On The Way To Dooars

"Darling, take care. Hope to see you just in a couple of days.” I said those lines to Sushmita just in one breath. Anxiety accumulated in my mind raised to its zenith and my heartbeats were running faster and faster. Finally, I was going to see my love Sushmita for the very first time in my life. Hence, very much tensed, much more obsessed and very very turbulent my mind was then! Let me introduce myself to readers. I, Arup Kushari, am a first-class holder in M.Sc (Physics) and also a topper in MBA. After completing MBA from Bengaluru with a record percentage of marks, I came back to my hometown, the city of joy, Kolkata. I got a job with a handsome salary in Infosys

After pursuing it for two years, I left it and entered into TCS (Tata Consultancy Services) with much more salary. Day by day, I was improving. My sincere hard work was getting its constant reward. Fortune was smiling on me! After joining TCS, I got the fame of 'employee of the year' twice back to back. At this point in my life, I was acquainted with Sushmita in the social networking site Face book. The year was 2014,a remarkable year of my life! Till now when I am writing this story, I can remember the moment when I was acquainted with Sushmita, Sushmita Bhowmick, a beautiful young lash hailing from the beautiful town Hamilton Ganj, located in the lap of exquisite land of the Dooars. Even when I saw her profile picture, I perceived the magical beauty of the Dooars reflected through her dark eyes. She was not even on my friend list at first. Getting acquainted with her is a strange event in my life.

I can till now call up the red-letter day of my life when I was named as the 'employee of the year' for the second time in my company. The very moment when I got the news of becoming the employee of the year, my joy knew no bounds. All the peace and serenity in my mind had gone and I was overwhelmed with ecstasy. That evening I threw a success party in which I invited all the bosom friends of mine-Subhashis, Shubh­am, Pramit, Akash, Swarnali, Subhasmita, Sunip and many others. Sunip, who was my classmate in MBA and now my colleague in TCS, said in euphoria "Arup, you rock. Yug Yug Jio (May you live long).I expect one day your name will shine like the bright sun in the sky. May God shower his all blessings upon you. "Swarnali hugged me and said, "Arup, you are truly brilliant.

This is what I expected from you. You truly deserve it."Satindra, my childhood friend, shouted "Hey bro, today you proved our Gouranga sir fully wrong. I am proud of you bro, I am very proud of you."Subhasmita, my mate in Infosys, exclaimed, "Sa­baash!(Bravo!).Go on with it. You are the best." When I came back home from the evening party, the clock had already struck 11! The next morning I shared the wonderful news in FB. What a remarkable feat it was! Then, (I think it is not a mere coincidence, it is the magic of the Almighty) first like came from the person who was not even in my friend list! That person was Sushmita. In my desire to befriend her, I sent her a friend request and she accepted. But who would know then that soon she would become my desire!

When I beheld her profile picture for the very first time, I realized that I got my dream girl. A thought came in my mind finally that I had found my soul mate. A strong feeling came in my mind that I was struck by Cupid's arrow. Thus, my infatuation started.

Started our chatting and our intimacy started to bloom. The excitement of sharing the deepest feelings of my mind that would truly care was fabulous. Soon, messaging her turned into my compulsion. Spending moments with her in the virtual world became my obsession. Her sweet messages, words of comfort became a great fascination for me. In my monotonous life, she was like the fresh air of the mountain. Her dark and deep eyes would reflect the scenic beauty of awesome Dooars, her long black untidy wavy hairs would resemble the fascinating beauty of Teesta. In one picture, she had worn an exquisite blue coloured saree with beautiful colyrium in her eyes in the background of captivating Jayanti hills. I loved it so so much!

