When Sundeep woke up the next day, Monica had already left. On the bed was a small note. 'Hope you had a good time. I loved it. Anytime for you, sir.'
It slowly dawned on Sundeep that it meant, anytime for Naresh sir. By sending Monica to him, Naresh had bought him for life. He had got a good deal from New York International Bank. And now he had ensured that the deal was his forever. The phone rang. Sundeep picked it up.
'Kee had hai? How are you, young man? Kudi ne ratti sohn ditta ki nahi? Did Monica let you sleep last night?' It was Naresh on the line. Sundeep saw through the set-up. He wanted to curse Naresh. But the fact was that he had himself to blame for all this.
Naresh had his contacts in the bank, right up to Joseph Fernandes. No point screwing around with him. He could finish his career at NYB. When everyone in the bank played ball, why should he be any different.
'Yes, Ram. She was fabulous.' He was in it now. And once you are sucked in, there is no getting out. Sundeep did not realise the dangerous game he had got into. His long friendship with Naresh had begun.
30
In Mumbai the previous evening, Suneel Dutt asked Natasha to stay back late. He gave her a few dictations; a few mails to respond to; a few presentation slides to update; and a few calls to put through. Natasha did everything diligently, but when she found out that the calls were actually made to friends in New York, she started getting worried. Was Suneel planning something sinister? All the work that he gave her could have waited till the next day. But he was the boss and she couldn't have questioned him.
After finishing work at around eleven at night, he asked her out for a drink. Natasha refused. She said that she had to get back home.
'Oh, come on. I know Sundeep has gone to Calcutta. There's no one at home. What will you do there? In any case, tomorrow is a Saturday. Let's go out, have some fun, and I'll drop you back. Or if you want to come back home with me, I am game.'
'What the fuck,' she thought. Suneel was directly asking her to sleep with him. 'How dare he?' She felt outraged. She wanted to give him one tight slap, but held herself back. 'Let Sundeep come back. I will ensure you are history,' she told herself. But deep inside she knew what Sundeep's reaction would be. He would again say she overreacted.
When there was no reaction from Natasha for a while, Suneel looked at her and said, 'My bed is better than the loo. I can promise you that,' he said with an emphasis on the word loo. When Natasha still didn't react, he picked up his bag and left.
Natasha was shattered when he said this. She was extremely upset and shivered with fury. She collapsed on the sofa next to her workstation and tears rolled down her cheeks.
Natasha didn't know what to do. She first thought about calling Sundeep, but decided against it. Had she tried to, she wouldn't have got through. Sundeep had activated the Do not disturb sign on his telephone, before jumping into bed with Monica. All calls to his room would be held back.
Natasha didn't move for the next five minutes. She didn't know whom to call. Who to talk to. Finally she got up, picked up a phone, and dialled a number.
'Hello.' It was Kalpana at the other end. Natasha couldn't say a word. She started sobbing.
'Hello. Who is it? Hello... Hello... Natasha, is that you?' Kalpana was beginning to panic.
'Yes... it's me,' and the sobbing intensified.
'Oh dear. What's wrong? Where are you?'
'I am in office.'
'What are you doing there so late, Natasha?' asked Kalpana.
Swami was next to Kalpana, hearing her side of the conversation.
'If she is still in office, I think I know what the problem is. Ask her to wait there. I will be there in twenty minutes,' said Swami.
'Natasha, stay there, we're coming to get you,' said Kalpana and hung up. Swami was already up and changing into his trousers.
Natasha kept the phone down, and once again contemplated calling Sundeep. She brushed away the idea.
The feeling of getting violated by Suneel Dutt's proposition was not the only thing that hurt her. She had dealt with lecherous people in the past. What grieved her even more was what Suneel said: 'My bed is better than the loo.' Suneel knew all about her romp with Sundeep in the loo. How the hell did he know that?
Besides the two of them, Aditya was the only one who knew. Even Swami and Kalpana didn't know about it. Had Aditya told Suneel about it? She had thought of Aditya as God, as family, friend and guide. And he had made a mockery of her devotion. She was pissed with him. Suneel made her angry, but it was Aditya who made her cry.
