Diwali Gift

On a fine morning, Mishraji woke up late but kept shouting for a cup of tea from his bed like a baby. Nobody responded. He wore his specs and walked into the drawing room. He sat folding his legs and started reading the newspaper. His wife came with a cup of tea and said, "All guests will come tomorrow morning; where is your washing machine. I can't wash your relatives’ clothes and the servant will not come for six days." He glued to the newspaper without giving any response. She repeated, "I am talking to you. Your sons are sleeping and it's already 9 am." He turned one page of the newspaper and replied, "Today is Sunday. Their office is closed, so let them sleep." She returned to the kitchen annoyed. A minute later again she asked loudly, “ Mishraji, where is your washing machine. Will it come or not? I was telling you not to order online but who listens to me in this house, you will do what your sons want you to do. Now, tell me, what to do?." Mishraji was not worried at all. He consoled her saying, "Today, it will come at 11 am and I have called the plumber as well. So, don't worry." She appeared satisfied and hurriedly walked into the kitchen.

Mishraji worked as a Bank Clerk and on Diwali, he decided to gift a Washing Machine to his wife. The whole family was waiting for its arrival before five days of the festival. This was the first time they had ordered something online. After one hour the entrance bell ranged many times. The plumber came first and then one vehicle brought the washing machine with a serviceman. Within an hour all the works were completed and after doing a few trials in front of the whole family they left.

In the evening Mishraji’s wife collected all the dirty clothes and threw them into the washing machine. It was working but the connecting water pipe behind the machine was leaking. He asked his son to stop the leak but he worsened it further. After some time, the pipe came out of the tap completely. She was helpless and became angry at her husband and sons. All her requests to help her to wash the clothes were turned down by the three. Finally, she gathered all the clothes in the bathroom and cleaned it for hours shouting, murmuring and cursing all the three.

Hours of seating and continuously cleaning the clothes left its mark on her aging body. She could not get up from the bed after her afternoon nap. Her waist ached severely. She lied motionless in that simmering pain on the bed. One by one all the three visited her bedroom with their words of solace but none offered any help, except advising her to take a painkiller. She never wanted them to massage her back but at least their offer of massaging would have consoled her more than their blank words. She felt better after taking a tablet. After a few minutes, she got down of her bed and again started preparing tea and dinner.

The leaking of water became a hot topic in the house. Everyone had a solution to the problem but no one was physically willing to repair it. Mishraji’s wife had her final say, “If the washing machine is not fixed by tomorrow morning then I will stop cooking for you all.” Three of them tried to change her decision but she was adamant. Finally, Mishraji took out his car in the late evening to find the plumber’s house as his phone was switched off.

He navigated through the lane and by-lanes of the town. All his searches led to nowhere. He kept calling his friends to know his address. After searching for almost three hours, he could trace his house in a far end labor residential area located on the outskirt of the town. He drove to the place in a few minutes.

Finally, he landed on a small gully that led to his house. He parked his car and walked half a kilometer. The whole area was stinking as the sewage water spilled all over. At some places, bricks were kept in the blackish water, leaping on which he crossed the narrow gully. At last, his discovery ended at a small hut made of broken bricks covered by a tin roof. He banged the wooden door continuously till a small girl opened it. She smiled and said,” Come in, my mother is cooking.” Nodding his head he asked,” Where is your father? Is this Raju’s house? Call him, I want to speak to him.” The handkerchief with which he had covered his face up to the nose fell. He bent down to pick up but it flew with the sewage water passing under his feet. He felt like vomiting but controlled his urge. He was impatient, “Call your father here. I want to talk to him.” Hearing his loud shout her mother appeared and replied, “He is not here; he will come after nine pm. Give your number, I will tell him to call you.” He saw his wrist; it was eight pm. Then, he decided to wait until he came home

