Yakshagni - An odyssey of unbroken devotion - II

28) The Storm Clouds

Chaitanya cursed the tasteless food but he swallowed it. He needed his strength to make his escape from the cell to find his Dharma. She had given him the slip the other day and the auto-driver had brought him to the station. He swore that he would kill the rascal once he was out of the lock-up. Nonetheless, right now he needed to escape and take Dharma to an unknown destination where there was a place only for the two of them.

He had already made friends with two of the inmates. With their help, he would get out of the stinking hole. Due to public holidays, the hearing was adjourned for another week. He had heard that they were closing in on him with multiple charges. Therefore, he was aware that the law would not let him free soon. The only way for him was to make an escape as soon as possible.

There were five of them in the lock-up and out of the five, two of them were old and miserable. Chaitanya hadn't bothered to talk to them. The other two had made friends with him and in three days' time they would be out on the roads.

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The storm clouds gathering over Modhera worried Dharma. After learning the weather pattern of the region, she had been confident that there was not a chance of rain at this time of the year. And hence, she was on pins and needles at the sight of the darkening clouds. With only a couple of days left for the event, Dharma and her team had arrived earlier to oversee the preparations. The trial run with models was planned a day before the event.

While she was consulting the event manager about the light and sound effects for the show, there was a visitor at the gate, curious to know the reason for the unusual activities in the premises of the age-old temple.

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Though the weather report had warned him about a windstorm in Mehsana and Modhera, it had not stalled Dushyant from exploring Mehsana.

Next morning, he journeyed to the Sun temple in Modhera. To his surprise, the place was bustling with activity. Other than a few tourists, there were also workers setting up a makeshift stage for an event. When he inquired, the guard informed him about a show scheduled in the next couple of days.

On his way to the main entrance of the temple, Dushyant paused near the ancient water tank. He was particularly fascinated by the magnificent shrines built around the Kund. He couldn't take his eyes off them. Noticing the small group huddled together in discussion, he walked towards them. His gaze caught the tall and beautiful girl. Her short hair was tied back in a high ponytail and she was showing her sketch to others. From her stance, Dushyant got the impression that she was heading the project. He waited for her to finish the discussion so that he could have a word with her.

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Dharma was satisfied with the event manager, Ayesha's plans. Her seating arrangements sounded perfect.

"These storm clouds are bothering me. I hope it does not rain that evening," Dharma voiced her concern.

"I was thinking of the same. Why not we be prepared for an alternate arrangement? The show starts at seven. If bad weather persists by that evening, we should be able to shift the show inside," Ayesha suggested.

"How do we carry that out?"

"We will have to arrange it inside the Gudhamandapa and Garbhagriha."

"But we don't have permission to do that. We managed to get permission for this with great difficulty," Dharma pointed out, thinking of other options.

"They do conduct three-day dance festival and Mahotsavs. Why not allow this?"

"I think Uttararadha Mahotsav is a state sponsored festival. Even that is conducted on the outer premises, not inside the halls."

"Then talk to Rashika or Maurya. We need the permit, Dharma. If by chance, it starts to rain, all our efforts will go to waste. Also, we need to arrange the lighting and sound system inside the halls, in case we have it there."