PART 69
THE D-DAY
Subpart 1
Hundreds of emotions raced through the minds of Archana and Manav, as they made their way to court on that Friday, which was the date set aside for their separation.
Archana, to say the least, was nervous. Questions and never ending fears gushed through her. As she sat in the taxi, accompanied by her Aai, waiting for the traffic to clear, she wondered all about what she wanted to say to Manav. Would she get a chance to say it? Would her Aai let her talk to Manav in peace? Would Manav agree to live separately? Oh, how she wished and prayed Manav would give a positive response- she didn't want to lose him, and there was no way she could be with him if he didn't agree to leave his family- Savita Aai would make life hell for her.
Manav, on the other hand, was quiet and peaceful. No doubt, he was upset and disappointed that his marriage was ending at last, but now that he had given up and quit thinking about it, he was more at ease. Sometimes, it was better to accept circumstances when there was no other route out. At least, it gave one the strength to focus on other things, which could no longer be ignored owing to this unending battle of marriage and love.
The air was stifling and seemed uncomfortable. The rains of the previous night had only increased the humidity more, he felt, as he fanned himself with his file, waiting for the local to stop at his station. At about 9 o clock, he got down at the family court in Bandra. He hesitated only for a while before he walked in, reassuring himself that it would all be over soon, and this would be probably the last time when he would have to face Archana and be reminded of the sad, untrue story of accusations. He walked inside court.
On a bench outside the court room, Archana was sitting, her head bent. Her Aai was with her.
*********************
She stood up as she saw him coming. She didn't know how she was supposed to react- smile, say hi, or directly start that she wanted to talk to him. She was fumbling over it, when Manav walked upto her, bobbed his head momentarily to give respect to her Aai, and then came straight to the point, evading her eyes- "Umm.. did you enquire inside?"
"Uh.. no." said Archana. "Siddhant has also not come till now.."
"Hmm.." said Manav, looking around. "I'll go and tell we are here."
"I'll come with you." She said immediately. But Manav stopped her. "There's really no need. Sit with your Aai, I'll enquire and come back."
He was gone the next moment, as Archana breathed deeply to calm herself again. Oh Bappa!
***********************
"Are you nervous?" asked Aai. Archana looked up. She indicated a no.
"Its okay, you can tell me." She said warmly. "Today is the last day, and it shall all get over soon. Don't worry."
Yes, maybe it would get over soon, thought Archana. Manav was appearing very cold and frigid to her, as if he had hardened his heart for the divorce and wanted it quickly, come what may. Knowing him, it was easy to assume he would not make any ego issues, but still.. who knew whether he secretly harboured feelings of resentment against her and her family for all the insult he had gone through, she thought.
Manav came back a little later. "Court proceedings will start in a few minutes. Everyone is waiting for the judge." The two women nodded. Siddhant too had come by then and overheard the conversation. "Ah good morning to all of you!" he said, looking smart as usual in his large black lawyer's robes which he wore over brown coloured trousers and a cream shirt. "I hope things are on track, anyways, Manav please come with me, I have to talk to you about alimony related matters."
He ushered Manav away, much to Archana's disappointment. Both men sat together and discussed the monthly sum that Manav would be giving for a few months after the divorce. Siddhant asked Manav to sign a few papers, and Manav signed where ever he was asked to, without reading the papers, just like last time. "Still not got your specs made?" teased Siddhant. Manav did not reply back and instead gave a small, uncomfortable smile. Siddharth continued to speak about the arrangements, terms and conditions of divorce, legal action that would be taken if Manav did not provide money every month and so on. Manav listened with rapt attention and jotted down necessary details in a little diary, screwing his eyes.
From the corner of her eyes, Archana watched the two men, hoping for Siddhant to leave Manav alone soon. She looked at her Aai, who was grumbling about how moist it was, and how it would be nice to have a better downpour than last night. "Last night was just a drizzle," she said, wiping her face with a handkerchief.
"Aai, you should go home." Said Archana. "It is clearly too uncomfortable for you. And honestly speaking, there is no need for you to stay here as well, considering Siddhant is here, and everything is going perfectly."
"Its okay." Said Sulochana. "Now there is no use in going away all alone. How long will it take- an hour? I can stay for that much time and then we will go home together. That will be more convenient."
Archana nodded, inwardly feeling more uncomfortable. She looked at Manav, who was still talking to the lawyer.
It was now or never, she thought. She got up and walked to him, but the two men got up and went away. She was left fuming.
********************
"Bad news!"
Archana looked up. Siddhant was standing near her.