After a few minutes of wait in front of the hut, the lady requested him to enter inside. First, he was reluctant but after a while, he entered into the rugged thatch. The place was lighted by the tube lights. He was surprised by the cleanliness of the interior. The floor was shining and everything was perfectly placed. Aromatic fragrance rose from the incense sticks stuck on a stand in front of the idols of gods and goddesses. He felt better and sat on a chair. The lady offered him a cup of tea and a glass of water. He told her to keep it on the tea table. The exterior inhuman condition repeatedly reminded him of the place’s sick hygiene. The teacup and water glass occupied his thoughts. A few minutes later someone knocked on the door. Again the little girl ran to open it and started dancing seeing her father.Mishraji rose from his chair. The plumber could not believe. He anxiously asked, “Sahebji, you are here. What happened?”. His wife from the kitchen shouted, “Sir has been waiting for you since evening.” Mishraji wore his specs and said, “Arre, the water pipe you had fit with the washing machine has come out. Now, the machine is not working at all.” The plumber smiled and said, “In fact, I had applied adhesive and white cement on it. I had even told madam not to use it for four hours. Anyway, tomorrow, I will come and fix it.” Mishraji became impatient, “No, No, Now you come with me. Madam is very much worried.” The man did not agree to him and denied to visit in the night. Mishraji requested many times to him to come in the next day morning before leaving the place.

After the departure of the gentleman, the girl climbed on the plumbers back. Both played many games till she was tired. She murmured in sleep, “Papa, I want my Deewali gift. I want a full set of utensils with which I will prepare food for my doll.” He understood her babbling. The promise to gift her full set of doll utensils before two Diwalis still remained unfulfilled. He kissed on his forehead and said, “This time beta, I am doing overtime for you. I know, it is a bit costly but I will give your gift this Diwali.”

After dinner, he lied on the bed. His wife massaged his whole body with the oil. Fourteen hours of work without any rest was taking everything out of him. He fumbled with his screwdriver to screw the nuts as his eyes were losing its sheen. Cycling long distances were becoming tougher for him; every part of his body was aching. When his wife massaged it, he felt so relieved. He wished the next morning would never come and his sleep would never finish.

Next day his phone kept ringing since five am in the early morning. The first call was from Mishraji. He answered with a promise to come but he failed to keep it as the day progressed. He was forcefully held by a building contractor to finish an officer’s house. He switched off his phone. While returning, he expected angry Mishraji to be in his house. But to his surprise, he was not there. He tried to inquire about him from his wife. She had no answer as she was away from the house with the kid for the full day to attend her friend’s marriage ceremony. Just before sleep, his phone rang; it was his call. He picked up the phone to hear a long dull monologue, “Why are you punishing us? Can you imagine; we all have not taken food since morning? Madam is on fast and strike as well and, because of her, we all are hungry. I have been trying to call you since morning but your phone is switched off. Have mercy on us! Please come now and fit the pipe to the washing machine. Hello, Hello. ” Before his long monologue ended, he started snoring. The phone kept vibrating on the bed.

There were seventy-five miscalls on his phone in the next morning. He immediately took his bath and finished his breakfast. He paddled his cycle like a rocket and with an hour he was at Mishraji’s house. The doors were open. There was complete silence in the house; nobody was visible from inside; he knocked on the entrance door, yet there was no response. He loudly said, “Sahebji, Sahebji, I have come.” His eldest son came down from the stairs. He yelled, ”You bastard, Now you have come. For you, we all have quarreled throughout the night. You have stolen the peace of our home. Papa, Papa, the plumber idiot is here.” Mishraji came out of his bedroom. He looked at his face and did not utter a single word. All his anger had already been saturated in the night.

He took him to the place where the machine was kept. He reconnected the water pipe and in a few minutes, he finished his work. In the meantime, his younger son woke up from his sleep. He rushed to him and hit his face hard. The plumber fell on the ground and blood oozed out of his nose. Mishraji pacified his son by pushing him to a corner and shouted at him, “You are worthless. Why have you hit him? He is not your servant like your father.” The young man was still uncontrollable. His elder brother came to his father’s rescue. He dragged him to a bedroom and locked it from inside. The plumber stood up and wiped the blood from his nose. His father begged before him, “I am sorry for my son’s behavior. Please forgive him! I will give you money for treatment.” He opened his purse and said, “Take one thousand rupees but please forgive him.” He carried his bag and left the place without taking the money.

