Gently Falls the Bakula Read online

  Shrikant would also tease her saying that he knew she would some day become his wife and that is why he wanted her to call him Shri.

  Shrimati would become very dejected whenever Gangakka hurt her like this. Her mother was such a gentle, docile person, she would never have taught her daughter wrong things or given her bad advice. Shrimati felt very helpless when her mother was criticized by Gangakka, but she said nothing.

  Ten days after the marriage, Shrikant and his Shrimati came to Bombay. It was the month of August. The monsoon had set in and it was pouring in Bombay. Bombay rains are so different from the rains in Dharwad. The continuous rain would disrupt local life, but the disciplined citizens of Bombay never complained.

  Shrimati was shocked to see her small single-bedroom apartment at Bandra.

  It was probably smaller than a room in their Hubli house. There was no question of a garden or a bakula tree in a place like Bombay.

  ‘Shri, why should we pay a thousand rupees rent for such a small house?’

  Shrikant laughed at her innocence.

  ‘Shrimati, it is very difficult to get an apartment in Bandra without paying an advance. Be happy about this house. It is only thanks to Vasudev that we got it.’

  ‘Shri, what’s so great about Bandra?’

  ‘Shrimati, Bandra is a very expensive area. It is very well connected. Gradually, you will understand all that.’

  Shrikant reported for work, as a software engineer, on the appointed day. He was on probation for six months. Among the many people who joined the company that day, he was the only person who was married. Though it seemed a little odd, Shrikant was never embarrassed about it.

  Shrimati was left alone at home. She would keep remembering her mother, her Hubli house, and the quiet atmosphere of their hometown. All these memories would make her homesick. Her eyes would well up with tears. Kamala had not shed a single tear at her daughter’s marriage. She had held it in with sheer willpower.

  Now Shrimati started seeing her mother in a new light. At least for her, life was fun with a loving husband, a new city, new experiences . . . But for her mother? Her only friend was Shrimati! How is she managing without me, Shrimati wondered. This was the first time in twenty-two years that Shrimati was away from her mother.

  She also remembered Gangakka’s frequent taunts.

  ‘Shrimati, the colour of the saree your mother has given me is not good.’

  ‘Avva, for that price, it would have been the best one,’ Rama would add.

  ‘How much money did your parents spend for the marriage?’

  Shrimati did not know what to answer, but Rama would support her mother saying, ‘It would have definitely been less than what the Desais would spend on one day of Diwali.’

  Shrimati was so soft-spoken and well-behaved that it was difficult for her to answer back. Besides, she had just got married. She did not want to create any problems for anyone.

  After her marriage Vandana too shifted to Bombay. But she lived far away, near the Arland Church at Malad, another suburb of Bombay.

  Unlike Hubli, in spite of being in the same city, it was not easy to meet her often.

  Shrimati found it difficult to confide in Vandana about her problems because Vandana’s in-laws were very affectionate people.

  When Shrimati went to their house, she saw Vandana’s mother-in-law giving her a saree for the Gowri festival. Though it was not an expensive one, it was a token of affection!

  Whenever something was to be given to her daughter-in-law, Gangakka on the other hand would say, ‘Oh that is not our custom’ or ‘You are too modern, so I have not given you anything.’

  Irrespective of all this, life was very happy for Shrimati because of Shrikant. They were young, they were starting a new home and Gangakka was not present physically!

  Soon, Shrimati started getting used to Bombay. She took up cooking for the first time in her life. Shrikant was a hard working person and a dutiful husband. Right at the beginning of the month he would hand over his entire salary to her. He had told her, ‘Shrimati, my mother has suffered a lot. She has sacrificed so much for my education. So, every month, you must send her thousand rupees. Then with the rest, you manage the house. I won’t ask you anything.’

  She did not have any expensive habits, so Shrikant’s salary was more than enough for her. Without fail, she would send thousand rupees to her mother-in-law.

  Shrikant too had simple tastes. His only luxury was technical books which he would buy because they were essential for his work. Shrimati knew about it and would keep some money aside. On his modest salary they had enough for their needs, but not for luxuries. Some weekends, Shrimati and Shrikant would visit nearby tourist sites like the Elephanta Caves, Bhaja, Karla and other places of interest. Shrikant was not really interested in these historical places but for Shrimati’s sake he would go.

  Six months after their wedding Shrimati got a letter from Professor Collins in reply to the wedding invitation she had sent him.

  He wrote that he had been a visiting professor in South America for six months. As a wedding gift he sent her a set of Roman and Greek history books. This was the best gift Shrimati had received.

  Shrikant was confirmed as a permanent employee within three months of his training instead of the usual six months, since his performance had been very good. As a result he became busier by the day. His company, which was of a moderate size, was growing rapidly and Shrikant started growing with the company. Within a year’s time, everyone had heard about him. His general manager, Mr Vishwas Kelkar, had taken a great liking to Shrikant because of his hardworking nature. He would work even on Sundays. He never uttered the words, ‘Sorry, I cannot do it.’

  Sometimes, Shrikant would work the entire night. At such times he would ask Shrimati to carry dinner to the office for him. Bombay being a safe place, Shrimati would take a local train, give him his dinner and come back. Initially, she would wonder how people travelled in such crowded trains. But now, she was one of them.

  It was the custom for a newly-wed couple to go to the parents’ place for the first Diwali after marriage. Shrikant and Shrimati were supposed to go to Hubli, but because of some urgent assignment, Shrikant could not go and Shrimati had to go alone. She had made it a point to take gifts for Gangakka and Rama. Even after all these months, the treatment she received from them was no different.

  The first year of Shrikant and Shrimati’s marriage flew by and Shrimati had become a Bombayite. The charm of discovering Bombay had worn off and she had started feeling a little lonely. She seriously began to think of continuing her studies and Shrikant welcomed the idea whole-heartedly. At times, Shrikant would feel bad that his intelligent wife was whiling away her time in Bombay. So, he encouraged her to study further. But a letter from Gangakka jeopardized everything.

  FOURTEEN

  Gangakka had written, ‘For your studies, I had taken a loan of one lakh rupees. One part of that money I took from your uncle Sheenappa and the other from my cousin Shyam. Now Sheenappa’s daughter Ratna is getting married and Shyam is building another house. Both of them have asked for the money back, at the earliest. Maybe you can send ten instalments of ten thousand rupees. They are nice people and have not asked for any interest. Maybe Sheenappa is asking for the money because he is upset that you did not marry his daughter, I do not know. However, I feel that it is your duty to return the money now . . .’

  The real reason for Gangakka’s letter was something entirely different. Gangakka was extremely miserable that her daughter-in-law was happy. She could see the happiness when Shrimati had come to Hubli for Diwali.

  She was envious of Shrimati. All these days, Shrikant was solely her property. She could not bear the fact that now he also belonged to Shrimati. Gangakka’s happiness was inversely proportional to Shrimati’s.

  As Shrimati was physically far away from her, Gangakka had to find other ways to trouble her. Though Shrimati invited Gangakka to Bombay many times, she refused to go. She sa