Zaheer's Wedding

  Preamble: For the  Blogchatter's A2Z challenge during the month of April 2024, I am writing mini stories on various subjects and characters on each day of the month except on Sundays. The name of the protagonist shall begin with the alphabet assigned for the day.  

"Hey Majeed, do you know me? " asked an aged stranger at a wedding at his native place. Although his ancestral village was Valanchery in Malappuram district, Kerala, 15 year old Majid  grew up in Ernakulam where  his father had migrated in 2002 to start a shop in the Broadway area of kochi. Majid visited the hometown now and then with parents but was not familiar with the local residents. 

The stranger continued " I am Abdul, a childhood friend of your grandfather, Zaheer. Go ask him what was special about his wedding" he guffawed. Majid's uncle who was accompanying him, merely smiled, patted him on the shoulder and led him away to the dining area for food. 

Majid's grandfather had lived in the UAE for many years but returned in his old age to home town to spend remaining days with his people . Grandmother Razia was very happy that he returned for good. During the major part of their marriage, it was just periodic visits to hometown for a few weeks. However, the visits had the feel of celebrating a festival! Everyone looked forward to the presents that Zaheer would bring, particularly in the olden days when many foreign items were not locally available. 

  As soon as they reached home Majid ran to his grandmother and said "We met Abdul Muthappan  (Grandpa) at the wedding. He said he was grandpa's friend. Why did he say your wedding was unique grandma?  Razia smiled shyly and asked "He told you that?" 

Zaheer who overheard the conversation called out to Majeed. When he came in he said "That fellow Abdul hasn't changed . He is always up to some mischief. There was nothing unique about the way our wedding happened. It was quite common in the 70s, amongst us Gulf guys." 

"What happened grandpa" asked Majid, curious.

" Oh nothing extraordinary. It was just that we got very few days of leave while visiting hometown. A prolonged process of seeing girls and finalizing the match was a luxury we could not afford. So what we did was see 6 to 7 girls during the visit, approve of one of them and get married, before returning to Dubai. Abdul used to make fun of us saying that we were selecting a bride like selecting a saree or shirt. Perhaps he was right in a way. But we were all victims of our circumstances".

After Zaheer had told his grandson the background story of his wedding, it suddenly struck him that he had left out something. "And the next time you meet that Abdul, you tell him that grandpa liked and approved of the first girl he saw and that was your grandma. It was only because of pressure from relatives that I saw four more girls. But my mind was already made up!"     

Razia listening to his words from the adjacent room smiled. 

NB: This post is a part of  challenge #BlogchatterA2Z     

Yazhini's Big Concern.

 Preamble: For the  Blogchatter's A2Z challenge during the month of April 2024, I am writing mini stories on various subjects and characters on each day of the month except on Sundays. The name of the protagonist shall begin with the alphabet assigned for the day.  

Yazhini's biggest concern has been her son Murugan. After  the death of her husband, Palani, she  struggled to make two ends meet. This was until she got introduced to a small scale garment manufacturer. After that, she was able to do stitching and tailoring from her home in  Chindadripet, Chennai . The payment received from the company was sufficient to live comfortably in her modest neighbourhood. While the initial worries of Yazhani were centered around making a living, it shifted to the future of Murugan, once she was assured of a steady monthly income. 

One of the concerns of Yazhani was that Murugan was not interested in studies. She thought that it was a passing phase and that he would pick up interest in some area in later years to make a living. The hope was belied as Murugan began to become even less focused as he entered his teens. Now, he was not even listening to her; spent a lot of time roaming around with his friends. 

"What will happen of this boy after my time?" was her constant thought. She would have been happy had he shown some interest in the stitching & tailoring and helped her with it. It would at least be a source of living in later years. Some of Murugan's friends dropped out of school but were engaged in odd jobs like assisting as a mechanic in the local workshop. At least, these boys were learning and enhancing their skills.  Murugan on the other hand wasted time, often cut his classes and was the reason for complaints from the teachers. 

