English Literature – Juvenile Fiction ☆ The Tide of will – Part-10 ☆ Dr. Amitabh Shanker Roy Choudhury ☆

Dr. Amitabh Shanker Roy Choudhury

Brief Introduction

• Birth – January 18, 1955
• Education – MBBS (IMS/BHU)
• Publications – 4 books (2 in Hindi, 1 each in English and Bengali) and two are yet to come.
• Translations – Books and articles are translated in English, Odiya, Marathi and Gujarati.
• Awards – CBT awarded stories and novel, “Kamaleshwar Smriti Katha Award (2013, 2017 and 2019)” by Kathabimb.
• Honour – “Hindi Sevi Samman” by Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Wardha (December 2016). 

☆ Juvenile Fiction ☆ The Tide of will – Part- 10 ☆ Dr. Amitabh Shanker Roy Choudhury ☆

The Lost and Found.

‘Yes, how is he now? Don’t worry, I’m coming soon. Yes, yes, I’ve stopped all my training schedule.’ Kumaran was anxiously answering on his mobile. He then said to Gayatri, ‘Look, I must reach home as soon as possible. My achchan is not keeping well. Lately he had some heart problem. And this morning he is having some trouble. We must see the doctor immediately. So I’m leaving just now. You too can go home.’ Hurriedly he went out.

More or less Gayatri’s swimming etc. was over, so she didn’t wait any further. Coming out through that iron gate she was a bit surprised. Narayanan was nowhere to be found. Gayatri was a bit puzzled. ‘Where my appupan might have gone?’ she thought. Actually while they were coming to the stadium this morning Narayanan met a petty accident on the road.

Riding their cycle as the two sailed through the road of Alleppey suddenly a speeding motor bike, coming from behind, passed them blaring its horn. Three youngsters were riding the motor bike. They were driving in such a fashion as if they were some heroes on the screen.

Narayanan was literally startled. With the handle of the speeding bike his dhoti was entangled and he couldn’t control the cycle and lost his balance. Staggering for a few feet on the road ultimately he fell. His dhoti was torn. He exclaimed in disgust, ‘Oh, the young men of these days! How do they move on the road?’

Though a minor accident it was, he had stumbled and sprained his ankle. Tottering he stood up and said to Gayatri, ‘Now we’ve to walk this little distance, you see.’

‘Badly hurt? Are you appupan?’ Gayatri was very much disturbed and worried.

‘Nothing to worry. Come on, let’s move.’

And then Gayatri was walking holding the handle of the cycle in her hand and her appupan following her.

When they arrived at that small gate of the stadium Narayanan said to her, ‘Now you just go in and I’ll be waiting outside. Well, I’ll be waiting over there on the bench of the coffee kiosk.’

And now once her practice was over when she came out, her appupan was simply melted in to the thin air. ‘Where he might have gone?’ she thought and went to ask the coffee seller.

‘Well a few minutes ago he was here on that bench. And where is his cycle?’

Actually what happened that day was simply a miscalculation of timing. Narayanan was very much there sitting on the bench, but as his ankle was paining, he thought of going to get some medicine, ‘Gayatri is yet to come out. I can buy some pain killer tablet if any medical shop is open now. By the time she comes out I’ll be back.’ So he left the spot on his cycle.    

By a mere coincidence that day Gayatri came out earlier than other days. For a while she stood there totally confused, ‘Now? What should I do? Shall I wait here or it’s better to go to the ferry station and ask someone over there? After all appupan too would have to reach there.’

But just walking on the road sometime becomes a tedious job. From the side lane when she reached the foot path of the main road, she was altogether startled, ‘Oh, Padmanabhaswami! What’s the matter? Why so much of crowd and police on the road? See, the police have blocked all the traffic movement.’

A constable, strolling at the T junction, from right to left, saw her and asked, ‘Hello, you must not cross the road now. Just stay where you are.’

Totally puzzled, she stood there. Looking left and right. So much crowd was there on both the sides of the road! But everybody was stranded. Probably a minister or some big guy was coming to visit the temple or attend some meeting. After a while, hooting their siren, a cavalcade of the police vehicles passed on the road. As the last one of them disappeared people started pouring from foot path to the main street. Everyone was in a hurry. Pushing and shoving his way and criss-crossing the road.

Just like a leaf in the flood water she was practically carried away by the crowd to an unknown locality, ‘Oh, where I’ve come? Which place it is? Where should I go? Shall I ask that man in blue T-shirt? Oh no, quite often amma had been saying, ‘Never talk to a stranger! You must always stay with your appupan. But now? Where has he gone? Oh, Padmanabhaswami!’

She was on the verge of tears. Wiping her eyes she walked to the open hand cart of a green coconut seller, ‘Tell me please, which way to the ferry dock?’

‘Go straight, baby.’ The coconut seller showed her the way. But before he could complete his instructions she started running in that direction. The man shouted from behind, ‘Must take a right turn at the crossing.’

Again she had to stop. The neighbourhood all around was totally unfamiliar to her. Oh! Without realizing that tears were welling up in her eyes she wiped them with the back of her hand. ‘Oh, amma, I’m lost!’

