Jonakir Khelaghar

Ek Bhavar

Mrinu had stood behind the door and heard everything. If anything she agreed with Bukku on one point and that was...

Nilu will never live with loneliness till Mrinmoyi lived. Mrinu remembered the first time she had called her Maa and then had apologised for taking the liberty. Mrinu had Pupli her daughter who was like the butterfly of her garden. But Nilu was that quiet stream near the cottage in a mountain valley who provided support and life with her sweet water but demanded nothing in return...

But Mrinu was still a bit skeptical about the tumour...

Nilu was sleeping on the kitchen floor and her Bhutoo slept near her feet. When Byom found her there something in him stilled. She looked so peaceful and guileless. Totally unaware of what has happened to her. She must be getting headaches and blackouts, weakness and some vision or hearing impairment too. Was there only one tumour or more? Will she survive such a huge critical operation?...

Byom picked her up carefully and took her to the guest bedroom... made her lie down and then sat with her. He kept on thinking if it was tumour then why she reacted to only my presence?...

He held her face in one hand and Nilu sighed and relaxed into his hand. He has talked about the tumour and then given his diagnosis... but for the first time he was scared... very very scared. The way she had kept saying... " Mujhe pehchante hi nahi" dat day... it was uncanny. Somehow her pain of him not knowing about Durga had hurt her a lot.

Byom: Kya chal raha hai tumhare andar? Chhoti si toh ho tum phir kya kya chhupaya huya hai apne aap mein meri Gungun. Tum tumhari kahaniya mujhe humesha laga ke bas ek talented creative dimaag ka kamal hai... Par yahi kahaniya tumhe itni takleef deti hai yeh nahi pata tha mujhe. Hey Shona, mujhe bata do naa... kya hai jisne tumke qaid karke rakha hai... kya hai woh raaz jo tum chhupaye phirti ho apne andar. Bol do mujhe main bade se bada raaz samet lunga... sara bojh main seh lunga bas tum theek ho jao... mere liye nahi toh apni Maa ke liye. Bohot tut jayegi Mimi agar tumhe kuchh huya toh. Baba, Tupak aur Pupli bhi bohot udas hai..

Itne se dino mein sab ke dil mein ghar bana liya tumne. Ab apne dil mein tum bhi hum sabko jagah dedo... aur in sari kahaniyo ko bolo ke chale jaye tumhari dilo dimaag se. Main sab theek kar dunga Nilu... Is dard se, emotional torture se tumhe azaad kar dunga. Koi Dassyu Raja nahi, Koi Ahmer nahi, sirf tum aur main. Hum dono saath saath ladenge iss tumour ke bachche se. Aur tum dekhna use kaise harate hai hum. Kabhi wapas nahi aayega woh phir... Kabhi nahi satayega meri Gungun Shona ko. Theek hai, tum bas meri baat manna, theek hai.

And then he bent down to kiss her forehead, her eyes and then her cheek. His voice went hoarse, as if his pain got too much for him to handle.

Mrinu stood in the darkness of the door of Nilu's room. She had watched Bukku all the time since the news. It has changed his son's whole attitude. May be something in him was also changing but for her prideful son to acknowledge this feeling, this change there will have to be a big push...

And maybe that will need her to harden her heart a bit....

Next day morning in Mrinu's room...

Byom: Mimi aap keh kya rahi hai? Iss baat ka meri shadi se kya lena dena?