He returned home early in the evening. There was little pain in his nose but it was alright. He opened his purse to count the money; it was fifteen hundred. Now, it was sufficient to buy his daughter’s utensil set.

He rose early and woke up both. They got ready and wore new dresses to visit the market to buy a special gift. He cleaned his cycle and his wife sat on the pillion and his daughter on the front. They travelled for an hour to reach a toy shop. The flashy lights and loud music welcomed them. They took off their shoes and entered into the air conditioned showroom. As a plumber, he was fitting and repairing in many such shops daily but as a customer, it was his first visit. He checked his pocket if he had sufficient money. This time, he did want to sadden his little daughter. His inability to fulfill his child’s wish was one of the reasons why he remained upset for many days. Sometimes, it changed his nature. His talkativeness was gradually reducing; most of the times he was remaining silent without speaking to anybody at home. Then, he stumbled upon a big doll and again he checked his pocket if his money had fallen.

He took her to the doll section of the showroom. All the items were displayed on the glass racks. He showed her all the areas of the shop but his daughter was searching for something else. He rejected all the items. Then, there was a big picture of the real utensil. She dragged his father to the photo and said, “Papa, this one, the one on the top.”He saw a Pressure Cooker with other cooking utensils. He understood it but he was clueless. All his persuasions failed to buy the doll but she was hell bent on the real appliances. They walked out of the showroom and entered into a Home Appliance shop.

Seeing the real utensils, the girl was happy in the new shop. His father feared if he could be able to afford it or not. He went to the attendant and inquired from him. With the money he had, he could buy a Pressure Cooker. He felt a bit relaxed. He waited at the visitor’s area whereas his wife and daughter were busy selecting the item. A few minutes later, when they did not return, he went inside the showroom to search them. He could not believe what he saw there.

Mishraji held his daughter on his lap and was taking her to all the sections of the stores. His daughter was overjoyed to touch the items. The flashy shinning lights shone her cheeks brighter. She was looking beautiful just like a fairy. Mishraji was losing his balance to stand as she was trying to jump on his lap every now and then. The plumber was feeling an innocent ecstasy to see both of them enjoying so much with each other. Then Misharji saw him. He came running to him to say, “Raju, your daughter is really an angel. She wants all the utensils of this shop.” The man folded his hand and said, “Sahebji, you are here. My daughter's wishes are really unimaginable. So, please give her to me.” Mishraji smiled and continued, “Today, I will buy a gift for our little angel.” In spite of his requests, Mishraji bought a Pressure Cooker and a Frying Pan for her daughter. He checked the cost of both. It was six thousand rupees. There was also a big chocolate packet for her.

Before leaving the shop he wanted to meet Mishraji in the big shop. After a long search, he found him with his family. Seeing him, Mishraji walked to him without the knowledge of his family members. He hugged him and said, “I am sure, your daughter will like my Diwali gift and one thing I must say before I go, sorry for my son’s behavior.” The man ran out of words. His eyes became teary. His patting on his shoulder had maternal affection. Again, Mishraji hugged him to say, “Good bye, see you soon.”Then he was invisible in the crowd. The man stood there watching his disappearance like a poet gazing at the rainbow. A few minutes passed, still he was standing there transfixed and static. His daughter started pulling his fingers. He opened his pocket and took out a handkerchief to rub his eyes.

On the way, he asked his daughter, “Janu, Do you like the gift?” The child stamping her feet cried, “Yes, yes, Very much!” He again continued, “But tell me why have you chosen this utensil instead of the dolls.” The little girl opened her mother’s palms in reply, “Papa, Mummy hands get burnt every day. You see, those black patched.”He saw her mother’s palms. Then she said, “You know Papa, I made a promise to my Mummy, this Diwali I will gift one Pressure Cooker to her and I have fulfilled my promise.” The little girl started dancing around her father holding the Cooker in her hand.