay away from her.”

“Why do you stay away from her?”

“If you try to talk to her or console her, she starts abusing and after some time faints. A few months ago, she sat in the temple and did not speak a word for many days.”

I got worried for the lady. At the same time, I was angry at the inspector-in-charge of that area. Since I had no power to use then, I simply called the police station and asked: “Where was the lady taken to after you guys arrested her from my rally?”

“We’ve admitted her to the city hospital, Deepak Babu. The doctor later informed me that they have shifted her to some other hospital and she will be sent home after her treatment was complete.”

I heaved a sigh of relief but could not resist from visiting the lady on my way back home. After further inquiry, it turned out that the lady was shifted to a mental hospital. I left the village in the morning for the city and it was afternoon when I reached the hospital. The doctor was already made aware of my visit and he was there expectant to meet me.

“How is she, doctor?” This was the first question I asked when I met him. The meeting lasted for about half an hour and when I stood up from my chair to leave, the doctor gave me his final assurance, “Don’t worry about her, Deepak Babu. When we can treat a patient like Sandhya Singh and bring her to normality, this is no critical case.”

“Sandhya Singh”?

“Yes, she was under treatment of Dr. Renu Verma and was a very vulnerable case. But now, I have learnt that she has been married for some time and doing pretty fine.”

No words of affirmation came out of my mouth. Having come out of the hospital, I called Dr. Renu Verma and requested her to meet me urgently.

She was my aunt-in-law.

**********

The moment Renu got a call from Deepak; she drove to his house, not far from hers. She was a medical practitioner in the same town Sandhya and Deepak lived.

When she reached his house, he was already in the guest room, waiting for her. Seeing her, he stood up from the sofa and touched her feet. “Remain happy”, she blessed him.

For a couple of minutes, neither of them spoke. He then asked the doctor: “why have you done this to me, aunt? You knew that Sandhya was a patient at the mental hospital and underwent your treatment. In spite of all this, you chose ME to marry her?”

The question was expected, and she knew what to answer. Deepak was aware of half the truth and he must be told the complete story before he could stop feeling angry.

“Look, Deepak, the truth is that your mother and I were mates during our college days. We have decided among ourselves that if after our marriage one had a son and the other a daughter, we would marry them to each other.”

Deepak kept listening with rapt attention.

“Since I had no child after my marriage and you are the only son of your parents, I decided to marry my niece to you. Your mother agreed to it and your father too had no objections. However, when Sandhya turned sixteen, we sometimes noticed her behaving strangely. From the terrace, she used to look at the men on the road or remain locked in her room for hours.”

No question was raised by Deepak. He looked thoughtful.

“After some medical examinations, she was diagnosed of hysteria, a disease in which woman suffer from excessive want of sex. This is normally found in those who are married and remain away from their husbands for a long time. But for a girl, it is quite uncommon.”

“As she neared the age of marriage, we got more and more worried. During my tour to the USA, I had consulted a reputed psychologist and he had advised me to marry her as soon as she was of legitimate age of getting married. But since she was getting out of control, we had to keep her alone for one year and under intense treatment before she was married to you.”

“A patient remains in the state of hysteria only till the time her wants are not fulfilled. Now that she has been married to you for two years and has shown a normal behavior towards everyone, I strongly believe that she is fine now and will not behave in any way objectionable to you. Being a doctor, I can assure you of it.”

Deepak did not seem convinced yet, maybe because it was related to his personal life. If it was not for his own wife, he would have easily understood the situation. He could neither blame Sandhya for it nor himself. He needed time to overcome this and decided to not let Sandhya of what he was going through. Sitting there in a silent state, he decided: “I must show more love for her. I cannot lose her… ever!”

Before leaving, Renu wanted to meet her friend, Deepak’s mother, and her niece Sandhya. After a casual chat between the two friends of college time, Sandhya was sent for.

When Sandhya came to meet her aunt, she broke into tears. Then she said: “My life has been robbed of happiness, aunty. Deepak is no longer mine. He’s gone into someone else and I want to bring him back.”

Renu could not understand why Sandhya spoke so. On further probing, Sandhya told her about her finding the photograph of Deepak with another girl. Renu understood everything.

“Look, my daughter! Deepak is not to blame. Before your marriage, we had tricked him into getting such a picture clicked with one of his friends. We had teased him that he had no ability to court a girl of his age, and then he had brought that picture to us.”

“But when I saw the picture, it came to my mind that I had seen that picture somewhere, or maybe the posture of it. Why is that, aunt?” Sandhya asked.

“Yes, since your marriage with Deepak was already fixed, we had got the picture edited and put your face on it. We wanted to give you a feeling of how your married life was going to be, as the priest had advised us”.

Sandhya remained silent. She now understood that her husband was taintless. Before she left for her bedroom, she decided to not let Deepak of what she was going through: “I must show more love for him. I cannot lose him… ever!”

At night, Sandhya wore the raata and waited for Deepak. Roses were scattered on the bed and the room was filled with the sweet fragrance of them. When Deepak arrived, he got on to the bed and whispered in her ears: “Sandhya…”

She put her finger on his lips and said: “No! There is no time for us to waste in talking. Just look into my eyes and allow me to praise Almighty for having blessed me with such a beautiful husband”.

In no time, they were in each other’s arms, and their bodies felt each other.

**********

1. Janm-Kundli – It is a book of a few pages which have pictures of our solar system and other religious signs to indicate the position of all the stars at the time of birth of a child. On basis of this, the priests tell the future of the person to whom Janm-Kundli belongs.
2. Kul-Devta – It is a term given to a god. It is believed that every family has a god of their own caste/creed and the family must keep the god happy for the sake of its happiness.
3. Malkin – It is a word of respect and is used to address the lady-in-charge of a family.
4. Raata – This term is used for the sari that a woman wears at her wedding night in some cultures. This sari is blood-red in color and after the marriage only used on some specific festivals of Hinduism, like karva-chaoth, etc.
5. Maalik – It is a word of respect and is used to address the man-in-charge of a family.