"The judge has got caught up in some unavoidable business. The case has been pushed back to 2 o clock." Said Siddhant.
Sulochana Aai grunted unhappily. "Almost 4 more hours? What shall we do here till then?"
"You can go home if you want Kaku, come here at 2 o clock."
"It would take too much time to travel back home again- almost an hour for going and one hour for coming back, then why go home for just an hour or so? Lets wait here only na Aai.." said Archana. She was sure Manav wouldn't be going and she thought this was a good opportunity to have a talk with him. Sulochana aai looked displeased. Archana tried again. "Aai, you go home, I will wait here only.. don't sit here to wait for so long.."
"Yeah Kaku.. go home.. even I will be leaving in a little while, will drop in at my office and come back.." said Siddhant.
Sulochana looked shocked. "I.. I can't leave Archu alone here.."
Manav who was standing in the distance, raised an eyebrow.
Archana tried to talk sense to her. "Aai, I'm not a kid.. you go home.. no need to wait unnecessarily for so long.."
"But then what will you do here all alone? You will get bored. No, I should stay here." Said Aai.
"Are you sure?" said Siddhant. Archana sighed. "Well," he continued. "I'll come back in a little while then, there's a small canteen nearby.. you can go and wait there if you want."
**********************
The canteen was a small, poorly ventilated large room in one corner of the huge courtroom building. Since it was morning, a number of people could be seen there, sipping tea or having breakfast. A buzz rankled about the ambience. Old movie songs played on the radio.
Archana and Sulochana Aai sat in one of the corner tables under a fan. While Sulochana asked for tea so that she could take her medicines, Archana looked here and there for Manav. He wasn't there.
"Archana, won't you eat something?" asked Sulochana. "You didn't even take your breakfast properly. Have a cold drink, or something like that at least.."
"No Aai," said Archana, trying to smile. "Aai, you sit here, I'll come in a while."
"Where are you going?"
"Just coming."
She got up and went outside the canteen, her eyes scanning the courtyard to see whether she could see Manav anywhere. Finally she saw him sitting on the boundary wall of the corridor, noting down something in his diary, straining his eyes. She approached him quietly. But before she could reach him, a young boy in his 20's, whom she had never seen before, went and stood by Manav. "Hello!" he said, trying to smile.
Manav seemed taken aback. "Hello!" he replied back politely.
"Umm.. can I borrow your pen for a moment?"
Manav lent him his pen. The guy scribbled on a few papers. Archana went and stood near Manav, waiting for the guy to go away. Manav, meanwhile, couldn't help peering at the papers. 'Divorce' was written on the papers in big bold letters.
The young boy caught him. Manav turned his face away. "My divorce papers." He said, as if making things clear.
Manav nodded. "Don't be embarrassed, I'm in the same boat as you." He said, trying to smile.
"I know.." the boy said, a little hesitatingly. "In fact, I sat near you, because, I.."
"Go on.." Manav looked at Archana, asking her with his eyes why she was there. She in turn said she would wait. She sat down on the wall next to him, looking around.
"Umm.. actually, this is my first divorce hearing, and I came to know that this is your last divorce hearing, so can you please guide me as to what exactly is going to happen?"
Manav nodded. "What's your name?"
"Arvind."
"Okay." Said Manav. "Since it is your first hearing, they will simply ask you the reasons for seeking divorce. If it is mutual consent, things will be easier. If not, then the court will decide whether the grounds for granting divorce are justified or not. If property dispute is there, again, coming to a decision becomes difficult. Is it a mutual consent divorce?"
Arvind shook his head. "My wife wants a divorce," he said, looking at his hands.
Manav felt bad. This was a case just like him. "I understand. The court will look into the reason for demanding divorce- if it severe and recognized by law, then court shall agree to it."
"I slapped my wife." Said Arvind, still looking down. "She left home cos of it, and hasn't returned since then. Will court grant her divorce?"
Manav pondered. "I don't know." He said. "My lawyer is not here, else he could have advised you on this.."
Arvind looked terribly downcast. "I don't know why it happened to me. One year ago, when we got married, I was very sure everything would be great. She's a nice girl, and we have been in a committed relationship for 6 years now. In spite of that, within 2 months of marriage, we started having problems. She couldn't adjust with my family. She didn't like the way we lived together. She felt my people were nosy and my relatives came too often. Every few days, she would go away to her parents house. Six months ago, she started demanding to live separately. I'm the only son of my parents, my sister will get married in a few years and then my Mother will be all alone. How can I leave my family in this manner?"
Manav was touched. "I understand."