Swami and Kalpana parked the car on the street and ran into the building. 'Suneel saab kidhar hain?' Swami asked the guard about Suneel Dutt's whereabouts.
'Abhi bees minute hua nikalke.' Suneel had left twenty minutes ago, around the same time that Natasha called them. The guard's answer confirmed Swami's fear. 'Bastard,' thought Swami as both of them ran up the stairs to the second floor office.
Natasha saw them and burst into tears once again. Kalpana hugged her and patted her on the back. 'Don't say anything, sweetheart. Let's get out of here.' She turned towards Swami, 'Look at her, she is shivering. Let's take her to a doctor.'
No one spoke in the car. Natasha didn't want to visit the doc, so the plan was dropped. By the time they got home, she was feeling better. Kalpana brewed her a cup of coffee, which made her feel even better. She cleared up the guest room and tucked Natasha into a warm bed. They switched off the light and came out. Both of them were feeling miserable about it.
All this while, the one who should actually be feeling the most miserable about the whole episode was enjoying his romp in bed with Monica in faraway Kolkata.
Swami was a little shaken by the way Natasha was being treated. Is this becoming a culture in the bank? Are women meant to be walked over? Is this the way all foreign banks worked? The bank may be foreign, he thought, but the people working here are all Indian. Why should a few slime balls like Suneel be allowed to bring disrepute to a bank? He didn't have the answers. Swami tossed and turned in bed that whole night, and was up the next morning before both Kalpana and Natasha. He desperately wanted to do something about Suneel's behaviour, but felt extremely helpless. He wanted to call Sundeep, but knowing his reaction to the dance floor incident, he decided against it.
Kalpana and Swami were having coffee when Natasha came out of the room. Her eyes were red and swollen. She hadn't slept well. Swami thrust a cup of coffee into her hand and said, 'Don't worry, Natasha, it will all be fine.'
No one spoke about the previous night. Natasha had lunch with both of them before they dropped her home. Since it was a Saturday, they didn't have to go to work.
Natasha found it difficult, actually impossible, to believe that Aditya had told Suneel about the most personal and embarrassing event in her life. She couldn't resist calling Aditya. She dialled his number. When Aditya picked up the phone, she hung up. What would she ask him? How embarrassing would it be to discuss this with Aditya! She finally decided not to ask him.
Sundeep got back on Sunday. Actually he was supposed to come back on Saturday night. Just as he was packing up to leave for the airport, Monica had arrived, this time in tight jeans and a tank top. Sundeep had immediately stopped packing his bag and started unpacking her. How could he have left? He called Natasha and told her, 'Not coming back tonight. Review with the sales team didn't get over.' He had then hurriedly disconnected the call, because Monica had already reached for his zippers. He did not want to give up even a minute of this heaven.
31
Swami called up Aditya on Sunday. 'You must not lose heart, Swami. One person does not make a bank. Our bank is not Suneel Dutt. It is a nice place to work.' Aditya tried to convince him. 'Sundeep and Natasha should take a strong stand on this and take it up with someone senior in the organisation. People of low integrity are definitely not good for any bank.'
'Sundeep does not know this. And Natasha doesn't want to tell him,' said Swami. He then told him about what happened at Ad
itya's farewell party, which was also Suneel's welcome bash.
'She doesn't want to go back to work.'
Aditya was silent for a while. 'OK. I will then try and speak to Shelly Andrade. I know her very well.'
Shelly was a senior manager in NYB's Asia-Pacific Human Resources team and was based in Singapore. She was also the Head of the Diversity Committee for the bank in the Asia-Pacific region.
The diversity committee had been formed to ensure that the bank acted as an equal opportunity employer for people from all genders, caste and ethnic backgrounds. Most of their time and energy was taken up by their effort to make the work environment more conducive for women. They took up a number of issues on behalf of women employees. Aditya had this in mind when he decided to speak to Shelly. He called her the same night.
'Hi Aditya. Good to hear from you after a long time. I was planning to call you up myself.'
