by Pran Kishore
‘Excuse me, Your Highness!’ said Malla Khaliq.
His wife said harshly to him, ‘How crazily you were behaving with them! This shows your shallowness.’
‘This miracle has happened because of their fortunate arrival,’ said Malla Khaliq.
‘This is no miracle, Abba,’ said Mukhta. ‘It happened as a result of your prayers and Nisar’s hard work.’
‘Yes. She is right,’ Aziz Dyad agreed. ‘Now sit for a while and calm down. Your knees must be aching. No more of this boyish merrymaking.’
‘Believe me I can hardly believe the news! Ghulam Ahmed, please go to Dalgate and ask Lasa the baker to keep twenty dozen ghee-bread ready for us by evening. We shall visit the dargah in the morning with the oblation.’
In the evening, the family prepared some additional dishes and celebrated Nisar Ahmed’s success.
While having dinner, Malla Khaliq asked Noor Mohammad, ‘What else has he written in the letter? When is he to come here?’
‘On the fourth of next month is what his letter says.’ Noor Mohammad preferred to be brief. ‘He has booked his ticket.’
‘Only a few days are left till then.’ When dinner was over, Malla Khaliq said, ‘Now go to your beds. We have to get up early in the morning. We must reach the dargah well before sunrise.’
Once they were inside their room, Mukhta asked Noor Mohammad, ‘Why do you seem to be lost? You did not express much joy after reading the letter.’
‘Do you know what Nisar Ahmed has written in his letter?’ Taking out the letter from his pocket, Noor Mohammad said, ‘Now, take this and see for yourself.’
‘How can I see? I am not literate. Tell me frankly what else he has written.’
‘He has written that he is not going to stay here to seek a government job. He is going to open his own clinic and his own medical shop. And for this, a boat will not do, so he will have to hire a house. If God wishes, he will purchase a house of his own.’
‘Well, he is not wrong. Who will come to seek medical care in a houseboat? You have to seek Abba’s counsel. Let us see what he thinks about this.’
‘How can I tell Abba that Nisar Ahmed intends to give up living in the boats and start his business in a house on land? Are you crazy? How can I muster the courage to talk like that to Abba? And if Nisar Ahmed really rents a house, we will have to shift there sooner or later. That means we will have to live in a rented house.’
‘What else should we do then? Can you consult your mother?’
‘That is what I was thinking as well. Let us see what she thinks about this issue.’
‘All right.’
‘But be careful. Do not divulge this to anyone else in the family, particularly to Abba.’
Having decided thus, they went to bed.
Parveen handed over a basket of vegetables to Zeb, and went out of the kitchen, saying, ‘Let me see if this Razaq has given the ironed clothes to Rani Sahiba.’
She could not find Razaq outside. Then it struck her that he must be studying in his shed as he usually did every day during the interval between serving bed tea and breakfast to the guests. Razaq had resolved to pass his matriculation as a private candidate. Parveen knocked on the door of the shed. As soon as Razaq opened the door, Parveen assumed an irate tone and said, ‘So you are sitting here! Raja Sahib wants you at once!’ Hearing this, he sprang up. Parveen laughed and stared at him affectionately. She asked him tenderly, ‘Why are you bent upon tiring yourself by reading so much? What officer’s position is lying vacant for you?’
Razaq closed the book, moved near her and said, ‘Not just “officer”, but “a big officer”. You just wait and watch.’
Parveen laughed again.
‘Yes. You can jeer at me as much as you like. I have nothing to say now.’
Parveen said nothing in reply. She eyed the pomegranate on the desk. ‘Why didn’t you eat that?’
‘It is a gift from you. I will keep it as a souvenir.’
Suddenly, Noor Mohammad was heard calling, ‘Razaq!’ Hearing this, Parveen’s face paled. ‘Oh, they are back from the dargah.’ Saying this she dashed towards the rear swamp.
After having his morning tea, Malla Khaliq came out of the pantry. Noor Mohammad asked him, ‘Where are you going so early?’
‘Yesterday, in all that hurry, I forgot to convey the good news to Narayan Joo,’ said Malla Khaliq.
‘I phoned him, but he was not at home.’
