Image on Ripples
BY Raja Sharma
Copyright@2011Raja Sharma
Smashwords Edition
Chapter 1: Inevitable Bonds
“Avinash, please phone me when you reach there, otherwise your mother will be worried,” said his maternal uncle.
“Yes, uncle,” said Avinash, and the bus moved.
It was only because of his mother and uncle that he was going, though he did not want to go to Mount Abu. Perhaps, his first marriage was not enough to satisfy his mother and she was forcing him for second marriage.
Up to very last moment, his uncle was saying, “Please don’t think that we are sending you for marriage. My friend Brigadier Sinha lives there; he has his garden there. You are going to spend your holidays with his family. He had seen you when you were merely a child. He has called you there. I will reach there next week.”
Avinash knew that they had woven this web for his marriage.
When the bus started, the weather was quite pleasant but Avinash’s mind was filled with unpleasant memories. He remembered how he had been insulted. Now they were forcing him for second marriage.
His first marriage had been proved zero in the court and he was extremely disappointed. After that incident, he looked at every woman with suspicion. Women to him appeared to be deceitful and illusive. He was unable to understand what his mistake was!
How hard his widow mother had worked as a teacher to give him a good life! She had worked like a machine, day and night. After his college, he had been selected to National Defence Academy. Having become an Army Officer, when he had come back home, his mother was extremely proud of him. Many matches were suggested and he was shown the pictures of many beautiful girls, and his mother had chosen the best match for him. Alpana was the daughter of an I.A.S. officer. She was indescribably beautiful and she looked perfect for Avinash.
Avinash had talked to her one day but she suddenly got up and left. Avinash thought that she was feeling shy.
He had to apply for leave for his marriage. His mother was very anxious. He wanted to contact his mother through phone but he could not for one or the other reason.
On their first night, after their marriage, Avinash was feeling good because he expected that his wife would be waiting for him in their bedroom. He entered the room and sat on the bed. He was about to touch Alpana when she shouted, “Don’t touch me. This is not a marriage, Avinash. Our marriage is a compromise!”
“What type of compromise?” Avinash was shocked.
“I don’t want to talk about it now,” said she.
“You should have told me before our marriage…” Avinash spoke hesitantly.
“I tried but no one listened to me,” said Alpana.
“And…now?”
“Now what! Nothing…I won’t live here,” said Alpana resolutely, her beautiful face was now full of disgust.
Next day she went to her parents’ house and never returned. A lawyer’s notice reached Avinash. He was accused of being impotent and according to his wife he was not fit for marriage. Avinash was stunned, burning with disgust and insult. Though Alpana’s lawyer could not prove that Avinash was impotaent, he did not want to fight the case. He signed on the divorce paper.
After that disaster in his life, Avinash accepted field postings, for he wanted to remain away from his family and relatives. His mother often talked about his second marriage but he gave one or the other alibi.
Unfortunately, his mother fell sick and he was forced to get posted in Jodhpur. He started living with his mother in their house. She would keep on talking about his marriage. Finally, he said to his mother, “Mother, I will be 35 next month. Is it the age for getting married?”
“Shut up, you are a young man and you must get married!” said his mother.
His uncle and mother had been talking about Mount Abu for a few weeks. His mother’s emotional blackmail and his uncle’s love for him finally bent him and he agreed to go to Mount Abu.
The first bitter experience had cautioned his uncle and he did not want to take any chances. He wanted Avinash to spend a few days with the girl in Mount Abu. Brigadier Sinha was his uncle’s colleague and they were very good friends. Brigadier Sinha’s younger sister was unmarried. She had not married for some reasons known to her only.
He wanted to spend more time with his mother but she wanted him to go to Mount Abu to spend a few days with the girl and her family.
His reverie was broken when the bus slowed down. He looked out of the window and found mountains approaching. It was getting cold. He closed the window glass. He movedhis eyes inside the bus. A foreign girl, sitting on front seat, looked at him and smiled. He returned the smile, and he began to caress his hair. He felt amused with his college-boy like act. He felt better and moved his eyes in other direction.
Avinash has some plans for his future; he has decided to complete twenty years of his service and then go abroad. He can’t stop himself from looking at the white girl again. She is beautiful. They exchange smiles once again.
