Tahrir.......

Sharon was startled at the shrill sound of the phone ringing in the living room. She threw a glance at the bed side clock. 12 midnight. Who could have possibly called her at this hour?

It was Jacob on the other side. “Sharon, there is a news! You really need to burn your midnight oil and finish this story to be published tomorrow in the early morning edition. You see, I just heard that Rustam Mallik passed away half an hour back. Considering the stature of this great poet, our newpaper really needs to do a lot of justice to him. A marvellously written, well deserved tribute to this great man, thats what I want. And only you can write it! So hurry up and in next two hours send me the first draft. Get all the information you want about him and just do it!”

Sharon’s heart missed a beat. She was surprised and shocked. No, not because Jacob had called her at this weird hour! She was used to this. What shocked her was Rustam Mallik’s sudden death.

And fate had chosen none but her to write a ‘marvellously written, well deserved tribute’ for him!


Rustam Mallik was in news only last week when he received his award from the Head of the State and then he and his wife had appeared in a talk show. His second wife!


In the talk show, Rustam had let his heart out about his view towards the simplicity of life, of his love for Shayari and dedication to many social causes. His wife told the world how she is the luckiest woman on earth to have Rustam as her life partner!

Rustam Mallik was one of the highest regarded poets in the modern times and everyone said that he had a heart of gold and God dwelled in his pen! His poems on the social issues were part of student’s texts and he was the recipient of many prestigious awards, national and international.

So it was only proper for Sharon to search all the articles about him and write down many good words for the departed soul! Jacob knew that she would do justice to this work for the newspaper. Jacob knew her talent very well!

What Jacob did not know was Sharon had a sea of information on Rustam’s life! In her little library, Sharon had collected paper clippings of whatever news she could find on Rustam’s life. She had all the stories which the world would need to mourn the passing away of their dear poet.

What the world did not know was that Sharon carried in her heart, an entirely different saga of Rustam’s life!


She had met Rustam when she was a little girl, of only 6 yrs. Rustam was quite indifferent to this little girl, who tried to reach out to this poet, once. She wanted to hold his hands but Rustam hurried away.

She feebly called after him, “Daddy.....”

Sharon’s mother took her away. Time out! She could not spend more time with her daddy.

Sharon’s mother had met Rustam when she was a demure, young college student. She missed her classes to listen to him at the state sponsored mushayraas. She gradually fell in love with him and did not even know when she entered his life.


Rustam was a married man. Although Rustam and Sharon’s mother remained in the relation, he took all the care not to let the world have even a hint of it.


Mrinalini was too much in love with him to resist him. She was afloat a boat in the ocean of her own emotions and she let Rustam sail her away.


The tempest started when Mrinalini got pregnant with their child. Rustam threw temper, broke the wine bottles at Mrinalini’s house and also injured her badly when she refused to let go off the baby.


Rustam suddenly walked out of Mrinalini’s life, vouching never to come back again! Sharon was born in a convent where Mrinalini had taken a shelter. She later worked at the convent school and raised Sharon.


By the time Sharon was 5, her queries about her Daddy disturbed Mrinalini. Rustam had threatened her enough not to reveal Sharon’s parentage to the world.


Only when she turned six, did Mrinalini promise to plan a small meeting with her father. That was the only birthday gift little Sharon wanted. Mrinalini had requested a brief meeting and Rustam agreed with the condition that the meeting should not last 5 min.


That morning Sharon woke up at the crack of the dawn, bathed and dressed in her best and dressed up her dolls and Teddy too. They needed to see her Daddy too!

Mrinalini held the child’s hand and patiently waited outside the auditorium where Rustam had one of his shows. After the programme he came out and Sharon gathered her dolls and Teddy to meet him. And it was over before she knew it. She had dreamt Rustam taking her in his arms, giving gifts and hugging her. But he did not even hold her little hands and left the child surprised and weighed down with the desire for more.

Mrinalini never seemed to even recognize Sharon’s longing to be with her father. As she grew, her madness for having her parents together, also grew. She never dared to let her heart out before her mother. By then Mrinalini was a completely different woman from the fragile girl in love that she once was.

So Sharon grew up without her father. She kept collecting all the news she could, about him and spent all her pocket money buying his books. When she was a teen ager, she stole herself away from school to hear him at the stage, whenever he was in town; just like her mother did when she was in college.


Sharon was a silent observer of Rustam’s life. When he separated from his wife, Sharon hoped he would return to Mrinalini but Rustam married a beautiful and successful theatre actress and told the world that they were the happiest couple in the world.


When in college, Sharon became bolder and more confident. She wrote to Rustam and forced him to be in contact with her, albeit secretly. His wife and Sharon’s mother were kept in the dark about the acquaintance that was secretly building up. There was mutual promise to keep it in the dark.


Sharon would wait at the entrance and exit during Rustam’s programmes and their eyes would meet only for a while and these moments were enough for Sharon to carry on with her life. She did long to be in his arms, to question the injustice done to her, she wanted him more than anything else but neither he nor Mrinalini ever had the hint of it.


Then Mrinalini left the world. She asked him whether he could be there for the last rites but Rustam refused.


After Mrinalini, Sharons’ life became a vacuum as well as a liberated sky! She could now follow Rustam without being caught by her mother; only Rustam was indifferent once again and slowly stopped all the contacts with her.