It was after he barely managed to scape through the SSLC (tenth class) public exam that Murugan was bitten by the crazy bug. He became obsessed with the movies of Tamil film star Vijay. He watched all his films and started dressing like Vijay and aping the haircut in his latest movie. Yazhini as a single parent was concerned with the way things were panning out. Murugan was neither interested in higher studies nor was he prepared to go to the village and engage in agricultural activities with his uncle. 

Soon after, Murugan joined a "Vijay Fan Club" and engaged in its activities from morning till night. He was the first to volunteer for arrangements for a new film release. This involved putting up huge banners, pouring milk (Abhishekam) and doing pooja to the film posters etc. The fans watched the movie first day, first show and spread a good word both physically and online for the success of the movie. Five years passed this way with Murugan engaged fully with the club and with nothing else in life; increasing the blood pressure of  Yazhini. 

Yazhini got some key relatives to counsel Murugan but their advice fell on deaf ears. Heated verbal exchanges and cold silent battles punctuated the mother-son relationship. In the meanwhile, Murugan had been taking up more responsibilities in many other enterprises of the fan club. This included welfare activities like blood donation camps, celebrating the star's birthday, organizing promotional events & contests, selling fan merchandize like T shirts, mugs, posters & stickers etc.     

Then, one day, even as Yazhani was engaged in tailoring a dress with the usual sad expression, Murugan came home earlier than usual. He sat his mother down on the sofa, prepared tea for her, opened a box of sweets and announced "Amma, I have some good news! In our fan club meeting today, it was discussed that the activities of the club had increased manifold. The club was earning good money from the sale of merchandize and have a comfortable bank balance. 

Therefore, the members took the decision to appoint a full time manager for our club with a starting salary of Rs 50,000 per month to be reviewed from time to time. As one who has worked with full dedication for so many years and well versed with all aspects of its operation, they have requested me to take charge as the first manager of the club." 

Yazhini did not know what to say. Finally, a big smile broke out on her face - Her first smile in many months. It was as if  a big weight was lifted off her shoulders and a big concern from her mind. 

NB: This post is a part of  challenge #BlogchatterA2Z   

Xavier's Interesting Yarns

Preamble: For the  Blogchatter's A2Z challenge during the month of April 2024, I am writing mini stories on various subjects and characters on each day of the month except on Sundays. The name of the protagonist shall begin with the alphabet assigned for the day.  

Xavier Fernandez was an ex service man. He claimed to have worked in the infantry battalion of the Indian army. After premature retirement from the army, he joined public sector companies one after the other. He stayed in a company for about three years and then moved on. The first role was that of a sports officer. However,  he changed roles to security and then sports again depending on the requirement of the organization. One thing he ensured was a higher designation and higher pay each time he moved.  

Wherever Xavier  worked, he was known to be very popular with colleagues and employees. Any free time (freely available in PSUs in the 80s) and Xavier would regale them with his heroic and adventurous operations while in the army. Many youngsters admired him and  looked up to him as a role model. They wanted to have a similar healthy physique and also have the ability to tell entertaining stories like Xavier. 

The stories related by Xavier were breathtaking. Some of them involved daring attacks behind enemy lines, navigating through hostile territory and evading enemy patrols. Others were about daring rescue operations to rescue our officers or soldiers trapped in enemy territory. Challenges of defending a strategic position under siege by the enemy that involved surviving with limited food, ammunition, medical and other resources were all stories that were a hit with his listeners. By the time people got used to his tales or  they were no longer evoking  the same enthusiasm , Xavier would have quit for another company.   

If a visitor to the company was a serving officer in the army or an ex-serviceman, they sometimes asked  Xavier questions about his colleagues or details of his battalion. Xavier appeared to be uncomfortable on such occasions and seemingly evaded answering on the pretext of attending to an important work. 