Evening is descending and he knows that the bus won’t reach Mount Abut before 8:00 pm. He has decided to stay at a hotel for the night and go to Brigadier Sinha’s house the following morning. Mount Abu is a hill station and he begins to feel chill; he takes his jacket out of his bag and puts on. The white girl eyed him again. There was an obvious attraction in her eyes. This time he did not smile.
After about an hour, it was dark outside and the lights in the bus were switched on. He began to think again: where is he going? Why is he going? Is there nothing more important than getting married? He did not like the idea of marriage. His uncle said that man needs a woman’s company in life, physically and mentally. He knew that physical desires could be met easily even without getting married. He was a handsome young man.
As the darkness increases, he begins to feel the effect of her eyes on his face. He turns his face to look out of window. He does not want to create any unnecessary misunderstanding there.
When they reach Mount Abu bus station, it is half past eight. He is collecting his baggage. He feels a hand on his shoulder, “Hello, youngman, I am Brigadier Sinha.”
“Good Evening Sir.”
“Welcome, dear.”
“Why did you take so much trouble? I could have reached there,” said Avinash.
“You are our guest. Ram Singh, take the luggage,” said Sinha in his authoritative voice.
“Sir,” said the servant.
“Avinash, you will stay with us,” said Brigadier Sinha.
“But…Sir…”
“But…what?”
“How did you recognize me?”
“It is not very difficult to recognize an army officer in the crowd of civilians,” laughed Brigadier Sinha.
It took them fifteen minutes by car to reach the bungalow of Brigadier Sinha. He informed Avinash about his Army Career; he also told him about his farm-house in Mount Abu. He was interested in cultivating strawberries.
His house was grand in every sense, classic furniture, colourful ambiance, paintings on walls, Iranian carpets, and all that.
“Avinash, this is my daughter, Neelanjana. She is in the second year of B.Sc.” said he, pointing to a young girl present in the drawing room.
“Hello.”
“Hello.”
“My dear, send your mother here. Order tea and snacks in the kitchen.”
Avinash was lost in that new world.
“Avinash…drinks?”
“No…Sir…not today. I don’t drink on Tuesdays,” said Avinash.
“Oh…nice, a religious person,” said Brigadier Sinha and laughed playfully.
Mrs. Sinha entered the drawing room, an orderly following her, carrying the tray with tea and snacks.
After the tea, Avinash was taken to a room, fully furnished and well equipped. He was informed that the dinner would be served at 10:00 pm.
They were sitting around the dining table.
“Avinash, you have already met my wife, Anjana. You have also met my daughter. This is my sister, Sudha. She is a lecturer in J. J. Fine Arts College in Bombay. She is here on holidays. She will be with us for a few days,” said Brigadier Sinha.
After a few moments, when the first course was served, Avinash looked at Sudha with attentive eyes. Her copper complexion, smooth skin, big black eyes, full lips and broad nose made her look quite mature. Her appearance presented serious but intelligent picture of a woman.
“What are you looking at? Papa, look, our guest is not eating anything!” said Brigadier Sinha’s daughter.
“Avinash, please contine…”
Next morning, he got up a bit late. The tea was brought to him in his room. After about an hour, he came downstairs.
“I don’t want to go to college today but I have a practical class today. Sudha auntie is making a painting in the garden.Go and enjoy. In the evening I will show you around,” said Brigadier Sinha’s daughter.
Avinash smiled and ambled towards the garden.
“Oh…You.”
“Yes.”
She kept her brush down and got up from her seat.
“Why did you stop? Please continue…” said Avinash.
“It is all right. This painting has been going on for almost one year. I have completed many other paintings but this one is taking too long. Neelanjana does not let me take this painting to Bombay,” said Sudha with a smile.
“Then this one is definitely going to be a master-piece,” said Avinash with a broad smile.
She began to laugh. Her laughter was pleasant and Avinash felt as if the veneer of seriousness was being removed. He looked at the painting carefully. It was Neelanjana’s portrait. The face was still incomplete but the incomplete shapes eloquently advocated the artist’s skill.
The breakfast was served in the lawn. Brigadier Sinha began to talk about Kashmir issue. Avinash saw that Sudha was not interested. After some time, she got up and moved towards the library.
“So Avinash, what do you think about Sudha?” said the Brigadier.
He was taken aback by this sudden question. He kept quiet.
“Look, my son, I know about that unfortunate incedent in your life. I have told Sudha about it. She likes you and she does not want to know anything related to your past. This is the last chance. If I were you, I would go for this chance,” said Brigadier as an elder who is trying to make his son understand something very serious.
