Pandemonium

Pandemonium

"The boy survived despite the odds!" I finally put an end to the story. Mihika looked at me; astonished. Her sparkling eyes remained wide open accompanying her mouth. "Mommy, that was the best story you have told me!" She said scooting down in her bed, I could see sleep lingering in her eyes which she fought. "Go to bed, baby.. We have a long day at school tomorrow" Kissing her gently on the forehead; I turned to switch the lights off. "Mommy?" Mihika muttered, "Is it a real story? Did all this actually happen?" There it was.. the question I was waiting for; I knew she would be inquisitive & I wanted to take advantage of that. "I'm glad you came up with this query Mia.. Let me tell you something you probably ought to know at this age. Are you willing to find out all about it now or should we discuss this tomorrow night?" My question was followed by a swift reply from her, "I want to know about it NOW!" Resting my back on the edge of her bed and cuddling her softly; I started painting a picture for my 12 year old daughter.

"This story goes farther than you can even remember: When you were 2, we had a house help, her name was Anaya but you used to call her Gabbu didi; maybe her chubbiness fascinated you. She had a beautiful little boy, Rafi who was about your age at that time. Gabbu didi was always accompanied by Rafi; she would usually be doing the chores while he would be playing with you. You'll made a pretty great team and were inseparable; he was your Mishri bhaiya, by the way; the way you address people has always been funny.. till date!" Mia looked at me slyly; knowing what I was pointing at. But her Chingu-Bubbles secret was safe with me. I reached out for the frosted glass of water to quench my parched throat while Mia went for the remote and turned the AC off. "So one fine day when Gabbu didi was frying Puris, she mentioned something to me; 'Memsaab.. I will be needing a holiday next week; for about 4 days. Our Chawl is going for re-development & the Zamindaar is shifting us to a new place. So I need time for that.. only 4 days, I won't take long'; That's good news Anaya, tu ghe sutti, don't worry about us.. I will manage everything. Do you need any money?.. you can pay later. 'Naahi Memsaab, he is kind enough to pay for our expenses; right from packing to settling down in the new place. The new place is good too.. we have heard.' Heard??.. Haven't you seen it yet?; she nodded in denial & our conversation was interrupted by my 2 year old wailing away." I paused for a moment and tenderly placed my lips over her forehead; she was ardently listening to me. "Soon, Gabbu didi went on her break and I could see you desperately hunting for Rafi; expecting him to come in front of you any minute. When there was no sign of her on the 4th day, I decided to ring her up; unreachable. After a week of futile attempts, it was time to take charge. I found my way to her chawl but was stunned by the view it had to offer me, it was deserted.. not a soul around!

How was it possible that an entire civilization could go MISSING in a week? Where were all the houses, the shops?? Re-development takes time, right? I was dumbfounded & realized that my feet were anchored to the middle of the road only when a man riding the cycle shouted at me, asking to move away. Without wasting any time, I rushed to the police station and filed a complaint. The next few weeks went pretty much the same.. I would spend time at the police station hoping to get some lead but it was all in vain. This practice of mine continued for over a month; some days I used quarrel with the policemen over their incompetency, other days used to just leave me with a feeling of uselessness. I brooded a lot over them just vanishing & knew for sure that there was more than meets the eye. I had found myself in a fix but little did I know about the hardships Anaya & Rafi were facing.

Rafi was sitting besides his mother; clenching his feet & sobbing when he heard Anna- the landlord- enter, "Why do you cry again?.. Do you see any other kid cry? Anaya I am warning, tell him to behave or we will take care of him" Anaya clutched him and caressed his forehead. "Don't cry beta.. we will be free soon. Don't worry. Mumma will protect you." "But who will protect you, mumma?" came his meek voice. Rafi knew what they were going through. What his mother was going through. He could see the brutal marks on her body; and knew exactly why they were there. Why the landlord had chosen only single women. What his mother & the other women were brought to do with the train of men he saw parading in everyday; and the more he saw the marks on her, the more he wanted to tear the man's head off. Rafi was stuck in a pool of exasperation & feebleness; his lungs wanted to shout out for help but his heart had convinced him that there was no one who could hear him. It convinced him that they would be enslaved in this dungeon & die ruthlessly.. one day at a time.