"She didn't, apparently." He continued sadly. "She always kept asking me why I kept ignoring that my Mom nitpicked on her small mistakes, or that my sister borrowed things without asking. But I say, are these so severe grounds as to live separately? Don't we adjust this much even with our own family members? When I pointed it to her.. she said I was biased.. I didn't say anything back then, but one day she said something rude to my Mom, I couldn't bear it and .." he stopped. "She hasn't come back since that day."
Manav cleared his throat. "This is the story of every house today." He said. "Most young people do not want to adjust. Women are independent today in every aspect. They have their own way of life and they want to live according to it only. I have a few friends who too had to face the predicament of making a choice like this one- they too had to choose between family and wife. Ultimately all of them chose their wives, of course, but their decision to separate was not wholehearted."
Arvind nodded sadly.
"That is why when I got married, I clarified beforehand to my mother-in-law what place my family holds for me." Said Manav. "I hold the family together, my younger siblings look upto me and depend on me for the same reason. I told her quite clearly, that I do not wish for a wife who would try to break me from them. Rather I want a wife who would want to share these responsibilities with me. Yes, when birds grow up, they are supposed to leave their parents and settle in their own nests- but we are human beings, not birds or animals. Our ability to be fair and not just be guided by instincts is what separates us from them. I would never leave my family in the lurch."
"Most women nowadays don't agree to all this. They do not want their brothers to leave their parents, but they themselves do not want to adjust with their in-laws. Maybe some do, but most want a nuclear family. It makes things difficult for the men of the house. Didn't people adjust and live happily in the past? Why is it not possible now? And why do we guys have to take the difficult step each time? Now look at me, I have always been very close to my Mom and my sis. My Dad died when I was very small, and we have always been a closely knit family. Alright, my Mom nags her a little, but she is good and thoughtful and treats her well. Is it such a big crime that my wife comes and demands me to separate from them?" said Arvind, shaking his head.
"Finding solutions to these problems post marriage is always difficult." Said Manav. "That is why, it is better to clear things at the outset. I may be getting divorced from my wife, but for one thing I will give credit to my wife- she never asked me to chose. If she had asked me, maybe her image in my heart would have got a little tarnished. I have my priorities in place- I cannot leave my family. I was 15 when my twins siblings were born. I have literally brought them up like my children. I have seen my Aai surviving my Baba's alcoholism and the ugly turn it took at times. Knowing that Baba is still like that, I can't trust him to be the patriarch of the house any more. I don't trust him with such responsibilities, since he hasn't fulfilled any in the past. Being the eldest son, the duty to safeguard my family, look out for their happiness- financially, emotionally, mentally- it all falls on me. Anyways, I love my family. And in this aspect I have been terribly lucky- my wife understood my situation and never made demands like that, even though my family is not really perfect. She tried to adjust with them instead of looking the other way."
Arvind nodded. "I wish my wife was half as understanding as yours is." He said sadly.
Manav nodded. Both sat quietly for a while. Finally Manav turned to Archana, who was looking very thoughtful. "What happened?"
"Urm.. nothing." Said Archana, suddenly coming out of her thoughts. "I was just.. surprised.. thinking where you ran away.. so I.."
"I'm here only. Come Arvind, lets go to the canteen. You'll feel better."
Arvind nodded. All three made way to the canteen.
Archana was down in the dumps after hearing Manav's talks with Arvind. Somehow, the thought started arising in her heart again that Manav wouldn't agree to what she was going to put forward in front of him. He wouldn't separate, in fact, the little respect he had for her would also be ruined forever. She was in a turmoil as she wondered what to do- should she tell Manav that she wished to separate not cos she couldn't adjust with them, but bcos HIS family had made life hell for her? That she couldn't live with them anymore? Or would be say cold-bloodedly that she didn't know 'how to adjust' and refuse to acknowledge the faults of his own mother?
Would he realize it was not a question of adjustment, but a criminal activity of which he was completely unoblivious?
Would he understand and accept that the Aai whom he loved and worshipped was a monster from which Archana wanted to free herself?
Would he understand that by supporting them, he actually enabled their vices?
Would he go against them for her sake, that too when he loved his family so much that he ignored their little mistakes and never wanted to part with them?
Would he chose love over his responsibility?
Her mind was clouded with these thoughts when she came back to the canteen. Manav and Arvind went and sat on a separate table, while she returned to her Aai. Sulochana Aai looked at him.
"Did you go to talk to him?"
Archana fumbled. "No Aai, I.."
Aai was furious. "Archana, you have your divorce in a few hours! Why are you bent on ruining things for yourself at the last moment? What do you want now?" Archana looked down helplessly, and a tear rolled down her cheek. "I won't do anything now Aai."