Worried and exhausted she sat on a stone lying on the road, her chin down on her knees. Suddenly someone touched her shoulder, ‘What happened? Not familiar with this locality? Are you lost?’

‘No, no, I’m not lost. I come to Alappuzha every day. I just want to go to Haripadam. My appupan ….’ she couldn’t complete her sentence. Her throat got choked.

‘Where is your appupan?’ asked the man with a badminton in his hand.

‘He is missing.’ said Gayatri sobbing. She could no longer check herself.

‘You’re missing him or he’s missing you?’ The man laughed merrily.

‘Is it my fault? Just tell me. When I came out from the swimming pool, he was not there waiting for me.’

‘O, I see. You come here daily for swimming?’

‘That I know sir, how to swim. My appupan had already taught me that. I come here for training,’ she said confidently. Probably her ego was hurt.

The man clapped his hands, ‘Is it? Very nice! Look, I’m also a badminton player,’ he waved his racket in the air. ‘And you know, I am also from Haripadam. I’m Arthur. By the way, who is your appupan?’

‘Mr. Sasidharan Naryanan.’

‘O Jesus! Are you the kuchumol of our head sir? Well, then it’s my duty to take you to the launch station. Come on, let’s go.’

Gayatri was really at a loss. What should she do? Should she go with this unknown person? Amma had forbidden her ever to do so. But the man signalled her to follow him.

In the meantime another scene of the drama was being enacted there near the swimming pool gate. Narayanan had already returned and he sat there waiting for Gayatri. When the coffee seller saw him he was alarmed, ‘Sir, where have you been? Your kuchumol came out half an hour ago. She was enquiring about you.’       

‘O my goodness!’ It was a bolt from the blue for Narayanan, ‘Didn’t you ask her to wait for me?’

‘Sir, I was busy with my customers. What could I do, you say? How could I keep an eye on her all this time?’ The man shook his head.   

Narayanan limped painfully to his cycle and went to the guard of the stadium. When asked about Gayatri, the man said, ‘Sir, pretty long ago she has left.’

‘And Mr. Kumaran?’

‘He too has gone, sir. No one is here now.’

‘Please just check whether there is still any child in.’ Narayanan requested him.

The guard went inside and came out after a few minutes, ‘No one is here, sir. You better look for other places before it’s too late.’

Ignoring his paining ankle Narayanan was riding his cycle as fast as he could. Just incidentally it came to his mind to check the ferry point first. Different thoughts of apprehension clouded his mind throughout the journey. And oh, there was Gayatri standing there with someone.

Seeing him Gayatri ran towards him and snuggled her head close to her grandfather, ‘Where were you, appupan? I was so afraid.’

‘And why did you leave the stadium gate at all? I just went to buy medicine for me. I myself was much afraid too.’ Narayanan wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead, ‘and how did you reach this place? All alone by yourself?’

Gayatri smiled and pointed to the man, ‘It was he who helped me.’

‘My goodness! Arthur, you? What are you doing here?’ Narayanan was really surprised.

‘Now I’m staying in Alappuzha. How are you, sir?’

‘I’m hundred percent, ha, ha! Yes, that day I met Chiruta at the Haripadam jetty. She told me about you. So my boy, you better tell me how is your life? What are you doing right now? And what about this badminton business?’           

Arthur bowed his head a little and smiled, ‘Don’t worry sir. Again I’ve started my routine practice. Regularly.’

Yes, ‘sincerely’ and ‘regularly’ were the two words with which once the Head Master of the school had promised to give new rackets to those two budding badminton players.

‘Can you imagine if any untoward would have happened then what would have been my position? How could I face Mani and Ananthi? What answers could I have for them?’ The old man became a little breathless.

Gayatri was feeling sorry for her appupan. She came closer and hugged him without saying a word.

Narayanan patted the back of Arthur, ‘My boy, we have lots of expectations from you. Be brave and never get cowed down by the adversities of this world. The people of Haripadam take a great pride in you. Now try to be the pride of India.’

Arthur touched his teacher’s feet and said, ‘Sir, it was you who, first in my life, gave me a racket. We were simply playing with a marigold flower that day. Sir, please bless me so that I can stand the test and prove myself to be worthy of your affection.’

Narayanan, in his enthusiasm, embraced his old student. His eyes were moistened.

Next, the grandfather and his granddaughter went inside the waiting ferry.

Arthur stood there looking at them. He said to himself, ‘My hats off to your energy and enthusiasm sir. Even at this age you’re working so hard for your granddaughter. So that her life should be a little different than other girls of this country. I assure you, I’ll try to keep the reputation of Haripadam.’

Just like the church bell tolls, a few lines of the Psalm, a book of the Holy Bible, were ringing in his ears, ‘O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed……/ Look upon my affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins.’

Today, Gayatri could ultimately find her appupan and Arthur could find the real road to life!

Contd…      

© Dr. Amitabh Shanker Roy Choudhury

C0ntact: Care Dr. Alok Kumar Mukherjee, 104/93, Vijay Path, Mansarovar, Jaipur, Rajasthan 302020