From Sushmita, I collected information about the undulating landscape of Dooars. Dooars is a patch of Sal, Shisham and Teak forest lying in the lap of the outer Himalayas. It is separated from the marshy Terai by the river Teesta. Moreover, the thickly forested land extending from Teesta in the west to Dhansiri in the east is divided into the Eastern Dooars and Western Dooars by the river Sankosh. Sushmita, a schoolteacher by profession, hailed from the small town Hamilton Ganj located in the lap of spectacular Dooars. Slowly, with time, I fell in love with Dooars. Dooars sounded a heavenly place and ideal place for photography, not only my hobby but my passion. I can now surely tell that before I loved Sushmita, I had loved this scenic place, which sounded as a picturesque.

The vast green Sal and Teak forests, the enthralling tea gardens, the awesome scenic hilly rivers, the elephants, the rhinos and many more had stolen my heart. The beauty of Malbazar, Jaldapara, Gorumara forest, Murti river started to attract me like a magnet. Nature of Dooars with her divine beauty was calling me to visit her, to explore her, to make love with her. Meeting with Sushmita was another attraction. Hence, I booked a ticket of AC 2-tier from Sealdah to Hamilton Ganj and arrived at the Sealdah station at around seven in the evening to catch the Kanchan Kanya Express.

This train departing from Sealdah at about 8-30 pm in the evening and reaching Hamilton Ganj the next morning sounded like a wonderful train to explore the greeneries and the sceneries of North Bengal.

From the Sealdah station, I bought a travel magazine containing the details of Dooars and a pizza. From my home, I also had taken Chicken Biriyani and Mutton Chap as the train did not contain the pantry car. Finally, I took my seat by the window.

In my compartment, there was a Bihari family consist of an upper-middle-class man aged between 45-50, his wife who was wearing a red saree and heavily ornamented, and their daughter who was wearing a salwar-kamiz. I saw the daughter of the Bihari family eyeing at me. She was a girl about nineteen-twenty, stout and well grown. A lock on her forehead was unique and gave her fair-skinned face a distinguished look. She had used a strong perfume, the lovely fragrance of which was coming from her and being spread in the whole compartment. Her eyes were filled with chillness and innocence. Her mother was talking to her husband all the time in Hindi. Hindi was known to me and thus, I came to know that she was advising him about what would be done in such a long-distance train journey. They were heading towards Jalpaiguri, where the younger brother of the man would dwell. I saw the innocent smile of the girl and heard that her name was Archana Jha. Her character seemed to be free of intricacy. She was so simple.

There was none in the seat in front of me. All of a sudden, a girl aged between 24 -28, rushed off into the train. Anxiety and fear were overflowing through her eyes. Drops of sweat shining on her forehead were telling that she was quite tired. She was wearing jeans and her get up could tell one that she would belong to a corporate background. Her eyes were darkened by the application of collyrium and she had worn in her hand a costly golden wrist-watch. No sooner had she seen me than she stretched her hands towards me to shake hands, and said, "Hi, my name is Trayee, an entrepreneur. You are going to NJP, right?" I became flabbergasted and stayed dumbfounded for some moments.

The moment suddenly all the lights in the compartment went off and it was total darkness, Trayee’s soft hand was still holding my hand. After some moments, the electricity came into the compartment. And sharp whistle came from the diesel locomotive. The train started to move.

To my amazement, she said, "Oh thank God, I have been able to catch the train. Otherwise, they­ would kill me. Who knows now they are following me or not?" I became astonished. Somehow wailed, "Aye, who are they? Why are they chasing you? Why are you so so afraid?" I asked in a single breadth. She replied, "Leave it. I am safe now. Let us enjoy the beauty and thrill of our journey", she said with a smile on her moonlike face.

One thing that didn't escape from my notice that her appearance and words had a bit of secrecy. I replied in a smile, "But I will not descend at NJP (New Jalpaiguri). My destination is Hamilton Ganj." She replied, "Bah! Aro bhalo holo.(Wow! It is better)."

The train was speeding through the famous Bally Bridge or Vivekanand Setu across the mighty holy river Ganga. It was dark outside and apart from the lightings on the riverbed and boats flowing across the river, nothing could be properly seen either of the river or of the Dakshineswar Kali Temple, it was too exhilarating for me. Trayee's company was good too.

