Sadhana's baby was still fast asleep as the train moved in a snails pace inching alongside the platforms. A sense of unknown excitement went through her as she was restlessly thinking when the train would eventually halt. She looked through the window to check where Ramani, her brother was standing on the platform. Her eyes were lit with joy immediately after seeing him standing close to the main entrance and she began waving her hands at him. Ramani who kept scanning the compartments as they went past him, smiled with relief to see his sister waving from inside the compartment and began moving fast, keeping pace with the slowing train. Sadhana could see her brother almost jumping through the door even before the train stopped and within seconds he emerged from the passage with a smile that has always been synonymous of him.
"Welcome," He greeted as the train neared its halt with a loud noise of wheels screaming against the rails.
"You could have waited till the train stopped," Sadhana gently admonished her brother although with a smile.
"Don't bother," Ramani brushed her off and leaned forward to have a look at the little baby who was still sleeping.
"Hello queen!" Ramani called out loudly. "Wake up, your empire is here."
The baby kept sleeping in spite of all the noises that one can hear in any railway station after a train arrives. Ramani decided not to bother the baby anymore as he began picking up his sister's luggage and began walking towards the door. The baby continued its sleep on Sadhana's shoulders as they began squeezing themselves out of the crowd.
It was Sadhana's first visit in almost two years. The last time she had visited was for her first delivery and since then she simply couldn't make it. Her eyes widened in excitement immediately after exiting the railway station as she could see the same palm trees on either side of the road leading to the railway station. The gentle breeze which normally blows during this part of the year looked as though it was greeting her and her baby. Ramani quickly fixed up an auto rickshaw without much hassle and soon the three-wheeler began its jumping journey on the humpy road. Sadhana could see the dense coconut groves in the distance standing like tall fences to the green paddy fields spreading over a few hundred acres of land. The breeze began to blow heavily as the auto rickshaw took a turn and began speeding on the highway.
"Our town has not changed a bit," Sadhana said smiling all the way.
"True," Ramani admitted and quipped at once. "But you have changed a lot."
"Is it so?" Sadhana queried as though she couldn't believe what her brother had just said. Ramani just nodded his head as he began looking out watching the greeneries.
"What is the change you see in me?" Sadhana giggled as she asked her brother somewhat curiously.
Ramani turned for a moment and said with a broad smile, "I have always seen you in sarees. But you seem to have switched to churidars."
"Oh. I find sarees are uncomfortable especially while traveling," Sadhana replied at once although she was surprised to hear her brother make a comment about her attire. Ramani has never been the sort of the guy who makes any mention about women's attire. She presumed it could be a very natural reaction from her brother after seeing her in an outfit that was almost unknown in a town like where they belonged to. She wrapped her baby with the blanket as the wind was blowing very hard. She could see through the corner of her eyes that her brother turned occasionally to have a glance at her. He smiled at her every time their eyes met and she kept reciprocating.
Ramani, the eldest of nine in the family was in his early forties. In sharp contrast to their father who remained irresponsible to the core, Ramani had taken up the huge responsibility of the family on his young shoulders even while he was in college. He had managed to find out some part-time jobs with which he was substantially supporting the family monetarily. Their father who worked as a Village Development Officer, retired almost five years ago and since then Ramani has been the head of the family in every sense. He had forgone higher education although he topped the ranks at college; he had even forgone marriage. Of course, it had become a bit too late for him to even think about marriage after he had struggled to ensure a steady life to all his brothers and sisters. Ramani was always held in high esteem by one and all amongst the friends and relatives and rightfully so. He had never shown even a hint of selfishness all these years.
The rickshaw eventually entered the village and Sadhana began watching the streets like a kid. There were no signs of urbanization as the village looked as it was decades ago. She remembered those days when she learned bicycling on the same street where the rickshaw was riding at that moment. The annual festival in the big temple of the village always remained a great feature with thousands of pilgrims thronging in from various parts of the state. Sadhana's heart began to pulsate faster as she could see their house in the distance. She could see her father standing out as if he was awaiting her arrival eagerly. The moment the rickshaw stopped, she hurriedly picked up her baby, got out of the rickshaw impatiently and rushed towards her father.
She watched her father's eyes glitter in joy after seeing the baby. After a few customary exchange of greetings, she got into the house, jumping two steps at one go like a little girl. It has always been an emotional moment whenever she met her mother since her marriage. She knew that her mother had undergone a knee replacement surgery and it wasn't easy to conceal her shock looking at her mother who seemed to have weakened since she met her last. The baby woke up soon and the grand parents soon became preoccupied with the little visitor.
Sadhana realized that Ramani had gone upstairs immediately after reaching home. The upstairs almost belonged to Ramani for more than a decade now. Ramani had a nice collection of books in various subjects and had a hi-tech music system, perhaps the only one in the entire village. She knew that he used to read till late night listening to ghazals, bhajans and light romantic songs. He apparently found relief upstairs and hence other family members preferred not to disturb his solitude.
