Brave Dolly’s Dream

Dolly, her elder sister Molly and their youngest sister Polly along with their parents have had their dinner with chapattis and dal an hour ago. After that the three sisters finished all the house chores and have gone to sleep on the mats laid on the floor. They live in a shanty beside the Sealdah Bongaon railway line. Their hut has two small rooms. Dolly’s sisters sleep in the inner one and she sleeps with her parents in the other one where her mother cooks meals too in one corner. Dolly never felt satiated after eating her meals and always thought her ma may have gave her some more to eat. Now trying to sleep she suddenly heard her parents whispering something. She pretended to sleep sound while her ears pricked up to hear the whispering conversation between her father Sunil and her mother Lakhhi. Her father said “Chacha has offered to give her a good job in the city and has assured me that he will help me find out a groom for her very soon.”

There was anxiety in her mother’s voice “Are you sure he will? And how much reliable person is he?”

Now there was anger in his voice “Didn’t he help me find temporary jobs often? And am I not the father of my daughter? Then why do you feel I won’t care for her good future?”

“Do what you think best. I feel bad when there is shortage of food while they eat their meals but what can I do. There is always less ration in home than needed.”

There weren’t any more conversations and Dolly couldn’t understand where Didi is going to get her job. She slowly turned her face towards the door and tried to have a look of her two sisters sleeping there. She tried to understand whether her Didi was really sleeping or she too is just pretending like her. But there was no sound from that room.

Sunil works as daily labourer and Lakhhi as maid servant in the affluent homes near the Bongaon bazaar. Their income did not match their daily needs so the elder daughters too go with their mother to work in different homes. Dolly couldn’t understand who has offered her Didi job in city. She only thought maybe this time ma will give her enough food to fill her stomach.

Dolly works in the home of Mr. Lahiri who lives in Habra. This distance she travels everyday by local train. Her neighbour Malti Masi has helped her mother find this job for her. Mr. Lahiri is a big businessman and remains most of the year out of the city. His wife Indrani Lahiri is very good natured woman who works as teacher in a primary school near her home. Their daughter Taniya, studies in college and lives in pg in New Delhi.

Dolly remembers Madam’s words after a week passed joining work in their home. She asked “Do you know to read or write?”

Dolly shook her head in denial. Then she said “Ok I’ll teach you to read and write after you finish your work” From that day she is learning to read and write sitting before Mrs. Lahiri. Dolly is very happy as she is learning fast. She now teaches her sister how to read and write. She talks about her home and her neighbours to her Madam, even discusses her every problem with her.

After a week her eldest sister Molly left the home with their father in the morning. On that day Dolly woke up early than usual and found her didi dressing up in her most well kept orange salwar suit. She smiled finding Dolly looking amazed at her. She asked “Do you know today I’m going to Kolkata. There I’ll get a job in the company”

“Really didi? Will you bring something from Kolkata for me?”

“Yes. Tell me what you wish; I’ll bring it for you”

Dolly thought for a few minutes then said “Bring some dolls for Polly and story book for me”

Her didi caressed her and left with her small bag. Dolly followed them till the railway station then returned fast. She too has to join her work. Sunil brought a little quantity of chicken in the evening. All the members of the family were happy that they will enjoy a feast. Only Lakhhi said while cooking “If Molly too was present here now she too could have joined the feast” Sunil answered “Don’t worry. She too will get good meal every time much better than she ate at home” Dolly ate a lot that day and felt happy that her sister too will eat good food at her workplace. But one thing she didn’t think that it was the last time she was seeing her sister.

Days months passed by but there was no news from her didi nor the agent who took her to the city to give her a job. But she was more surprise to see neither ma nor baba spoke a word about it. Dolly said about it to her Madam who said “This isn’t very natural rather suspicious” She said she will help Dolly get news of her didi soon. They tried a lot but couldn’t get any positive news of Molly. Madam shook her head sadly one day and said “I think she has been sold to some racket” Dolly cried a lot but when she tried to say this news to her parents her father beat her up severely and ordered “Stay at home. You are discussing home matters with unknown people. I should immediately find groom to marry her off”

For a week or so Dolly couldn’t get out of her home. At last her Madam came to talk with her parents to convince them she won’t do anything against their will. She started working and studying again.

After a year or so, one evening Sunil brought some good news. He said to Lakhhi “Do you remember Chandan, who has promised me to get a job in Ahmedabad?” Lakhhi nodded her head. “He has fixed grooms for our two daughters”

“That’s great. What do you know about the grooms?”

“They work and stay in Haryana. The best part is they won’t take any dowry but will pay all the costs that will be incurred on marriage. I’ve seen the grooms’ photograph and talked with them over phone. I like them and so has fixed the marriage”

“When?”

“In the first week of the next month. They are sending the first instalment of money tomorrow. I’m going to start arrange everything from tomorrow. But I warn you don’t spill the beans out anywhere or the result will be bad”

Dolly heard everything hiding behind the door and was shocked. She remembered Madam’s words. But at the same time she knows if she says anything to her parents they won’t listen and if she opposes it is certain they will lock her up in the room and she won’t be able to save herself or her sister. She didn’t discuss anything with her sister too. She just asked Polly while teaching her “Do you want to marry now if father wishes or to study?”

“Didi I wish to study” was Polly’s answer. Next day Dolly went to work as usual. After finishing all the chores she said to her “Madam I won’t be able to study again”

Indrani was working on her laptop she turned towards her and said “But why?”

“Baba has fixed our marriage” and said every word she heard her father saying to her mother.

“But you have not reached eighteen years and secondly grooms don’t spend money when marrying. There must be some fishy thing in this marriage”

“Madam I don’t want to marry. I want to study but ma and baba won’t agree with me”

“Don’t worry I’m looking into the matter”

“Madam please do soon and see my parents don’t get to know anything about this or they will just shut me up”

“Ok come with me to the police station. We will ask their help”

“But they could do anything in finding my Didi. Can they do anything now?”

“They surely will”

*****************************

Today both the sisters are sitting in their shanty full dressed as bride. Their shanty too is decorated for the marriage. The grooms too have arrived. The sisters are taken out and placed beside the new grooms. The marriage ceremony is going to start when all of a sudden police enters the arena, behind them Dolly’s madam. The police arrested the grooms and their so called friends for coming to marry under aged girls and also because they belonged to a girls’ sex racket who sells them to others after marrying.

Dolly thanks her madam and said “Thank you Madam for saving us. We both wish to study and help girls like us in future”