Noor Mohammad’s head felt heavy from lack of sleep the previous night. He decided to tell his mother. He saw Aziz Dyad through the window, hanging out washed clothes. When she walked towards him after finishing her job, his heart pounded in his chest. Aziz Dyad sat beside him and said, ‘Why do you sit brooding like this?’
Noor Mohammad mustered all his courage and said, ‘Amma, I have not had even a wink of sleep.’
‘Yes, it is difficult to sleep when one is overjoyed.’
Noor Mohammad’s eyes brimmed with tears. Aziz Dyad felt her heart sink. ‘What is wrong?’
Noor Mohammad told her what Nisar Ahmed had written in his letter.
‘Have you told your father?’
‘No, he was so happy that I couldn’t.’
Aziz Dyad heaved a long cold sigh and said, ‘You have been wise. He pretends he is calm, but I alone know how this worry gnaws him inwardly that sooner or later, his family will break into fragments.’
Noor Mohammad said, ‘Nobody knows Abba’s forbearance better than I do. Ghulam Ahmed strives to come out of the rut by purchasing apple orchards, but all is in vain. Yet Abba is silent. And who knows Ghulam Qadir better than I? Abba endures all this because he does not want his children to stray in different directions. How will he bear Nisar Ahmed’s decision to live separately?’
‘I know it well, but what can we do? Today you, our children, are with us, then you have your children, and they will have their own children. Who can possibly dream of keeping his brood tethered to himself? Nisar Ahmed is right. How can he establish his clinic here? You need not worry too much. I will talk to your Abba. You go ahead and pick a good house for our Doctor Sahib. But keep in mind that the house should be located in the Boulevard just across. Now, my son, please see to Raja Sahib’s preparations for going to Pahalgam.’
At Narayan Joo’s bungalow, a friendly squabble was going on between the two friends. When Narayan Joo saw Malla Khaliq carrying a box of sweets in his hand, he speedily settled everything with his new customer and greeted his friend. ‘First tell me what took you so long to give me this good news? Did you fear any evil eye? I phoned Noor Mohammad just a while ago to inquire about Rathinder Singh’s programme and came to know that Nisar Ahmed has passed his examinations.’
Malla Khaliq explained, ‘Your grudge is quite justified and I beg your pardon. I was not within my bounds. You know how keenly we desired that Nisar Ahmed should do something that my children could not do. Noor Mohammad had no alternative but to give up his education after his matriculation so that he could help me. Ghulam Ahmed was always averse to studies. And though I had managed to convince Ghulam Qadir to enter college level, he lost his direction. Then there was only one hope left, and Nisar Ahmed has fulfilled my yearning. Believe me, yesterday I lost my wits because of the ecstasy. My brother, please forgive me.’ Saying this, he bent forward to touch Narayan Joo’s feet, but the latter stood up and held Malla Khaliq in a big hug.
Malla Khaliq unwrapped the box of sweets, took out a piece of barfi. ‘Savour this little piece of sweet, it might assuage your anger.’
‘You know the doctor has advised me not to eat sweets,’ Narayan Joo said, ‘but today is a day of utmost joy, and we cannot observe any abstinence. Cheers, old man!’ turning to Malla Khaliq, he put the piece of barfi into his mouth. Then he picked up a sweet and offered it to Malla Khaliq. ‘To Doctor Nisar’s health!’
Tears rolled down Malla Khaliq’s cheeks, but there was a warm smile playing on his face. The two friends started conversing about their joys an
d sorrows. During this heart-to-heart, Malla Khaliq grew serious, and Narayan Joo asked him, ‘What worries you now?’
‘I wish that Parveen’s boat too should find its wharf.’
‘Did you receive another message from Haji Ramzan?’
‘Yes, in fact the mediator came to our house. But I told him that I would prefer to talk to Haji Sahib myself.’
‘If you agree, I can go and settle everything with him.’
‘Let us wait for a couple of days.’
‘I think his son is really gentle and well behaved.’
‘Yes, I think so too. Then again, everyone comes to this world with his or her preordained destiny.’
‘It is better to leave all to God.’
Many days slipped away, but Noor Mohammad could not muster the guts to disclose the secret about Nisar’s letter to Malla Khaliq, and neither could his mother. Malla Khaliq’s happiness remained unabated. Their neighbours thronged in to greet them. Malla Khaliq was unmindful of his earlier worry that two of his houseboats were still lying empty. Raja Rathinder had gone to Pahalgam along with his family. Qadir’s houseboat was under a jinx. Malla Khaliq did not pay attention to what progress Ghulam Ahmed had made in his apple trade either, or when Qadir came and left.