This seemed to calm her Aai. Archana too sat silently. She observed Manav and Arvind- they were sitting and talking about something. Guys made friends so quickly- not like her, who had no one to help her, console her, understand her right now.
She looked glumly at the dirty table in front of her. The radio meanwhile, turned to its next song, a classic song from the movie Guide. It was the same song which Manav had sung for her when he and his family had come to see her formally, and Vaishali had asked him to sing a song so that they too could 'judge' the boy.
She looked at Manav. She could see he was very uncomfortable, he kept looking here and there and drinking water from the glass in front.
Finally, the dreaded lyrics, which Manav had sung for her, came up.
'Lakh manale duniya, saath nay eh chhootega
Aake tere haathon mein, haanth na ye chhootega
O mere jeevan sathi'
Tere.. mere .. sapne.. ab ek rang hain..
Ho oh.. jahan bhi le jayein rahein.. hum sang hain..
Ho on.. tere.. mere.. sapne.. ab ek.. rang hain!'
All of a sudden, she saw Manav getting up from the table and walking away. Arvind looked surprised and confused, wondering what had happened to make him upset so suddenly.
But Archana knew. And it was perhaps only she who knew.
***********************
It was almost 11 'o' clock. Still three hours.
They were sitting quietly in the canteen when Sulochana got a call on Vinod's phone.
"Hello.. yes.. what? Are.. but.. Arey I can't go.. I'm with Archu.. you go na.."
Archana looked at her Aai, confused. Finally Sulochana Aai ended the call, looking annoyed.
"Punni's school bus won't be coming today again." She said, in a huff. "The school authorities phoned Manjusha to come and pick her from school at 12.30, but Manjusha is saying she can't go."
"Then call Dada.."
"How? His phone is with me!"
Archana pondered about it. "Then you shall have to go Aai."
Sulochana looked disturbed. "I don't want to go leaving you here alone. I will call your Baba.. but even he has gone to the bank.. we should all have cell phones!" she grunted.
Archana smiled. "Aai, I'll be okay. Siddhant will anyway be coming in a few minutes. You please go and get Punni from school."
Sulochana looked displeased. "Why can't Manjusha take a half day leave and fetch her own child? Oh yes, she is saving leaves for a vacation!"
Archana ignored. "Aai, I think you should start for Punni's school now. It is quite far from here, you have to reach there by 12.30 or Punni will start feeling scared."
Sulochana looked uncomfortable. "Archana, promise me you will not do any foolishness." She said, looking at her in the eye. Archana nodded. "I'll come back as soon as I can after dropping Punni home. I will definitely come in time for your court case," said Sulochana.
***********************
After sulochana left, Archana had nothing to do. She sat and listened to the songs, looked here and there and ultimately got fed up. She wondered where Manav was, and whether she should still try and talk to him. It was better to talk, she decided. He could hate her later if he wanted to. At least her own mind would be clear.
She came out of the canteen and wandered about. Finally she saw Arvind again, but this time he was sitting alone. "Umm.. did you see my husband?" she asked him.
Arvind looked surprised. "Why yes! He went to the temple."
"There is a temple here?" Archana questioned. Arvind pointed at the outline of a temple on the other side of the road. Well, it was a good thing, thought Archana. She needed strength on the biggest day of her life. She made her way to the temple too.
***********************
She walked into the temple to see Manav, who was prostrating. There was no one else, no priest, no devotees, not even any beggar. Only the idol of Ganpati Bappa smiled at her welcomingly and encouragingly.
At that moment, Manav got up and turned. He was amazed to see her and wondered if she had followed him till there. Archana felt nervous. "Its Sankashti today." She clarified. He nodded.
She rang the bell and was about to pray, when Manav interrupted her.
"I wanted to give you something."
She turned to look at him. His eyes looked very sincere.
He put his hand into the pocket of his trousers and took out his wallet and kept it on the 'daan peti' in the temple, similarily he took out his cell and a no. of other things until he finally got what he wanted-something like a silver piece of mirror tied to a black string.
"What is this?"
"I don't know whether you remember or not.." he said slowly and thoughtfully. "You said once that you liked my locket, and I had promised you that I would get it for you from Haji Ali. This is the one which I brought for you.. I had been there on.."
"..the night before everything went wrong.." he wanted to say, but didn't say, thinking it would only lead her to believe that there was no power in his faith or the locket.
Archana looked uncomfortable.
"It helps one make the right decisions in life." He said. "Keep it."
He handed it to her, and she took it hesitatingly. He started putting the contents of his pocket back. "Umm.. Manav.." she said, gathering all her courage. "I need to talk to you."
