House of Cards (28 page)

‘Amma and Dad, stop giving me lessons. Both of you are wrong. I don’t know whether I’ll win the medal or not. I just want to enjoy the glory before I go. That’s my perspective.’

Everyone laughed.

That’s how he had met Neha for the first time. They had gone to Delhi for their respective competitions. Delhi was not a new place for Sishir. The first time that Mridula brought him there was when he was still a child. She wanted to show him the monuments and museums—just like a teacher. Though he did not like Delhi much, he enjoyed the kulfi, the roadside shopping and the air-conditioned Palika Bazaar.

During the competition, Sishir realized that the group from Chitradurga outperformed theirs by a large margin. Their music was rustic and folk but the tunes were undiluted, original and mesmerizing. Their dancers wore matching and colourful outfits. Sishir was surprised and felt a little ashamed of his prejudgement. Neha did not participate in either the dance or music competitions. Sishir learnt later that she was in the chess competition. This time, he thought that he should not underestimate her. Sishir did his level best in the oratory competition but he knew that he could not defeat the Delhi youths. They were excellent. It was a tough competition and he was happy with a consolation prize. Neha came third in the chess competition and he was duly impressed.

Out of the five days that they were in Delhi, all of them got a day off and they went to visit fashion studios, bars and Chandni Chowk. Everybody knew that Chandni Chowk had a paratha shop from Shah Jahan’s time and wanted to see and taste the food. But Neha did not participate in the group outings. Sishir was curious to know where she had gone. When he saw her later, he asked, ‘I didn’t see you in the bars or in the fashion studios. Where were you?’

‘I went to the national museum.’

‘What’s so great about museums? Have you come to Delhi only to see them?’

‘No, I came for the competition, but I want to see all the museums while I’m here.’

Neha did not say any more. Sishir smiled and said, ‘You’re like my mother. She loves museums too.’

‘Does she? What does she do?’

‘She’s a teacher in a school; but my dad, Dr Sanjay Rao, is a leading gynaecologist in Bangalore. Do you know about the infertility clinic called Samadhan? My dad started it.’

‘Oh, I haven’t heard of it. Sorry, I have to go now.’ Her sharp words were like a needle that pricked the balloon of his enthusiasm.

After that, Sishir had met Neha for the second time in Bangalore. One evening, Mridula was getting ready to go out when the phone rang. Sishir picked it up—it was their driver. He was calling to inform Mridula that he was ill and could not come to work. Sishir was about to go out with his friends but when he realized that his mother was taking out the scooter from the garage, he called out to her and said, ‘Amma, it’s about to rain. Don’t worry, I’ll drive you to wherever you are going.’

Mridula happily agreed. When they were in the car, she said, ‘Sishir, how will I come back?’

‘Amma, if you don’t spend too much time at your friend’s house, I’ll come back and pick you up in half an hour. By the way, where do you want to go?’

‘To my colleague Chandrika’s house in Thyagarajanagar. She has Varalakshmi Puja today.’

When they reached Thyagarajanagar, Sishir realized that the lanes were narrow. He had never been to this part of Bangalore before. Though Mridula was giving him directions, he found it difficult to manoeuvre his car. He felt uncomfortable when Mridula said, ‘Most of my colleagues live here. It’s near the school and affordable on a teacher’s salary.’

They reached Chandrika’s house; it was at a dead end. Sishir got irritated: ‘Amma, how will I reverse the car here? There’s
no space in these small lanes. Will you tell someone to open the gate of the house? That’ll help.’

Mridula got down, went inside and told the first person she met to open the gate. To Sishir’s astonishment, Neha came out. She opened the gate and Sishir drove in and reversed the car. He smiled and said, ‘Hello, Neha. What brings you here?’

‘This is my cousin’s house. I’ve come for the puja.’

Still sitting in the car, Sishir asked, ‘All the way from Chitradurga just for a puja?’

‘My sister Neerja stays in Bangalore too. So I thought I’ll meet her. Why don’t you come in?’

‘No, I have to meet a friend.’

Neha found it strange that he did not want to come in and take prasad. So she said, ‘At least come in and take blessings.’

He could have refused but by now, other people had come out of the house and were looking at his big car. He felt awkward and got out. When he went in, he saw that it was a simple lower-middle-class house with cramped rooms. There were too many people there. But Mridula was happy to see that Sishir had come inside and introduced him to her friends.

Neha came with a plate full of mithai and namkeen. Sishir said, ‘No, I don’t want to eat anything. I had a late lunch. Please excuse me.’

Even though he wanted to talk to Neha a little more, he did not get a chance and both mother and son left the house soon.

On the way back, Mridula asked, ‘Sishir, how do you know Neha? She is Chandrika’s niece. I really liked meeting her. Both her parents are working in LIC and they have two daughters. The older one is married to a software engineer.’

‘Mom, I don’t want to know about her family. I know her because she was one of the participants during our competition in Delhi.’

Sishir was rudely brought back to the present when there was a loud announcement from British Airways. He realized
that this was his third meeting with Neha. She was packing her handbag and getting ready to board the plane. Sishir said, ‘Well, see you in Oxford. Give me your email ID.’

She nodded her head and they exchanged email IDs.

A few minutes later, he boarded and settled down in his comfortable business-class seat. He wondered, ‘How does Neha feel when she’s going to a different country, especially with her background? Unlike me, it isn’t easy for Neha to go from Chitradurga to Oxford. My life is like sailing on a boat under clear skies. I’m intelligent with good connections and great guidance. I appreciate Neha’s hard work. She must have got a scholarship and taken a partial loan, at the very least.’