Then, the mystery of Xavier's disappearance or leaving within three years of joining a company appeared to have got solved . This was after Xavier had recently quit as the head of security of  an electronics company in Bangalore. The new incumbent, an ex service man on seeing Xavier's photograph remarked that it was a familiar face. Surely, he had interacted with him in one of the units that he had worked. However, he was not able to say exactly where and when. 

It happened on the third day, after they had finished lunch in the canteen. The new Head of Security exclaimed " Ah , I can place him now. He was in charge of the mess operations in our unit at Jabalpur!" 

NB: This post is a part of  challenge #BlogchatterA2Z    

   

Waheeda's Retired Life

Preamble: For the  Blogchatter's A2Z challenge during the month of April 2024, I am writing mini stories on various subjects and characters on each day of the month except on Sundays. The name of the protagonist shall begin with the alphabet assigned for the day.  

Waheeda was born as the eldest of four girls and a boy to Jafar and Jameela. They lived in the Mehdipatnam area of Hyderabad city where Jafar had a retail and whole sale business. Waheeda remembers the early years of her childhood as 'very happy'. They had many relatives and an active social life as most of the relatives lived in suburbs of Hyderabad. Waheeda was good in studies and had dreams of becoming a teacher. Both her parents were so happy when she passed the Teacher eligibility test (TET) and became a primary school teacher in a Government school.

The happiness was short-lived though since soon after, Jafar became ill. He was not able to concentrate on the business. By and by, the entire responsibility of the bread winner had fallen on the tender shoulders of Waheeda. In view of her interest to study more , she acquired qualifications of B.Ed. and other additional certifications that helped her get better salary. After the death of her father,  Waheeda managed all the affairs of the house, educating all her siblings and arranging for their marriages. 

This was a period when time flew. Steeped in her responsibilities, Waheeda had no time to think of herself, of her own marriage or a separate family for herself. Her family was 'the family' left to her by her father. With passage of time, the sisters and brother had their own lives to live. They could not visit her as often as in the initial days. Waheeda also did not notice this so much as she had her career as teacher that kept her busy in the day time. It was only in the evening that she sometimes felt lonely.

 Then it happened; Waheeda's retirement. After the garlands and sweet words on the last day of working, she had to return to an empty home and empty days to follow. Waheeda's siblings dropped in some time with children and grand children but these had been mostly restricted to the festive days like Eid- al- Fitr. 

The worst experience was during the lock down period since Waheeda was living alone. It was a challenge to buy basic essentials and run the household while maintaining social distancing. This was the time though when Waheeda came to know of a seniors online group called "Seniors Today" that met on zoom and engaged in various activities like singing and reciting poetry. Waheeda , being a teacher was a poetry enthusiast. She used to visit the various mushairas in the city. Now with social distancing and age catching up, the online Zoom meetings were godsent. 

Waheeda managed to tide over the lock down period and was now hooked to the "Seniors Today" group. They had increased their activities to sessions like Guftagu (a chat session), health & meditation, acting, gardening, numerology, anthakshari and many more. Waheeda found that she could not only keep herself engaged whole through the week but interact on Zoom with familiar faces who had become dear friends. They would enquire after her health and know if she felt lonely or down in spirit on a particular day. Waheeda's siblings also noticed the change and were happy that "Apa now is so full of life, even after retirement." 

The latest addition to the 'Seniors Today' sessions is a weekly program on "Pet care". Now Waheeda is seriously considering adding a pet to her household. Nothing like having a "living being" around  as you go through the day...

 NB: This post is a part of  challenge #BlogchatterA2Z    

Vishwas - I am back with My Story!

Preamble: For the  Blogchatter's A2Z challenge during the month of April 2024, I am writing mini stories on various subjects and characters on each day of the month except on Sundays. The name of the protagonist shall begin with the alphabet assigned for the day. 