He had consulted Narayan Joo and decided that as soon as Nisar Ahmed arrived, he would take him to the health minister for a job. He had helped the minister during his election campaign amongst the boatmen. He was dreaming of the day when Nisar Ahmed would join the big hospital. Cherishing these dreams, he visited Makhdoom Sahib’s shrine early in the morning. One day, he met Ramzan Haji at the shrine. While they were putting on their shoes after offering their morning prayers, Ramzan Haji held his arm and led him aside. The two sat under a plane tree and Ramzan Haji began. ‘You must please forgive me for not giving you a call or coming personally to your house. Our record-keeper is newly appointed and he had made a lot of mess in the records because of his inexperience.’ And then he began to talk about the marriage. ‘Your daughter Parveen has won my wife’s heart. I wanted to visit your house so that I could ask for your consent. But see how God has willed that we meet at the feet of Makhdoom Sahib. I am sure this marriage has the blessings of the saint.’
Malla Khaliq remained silent for a while, and then said, ‘I too am sure that Parvez Sahib is a very refined young man. But I think it is better that we seek his approval before going any further. If he agrees, I have no objection. So far as our wives are concerned, they have perhaps already consulted each other on this issue. It is better that we seek their approval too.’
‘That is in keeping with propriety. You go and seek Aziz Dyad’s consent. So far as I am concerned, I have already got my wife’s consent. In fact, it was at her behest that I entered into this discussion with you.’
Aziz Dyad was waiting for her husband with his morning tea. As Zeb walked into the kitchen looking pale and weary, she asked her, ‘Did Ghulam Qadir have his tea?’
‘Yes, he did, he poured it directly into his throat and left. God alone knows where he goes so early in the morning!’ said Zeb.
Qadir was yet to realize the need for correcting his behaviour. In the small hours of the morning, he stealthily visited Gul Beg who beguiled him by many a charming dream. He had convinced Qadir that if he succeeded in carrying a few consignments of hashish to Bombay, he would roll in millions.
Aziz Dyad was lost in her own musings and did not say a word in reply to Zeb. She had come to the decision that she would have a talk about Nisar Ahmed with her husband. She called Parveen. ‘Parveen! Bring me the basket of bread. Your father will be coming soon.’
Zeb stood up. ‘I will get it, Amma.’
‘No, you sit here. She is not a bride with henna-wet hands.’
In no time, Parveen appeared with the basket. She said, ‘You have unnecessarily pampered Razaq. See, he does not bother to bring you this basket of bread. He is a big businessman after all!’
Meanwhile, Malla Khaliq walked into the kitchen, coughing to announce his presence, with Noor Mohammad in tow.
‘Why are you so late?’ Aziz Dyad asked, looking intently into his face.
‘When there is something good to be done, it always takes some time,’ Malla Khaliq said, casting an affectionate glance at Parveen and then sitting down close to his wife.
Noor Mohammad said to him, ‘Abba, I will go see what Mrs Mundra needs.’
‘Sit for a while, you can ask her later,’ said Malla Khaliq. Noor Mohammad felt that his mother might have had a talk about Nisar Ahmed with him.
Malla Khaliq glanced at Parveen and then turned to his wife. ‘It is rightly said that when God wishes it, He opens all the doors of His mercy. We received the good news from Nisar Ahmed just a couple of days ago, and today Haji Ramzan approached me in person with the marriage proposal for Parveen.’
‘Where did he meet you?’ Aziz Dyad asked.
‘At Makhdoom Sahib’s. I have not seen him attending that shrine often. But I think today it was his intention to ask for our daughter’s hand.’
Noor Mohammad forgot his own worries, and asked his father in great relief, ‘And what was your reply?’
‘I waited for him to start. How could I feign to have baseless aplomb, that too at the door of the patron saint? I accepted his proposal, nevertheless, and asked him to let me have a day or so to consult my family.’
Parveen sat with her head lowered.
Aziz Dyad said, ‘Why? What do we have to wait for? I shall send them the message that they may fix an auspicious date and come here to see Parveen Lala.’