Sishir felt quite happy about the turn of events. Thirteen hours later, the plane reached London. Neha and Sishir met each other again at the baggage claim. Sishir’s bags had priority tags on them, so they arrived almost immediately, but he decided to wait with her. Unfortunately, Neha’s bags did not come and she looked worried. Sishir went to the airline counter and registered a complaint. He was asked to wait for another half hour. When Neha heard this, she said, ‘Thank you for your help, but I don’t want to hold you up.’

Sishir smiled and did not reply. Instead, he asked her, ‘Is this your first trip to London?’

‘Yes, in fact, it was my first plane ride.’

‘How do you spend your vacations? Where do you go?’

‘I go wherever my parents are. Both of them are in transferable jobs. They try to stay near Chitradurga—sometimes they are successful and sometimes they aren’t. Depending on the circumstances, I make a trip to visit them. Otherwise, I stay alone in Chitradurga.’

‘Isn’t it difficult to stay in a small village by yourself? It’s different from staying alone in a big city like Bangalore.’

Sishir had the independence to live alone but it was the first time that he comprehended that he liked staying with his
parents. He might not always like their advice or suggestions but he knew that they loved him unconditionally and he loved the attention he got from them too.

Neha interrupted his thoughts saying, ‘Sishir, it is not difficult. I have extended family there and my dad has also built a house. It may be small but it’s our home. I like living there. I enjoy the company of my relatives and I participate in festivals with them.’

‘What are you going to do in Oxford?’

‘I’m pursuing my studies in sociology and human behaviour. I have received a fellowship for two years.’

‘Are you going to continue to play chess?’

‘Of course! It’s my hobby.’

‘Do you have any friends or relatives in the UK?’

‘No. Almost all my contacts are in Chitradurga and I have a few cousins in Bangalore.’

‘You must be away from your family for the first time for this long.’

‘Yes.’

Sishir felt sorry for Neha—a girl who had never gone out of her country was going to stay on her own in a place like England without any relatives and with limited income. He suddenly remembered his mother. She had told him, ‘Sishir, when I came to Bangalore, I cried for months. My Kannada and background were so different from the norm in Bangalore. It was as good as going to a foreign land. Many times, I wanted to go back home but I realized that your dad had a better future in Bangalore. So I started making new friends, learning their habits and the culture. But my heart lies in the village. For me, home will always be Aladahalli.’

Sishir thought, ‘Neha must be feeling the same way Amma did all those years ago.’

He said, ‘I’m going to be in John Radcliffe Hospital near Oxford. Please let me know whenever you need any help.’

Neha’s bags finally arrived. As they walked out of the airport, Sishir asked, ‘How are you going to Oxford?’

‘The college website said that I should get down at Heathrow Airport, take the tube into town and then a bus to Oxford. I’ll follow their instructions.’

‘Why do you want to do that? I’m taking a taxi. I’ll give you a ride.’

‘No, I don’t think so. I have troubled you enough. I can manage on my own.’

Sishir was a little annoyed and said firmly, ‘Neha, try to understand. This is a new country. It is not even remotely like going to Delhi. I’m an Indian student like you who’s going to stay here for four years. There’s grace in accepting favours sometimes. Let me help you.’

Neha was silent for a minute and then said, ‘Okay.’

They went out of Heathrow Airport and got into a taxi. Sishir knew the ins and outs of London.

As the taxi got going, Sishir noticed that Neha was looking on either side of the road, like a child looking at a beautiful toy for the first time. Her face was usually calm but he could see that she was excited now. He liked seeing her enjoy London. When her destination arrived, Neha got down with her bags and said, ‘Thank you for the ride. I’ll go to my room now.’

Sishir laughed. ‘Do you have the keys?’

‘Oh, I’m sure there’s a chowkidar who will show me the room and give me the keys.’

Sishir was amused. ‘This isn’t India, Neha. There’s a different system here. You need a special kind of key to get into your apartment.’

Sishir got down, talked to the apartment office and got the keys; Neha followed him quietly. Finally, he dropped her to her room. As they were saying goodbye, Neha felt alone; Sishir could see it in her moist eyes.

A week passed by and Neha sent Sishir an email giving the details of her apartment and her phone number. She said that
she had started her classes. Though she was intelligent, she found it a little difficult to follow the British accent. Adjustment for Sishir was much easier. He had two seniors working in the same hospital but their shift timings were different. Apart from that, in one year, his seniors had also found girlfriends for themselves.

Sishir called Neha that evening and politely asked if they could meet on Saturday. He wanted her to have someone to talk to. Within a month, Neha had become a fish in water. She had adjusted well and made new friends. But she always felt the most comfortable with Sishir and liked meeting him. Sishir felt the same way. He had grown up an only child and had never had anybody to share with, to fight and reconcile with, to help hide his secrets, or compete with. Though he was friendly with both boys and girls, he preferred to keep to himself. For the first time, he felt a strong connection to someone whom he really respected.

26

Learning to Survive

A team of teachers came from Mridula’s school to visit her. She had never taken such a long vacation and now, she had applied for medical leave. When they came to see her, everybody gave her different advice. Some said, ‘Madam, since you are unwell, you should go to a hill station and rest. The change might be good for you.’ Others said, ‘You should go on a world tour since you don’t have to worry about money.’ But Leela said, ‘I attended a swamiji’s discourse in Jayanagar. He teaches
relaxation techniques and I found it useful. Maybe you can try it.’

‘Do you think my mind will be at rest after that?’

‘I think so. I’ll give you his address if you want.’

Mridula decided to enrol for the course and went there the next day. There were people from different age groups and everyone had a problem. Finally, the swamiji entered. He was young, lean and clean-shaven. He had a calm face and was wearing a white robe. He said, ‘The main reason for unhappiness is disappointment. Disappointment disappears with detachment. Detachment comes through knowledge and knowledge is gained by dhyana. So you should learn the technique of dhyana.’