Sharon never stopped reading his books and all the articles which talked about the benevolent social work Rustam was doing. He opened orphanages in two cities, was the founder of a blind school, was the director of Association for retiring poets and many more.


Rustam’s life ended before Sharon could know. No, she did not feel the tears wanting to flood her eyes. She now had to write a dedicated tribute to the great poet, who had been a great person and a great social worker in his life.


Kaise karoon bayaan inaayat teri
Hazaaron karam kiye toone
Mere tahrir mein jo na sama sakein
Itne afsaane diye toone....


Sharon took out her files and began her work. The story is yet to come to an end......



Anindita Baidya
16 July 12

Images: From the internet

The final rendezvous

‘Ann.......!!!”

The silence was broken by a faint call from somewhere very far. But it was very distinct and she recognised the voice immediately. And the realisation sent a chilling wave down her spine!

“It couldn’t be him! How on earth is it possible?”




Samay ke uss paar se bhi awaaz deta hai koi?

Tera naam doosre jaha se bhi pukaartaa hai koi?

Annelise ignored the voice and treaded ahead. It was a dense forest and the cold windy morning in January made it difficult to move very fast.

She again heard the voice, “Ann..........................!!!!”

She almost started sweating in spite of the harsh cold wind. Annelise now decided to hurry back to her resort.

The resort manager had informed her that the beautiful Sunrise Point in this part of the Shivalik hills was closed for tourists, since last thirty years! The tourism department had sealed this part and notified the place as ‘UNSAFE’.

She very well knew, why!

Annelise tried to shrug off the thought of the voice calling out her name. Her very own name, ‘Ann’. And there has been only one person in the world who ever called her by that name!

Sahir! Only Sahir!

Sahir and Annelise, the star struck lovers, the prince and princesses of a fairy tale love story, a tragic love story.

They both belonged to very rich families. The two families in the same neighbourhood had built fortune over the generations and their wealth, splendour and dazzle could speak only a small part of the enormous power and strength they had built in the society.

And so, undoubtedly, the highly regarded two families could not allow the two lovers, belonging to different culture and religion, belong to each other. They were like the two banks of the same river, nothing in the world could allow them to meet.

There were tears, there were pleadings, there was violence, house-arrest and unlimited pain and woes at both the sides. Ann and Sahir, however, could not bring their families into a mutual peaceful contract. Soon Ann’s powerful brothers arranged a hasty matrimony for their sister, ignoring cruelly her tears and heartache.

It was with the help of a cousin that Ann managed to sneak out of the busy house and meet Sahir at a remote lane. They had decided to board the next train to the neighbouring station. But hell soon broke loose and both the families discovered that the lovers had left! There was a chase, a bad chase, a long chase and Sahir and Ann headed straight towards the forest, with no idea where the road would lead to! After an hour of chase, they clearly spotted Ann’s brothers and Sahir’s family running towards them like a group of mad elephants. It had not taken long for them to decide the final fate! They looked at each other and knew what they had to do.

In another moment, the two lovers jumped off the high cliff, down, down the rocky hill, rolling past high trees, thorny bushes and steep rocky edges.

Fate had different plans for each of them.

Ann was rescued by a group of trekkers. They tried to help Sahir too but he did not live long enough to even reach the hospital. Ann had remained in coma for a day and much after she had regained her senses, that she actually realised what a crooked game her fate had played!

Death had embraced Sahir while her own life had deceived her and death had deserted her!

After recovery, Ann left the town for good. She lived the years in her own captivity, in some lonely hilly village and had never returned to her homeland. She punished herself for not having crossed the boundary of life and death along with Sahir.

Thirty years later, she planned a rendezvous with the long lost moment and landed up in a small tourist cottage, not having even informed her family. She had borrowed the cottage owner’s car and had headed towards this place, knowing very well that treading inside was forbidden.

Her thoughts were once again shattered by the same faint call, ‘Ann....’ and she now started perspiring badly on her forehead. In the almost freezing cold, she felt very hot with her cardigan and shawl around her. She tried to walk faster but the thick fog made viewing very difficult. Her own legs seemed like heavy pillars and hands trembled badly.

And then....her heart almost stopped beating and she tumbled over a rock. About twenty feet away, on a rock, she saw her scarf, her very own red silk scarf which had her name beautifully embroidered in blue, at one edge.

Ann had tied this scarf around Sahir’s neck just before they plunged themselves downhill. Her cousin had informed that Sahir was buried along with this scarf; a small, last piece of regard for his love, shown by his repenting family.

Ann was in no way looking forward to any more chilling surprises. She ran towards her car and drove it very fast.

The car pulled along recklessly through the forest, cutting through small herbs. Her hands were shivering so badly and had almost lost control.

In all her panic, she missed the ‘Forbidden path’ signboard on the way and drove into the path, still sweating and fighting hard to look through the thick fog. She had avoided looking back or sideways while driving. Some vehicle lights visible through the rear view mirror caught her attention and she looked back while driving at the same speed.

She did not notice the deep valley just ahead and in no time Ann’s car along with her, dived into the deep valley, knocking against the rocks, tall trees, thorny bushes and steep rocky edges........!!!!!