The wall - A short story

Prologue:

“It is very difficult for me to be alone for an entire day. Let me at least teach mathematics to children in the evenings. This severe headache is because I am giving absolutely no work to my brain” 

Mrs. Rajeshwari spoke in almost muted voice. 

“Mom, it is all in your mind. Just get out of the mindset that you are alone. Trust me, your headache will vanish. There are thousands of mothers who are alone and they do not complain. I am meddled with my own problems in and outside of this house. Do you want me to quit job and be with you just because you feel lonely? You are alone for a couple of hours for a day. But you are not outcast or abandoned…. Are you? After all, what have we not done to you? There are hundreds of those Bhajan CDs that you like. There is TV. You have newspaper, novels and what not. I dunno what is stopping you from exploring all these” bellowed Ajay, who was in a hurry. As he picked up his laptop bag and was about to leave, he felt that the holler was unnecessary. He felt pity and tried to console his mother.

“Maa… Sanjana has already cooked breakfast and lunch. Eat on time, take your tablets without fail and take a power nap. Watch TV for some time. She will be back by 5PM. You’ll be alright mom. Don’t think too much” 

He kissed his mother good bye, got up and walked out of the house. Sanjana was already waiting near the car.

“What is it”? She admonished

“Arghhh! The same old make-believe solitary confinement of mother”

Sanjana gave an unpleasantly prominent look. Ajay tried to ignore and a few seconds later the car zoomed out of the gate and the couple left for their daily chores….

Chapter-1

For Mrs. Rajeshwari, life had turned one-eighty after her retirement. Her husband’s early demise had forced her to take the lead at a young age. On one hand, after decades of serving as a high school teacher, shaping other kids’ lives, taking responsibilities and driving her own family, she was expecting a sense of relief that she will get to live the life that she wants to. On the other hand, her own son and daughter in law were not realizing that she had just retired from work, not from life. They made it implicit that she had struggled all these years and now that she has retired, all she needs is rest.  Not that they were apathetic. They took her for periodic medical check-ups, never forgot her birthday, facilitated her pension and gave it to her without fail. She had the luxury of TV, internet and so on. Sanjana took care of all the cooking at home. Shanta Bai visited every day to clean and do the dishes. But involuntarily, they were not receptive to her genuine feelings!  So even beyond all these comforts, there was a sense of privation which always bothered Mrs. Rajeshwari – Loneliness.

Back in Mumbai, where she had spent the major part of her life, she had so many friends. After her husband’s early demise, she had moved to a house in Bandra west. R N Podar school where she was a teacher, was just 10 minute walk from her house. In the evenings, the verandah of her house was packed with kids. She was a brilliant mathematics tutor. She had that zeal to teach mathematics to kids in simple methods. Students she tutored consistently scored high marks in mathematics. Among the kids who secured a hundred on hundred in mathematics in Maharashtra board exams, majority were Mrs. Rajeshwari’s students. Vernacular newspapers called her century teacher. At the prime of her life, she was energetic, lively and led a meaningful life. 

Sanjana, a bank manager now, was once her student. By virtue of her profession, there were frequent transfers. And this time, she was transferred to Nashik. So Ajay had to resign his IT job in Mumbai and had joined the only software company in Nashik amidst the wine and other small scale industries. Without an option, Mrs. Rajeshwari too unwillingly had to relocate to Nashik. That is where her age of loneliness crept in.

For years, the fast paced life of Mumbai had pushed Mrs. Rajeshwari to limits. The city offered a frenzied spiral of dreams; it had given a new life to her; it had given her success and fame. Her burgeoning dreams were synonymous with the city’s haste itself. But Nashik was totally conflicting with what she had experienced in Mumbai for 30+ years. For unexplained reasons, she just could not embrace living in Nashik; not because of its tempered lifestyle, but because she started to experience a sense of solitude. Within months after her arrival in Nashik, she had developed the perception of being alone and isolated. With nobody to even talk to, locked in between the four walls was something that had disturbed her to a very large extent. 

The doorbell rang and she was sure that it is Shanta Bai.

“Come in Shanta Bai… At least you are there to talk to me. Why are you so late today?

“Arrey Maaji, in the next road, just behind your house, there is a lady; just like you Maaji. Husband died, Son and daughter in America. She had arthritis. So they operated and they put some metal knee for her Maaji. Some modern operation which cost her lakhs of rupees. But the surgery was not successful only. Her knee pain increased after operation. Now she cannot even walk outside."