Next day, as he moved in the direction of the filthy bathroom; something caught his eye. He spotted a kid about his age, sitting on the ledge of the wall. Rafi saw it as an opportunity & sprinted up to him; "Hi!.. I am Rafi. What is your name?" "My... uh.. My name is Ish", he could tell that the boy was bewildered. Taking advantage of no one being around, Rafi asked him a bunch of questions; "So your dad is here huh?.. Do you know why you are here with him?" Ish replied without giving it another thought, ''God knows.. My papa just told me to be here till he comes. He picked me up from school and told me not to tell mom anything about where we go.'' A plan started shaping up in Rafi's head. What if he could turn this boy into an asset? "Come Ish.. I will show you around. Your dad will take a while, I will take you to the fish tank by the well. We'll be back before your dad comes. Do you like fish?" Ish was reluctant at first but he really wanted to play with fishes. The day went by quite well with both the boys gelling up; they promised to meet again and bid each other goodbye before Ish's dad came. As Rafi prepared for bed that night in his mom's embrace; he could sense positive vibes for the first time in a month!

He waited for his friend the next morning and when Ish arrived; they started towards the fish tank. Days turned into weeks; this had become an everyday occurrence; Ish & Rafi would play all day long till his dad decided it was time to go home. They would share stories from their childhood & teach each other new games; everything was hunky-dory and Rafi could see a ray of hope. He still chose not to disclose any of this to his mother until he was sure that the plan was executable. One dull afternoon, Ish & Rafi were in no mood to play so they sat next to the well when Ish took Rafi by surprise, "Hey, where is your papa?" This question was like music to Rafi's ears.. how he had yearned for this conversation! Without making it look like a big deal, Rafi stated ''I don't know where my dad is. I live here with my mother.'' Ish looked perplexed, ''What do you mean you live here? How can someone live in such a rotten place? I mean it doesn't even have---'' Rafi cut him short, ''We live here not by choice, it is enforced upon us.'' Ish was still baffled, ''I have something to tell you Ish, but you have to swear not to tell anyone about it." Ish crossed his heart with his finger and encouraged Rafi to continue; Rafi took a deep breath and blurted out everything.. right from the day Anna had promised better houses to the current happeneings; everything! Rafi could see the vexation in Ish's eyes when he finished telling his tale & almost cried out,''Why didn't you mention all this to me before?! This is making me so angry! You mean to say.. my dad is in there right now?! Doing those awful things right now?!!!'' Rafi held Ish's shivering hand, ''Please stay calm.. I know it sounds awful but it is all true. I am going through the same thing you are but the only difference is that we are trapped here! You are the only one who can help us.'' ''ME?.. How?'', came Ish's immediate doubt. Rafi started opening up about his plan when he saw Ish's dad from the corner of his eye; ''Ish. Your papa. Run. We'll talk tomorrow."

Anaya saw her child ruminate that night and asked him what was wrong; concerned. "Nothing Mumma, I was just thinking about our good old days. How is your stomach now?'' ''It still hurts but Mumma is getting better, don't you worry'', Her smile made him forget everything for a while & they dozed off together.