"Is there anything left to talk?"
"Yes." She said. "Can you please meet me outside the temple?"
Manav nodded. He went outside and wore his slippers. Then he sat under a banyan tree.
Archana meanwhile prayed to Ganpati Bappa for strength and luck. "I am going to speak to him now God, please help me," she prayed fervently. This was probably her last chance.
Ring ring!
She opened her eyes.
A cell phone kept on the 'daan peti' was ringing loudly.
Manav's cell phone! 'thought Archana. How could he just forget his cell phone anywhere, she thought slightly annoyed. That too, when he had already lost his phone once and this was his second one, she thought. She picked up the phone and looked for him, but couldn't find him. It was an unknown number. She picked up the call.
"Hello?"
There was silence on the other end. "Umm.. Mr. Manav Deshmukh?"
A lady's voice.. thought Archana. "I am his WIFE speaking." She said, stressing on the 'wife' part.
The voice on the other end seemed relieved. "Oh okay! Manav..?"
"He's not here at the moment. Can I pass on a message?"
"Yes please! Tell him that Dr. Deshpande won't be able to come to Mumbai this week, so ask him not to come to hospital tomorrow. Dr. Ritika shall talk to Dr. Deshpande on phone and take another appointment."
Archana was zapped. What was all this?
"Umm.. hospital..?" she said, not knowing what to say.
The woman at the other end seemed surprised. "Why Tata Memorial of course.. ask him not to come to Tata Memorial hospital to meet Dr. Ritika and Dr. Deshpande tomorrow. Thanks."
The call ended on the other side. But nothing made sense to Archana.
The only thing that made sense was that Manav had to meet some doctors.
Why?
She didn't know. And she didn't want to think of the obvious.
Old friends, maybe, she said to herself.
Difficult, she thought. She knew almost the whole of Manav's friend circle, and there was certainly no doctor in it. Could it be someone known to Vedant.. since he was trying for medical college? Who knows?
The 'obvious' came up in the mind again. Was Manav ill, she thought, getting a little worried. Yes, maybe he was..
Rubbish!- she thought. She had stayed in that chawl for some days and knew that whenever anyone at home was ill, he/she was taken to the nearby neighbourhood general practioner, or if required, then to the nearby civil hospital.. unless..
She didn't want to think ahead.
Maybe he wanted to follow up the injury on his head, she reasoned. Yes, he had told her last time (when she had caught him in train with prescriptions) that he had been told to follow up, but he wouldn't have called for a specialist from outside Mumbai.. unless..
Unless..
Unless..
She could ignore it no longer.
Unless it was something the neighbourhood doctor couldn't treat, or the civil hospital didn't have facilities of!
Tension started rising in Archana's heart now. Tata Memorial was not a cheap hospital. In fact, it was one of the biggest super speciality hospitals of Mumbai.
Why was Manav going to such a big hospital?
What was the necessity? Was he SO ill?
But he didn't look ill to her! He looked just fine! Then why..?
But then she wasn't a doctor na! She couldn't tell whether he was fine or not just by his external appearance. Who knows maybe he was ill?
But Tata Memorial..??? Specialists?
She tried to dismiss her negative thoughts and think rationally, but she couldn't help panicking. She had started sweating badly now. She tried to comfort herself that she was thinking too much. Manav would have told her if there had been something serious- she was his wife after all. But then suddenly, her inner self gave her a rude shock.
Manav had NOT told her of his financial problems. She had come to know through the bank.
He had NOT told her of his family problems or that Sachin had left the house. She had come to know through Vaishali.
He had NOT told her he was being pressurized to marry Shravani. She had eavesdropped on that conversation.
Manav had indeed hidden many things from her ever since the divorce proceedings had started. Was there more to this list? Had Manav hidden more things from her?
Was he suffering from some serious medical condition of which she had no idea?
She didn't know. She looked at her watch. It was 11.30, and she had plenty of time to go and talk to Manav about everything. The curtains needed to rise from a lot of things now. She had a lot of questions and she wanted answers to all of them.
But maybe it was a woman's intuition which screamed at her and told her not to talk to Manav..
It told her he would be indifferent.
It told her he would hide again.
It told her to go find the truth for herself.
In a daze she walked out of the temple. Manav met her at the gate. "You wanted to say something..?" he said.
She looked at him for a moment, hoping to find out the answers to many questions her mind was searching. Instead she shook her head, leaving him more confused than ever. She walked to the other side of the road, stopped a taxi and got in.
"Tata Memorial Hospital."
******XXX******
More coming up soon.
