Fire in their hearts

1.Dirty fights

As the birds chirped in the bright sky , flying to their routine destinations in search of food, people of Devipur too went out of their humble abodes on their jobs to meet their daily needs.

Children frolicked around the mango trees, while the older wiser men, as they liked to call themselves ,sat on the chaupaal giving their expert opinions on how women should conduct themselves so that the balance of the world is not disturbed.

A group of revolutionaries passed a bullock cart shouting slogans of Vande Mataram. The passion and determination in their voice, the fire in their eyes was soul-stirring. Their stomping on the muddy ground was loud enough to make the hearts of the enemies palpitate.

As Bhaskor Das, a poor bullocky shaded his eyes from the rays of bright sun and squinted at a distance, he saw a young man in his early twenties, trodding on the road with two heavy trunks in each hand. The sweat on his forehead and the frown of his lips was making it evident that he wasn't used to such labour. His clothes were very fine. A  criss cross striped grey coat with white shirt underneath and black trousers held by suspenders gave him an Englishman look. Certainly he was an important man. But what was he doing here like this?
His partly concentration was on the muddy puddles on the ground, gifted by the heavy downpour of yesterday, so that he doesn't soil his expensive black boots.

Bhaskor's stomach grumbled in hunger and he took it as a cue to grab this opportunity to make money. His increasing age and his slow bulls were not paying much for the fire in his stomach.

"Arey ooo Shehri babu! Kha jana h apko? Aaiye meri bail gadi Mai, main chhod dunga apko." He gave him a kind smile.

The young man looked at the old man warily and then at his bullock cart and left an exasperated sigh.

Fir se ek bail gadi...

Last night, he had hailed a bullock cart and the bullocky had left him in the middle of the road because  some stupid person had left an earthen pot along with some other colourful stuff in the middle of the road, claiming that it was to call some unholy spirit.

Tona totaka my foot!
Sab andhvishwas!

"Yha koi motor car milegi kya hire krne ke liye?"

"Kya? Mai samjha ni?" Bhaskor scratched his head in confusion.

He closed his eyes in exhaustion. "Mera matlab hai yaha koi motor gadi milegi kya kiraye pr jisse m Tulsipur jaa saku? Ye bailgadi se mai mujhe ni jana. Pata chala aapne mujhe bich raste me chhod diya toh?"

"Are babu, mai apko bich raste kyu chhodunga?"

" Apke bel ki halat dekh kar lag ni rha ye Tulsipur tak jaa payenge. Rehne dijiye mai koi aur bail gadi khoj lunga."

"Ye budhe bail ki gati dekh kar inhe kam mat samajhiye. Vishwas kijiye bhut samajhdar hai mere heera moti."

" Heera moti?"

" Haa mere bel. Ye heera, ye moti. Inhe pata hai ki graahak ke paas keemti saman hota hai. Kahi tut na jaye isliye dheere chalte hain." .
The young man rolled his eyes at the bullocky's logic.

He looked here and there and when he couldn't find another empty bullock cart, he kept his luggage on it and then jumped on it. "Thike chalo."

" Chaliya Shehri babu! Chhod deta hu apko. Aaj toh bhut hi shubh din hai. Shivaratri jo hai. Aaj ke din jinke naseeb jud jate hainwo sadaiv ke liye ek ho jate hain. Shayad aap bahar ganv se aaye hain. Apka ghar h kya yahaan? Waise apko chhodna kha hai?" His rambling was irritating the young passenger.

" Jitna jaldi ho sake mujhe Roy Chowdhury Haweli chhod dijiye."

" Roy Chowdhury Haweli? Woh toh bhut bade log hai. Aap unke mehman hai ya ghar ke hi sadasya?"