Ish was in no mood to play the next day, he got down to business on seeing Rafi, ''So tell me about the plan.'' ''There is only one plan Ish, we need outside help! But we have to be careful about it.. if your papa finds this out,we will be in deep trouble.'' Ish scratched his head & thought deeply, ''I can go to the police station.. they can come and arrest everyone.'' ''That is the problem Ish.. all policemen are friends with Anna. Everyone knows everything about him. That's the reason this place is still running, I have seen many policemen come here.'' Ish couldn't believe his ears, ''THEN WHAT ELSE CAN WE DO?!" Rafi looked at him; composed, ''I have thougt of something. On the border of our village, there is a small institute- Nari Seva; I want you to go there and inform someone.. anyone about this. They will rescue us.'' ''But Rafi.. how will I go there? My parents don't leave me alone for even a second." Rafi was prepared with an answer, ''You go there the next time you are here! We will have to figure out a way. Once you are out, it should take you about 2 hours to come back with our rescuers. I will make sure everyone is prepared by then.. to escape." Ish got off the parapet & dusted his pants, ''I'm in! But we will need something.. like a signal, for me to tell you to be ready.'' Words had barely come out of Rafi's mouth when Ish exclaimed, "GOT IT! Water! The sign will be bottled drinking water!! It's tough to bring anything else inside.. they only allow water and----'' We heard a stern voice interrupt us, ''Ish.. Kya kar rahe ho? Kaun hai ye ladka? Maine kaha tha na akele rehne ko!" Ish's dad dragged him out of there; slapping him occasionally. I stood there, watching & with each slap.. I could see my hope shattering. Will Ish be able to help me or will he back off?

There was no sign of Ish for the next 4 days and Rafi was getting this gut-wrenching feeling until he witnessed him on the 5th day; Ish was sitting on his favourite parapet, playing with a ball of fur. Rafi proceeded towards him only to be stopped by Anna's men, ''You cannot go there. Cannot meet him; Anna said don't allow." Ish glanced into Rafi's direction & turned his face; Rafi was forced to go to his room. Anaya came back a little late that night, clenching her stomach; she could hardly walk straight, ''Mumma! What happened mumma?!'' The woman who had come to escort her, shrieked, ''These swines will kill her one day! Don't they understand she needs a doctor?'' Ignoring Rafi.. she put Anaya on the bed and gave her a pill. Rafi squalled next to her bed; all night; helplessly.

Noticing Ish on that parapet had become an everyday occurrence for Rafi, he would see him sitting there throughout the day fidgeting with his fur ball. As days passed, Rafi started losing hope. He caved and made peace with the fact that he could never give the gift of freedom to his mother. All he could do was, accept this. Accept everything. Rafi stepped into another monotonous day & was heading towards the well, glimpsing at Ish when something unusual caught his eye. Ish was on the parapet like any other day; aimlessly fidgeting with a--- he had to look twice to confirm. Yes! It was a bottle of drinking water! He couldn't believe his eyes & rubbed them harshly; there it was.. and there was Ish, staring at him; blankly. His eyes seemed to shout... Let's do it Rafi! Rafi's gaze followed Ish as he made his way out of the main gate.. 'how on earth did he do that?!' Rafi had so many questions but now was not the time. Now was the time to set everyone free.

Rafi had a lot of work to do; he searched for his mother fractically.. finally the time to tell her had arrived! Anaya took a moment to gape at her child, before rushing into everyone's rooms. They moved all over the premisis promptly but cautiously; advising everyone to be alert & swift. No one was told to pack or do anything suspicious. They covered every inch of the place with time to spare; time everyone was told to utilize observantly. Women continued with their usual evening chores; trying their best to be as discreet as possible. Soon, Rafi noticed a van speeding towards the gate. The door opened fiercely & an army of uniformed women barged into the gate. They started thrashing all the men in sight ferociously & commenced their rescue mission. Obviously, Anna was untraceable but the squad eventually hunted him down. Amidst all the mayhem, Rafi beemed triumphantly.

Mihika was heedful towards me; I could tell that she was completely intrigued. With anxiety in her eyes, she finally spoke, ''I found the story very interesting & am so proud of the boys. But I have a doubt... Mommy? Are such people still out there? Does all this still happen?'' Pulling her closer to my body; I said, ''I won't lie to you Mia.. Yes, such things still happen but comparatively less. You see, after that rescue operation.. many such lives were saved & the kingpin- their head, was out in the open.'' ''--and what happened to him?'' I smiled at my daughter's curiousity, ''The Monster was slayed and the day saved.''