~2005~
In the small town of Rishikesh, was an orphanage, wherein
resided a young girl of 6, Tina. The orphanage matron had found her as a
5-month-old infant. As she grew up, Tina saw some of the children being taken
away by families. The matron said that these blessed children had found homes.
Tina, too, dreamt that one-day, someone might deem her worthy to take her to a
place that would be her home.
And one day, it happened. A man came by. She hid behind the
matron's skirt and studied him.
"Hello," he greeted Tina.
"Hello Sir." She answered in a rehearsed voice that the
matron had taught her.
The matron informed her, "Mr. Goenka will take you to his
home. Say goodbye to your friends and bring your bag."
An ecstatic Tina ran out to tell the other kids that she
was, finally, going home. When she returned with a small backpack that held all
of her earthly possessions she saw the man handover a suitcase to the matron.
"Hope the compensation is enough," the man spoke to the
matron who nodded, peering inside the open suitcase. Tina was unable to see
what was in the bag.
"What I've done is not official, Mr. Goenka," the matron
replied, "I am sending her with you without any paperwork, or due diligence.
This could cost me my job and reputation."
"This," the man pointed at the bag, "should more than
suffice for any inconvenience."
"This is a lot for someone like her..." the matron eyed him
with curiosity. "What makes her so special that you yourself had to come? You
could've sent anyone-."
He interrupted; "I've been searching her for a long time. I
had to make sure nothing went wrong. Not this time."
The matron's curiosity was cut short when she saw Tina.
Calling Tina inside, she said, "Be good and don't give Mr. Goenka any trouble."
The man addressed Tina, "Let's go, Naira."
"It's Tina," she corrected him. The matron had bestowed this
name.
The man laughed and it worried her. "There's so much that
you don't know." Tina and the matron scrunched their eyebrows.
"There's time for that," he added, "For now, let's go."
The matron gestured her to follow Mr. Goenka's retreating
back. Tina gulped and followed him.
*
In the span of a day, Tina had done many things that were a
first for her. For the first time in her life, she sat in a car that took her
from Rishikesh, to the nearby city of Dehradoon. For the first time, she boarded
an airplane that flew from Dehradoon to Mumbai, where Mr. Goenka lived.
Despite of being scared when the flight was taking off, Tina
kept a brave face. She didn't want Mr. Goenka to think that she was a scared
little cat. He hadn't spoken another word to her. Sometimes, he would look at
her, shake his head, and smile. Tina wondered if it was a good sign.
Once he addressed her as Naira. She corrected him, "It's Tina." Why did he keep calling her Naira?
On landing in Mumbai, they'd gone to Mr. Goenka's house. His
house was something straight out of a fairytale that a girl in the orphanage
had read to her once. It was huge and white with a big lawn, which had swings. She
saw 2 children- a girl and boy, playing. That made Tina smile.
At the threshold of the house, an old lady, was standing
with a golden plate adorned with a lit lamp and flowers.
"Welcome home, Manish," the lady spoke. Mr. Goenka bent down
to touch her feet. Tina's attention wavered to the two kids who had stopped
playing and were walking toward the mansion to see who the new comer was.
"I hope your project was a success," she spoke as Manish
Goenka followed her into the huge drawing room. Tina's eyes took in the dcor.
Everything was big and shiny.
"Yes, mother," Manish addressed the lady. Manish gently
pushed Tina forward. His mother's eyes tailed Tina who felt conscious.
Tina muttered, "Good evening, Ma'am."
The lady eyed her, "Who is this?"
"The project," Manish answered. "This is why I was away for
so long. The search that I began 5 years ago has come to fruition, mother.
This," he gestured at Tina, "is Naira."
The lady's face contorted in confusion. Manish spoke, "The
last of Singhanias."
The reply changed the lady's face from puzzlement to anger,
"You are still stuck in the past! This obsession of yours has cost us a lot."
"It's over now," Manish replied. "Once and for all."
"What will you do
with her?" the lady questioned.
Tina couldn't fathom what they were talking about only that
they were talking about her.