Paap teni! She was talking to me about her pain and loneliness Maaji. That’s why I got late”

Instantly, there was a ray of hope, a sort of glimmer in Mrs. Rajeshwari’s face. She imagined the neighborhood lady's and her own life to be like two peas in a pod. She thought that if she can befriend the lady that Shanta Bai is talking about, it’ll definitely help both kill their boredom. She thanked Shanta Bai that the almighty himself has sent this opportunity and asked for more details.

“What is her name?”

“Sundara Bai”

“Where exactly is her house?”

“Very Next Street. Exactly behind your house maaji. If you go to your balcony and she comes to hers, you both can actually talk to each other. Ha ha ha”

This idea appealed to Mrs. Rajeshwari. She gave this a lot of thought overnight and decided that she herself should strike a conversation after Sanjana and Ajay left for office. Even the thought of getting to talk to someone sparked a sense of excitement in her. She could not sleep the whole night. The next day morning, as usual, Sanjana and Ajay left for office. Shanta Bai came and finished her chores and left for the day. Mrs. Rajeshwari came to her balcony and stood there, facing the seven feet wall. She waited until she heard a feeble noise. She spoke in a loud voice:

“Hello, Sundara bai… I am Rajeshwari. Your neighbor”

“Hello. Are you talking to me? How do you know my name?”

A 30 second pause. *What if Sundara Bai gets back inside and fails to hear what I am saying. Oh no! This should not happen* Mrs. Rajeshwari raised her voice as much as she could.

“Shanta Bai told me about you. I am alone at home. Are you alone too?”

 “Hmmm. In today’s world, only people who are aged like me and you will sit at home”

Both of them laughed.

“Did you have your lunch, Sundara Bai?”

“Hmmm. In the beginning, I used to eat whenever I was hungry. Nowadays, I am eating to just keep myself alive. Doctor has told me that eating on time will help you get good sleep. So I forcefully eat something”

“Yeah. Same here. Eating just to be alive”. How many of you stay here”?

And so started their friendship. Over a period of time, they became very good friends. They enjoyed their varied conversations. They spoke at length about their families, their childhood and their college days, their post marriage tantrums, about their responsibilities as parents and how their kids had gotten busy in their own lives abandoning them. Their mutual conversation eased their pain and touched their mental wounds with a warm and tender acquaintance. For them, it was not just exchange of words. It was an everyday colloquium. At times, they forgot the seven feet wall between them and the tête-à-tête continued for hours together. This everyday conversation was the medicine that kept Mrs. Rajeshwari and Sundarabai alive and away from their otherwise secluded lives. 

A couple of months passed by. Ajay and Sanjana did take notice that the mother had almost stopped whining. Mrs. Rajeshwari informed Ajay and Sanjana of her shenanigans with Sundarabai at the backyard. Ajay thanked god that the rewarding effects of this talk became a compelling incentive for his mom to stop being lonely. He told his mother that she can talk to her neighbor at her will and that he or Sanjana would never object it. He also promised to check if he can do something to the wall so that they can have direct face to face conversations. Over months, it improved the psychological and social functioning of his mother on its own. In other words, it was a natural recovery for Mrs. Rajeshwari from the solitude.

It was Mrs. Rajeshwari’s birthday. Like every year, they decided to make her birthday, a special day for her. Ajay and Sanjana thought of surprising mother by coming home early, celebrating her birthday and taking her out for dinner. They left their offices early, purchased cake, sweets and savories from the famous store and reached home. As always, Ajay opened the doors with his keys. As he entered, he heard Mrs. Rajeshwari’s feeble voice busy in a conversation. He suddenly realized it could be Sundarabai, love thy neighbor, who was a blessing in disguise. A thought spontaneously came to his mind; Inviting Sundarabai home on mother’s birthday would make both really happy and that it would also put an end to their month long acquaintance. He thought this is also the best opportunity to thank Sundara Bai.

As he moved towards the backyard with his mind reasoning on how to strike a conversation with SundaraBai, he noticed something very unusual. That strange, bizarre and a totally unexpected scene freaked him out. He halted abruptly. 

“I tell you Sundarabai, you should really visit my Bombay once…”

“I like the way you say ‘My Bombay’. Rajeshwari, you miss Bombay very much. Don’t you?”

“Yes. Every day! I wish you could walk. I would have asked Ajay to take both of us to Bombay one day”

A chill ran down Ajay’s spine. Facing the seven feet wall, Mrs. Rajeshwari, herself was doing the two sided conversation. There was no Sundarabai in real. Sundarabai was a character created by Mrs. Rajeshwari in her mind.

… To be continued