The rest of the day was reasonably hectic for Sadhana as she had plenty of visitors from near and far. The entire house was filled with laughter till evening. The dinner session wasn't quite either as everyone had something to share with each other while the baby kept blinking all the way unable to gauge what exactly was going on. Sadhana felt a little bit amused to see her parents glued to the television watching some tearjerker. The long journey and the resultant exhaustion compel her to go to sleep much earlier than usual. She preferred to occupy the room at the far end of the house where she can't hear the television. The baby slept almost immediately and within a few minutes her eyes swirled sending her into a deep sleep. However, it didn't last long as she suddenly woke up sensing something odd. Her eyes opened to see Ramani sitting very close to her and staring her through the little bit of light in the room.
"What?" She fumbled although her voice had an overture of surprise. "Nothing," Ramani smiled as usual. "I was just watching the kid sleeping."
He kept smiling although Sadhana wasn't convinced if he was really looking at the kid. Pushed hard by some intuition she glanced over her body and was shocked to see that her dress had gone ajar while she was sleeping. She had been unknowingly disclosing her body a bit too much and more importantly it was her own brother who had been staring at her. She immediately plunged into disgust unable to think that her brother had been watching her with ulterior motives. Ramani stayed there for a while, smiling as ever before and keeping his eyes pinned on his sister unmindful of the spark of disbelief overflowing through her eyes. Even after Ramani stood up and left the room, Sadhana's body was experiencing mild shivers for a few more minutes. She began feeling uncomfortable in a house where she had spent most of her life. However, she didn't realize how events were about to unfold the next day.
Sadhana took charge of cooking and almost pushed her mother out of the kitchen. Her mother pulled up a chair inside and began giving instructions to her dutiful daughter. Soon the worried mother started lamenting about Ramani's life which suddenly brought the dreadful moments of the previous night to Sadhana. However, the hatred for her brother did not last long as her mother began narrating how Ramani was toiling to ensure a comfortable life for the entire family. Sadhana was almost shocked to know that Ramani had taken huge loans for her marriage and also for her parents' treatment.
"His life is going nowhere," Her mother said with a sigh. "I have had my first stroke and your father's health isn't all that well either. He is going to be left alone in this huge world once we depart."
It was a moment of dilemma for Sadhana as she sincerely sympathized with her brother although she couldn't digest his indecent gesture the earlier day. She was truly concerned about whatever her mother said but she was determined never to let her brother get anywhere closer to her with ulterior motives. She was proud of her husband who always ensured to make her comfortable in spite of his limited means. He was equally caring on the bed as well where he always respected her emotional involvement more than anything else.
"Why don't you give Ramani another cup of coffee?" Her mother spoke to bring her roaming thoughts back into the kitchen.
Ramani, like most south Indians has always been fond of coffee. Had it been earlier, Sadhana would have rushed upstairs to hand over a steaming cup of coffee to her beloved brother.
"Welcome," He greeted as the train neared its halt with a loud noise of wheels screaming against the rails.
"You could have waited till the train stopped," Sadhana gently admonished her brother although with a smile.
"Don't bother," Ramani brushed her off and leaned forward to have a look at the little baby who was still sleeping.
"Hello queen!" Ramani called out loudly. "Wake up, your empire is here."
The baby kept sleeping in spite of all the noises that one can hear in any railway station after a train arrives. Ramani decided not to bother the baby anymore as he began picking up his sister's luggage and began walking towards the door. The baby continued its sleep on Sadhana's shoulders as they began squeezing themselves out of the crowd.
It was Sadhana's first visit in almost two years. The last time she had visited was for her first delivery and since then she simply couldn't make it. Her eyes widened in excitement immediately after exiting the railway station as she could see the same palm trees on either side of the road leading to the railway station. The gentle breeze which normally blows during this part of the year looked as though it was greeting her and her baby. Ramani quickly fixed up an auto rickshaw without much hassle and soon the three-wheeler began its jumping journey on the humpy road. Sadhana could see the dense coconut groves in the distance standing like tall fences to the green paddy fields spreading over a few hundred acres of land. The breeze began to blow heavily as the auto rickshaw took a turn and began speeding on the highway.
"Our town has not changed a bit," Sadhana said smiling all the way.
"True," Ramani admitted and quipped at once. "But you have changed a lot."
"Is it so?" Sadhana queried as though she couldn't believe what her brother had just said. Ramani just nodded his head as he began looking out watching the greeneries.
"What is the change you see in me?" Sadhana giggled as she asked her brother somewhat curiously.
Ramani turned for a moment and said with a broad smile, "I have always seen you in sarees. But you seem to have switched to churidars."
"Oh. I find sarees are uncomfortable especially while traveling," Sadhana replied at once although she was surprised to hear her brother make a comment about her attire. Ramani has never been the sort of the guy who makes any mention about women's attire. She presumed it could be a very natural reaction from her brother after seeing her in an outfit that was almost unknown in a town like where they belonged to. She wrapped her baby with the blanket as the wind was blowing very hard. She could see through the corner of her eyes that her brother turned occasionally to have a glance at her. He smiled at her every time their eyes met and she kept reciprocating.
