BARRISTER BABU : THE IMAGINATION (OS/SS)

HUMRAAZ

A fifteen year old Bondita was doing her household chores in the kitchen, when she heard Koyeli Didi's voice.

Koyeli : Choti malkin bade malik ne mehman ke liye sharbat mangbawa hain.

Bondita : Main deke aati hu Koyeli didi aap khana dekh lijiye.

Koyeli nodded. Bondita took the tray of refreshment and went to the hall. Today her Kaka Sasurji's friend and his family have come to visit them. The house is decorated for them, all kinds of dishes and sweets are made especially for them. They will stay here for one week. So everyone is busy with the preparation.

Bondita gave the refreshment to everyone and stood beside her Kaka Sasurji.

Trilochan : Are Madhusudan eh hain hamari ghar ki badi bahu aur Anirudh ki pehli patni Bondita......

The moment Bondita heard the pehli patni her heart became numb again. She knows now this word is stuck with her identity for her whole life. There is no way she can escape this reality. Last year her husband broke all the promises and married someone else in front of her eyes. After that nothing is the same in her life.

Bondita was lost in her thoughts. Her Kaka Sasurji's word stopped reaching her mind the moment she heard the word pehli patni. She came back to reality with a soft jerk from her Kaka Sasurji. Trilochan whispered in her ears slowly...

Trilochan : Jao bahu pair chuyo bado ke.

Bondita hurriedly went near them and touched their feet. When she was about to touch the feet of Madhusudan's son he stopped her. Bondita looked at him and saw a man maybe in his late teens or in early twenties standing in front of her. He was constantly looking at her but his gaze was not cruel, it was soft. And Bondita can tell it clearly. She knows the gazes. After the second marriage of her husband, she has seen thousands of gazes. Some have sympathy, some have sarcasm, some have lust, she even sees the gaze of love. But this softness was different, very different.

Sunita : Are Bondita beta eh dewar hain tumhara. Umar mein bada zarur hain par aude mein nahi.

Bondita nodded and smiled to avoid embarrassment. But the man forwarded his hand for a handshake.

Polash : Aapse milke bohot acha laga Bondita Boudi.

Bondita looked at his hand and slowly held it. His touch was nonchalant. He didn't even try to cross his line for once. Bondita felt happiness in her heart, that someone is seeing her as Bondita not a prey.

Polash : Mera naam Polash Chandra Nath hain Boudi. Par aap mujhe Polash hi bulayiye.

Bondita smiled at him.

Sunita : Are Bondita beta khush mat ho jyada. Eh ladka baat kar karke mati brasht kar deta hain. Jitna seedha sadha ban raha hain utna hain nahi. Tum aao mere saath, main tumhari kuch madad kar deti hun.

Bondita : Are nahi nahi kakima aap baithiye, sab kuch ho chuka hain. Main abhi Jake khane ka praband karti hun.

Bondita went from there.

Sunita : Badi susheel aur santh hain apki bahu, Trilochan da.

If someone would call Bondita calm some times before Trilochan would have laughed hard but now she really became very calm. Trilochan just smiled and answered.

Trilochan : Haan boudi bohot achi hain hamari Bahu. Sabka kheyal rakhti hain, sare kaam khud dekhti hain, padhai bhi karti hain. Choti bash umar mein hain par nipunta kut kutke bhara hain.

Sunita : Apki dursi bahu kahape hain? Anirudh ki choti patni.....

Trilochan : Woh thoda bazar gayi hain abhi aati hi hogi.