'That's nice. What can I do for you?'
'I am looking for a job. Was wondering if there is a good role in your new organisation.'
'Stop kidding, Shelly.' Aditya thought she was joking.
'I'm serious pal. I put in my papers last Monday and the bank relieved me the same evening. I do not have a job now.'
'What are you saying, Shelly? After twenty years...'
'It doesn't make a fucking difference, Aditya. I have given this bank twenty years of my life. All that counts for nothing.' She seemed very upset.
'But what happened, Shelly?'
'I don't know what the bank is coming to. A few days back, I had a run in with Patrick.' Aditya knew Patrick. Patrick was the Head of Human Resources for the Asia-Pacific region and was Shelly's boss. 'He made a pass at me and when I spurned him, he called me a milch cow,' continued Shelly.
'You should have lodged a complaint,' Aditya thundered.
'Of course, I did. You wouldn't believe what happened next. Instead of acting on my complaint and taking action against Patrick, the organisation decided to ask me to go. I was given a separation package and asked to leave. I made a lot of noise about it. Finally they told me to either take the package and leave, or run the risk of getting terminated on grounds of poor performance and lose out on all benefits. I opted for the former.'
This was so depressing. What could Aditya do? He had already left the organisation. Where was corporate life heading? Aditya then decided to stay away from the politics and sleaze of the corporate world and focus on his own business. It would be better if Natasha and Sundeep handle these issues themselves, rather than expecting him to play God.
32
Monday mornings at NYB were set aside for operational review meetings. All the Business Heads of NYB met with Suneel for a review of the previous week and to give him an update of the state of their businesses. This meeting was very important for Suneel to keep his fingers on the pulse of the business. Normally this meeting would begin an hour earlier than the regular working hours of the bank. Suneel didn't want this to eat into everybody's regular working hours.
On Monday Sundeep was hurriedly getting dressed to leave for office. He noticed that Natasha was not even making an attempt to get ready for work.
'Natasha, I have the weekly Monday morning meeting today. Got to leave early. Are you planning to go late?'
'I am not going today.'
'Why? Are you fine?'
'No, Sundeep. I'm just feeling a bit under the weather. Planning on taking an off today.'
'What happened? Should we go to the doctor? Let me call and tell Suneel that I will be late.'
'No, it's okay, Sundeep. Just feeling a bit tired. I'll come if I feel better. You carry on.'
Sundeep hesitated, but eventually said, 'Okay. Take care. Call me if you need anything.' He closed the door and stepped towards his car.
Sundeep walked into the meeting five minutes before the scheduled start. Suneel was already there. He assumed that Natasha would have come with Sundeep.
'Has Natasha come in? I need some papers.'
'No, Suneel. She is not feeling well. She said that she would call you.'
'Good,' thought Suneel. He was happy that Sundeep hadn't reacted violently. This meant that he had no clue what happened on Friday. Natasha hadn't told him. But why? Why would she not tell him? While he was relieved that Sundeep hadn't been told, he was also a touch nervous. He just couldn't figure this out. Sundeep, of course, was extremely nice and cordial to Suneel.
Swami hoped that Aditya would do something to ensure that guys like Suneel do not go scot-free. When Aditya didn't call him back, he called him up on Monday evening.
'Aditya, this Suneel thing has been on my mind for the last three days. We need to do something soon.'
'I agree.'
'Aditya, you said you would speak to someone in Singapore and take this up.'
What could Aditya say? He narrated the entire incident to Swami. 'I am helpless Swami. I tried my best.'
'I don't know, Aditya. If you do not do anything, I will have to do something. I will go to the press with this story, Aditya.' He was extremely frustrated and his middle class morality did not permit him to take this lying down.
Aditya was worried now. Swami was his guy. If Swami did something stupid, he would screw up his own career, and he did not want that to happen. He did not want Swami to take it upon himself. He had to buy time till the entire issue settled down. He asked Swami for six months. 'I have moved out of the bank, Swami. To reactivate my network and move something in this bank would take six months.'