 

Hello folks this is me Vishwas! Remember me in that story starting with the alphabet 'Q' ? (Read Here) In our world here, there was a lot of discussion that a story has been written on my wife and that the author had even referred to her by her college nickname of the 'Queen'. I do not resent any of that. She was a noble soul and deserved being portrayed in a positive light. I do not even resent the fact that I came out as a negative character in the story. But, it is necessary to know how things unfolded- what happened in my life too. I got in touch with the author  and he has graciously permitted me to tell my story in my own words and style.  So here goes...

When I was born in the year 1936, not only were my parents but the entire extended family were overjoyed. I was the first boy in my generation; all the siblings on my father's and mother's side having given birth to girls . I am told that there was a grand celebration in my grandfather's house in the ancestral village. Growing up, I moved and lived in many places as my father was an officer in the police force of the princely state of Mysore and later the state of Karnataka after India's independence, on the officers being absorbed into the Indian Police Service.

My father was always busy and had little time to spend with me as his work commitments stretched beyond the normal working hours of a civil servant. My mother not only made up for it but in a way spoiled me. She would give me anything I wanted; be it food or toys. I only had to ask for it. By the teen years I had started getting into bad company of boys who were into smoking and drinking. This was nothing short of blasphemy in the 50s. But my mother covered up for me and never let anything negative reach my father's ears. 

Another factor that helped me was that being a rolling stone, moving periodically from one place to another on dad's transfer, there were no relatives around to keep tabs on me or admonish me. On the rare occasion that I met them there was only love and 'awe' for me being the son of a police officer. In 1960 , when I got my job in a large factory at the age of 24, I was already into regular abuse of alcohol. The only difference was that I now did not need to depend on mother for money. I lived in style, spending most of my earnings drinking with friends and playing cards at the local officer's club. 

The rest of what happened is detailed in the "Queen story" (Read here) . My slide was seemingly gradual yet, sure and swift. I was unfit to take care of my wife and children. There was just enough money to drink with things getting desperate towards the end of each month. I began to get into acts of corruption. In the last stages, I lost all shame and asked money from employees or junior officers who came to my official chamber.

I do not know how much my wife Preeti and daughter Lavanya hated me. But one thing was clear. They wanted to keep me as far away from them as possible.  Lavanya's wedding was the darkest day of my life when it should have been happiest for the bride's father. I was totally ignored by everyone be it family or the guests and I had to run away once again to the comfort of the 'cursed' bottle.     

The bottle that gave me pleasure in adolescence and youth, gifted me cirrhosis of the liver in middle age. Doctors advised me to stop drinking knowing fully well that I had become incapable of following their instructions. 

 I wanted to tell my story as well, not to put focus on myself but to serve as a deterrent to the youngsters who today have so many more substances of abuse to choose from. Do you want to be another me or a happy, accomplished, professional and family person? The choice is yours! 

NB: This post is a part of  challenge #BlogchatterA2Z    

रिश्ते - कल और आज के

 

कल के रिश्तों में एक मिठास थी 

एक दुसरे से लोग प्यार, इज़त से बात करते थे 

आज बात करने केलिए समय कहाँ है 

जल्दबाज़ी में शब्द कड़वा बनने लगते है  

विवाह के रिश्ता भी व्यापर सा हो गए 

"तुम्हारे पास कितने गाडी , बांग्ला है ?

मेरे पास बड़े जगहों पे काम आने वाले 

 मित्र, रिश्तेदार है "    

बिज़नेस के फायदे देखते देखते 

बाढ़ में  गए वधु - वर का कल्याण  

युवक - युवतियाँ भूल गए, इश्क़ मोहब्बत करने की कला 

एक ज़माना ऐसा था जब प्रियतम 

अपनी प्रियतमा केलिए सालों का इंतज़ार करता था 

कभी कभी शादी ही छोड़ देते, 

और बिता देते, पूरी ज़िन्दगी उसकी यादों में ...