Noor Mohammad supported his mother’s decision. ‘Amma is right. Where will we find a nicer family and that too with such a big business?’
Hearing this, Parveen stood up on her toes and dashed out of the pantry.
Malla Khaliq said, ‘I do not understand why a daughter scurries when she hears about her marriage.’
‘What else would she do?’ Aziz Dyad said. ‘Should she have continued sitting here and argued about it?’
After congratulating his parents, Noor Mohammad left to see if Mrs Mundra needed anything. Zeb embraced Aziz Dyad and said, ‘What a good proposal for Parveen! You were worrying for no reason.’
Parveen sat in her canoe and glided towards the swamps. Noor Mohammad saw her and called out, ‘Where are you going?’
Parveen replied, ‘Nisar is coming tomorrow. He relishes lotus seeds. I’ll go and collect a heap of them.’
Noor Mohammad smiled while entering Gulfam. ‘Crazy girl!’
Rowing her boat in full speed, Parveen reached a small swamp. There she turned the prow and glided calmly through the willow thicket towards the rear swamps. She knew well that Razaq, when free from his daily errands, sat there with his books. She tied the boat to a peg and in one jump stepped up to the bank. Razaq was surprised to see her there. Parveen, panting slightly, told him, ‘Here you are! Always studying! You know nothing about the world around you! Now get up. We have to collect a lot of lotus pods. Quickly, you know our Doctor Sahib is coming tomorrow.’
Razaq took the oar from her hand and started rowing the boat towards the lotus fields in the lake. Having reached the lotus plants, Razaq started collecting pods. He gathered all the lotus pods around him, and said to Parveen, ‘Only these few seed heads are available here. And then there is a barbed wire ahead.’
Parveen looked at him. Razaq was unable to make out what it meant. ‘Should I turn the boat round?’ Parveen remained silent, but continued staring at him. Razaq was scared. ‘Why don’t you say something? Should I row back?’ he muttered.
A surge of tears burst forth from Parveen’s eyes, and she said, ‘They are arranging my wedding. Abba, Amma, Noor Sahib, all of them.’
‘And when you are wedded off, you will leave this house.’ Razaq said naively.
This infuriated Parveen. ‘And you will remain here, looking for my shadows.’
Hearing this, a stark pallor seized Razaq’s face, but he was unabl
e to find the proper words to say. Parveen was annoyed beyond her limits and asked in an aggressive tone, ‘Why don’t you do something?’
‘But what could I do? Can’t they stall this marriage until I pass my matriculation?’
‘Why don’t you understand? They will take me away and you will be left behind wailing for me. There is still time for you to do something. Abba holds you dear, he is sure to listen to you.’
Razaq grew conscious of his helplessness and said, ‘Who am I, and what? I survive on the crumbs that Abba throws away. I am his servant, what can I do?’
Parveen snatched the oar from Razaq’s hand and turned the boat. ‘Then sit still and curse your life,’ she said, and without looking around, rowed the boat fast through the lotuses, mangled many of them and stopped abruptly near the swamp where she had picked up Razaq. The boat was tethered to the bank, yet Razaq remained sitting in the boat. Parveen was angry with herself, and all the things around. Burning with anger, she said to Razaq, ‘Why don’t you get up now, your books are waiting for you.’
Razaq stood up on his feeble knees and climbed up the bank. He did not dare look back.
Parveen untied the boat and left.
Aziz Dyad finally mustered the courage to reveal the contents of Nisar’s letter to her husband. Malla Khaliq was too stunned to utter a word. He remained mute with his eyes shut tight. For a long time, Aziz Dyad did not dare say a word to him. Then when Malla Khaliq opened his eyes, a torrent of tears rolled down his face. ‘Well, this was bound to happen sooner or later. Do you know what Mrs Mundra told me? She said, “Haji Sahib, how lucky you are! Your whole family lives together. No differences, nor any squabbles. How refreshing is your cheerful laughter when you sit and dine together.” But she does not know that all this is just the facade of our life. I alone know how many cracks have appeared in my family. The day is not far when this family shall disintegrate.’
Aziz Dyad was on the verge of bursting into tears herself, yet she said to console her husband, ‘I can well understand. More than me, Noor Mohammad is restless like a fish on a hot pale. He could not muster the courage to talk to you about this.’