The Mother I Never Knew Read online

  Mukesh had interjected, ‘She doesn’t even know that I like her! I’m ready to get married to her but that doesn’t mean that she wants the same thing.’

  Rao Saheb had declared, ‘Let’s go with the proposal to the girl’s parents and then we’ll see what happens.’

  Accordingly, Vasanthi’s family had been informed. As it turned out, they happened to be from the same community as Mukesh’s family. When her father had asked for Mukesh’s horoscope, Rao Saheb had said, ‘We don’t believe in horoscopes at all. My daughter got married without any sort of horoscope-matching. If you think that the boy and our family is good, we can proceed with the wedding.’

  The poor pandit had not been able to say anything more. He had known that it was the best thing that could have happened to his daughter. Mukesh was from a wealthy and respectable family that owned a huge bungalow in Sadashivnagar. The family also had a big farmhouse and a business. But more than anything else, the pandit knew that Mukesh was madly in love with his daughter.

  A few months later, Vasanthi and Mukesh had been married in Bangalore; Rao Saheb had taken care of all the expenses. Sumati’s happiness had known no bounds. The day after the wedding, she had told Vasanthi, ‘My child, you are just like Neeraja to me. This is your house now.’ Sumati considered Vasanthi to be her daughter and Neeraja treated her like a real sister.

  Soon after the wedding, the couple had moved to London and had enjoyed exploring the city together. Within a few months, Vasanthi had learnt swimming and driving. At first, she had been scared of the water and the London traffic but Mukesh had encouraged her to persist and try something new. Vasanthi had begun appreciating the differences in culture and had even cut her long hair, sporting a bob instead. The Kanjeevaram saris had been discarded and she had started wearing jeans. She had started experimenting with microwave-cooking and had begun Western classical music lessons.

  Despite all these changes, Vasanthi always spoke in Kannada at home. Her love for the language and the religious rituals was never in question. She had converted their storeroom into a puja room and prayed every day, just like she used to do in Mysore. Dutifully, she wore a traditional sari and sincerely performed Gauri Puja, Ganesh Puja and Lakshmi Puja every year.

  Vasanthi’s voice startled him, ‘Whom are you dreaming of?’

  Mukesh turned to her and said naughtily, ‘When you’re in front of me, how can I dream of anyone else? Tell me, are you ready to leave?’

  ‘Ten more minutes, and then we’ll go, all right? This is the last of the season and we won’t be back until next year.’

  Mukesh nodded reluctantly as she skied away from him. His eyes followed her to the top of the nearest hill and hit the blue sky. Blue was his favourite colour. His first gift to Vasanthi had been a blue sari. Unfortunately, Vasanthi hated blue and could not tell him that since it was his first gift to her. Subsequently, when he started giving her blue saris every time, she had told him, ‘Mukesh, I don’t like blue. It reminds me of my school uniform and the discipline and strict regime that came with it. But I love pink. It is so soft and light and full of love.’ Mukesh was an artist. He had quickly understood the feelings behind the request and moved to pink saris.

  From a distance, Mukesh saw Vasanthi coming down the hill. He could see her more and more clearly now. For a moment, he suddenly felt that she was skiing at a very high speed and might trip over. He forgot where he was and screamed in Kannada, ‘Vasanthi, be careful! Slow down!’

  People stared at him, but he did not care. His eyes were locked on his wife’s figure.

  He was right. Vasanthi crashed against a pine tree and fell. She screamed with pain. Two ski instructors immediately rushed to her and brought her down the rest of the hill. Mukesh ran to be by her side. Her face was red and her beautiful eyes were filled with tears—like hot water had just been splashed on a pink rose. The manager of the ski resort came at once and advised him, ‘We’ll give first aid but please go to the hospital right after that.’

  Mukesh concurred and phoned a cab to take them to the nearest hospital. At first, he thought that the injury may be a simple muscle pull or a sprain, but Vasanthi was unable to stand or walk on her own. At the hospital, the doctor ran a few tests and finally told Vasanthi, ‘I’m sorry but you have a fracture that needs immediate surgery.’

  Vasanthi started sobbing. If it had been London, things would have been easier for them as they knew the doctors there and had friends who could help them. They did not know anyone here. Still, Mukesh did not want to delay his wife’s medical treatment. He said, ‘Let’s go ahead with the surgery, Doc.’

  Then he turned to Vasanthi and took her hands into his, ‘Come on, let’s get the operation over with and rest here for a few days. The hospital is opposite the Alps and at least you can enjoy the view as you recover. We’ll fly back to London once you feel better.’

  Vasanthi agreed reluctantly.

  While being wheeled into the operation theatre, she said, ‘Don’t tell anyone about this in Bangalore or Mysore, especially your mother. She’ll worry about her Munna and may run here to help you look after me. I’m sure I’ll be all right soon.’

  She smiled and Mukesh nervously watched her disappear into the operation area.

  2

  Phone Calls

  Mukesh’s cell phone rang. It was John, his colleague. He said, ‘Mack, our next project is delayed. I thought that I’d let you know so that you don’t have to hurry back to London. Let’s meet whenever you get here.’

  ‘Okay, thanks.’

  Just after he hung up, he got another call. It was Neeraja. ‘Munna, Appa has had a heart attack and he’s in the ICU. Come home quickly.’

  For a minute, Mukesh was taken aback. How could this happen to his father? And how could he leave Vasanthi alone? Neeraja said, ‘Munna, can you hear me?’

  ‘Akka, I can hear you clearly. I’m in Lausanne, not London. Vasanthi and I came here to ski and, unfortunately, she met with an accident just a few hours ago. Right now, she’s in the operation theatre. I’ll check the flight times and leave as quickly as I can. How’s Appa? What does the doctor say?’

  Neeraja replied, ‘Wait, I’ll call you back in two minutes.’

  She disconnected the call.

  Mukesh immediately decided on his plan of action. After the operation, he would catch the first flight to Bangalore the next day. He knew that Vasanthi would understand why he had to see his father, but he wanted somebody to be with her till he came back. He was not sure if her sisters already had the required visa for travel. His friends in London may not be able to come at such short notice either. Suddenly, he thought of John and phoned him, ‘John, I have to travel to India unexpectedly to see my sick father. Do you think that you can come and help Vasanthi out for a few days till the doctors allow her to go back to London? Once she’s at home, she’ll manage things on her own.’

  John replied, ‘That’s not a problem, Mack! I’ll reach Lausanne tonight or tomorrow morning.’

  ‘Thank you so much, John!’

  Now that that was settled, Mukesh’s thoughts turned towards his father, ‘Neeraja wouldn’t have asked me to come if it wasn’t serious. Will I be able to see Appa one last time? What if something happens to him before I reach Bangalore?’

  The phone rang again. It was not Neeraja this time, it was his mother. Sumati said, ‘Munna, the doctor informed us that he can’t say anything right now. It’ll give me confidence if you can come here. Bring Vasanthi also.’

  ‘She’s met with a small accident and won’t be able to make the trip, but I’m coming. Don’t worry. Please wait for me, Amma. Please.’

  He heard Sumati sobbing as he ended the call.

  An hour later, Vasanthi was wheeled out of surgery and brought to her room. She was conscious and able to talk despite the medications. Mukesh went near her and put a hand on her shoulder, ‘I just got a ca