आज ,सब तरह की रिश्ता में 

चाहे बाप- बेटे , पति-पत्नी , 

 नाना- पोता  या मालिक - मज़दूर 

पहली सोच  यह आ जाता है 

कि "इस से मुझको क्या मिलेगा ? " 

उन दिनों को वापस ला सकता है 

 जीत सकते है हम फिर से  संसार - प्यार, मोहब्बत से  

आदमी आदमी से प्रेम करने से 

एक दुसरे केलिए प्यार , सहानुभूति, जगाने से 

जीवन में संतुष्ट, और खुश रहने से 

दिलचस्ब काम करने से 

और  प्रकृति  के अनुसार जीने से  

राजीव  मूतेढत  

NB:  I recited this poem during the Seniors Today Poetry meet on 26/4/2024 

Urmila's Honeymoon

Preamble: For the  Blogchatter's A2Z challenge during the month of April 2024, I am writing mini stories on various subjects and characters on each day of the month except on Sundays. The name of the protagonist shall begin with the alphabet assigned for the day. 

As they had planned since a long time, Urmila and Vivek took the flight for their honeymoon to the "Paradise on Earth". This nick name was earned by the Kashmir valley on account of her stunning natural beauty characterized by lush greenery, snow capped mountains, serene lakes. houseboats and vibrant culture.

 Urmila and Vivek had fallen in love while in college. Unlike an earlier generation for whom "Love was blind", being representatives of the intelligent "New Gen", they went in for a 'planned' love affair. Both of them made sure that the other was from equally strong financial background, from the same caste and educated equally as they were pursuing engineering in a reputed college in Kochi, Kerala. This way, there could not be any objection from the parents to their union. 

As expected, they got the green signal for the wedding without any hitch. Being from business families, there was not even a delay on account of the need to secure a job. Vivek was slated to take over his father's business. Therefore  the wedding was fixed shortly after they became qualified engineers. Urmila and Vivek were excited to go to the Kashmir valley for their honeymoon. It was a dream they had discussed many times during the courting period.

As the day of the wedding neared, Urmila was in a state of day dreaming, wild imagination, full of excitement and wonder. Oh the seven heavenly nights prior to the wedding! Nights engaged in dreaming with hardly any sleep! And the pictures in  the dreams were the same; fun and frolic with her beloved Vivek- throwing snow balls at each other, skating together, drinking warm ginger tea from the same glass. 

Finally,  the wedding ceremonies were over; the guests had left and it was just the two of them on the flight to the valley of their dreams. On the first three days they had so much fun. It was to put it mildly a 'heavenly experience' exactly as Urmila had imagined. They explored the capital city of Srinagar visiting the lovely Mughal gardens of Shalimar Bhag, Nishat Bhag and the architectural wonders such as Jama Masjid and Shankaracharya temple. The lovebirds took a ride while in Gulmarg on one of the highest cable cars in the world with a panoramic view of the snowcapped mountain peaks. More fun and adventure were planned for the remaining seven days of the honeymoon. 

On the fourth day, they had joined a group of tourists to explore the scenic landscapes of the Pahalgam town and also experience pony rides and nature walks. The guide advised the group to stick together.  "The bus will leave sharply at 4 PM. It gets dark after that and it is not safe for tourists to be here", he said. Urmila and Vivek were so immersed in themselves as they walked hand in hand that they were oblivious of the time. Before they knew it, it was already 6 PM and the bus had left.   

Then it happened. A group of masked men approached them. Vivek, the coward that he was, simply ran away leaving his newly wed wife to fend for herself. The next day, the brutal gang rape was reported in all the major newspapers. Vivek, now wanted divorce. But then, Urmila had already made up her mind. "Who would want to live with such a man even if he had wanted to continue the facade of a marital relationship?". For Urmila, a joyously planned event had turned out to be a nightmare. Its tremors would remain whole through the rest of her life. 

NB: This post is a part of  challenge #BlogchatterA2Z