KOLKATA DIARIES.

5.

With the cawing of crows, play of conch, aroma of incense and the heady smell of frying luchis , the first Kolkatan morning broke out for Anindita after a handful of years. Rubbing the sleep off her eyes, she stretched and snoozed the alarm off, found Chitra wasn't there by her side. It was eight.

She wore on her black specs and flip flops and went near the mirror when well quite a beautiful fragrance emanated, well there was Chitrolekhaa or Chitra standing in the balcony with her wet hair, hanging on her shoulders like golden fleece and in the curves of her old yellow dhakai, even Chitra could find herself infatuated.

She ran and hugged her tight. Chitrolekhaa wasn't astounded even for a moment, this was a touch she knew too well.
~"oho bong beauty, Madam, even now so early, like so so so early, I get to sleep at 3 dude."
~" Not so liberal job madam, college hai."
~" Hey don't tell me you joined a morning college, and okay Brebourne isn't morning."
~" okay, rewaz , doodh cha making, and then planning a bit as to lecture what, right."
~ " ugh, today's a day off right at least?"
~"of course stupid, how can I go to college when madam is here, I've taken a week off and there's pooja next to it. So,. "
~ " Yaayyy" - both got back their childhood yells.
~ "umm by the way, Ani come with me , you need something to wear right".
~ " yeah I've brought with me."
~" not allowed."
~" churidaar, yaar."
~" Nothhhing but sharee, okay ? Come on idiot , I'll help you out."
~" I don't understand what's wrong with Mesho, for how long will all these nonsense continue, so, daily dose of patriarchy started. Chitra, being young in blood and flesh, you should rebel , shouldn't you?"
~" For me, it's not a very big deal, Ani,", Chitrolekhaa continued while spreading the towel to dry , " We aren't discriminated against anything. On other days wearing saree isn't mandatory but when everyone else is there, you've to wear one. And what's wrong, Ani, I don't hate wearing saree and moreover nothing fits a Bengali girl more than a sharee. So, come on , beautiful, off to the washroom and when you're done, call me in."

Chitrolekhaa was preparing tea when the confused shout came from first floor, " Chitra, Chitra..."
Chitrolekhaa hurried. Seeing her, Jethima asked, " isn't that Ani? Now what happened with her?"
~" Struggling with sharee", Chitrolekhaa chuckled, " I must help her out ."

On entering the room, Chitrolekhaa was quite astounded to find Anindita dressed neatly in the red tant and she was busy fixing the gold earrings that Chhordi had bought for both of them from the Arab.
Chitrolekhaa had expected to see her in a flood of red cotton but here was she, managing the stuff quite easily. On seeing Chitrolekhaa enter, Anindita laughed.

" Don't even tell me you wear sharee in Mumbai?", Chitrolekhaa asked, a sheer doubt mingled in her voice.

~" What if ....I tell you....Yes", replied Anindita quite shyly.

Chitrolekhaa grabbed her by the wrist, " you're certainly hiding something from me Ani, and that's pretty clear. What's that, hey tell me, come on Ani, tell me. "

Anindita blushed.

Chitrolekhaa looked closely at her, " Ani, this is not the tant I gave you."
~" ummm, no... I thought of wearing my own."
~" Own? Are you kidding Ani?"
~"Someone gave.. I mean gifted."
~"Hmm, hmmmm? Let me know whose that handsome Hank stealing my fair little queen."
~" Chitra, ", Anindita ran away, " why is it necessary to be a man? You always think like that."
~" Ani, you aren't a lesbo, i guess."
~"what rubbish!"
~"had you not been in love, your overworked cheeks would not have that pink glow, okay, don't even dare to hide anything from me."

" Ani, Chitra , come have your breakfast", it was Chhordi.

The conversation broke and remain incomplete, not for long though.

As the bougainvilleas rollen on the handloomed afternoon like the mild sunshine on a silken loop, the ballooned clouds played a game of crossword puzzle in the Prussian blue; leaves giggled like a child at play; everyone was asleep;  the bedsted with veiled sheets wove stories in the white, - of crysenthemums and rhododendrons, verses of lavender evenings and bloody sunsets, as in the odour of the two friends' lingering sweat, and the rattling sound of fan overhead, looking at the rooftop gleaming away in the purple horizon, Anindita continued, " He's Ronojoy. Film director."

~"Ronojoy, you mean Ronojoy Sengupta, director of "the melodrama"- the one which won national prize last to last year?"

~"Hmm. We both met at a film festival in Goa. He asked me to write a script for him. I did , but in his office in Bandra, I didn't know something used to happen each time we ordered coffee, we unconsciously used to look at each other's eyes. I don't know, Chitra, it was not a very neat and clean feeling. Everything was very messy, very abstract but everything happened, somehow."

~"then?"

~" After a couple of months in the success party of one of the films, he took me to his garden and in that fairylit garden when with his brown eyes constantly staring at my black set , he took my hands into his, come on Chitra I just , I just can't explain it."

~" hmm, my girl has grown up. So, how went the relationship status?"

~" We meet quite often. We have linked ourselves in a strange way.  We have started loving each other in a strange way, for our voices, our dark circles, our everything, and.."

~" And?"

~" Last week, we had, we had umm "
~" Sexual relationship?"
~"Yup sort of.."
~" Have you gone mad Ani? Oh my God, what will happen now? Tell me you contracepted right?"
~" of course, idiot , else I'd have told you to manage it."

Chitrolekhaa glared back. Everything was over in a rapid fire question answer session.

As Chitrolekhaa was moving, Anindita pulled her back, " What now?"

~" even you are coming okay, chaa and snacks and stuffs".
~" that's fine but what was happening yesterday?"
~" you mean"
~" i mean, yesterday when I reached home, what were you and Ajoy da doing on rooftop, so close knittedly."
~" What rubbish, Ani, ", Chitrolekhaa blushed and ran.
~" I know something is brewing in . My best friend is having butterflies in her stomach these days. I'll tell Ajoy da, Chitra."

And all that echoed down the vintage wooden spiral staircase was , " Ani do you want me to kill you?"...