It was one of the extremely hot summer days, and the heat wave hit the city of Patna at unbearable temperatures. Haran Kumar wandered around in search of food. He searched the dustbins and garbage dumps for food or maybe something he could sell and get a small amount so he could fill his family's as well as his stomach.
He was amongst the lowest of castes, a Dalit. Haran Kumar and his family had no proper shelter, a blue tarp with holes was the only shelter they possessed, and it barely fit his seven months old pregnant wife, two daughters, and him.
He often wandered the whole day, sometimes night searching for food or begging for food or money. Strangers kept vary of him, they judged him for being a Dalit, and being amongst the lowest of the lower caste was a nightmare for Haran Kumar and his family.
His wife and he left their small village of Gaya ten years ago to have a better life ahead, but getting a job for them was almost impossible because of the state he was in, so they were left with nothing and just wandered the streets of Patna trying to find odd jobs which were to no avail. Therefore, they started begging and searching for food everywhere they possibly could.
Haran passed by a brahmin temple, and the priest inside saw him and hunted him away. He wasn't allowed inside because of his status. He caught a glimpse of three enormous vessels filled to the brim with food inside the temple and wondered if only he could get even a plate to feed his family, they would be so happy and content.
He went home that afternoon and told her about his day. He gave her whatever he could scavenge over the city. He found a half-eaten apple, an almost rotten banana, 12 plastic bottles that he could sell, and a few strangers were kind enough to offer him a few rupees. The family ate the apple and banana and slept.
Haran Kumar could not sleep that night, he thought about the amount of food he saw at the temple and if only he was born into a brahmin family, he would not be living on the streets, scavenging for food every day just to feed his wife and children. He would be content and happy, even if he got a less-paying job, but that was not the case for him, no one wanted to give him a job. He as well as the rest of his family was all filthy, he did not remember when he last had a good bath or was clean and presentable enough, or when someone treated him like a human.
Everyone treated him worse than an animal, they abused or shooed him away. Slowly, he felt his anger building, and his cheeks felt warm. He was enraged, and angry at the world and at himself, and suddenly his eyes got watery and he broke down, he could not control his tears. He was fed up with the way the world was treating people like him. Haran Kumar just wanted to have a good life with his family. He wanted to send his daughters to school, so they could follow their dreams and would be able to be independent and take care of themselves.
He wanted proper shelter over his head, even if it was a small room, he would be content and happy. He looked up at the night sky through the hole in the tarp. The sky was clear, and he could see the moon shining brightly, closing his eyes, he started praying for the first time. He stopped believing in God a long time back. He wished to have a better life, wished that firstly he would be able to find a job and provide his family with a good life, especially his wife, unborn child, and two daughters, whom he loved so dearly. Soon he was fast asleep with the thoughts running in his head.
The bright sun rays woke Haran Kumar up the next day, he was not ready to face the harsh world yet, so he just lay on the dirt, eyes wide open, until he got the courage to finally get up. He got up finally and made his way out of his makeshift home. The sun hit his eyes and forced him to squint until his surroundings got clear. He did his everyday routine and finally reached the temple to get a glimpse of what was happening inside.
He saw the vessels filled with food, but there was no one around. He wanted to take some for his family, even a small amount was fine. He looked around for the second time to make sure, and headed inside ever so slowly, trying his best not to make any noise so no one would be alerted. He was successful until he reached the huge steel vessel, someone pulled him back and the next thing he knew he was being dragged out of the temple by his hair.
The person who had a hold of him was strong, or he was just too weak. He was thrown out of the temple and onto the streets. He opened his eyes and saw a crowd had formed and, suddenly pain rushed all over his body, but as soon as he felt the pain someone hit him on his back with a long stick, and then the next second, he felt a sharp pain on his left side. Soon, there were multiple people hitting him without stopping and he was in pain all over, but they did not stop, even after he begged them to.
The pain disappeared suddenly, and the voice of the crowd started to drown out. At that moment he knew it was all over and he will never be able to see his family, and his unborn child or even say goodbye. His last moment was peaceful like everything felt light and at last, it was an eternal blackout.