Trayee belonged to those girls who at first sight could steal the heart of a young man. Her smile was spectacular. I said, "The reason behind my going to Hamilton Ganj is my immense love for Dooars. I have now no intention of visiting the breathtaking hills and rift valleys of Darjeeling. Instead, I deeply want to explore the majestic beauty of the Dooars, the door to North-Eastern India. I desire to capture the stunning scenery of a beautiful sunset in the river Murti. I feel now a thirst to explore the thick forests of Jaldapara and Gorumara." I have previously told that she could read my mind. Now, she said with a smile full of mystery, "There can be other reasons too." I answered positively, "Yes sure, my love lives in Hamilton Ganj."And the train had its halt at Kamarkundu. It was 9-30 pm.

After some moments of silence, Trayee said, "Well, I am going to NJP. There I will descend and board a car to Gangtok. Deep in my mind, I have nurtured a strong desire to explore the known and unknown breathtaking hills of the great Himalayas, wonderful lakes and the Buddhist Gumphas." She took out a DSLR from her fur jar den sling bag and said, "See, I am a lover of photography. And I have a burning passion towards trekking and crypto zoology. I have got training of trekking from the famous HMI (Himalayan Mountaineering Institute) of Darjeeling. Ha-ha, I am so much trained that you can call me a Sherpa!"Trayee said in one breath.

Well, it was at the dead of the night and the train was speeding through the famous Bolpur Santiniketan, the place of the great poet Ravindra Nath Tagore. All the lights in the compartment had been put out and the Bihari family was asleep. Only Trayee and I were sleepless, as Trayee had told me she would tell me a story of her life. The next morning she would leave so if I wanted to hear, I would listen to it that very night.

Everybody in the compartment had gone to sleep except Trayee and I. Trayee had previously told me that she would tell something of her dark past, which had kept her, stuck in shame and fear. She could not move out of it.

I became much more amazed, what secret her past had! Why was her past the reason behind her fear! I told myself. Quite from deep anxiety accumulated in my mind, I fell on with the fact that I must hear her story.

Our conversation took a huge turnover when Trayee asked me, "Do you believe in Saturn or evil spirits?" I became so much shocked and wailed, "Of course no. These don't exist in reality, only in myths and religious books." Trayee said with a benign look, "Of course they exist. I have experienced an evil spirit. And you will be amazed I have seen and perceived the Saturn in your scenic Dooars. That experience affected my mind so much that I can not move on even now. I believe you. Will you listen to my story?" I said, "Yes, why not, sure!"

Then Trayee started a mesmerizing story of her life that had happened in the lap of Dooars. I became shocked, tantalized, thrilled and horrified. Here, I am expressing the story in her own speech.

"I am a modern girl from the city of Kolkata. I got schooling from the renowned Bethune School and was graduated with geography honours from the famous Lady Brabourne College. Then I did a short -term computer course in information technology application from the NIIT, Salt Lake. Then I became an entrepreneur. I also learned the art of trekking from HMI Darjeeling. From childhood, the word 'fear' had not been included in my dictionary. I had been fond of taking a risk in my life. I never wanted to confine myself in the daily rut, rather I was prone to take the risk and discover new possibilities for me. But, the vacation in the Dooars valley changed my life completely. That was two years ago.

Trayee went on, "So I had already visited Dooars. I had felt its amazing beauty, it is so picturesque! And I will say it is much much romantic in the summer. The elephants, rhinos, crocodiles are so so fascinating, and when early in the morning, you will hear the song of hill Mynah, it will be truly exhilarating for you. So what I was telling, I had gone to the Dooars in 2012. My destination was Lataguri, a beautiful place amidst one of the thickest forests of India and surrounded by grey hills lying on the horizon. It was like Heaven.

I along with Indra, one of my closest friends had gone there. Indra was my friend since my childhood. Our friendship was deep, full of empathy and affection. We were very intimate. I hadn't known the fact that deep in his mind, he would cherish the deepest feelings of love and romance towards me. But, he hadn't been able to express his deepest feelings for me out of fear.