“Yes…Sir.”
“I want you to spend more time with her and then tell me about your decision.”
After the breakfast, Avinash came back to his room; he was restless; he knows that Sudha has been brought up in a family with Army background; she is a nice girl.
“Oh…are you lost in the thoughts of Sudha auntie?” said Neelanjana suddenly interrupting his thought process.
“Neela…when did you come?
“I have been standing here for quite some time with your coffee cup in my hand. You were lost in your thoughts,” said Neelanjana with a smile.
“How was your college?”
“As usual.”
After their coffee, she said to Avinash, “Get ready quickly; you have to go out now!”
“Who is ‘you’ by the way?”
“I want to go too but my mother says that Sudha auntie and you should go out. Please, Avinash uncle, tell my mother that I want to go too,” she pulled his hand.
“Who will drive?” said Neelanjana.
“Of course, I will drive. Avinash is not habitual to driving on these mountain roads. I have told your father,” said Sudha.
After about fifteen minutes, Sudha stopped the car in front of a temple and said, “I will be back in a second.”
“Is your auntie very religious?”
“Not much. She has gone to the temple to take a picture for her sketch. What do you think, she has gone to ask god to grant her wish. Don’t be mistaken! She has been Miss Bombay and she has rejected many handsome boys in her life, otherwise she would have been married long before,” said Neelanjana in a teasing manner.
Avinash did not say anything.
“Avinash uncle, are you angry with me?”
“No…my dear…not at all,” said Avinash with a pleasant smile.
“Here she is,” said Neelanjana and pressed his hand.
Avinash was thinking about Neelanjana. She was vivacious and alive, full of life.
When they reached the famous lake, it was evening. Sudha was not interested in boating so she occupied her place on a bench. Avinash and Neelanjana went for boating.
“Avinash, the colour of your eyes changes at the time of sunset,” said Neelanjana looking in his eyes.
Avinash looked in her eyes; there was an ocean of emotions in her eyes; her golden brown hair appeared to be wires of gold. Avinash had not noticed these things before. Young Neelanjana was an extremely beautiful college girl.
“Avinash, what were you looking at?” said she.
“You are exquisitely beautiful, Neelanjana,” said Avinash.
“What difference does it make? There are so many beautiful things in nature.”
“Yes, when I was in your age, I found many things in nature beautiful,” said Avinash.
“And now?”
“Now the perception has changed. The reality is different.”
“Yes, we have our own perceptions. Isn’t this lake real? Aren’t those flowers real?”
“Yes, Neela.”
Neelanjan had stopped using ‘uncle’ while addressing him.
“Avinash, my papa says that you used to write poetry. Why did you stop writing?”
“Are you interesting in poetry?”
“Yes, I like poetry very much, but why did you stop.”
“Realities have changed,” said Avinash.
Neelanjana began to laugh.
Avinash was thinking, “If you were my inspiration, Neelanjana, I would keep on composing poems. You don’t know that this life is a grim reality. I don’t want to frighten you. May God grant you everything beautiful in your life?”
“Mr. Avinash, get up. We are nearing the shore. What do you keep on thinking?”
Sudha came towards them and said, “How was the boating, Mr. Avinash?”
“Interesting.”
After a while, they climbed a few steps and entered a shop that sold semi-precious stones and ornaments.
“Good Evening, Miss. Sudha. How is Brigadier Sinha?” said the shop-keeper.
“He is fine, Mr. Gupta. Tell me what do you have for me?” said Sudha.
Sudha got busy with the selection of antiques which Mr. Gupta was showing her.
Avinash and Neelanjana sat down on the steps outside the shop.
“Are you not interested in jewellery?” said Avinash to Neelanjana.
“I like jewellery but not like Sudha auntie. She brings the designs of tribals and gets them copied in silver and wears them. I like flowers and petals,” said Neelanjana.
“Neela…” called Sudha from the shop.
“Yes, auntie…”
“Do you like this bracelet? This will match with your purple dress,” said Sudha.
“It is nice, auntie.”
“Avinash, this one is for you.”
“For me? What is it?” said Avinash.
She had bought him a beautiful pair of cuff-links.
“Thanks.”
For the first time he saw affection in Suda’s eyes. But he knew that it was not easy for him to say ‘yes’ and he was waiting for the right moment.