Natasha took the week off, before returning to work. 'Behave normally with everyone, including Suneel,' Swami had insisted. 'I will surely do something to address your concerns.'
It was traumatic to be back at work. Suneel ignored her and so did she. Suneel hired another secretary to do his work. He would not give any work to Natasha. He cold-shouldered her. Natasha would go to office, keep sitting, not do anything the entire day, and then come back home. This was upsetting her no end. She was close to becoming a nervous wreck. She didn't tell Sundeep anything, as he wouldn't understand. He didn't know the context.
In the next one month, an audit was to hit the Human Resources department of NYB. Audit was a very serious issue at NYB and poor audit results could badly impact career prospects. All units that were to be audited would work day in and day out for a week prior to audit, to get their paper work, records, and trails in order.
Abhinav Mookherjee, Head of HR at NYB, was reviewing the audit preparation. He pulled out the last audit report. This audit had been done three years back. This was normally the best way to prepare for an audit—identify mistakes of the past and ensure that they are not repeated.
He went through it point by point. HR was better prepared now than they were the last time. When he reached the second last point on the audit report, he raised an eyebrow. That comment by the audit team read, 'No two people from the same family can work in the same unit and report to the same supervisor.' The auditors had then identified three such couples. In one case, the wife was reporting to the husband. These were obvious issues that had to be fixed.
'Get me a list of all employees whose spouse, sibling or child work with us. I also need the names of their supervisors,' he asked his secretary.
Within fifteen minutes, Mookherjee had a list of twelve employees whose spouse, sibling or child worked in the bank. In all but one case they were in different units and hence there was no issue. All except one.
Sundeep and Natasha worked for the same supervisor Suneel. He called Natasha. Abhinav knew that Sundeep was critical for Suneel's team and therefore Natasha had to move. He spoke to Natasha for over twenty minutes and explained his predicament. 'Which unit would you want to move to. Just checking on your preferences so that I can keep them at the back of my mind before I speak to Suneel about it.' Abhinav knew that Sundeep was close to Suneel and so he thought Suneel was very nice to her. More than what one would normally be with a secretary.
'Can we talk about this tomorrow
morning. If that's fine with you. I would like to consult a few other people as well.'
'I am travelling for the next one week, so let's talk next week. I will call you once I am back.'
'Sure, Abhinav.'
When Abhinav called her ten days later, she had her answer ready. 'I would be fine moving to Treasury. The secretary's position there is vacant.'
'Let me see what I can do.'
Over the next couple of days, Abhinav spoke to Suneel and also to Sundeep. Suneel was more than happy to relieve her and let her move to another unit. Within a week, Natasha became a part of Swami's team. Swami had managed to pull Natasha out of hell. What Natasha did not know was that it was a behind-the-scene manoeuvre by Aditya.
Aditya had created a vacancy for Natasha in Swami's team. He had hired the current incumbent in his new company at double the salary and had insisted that she join within one week. Swami released her almost immediately. Once the vacancy was created, they shoved it right under HR's nose asking for the job to be given to Natasha. HR was more than happy to oblige as they were only four days from audit. All this while, Sundeep, as usual, was oblivious of everything.
33
Sundeep's trips to Calcutta became a lot more frequent. He rarely missed a visit to Naresh's office. Once he was sitting in Naresh's room, while the latter was showing off the mini golf strip that he had laid out on his floor.
'Reshma,' Naresh shouted out for someone. Sundeep raised his eyebrow. He had only heard Naresh call out for Monica.
A young girl walked in, barely nineteen years old. 'Ji, Naresh sir.'
'Have you met Mr Srivastava? He heads loans with New York International Bank. Wahan pe Assistant Vice President hain. Jao inke liye ek cup shakkar wali special chai bolna.'
Sundeep couldn't take his eyes off her. She had a body to kill for. When she turned, Sundeep's eyes lit up. She had the best bums he had ever seen. Naresh again smacked his lips and said, 'Yeh degi.' Sundeep smiled. He was already thinking about his evening.
If God Was A Banker Page 8