Is this what the children in the orphanage were so excited
about? Till now, no one had even greeted her. She started to miss Rishikesh.
Taking his time, Manish replied to his mother, "I'll think
of something. I've nothing but time."
~2005-Present~
As days turned to weeks, weeks to months and months to
years, Tina, who had now been renamed Naira, began to understand what was
really happening. The dream of a 6-year-old to find a place to called home'
was just that, a dream.
Manish's mother was Suhasini Goenka, the matriarch of the
powerful Goenka family of Mumbai. She had 2 sons- the elder and head of the
business, Manish and the younger, a reliable and loyal shadow of his brother,
Akhilesh.
Naira learnt over the years that the Goenkas had a front
where they displayed themselves as hoteliers but beneath all the faade the
reality was they were into organized crimes like extortion, smuggling and even drug
trafficking.
To Naira the opulence of their lifestyle, their huge
mansions, their designer clothes couldn't hide the fact that underneath it all
these people were evil.
Suhasini was a deeply religious woman. The irony was she would
engage in something as holy as worshipping God whereas in the same house, her
sons would be signing off on some man's death order.
Manish, the man who had bought her from the orphanage was
the head of the syndicate. When he came to Rishikesh, Naira had deluded herself
into thinking that her life would be better now. Years later, she realized that
she was in a prison, she couldn't do what she wanted, she couldn't leave. She
was trapped in their house.
Naira didn't know what Manish wanted from her. He just let
her be. Neither did he interact with her, nor did he harm her. Naira knew that
he must have some plans for her. Maybe it had taken a backseat but sooner or
later, he would come for her.
The person who scared her more than Manish was his younger
brother, Akhilesh. Akhilesh was the consigliore, the biggest support of the
syndicate and very loyal to Manish.
Once late at night, while wandering the hallway, 8-year-old
sleepless Naira heard screams from Akhilesh's study. Out of curiosity, she
pressed her ear to the closed door. She heard a loud wail and then footsteps. Hiding
underneath a table nearby, she waited in the dark. 2 men left carrying a limp
body of a 3rd person, followed by Akhilesh. When no one else exited,
she took a peek inside.
The floor tiles were smeared with the unmistakable color of
blood. Naira realized that the limp body being carried was that of a dead man.
Her insides twisted and before she could stop herself, she puked out a bile
liquid, which burned her throat. Gathering her nerves, she ran to her room,
jumped on the bed and shut her eyes, hoping the morning light would diminish
the nightmare that she had witnessed. She was shaking with fright and couldn't
sleep a wink that night.
Over the course of years, Naira was careful and avoided ever
witnessing another such episode. She had understood how to be invisible in the
house, to not stand out in anyone's sight.
Naira was sent to the same school where Manish's children
studied. The two kids- the girl and boy she had seen on her first day here,
were Manish's children from his first and deceased wife, Soumya. The elder was
a girl, Keerti (three years older than Naira) and the younger, a boy Kartik (a
year older than her).
There were many stories surrounding the death of Soumya. She
was the love of Manish's life. Born in another mafia family, Soumya was a
perfect fit as a Goenka daughter-in-law. The couple was happy but how can
happiness built on graves of others last? Soumya was shot dead by a rival gang,
when Keerti was 3 and Kartik, 1. The death of Soumya had driven Manish insane.
He was so hell-bent on revenge that he completely sidelined work and his children
till Suhasini intervened.
Suhasini arranged Manish's marriage to Soumya's cousin,
Suwarna. It was an alliance only on paper. Their wedding was a duty, bereft of
love and both of them were aware of it. Suwarna bore Manish a son, Shubham.
When 6-year-old Naira had set foot in the house, Shubam was a babe in his
mother's arms.
Naira's relationship with Suwarna was non-existent. They
never spoke to one another. Naira didn't mind. The adult Goenkas scared her.
There was something unsettling about them. She tried to avoid all of them as
much as she could and was successful in her endeavor.
Her only solace in the madness was her growing friendship
with Keerti- a mousy girl with a heart of gold. Naira had once saved Keerti
from being bullied by two boys in school and ever since, Keerti was grateful to
her. A friendship stemmed but Naira knew her limits. Keerti was a Goenka and
she, their prisoner.