Ramani, the eldest of nine in the family was in his early forties. In sharp contrast to their father who remained irresponsible to the core, Ramani had taken up the huge responsibility of the family on his young shoulders even while he was in college. He had managed to find out some part-time jobs with which he was substantially supporting the family monetarily. Their father who worked as a Village Development Officer, retired almost five years ago and since then Ramani has been the head of the family in every sense. He had forgone higher education although he topped the ranks at college; he had even forgone marriage. Of course, it had become a bit too late for him to even think about marriage after he had struggled to ensure a steady life to all his brothers and sisters. Ramani was always held in high esteem by one and all amongst the friends and relatives and rightfully so. He had never shown even a hint of selfishness all these years.
The rickshaw eventually entered the village and Sadhana began watching the streets like a kid. There were no signs of urbanization as the village looked as it was decades ago. She remembered those days when she learned bicycling on the same street where the rickshaw was riding at that moment. The annual festival in the big temple of the village always remained a great feature with thousands of pilgrims thronging in from various parts of the state. Sadhana's heart began to pulsate faster as she could see their house in the distance. She could see her father standing out as if he was awaiting her arrival eagerly. The moment the rickshaw stopped, she hurriedly picked up her baby, got out of the rickshaw impatiently and rushed towards her father.
She watched her father's eyes glitter in joy after seeing the baby. After a few customary exchange of greetings, she got into the house, jumping two steps at one go like a little girl. It has always been an emotional moment whenever she met her mother since her marriage. She knew that her mother had undergone a knee replacement surgery and it wasn't easy to conceal her shock looking at her mother who seemed to have weakened since she met her last. The baby woke up soon and the grand parents soon became preoccupied with the little visitor.
Sadhana realized that Ramani had gone upstairs immediately after reaching home. The upstairs almost belonged to Ramani for more than a decade now. Ramani had a nice collection of books in various subjects and had a hi-tech music system, perhaps the only one in the entire village. She knew that he used to read till late night listening to ghazals, bhajans and light romantic songs. He apparently found relief upstairs and hence other family members preferred not to disturb his solitude.
The rest of the day was reasonably hectic for Sadhana as she had plenty of visitors from near and far. The entire house was filled with laughter till evening. The dinner session wasn't quite either as everyone had something to share with each other while the baby kept blinking all the way unable to gauge what exactly was going on. Sadhana felt a little bit amused to see her parents glued to the television watching some tearjerker. The long journey and the resultant exhaustion compel her to go to sleep much earlier than usual. She preferred to occupy the room at the far end of the house where she can't hear the television. The baby slept almost immediately and within a few minutes her eyes swirled sending her into a deep sleep. However, it didn't last long as she suddenly woke up sensing something odd. Her eyes opened to see Ramani sitting very close to her and staring her through the little bit of light in the room.
"What?" She fumbled although her voice had an overture of surprise. "Nothing," Ramani smiled as usual. "I was just watching the kid sleeping."
He kept smiling although Sadhana wasn't convinced if he was really looking at the kid. Pushed hard by some intuition she glanced over her body and was shocked to see that her dress had gone ajar while she was sleeping. She had been unknowingly disclosing her body a bit too much and more importantly it was her own brother who had been staring at her. She immediately plunged into disgust unable to think that her brother had been watching her with ulterior motives. Ramani stayed there for a while, smiling as ever before and keeping his eyes pinned on his sister unmindful of the spark of disbelief overflowing through her eyes. Even after Ramani stood up and left the room, Sadhana's body was experiencing mild shivers for a few more minutes. She began feeling uncomfortable in a house where she had spent most of her life. However, she didn't realize how events were about to unfold the next day.
Sadhana took charge of cooking and almost pushed her mother out of the kitchen. Her mother pulled up a chair inside and began giving instructions to her dutiful daughter. Soon the worried mother started lamenting about Ramani's life which suddenly brought the dreadful moments of the previous night to Sadhana. However, the hatred for her brother did not last long as her mother began narrating how Ramani was toiling to ensure a comfortable life for the entire family. Sadhana was almost shocked to know that Ramani had taken huge loans for her marriage and also for her parents' treatment.
"His life is going nowhere," Her mother said with a sigh. "I have had my first stroke and your father's health isn't all that well either. He is going to be left alone in this huge world once we depart."
It was a moment of dilemma for Sadhana as she sincerely sympathized with her brother although she couldn't digest his indecent gesture the earlier day. She was truly concerned about whatever her mother said but she was determined never to let her brother get anywhere closer to her with ulterior motives. She was proud of her husband who always ensured to make her comfortable in spite of his limited means. He was equally caring on the bed as well where he always respected her emotional involvement more than anything else.
"Why don't you give Ramani another cup of coffee?" Her mother spoke to bring her roaming thoughts back into the kitchen.
Ramani, like most south Indians has always been fond of coffee. Had it been earlier, Sadhana would have rushed upstairs to hand over a steaming cup of coffee to her beloved brother.