Keerti's lack of confidence and a weak attitude made Manish
realize that she could never take the reins of the empire from him and so he
started molding his 2nd child, Kartik. Kartik would one day step in
to fill Manish's shoes.
The 3 of them (Keerti-Kartik-Naira) played together as kids.
As time progressed, Kartik's interaction with Naira reduced since he'd spend
his time learning the know-hows from Manish. Hence to Naira, Kartik was now
just the brother of her friend, Keerti. Their adventures of childhood were a
distant memory.
It was not only the time spent apart that distanced them. After
getting involved with Manish and Akhilesh, Kartik's demeanor had also changed.
Gone was the innocence of a child. His eyes, which once shone brightly, had
lost it's sparkle. An overbearing shadow was perpetually cast on his face.
When she was 15, Naira once decided to talk to Kartik. He
was getting more and more involved in the business and had missed a few days of
school.
She went to his room and found him standing near the window,
facing the lawn with his back to her.
"Hi," she greeted softly.
"Did you want something?" he asked grimly.
"No. I..." she hesitated, "I just came to... check on you. Is
everything fine?"
He didn't respond. His back was still turned to her.
She continued, "You have missed school. You don't spend time
with me-," she paused and added, "and Keerti. With me and Keerti. She misses
her brother." And I miss my friend. She
thought but didn't say.
Kartik's shoulder slumped, "Remember the games we used to
play when we were kids? That game of police and thief. I would always be the
police, the good guy who'd save the day."
Naira wanted Kartik to turn around so that she could see his
face.
He continued, "We had plastic guns. It was so easy to pull
the trigger of a fake gun and play dead."
He inhaled sharply, "It's so easy when the gun is fake..."
Naira slowly strode to him. Gently placing her palm on his
shoulder, she whispered. "Kartik?"
Kartik's slumped shoulder straightened and he cleared his
voice, "You should go Naira." He hadn't spared her one look.
"Talk to me." She pleaded, "I want to help."
He scoffed, "You can't. You wouldn't understand."
She didn't back down. "Let me try-." Before she could talk
further, he had swiveled around. His eyes were red. "You can't do anything!" He
bellowed. "These hands," he lifted his shaky palms, "...they are tainted."
She furrowed her brows trying to understand. Kartik balled
his open palms and shut his eyes. "Leave Naira." He ordered, turning his back
to her.
"I want to help-," she began when he interrupted in a
stoical voice, "I don't need your help. You're not my friend. You're nothing. A
nobody."
His words hurt her. "You don't mean that," she put up a weak
defense.
"Leave Naira," he repeated his order.
She exhaled through her mouth, "Kartik, I-."
"Get out!" He yelled and it startled her.
Hot tears pricked her eyes. Without saying anything she left
his room. The next few days, she thought that once he calmed down, he'd talk to
her but it never happened. Kartik got more and more invested in the business
and a void grew between them. Their childhood companionship was forgotten.
Naira thought it would be difficult to live under the same
roof as Kartik and purposefully avoid him. Turned out it wasn't that hard.
Kartik spent most of his time outdoors with Manish and Akhilesh and when he was
home, he'd be holed up in Manish's study.
Sometimes when they came face to face, they'd avert their
eyes and walk away like strangers. At first Naira had to act that she was
indifferent to him. It wasn't easy for her. Keerti and Kartik were her only
friends, her solace in this world. Later, however, it became more and more
easier till being indifferent to him came as second nature to her.
To an outsider, they'd look like strangers. No one would
assume that once they had been friends. That once she even had a crush on him.
He was gentle and kind to her. Spending most of her time with him, had made a
teenage Naira develop feelings that were beyond friendship. She was sure he
reciprocated too. When their eyes would meet or hands would brush, a whole new
range of emotions would burn in her. Sometimes, in his company, she would be
shy; even blush. And he acted the same around her. But then they were young...
two teens. Years later, only a faint remnant of the feelings remained.
[Chapter 1 word count- 2413]
comment:
p_commentcount