Both of us were trekkers. We came to Dooars to explore the beautiful hills of Buxa, Jayanti, Khasi, and many others. In the lap of winsome nature of Dooars, he couldn't resist his romantic feelings and one day while beholding the exquisite sunset in the river Murti from the river-bed, in the cool refreshing summer air of the Dooars, he proposed me."

The train was crossing the river Ganga again through the famous bridge of Farakka. A fact struck my mind that from this point, the original flow of the Ganga has been divided into its two branches, one is called the Padma and it has passed through Bangladesh and the other branch which has flown through the state of West Bengal and finally has fallen into the Bay of Bengal, is called Bhagirathi-Hooghly. How many times I have read about the Farakka Barrage! How many times I have desired to visualize it with my own eyes! I looked through the window.

But it was thick darkness in the outside. Except for some lighting on the barrage, nothing could be properly seen of the barrage. Sound of the train crossing the bridge struck my ears. My hope to see the marvelous barrage was nipped in the bud. I turned to Trayee to listen to the rest of her story!

In Lataguri, almost three miles from our quarter was an old wretched church of the British period amidst the vast lash green Sal forest. The church was standing in the ruins, but one day in the past, I was sure that the Father would chant in the prayer-hall,

"Hail Mary

Full of Grace

The God is with thee

Blessed art Thou amongst women

And Blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus

Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for us, sinners,

Now and at the hour of death.

Amen."

The church had been very popular in the British period and the Father D'Costa was much more popular among the villagers.

In the rainy season, you know Arup the beauty of Dooars is just beggars' description. It becomes so scenic, so appealing! One rainy afternoon, when the patches of dark cloud had been accumulated in the sky and the stormy wind was blowing, we were wandering near the wretched church and taking photos. We were thrilled. I had told Indra that rain could come anytime, and we should return to our quarter.

But he refused. He answered that we must not miss this sexy afternoon in this sexy nature! The wind was blowing my untidy long hairs and kissing his fair-skinned well-shaved face. We were really enjoying! All of a sudden, the rain set out. It started to rain cats and dogs. From the local tribes living in the nearby villages, I had known the fact that once upon a time, that church was very popular. It was the abode of eternal peace, unconditional love, purity, utmost compassion and God himself. Father Antony D'Costa was amazing. He was a very popular icon in the nearby villages. He was an idol of love, compassion, and devotion to God.

But one day, in the villages, came the bad blood among the happy and peaceful villagers. The land, which had been very fertile at a time, seemed to become sterile. The beauty of nature began to vanish. The trees which were immensely beautiful and were filled by the leaves and the flowers all the time started to become lifeless. As it seemed that the whole land had been cursed!

Soon the character of the Father D'Costa began to change. He became rude, angry, intolerant, and envious. His health began to fall. Soon, he started to avoid the prayers and other religious works. In most of the social occasions, he began to be absent. In his absence, his followers would do the prayers, offerings and other ceremonies.

And then the situation became nightmarish! Young children from the villages started to be missed. Soon, it was found that Father D'Costa had been turned into an infidel. He had started to worship Saturn. It was discovered that Saturn himself would come to him at night and would bless him with the magical power. In return, he would present the innocent child to the Saturn and the Saturn, the king of the Dark Empire, would devour them. Thus, the dwelling place of God had been rendered into the abode of the Saturn!

The native villagers soon realized that Father D'Costa was the reason behind their anarchy. For him, the life of common people in the beautiful villages in the lap of beautiful nature had been turned to be nightmarish. With the arrival of Saturn himself, the innocent villagers were at bay. Soon, they decided to take efficient steps against the evil practice, which would happen especially in a new moon night!

Hence, the villagers called on the renowned Father John D'Cruz from the famous Cathedral at Darjeeling. They stated their miseries to him and requested him to take certain steps. Father John said, "What can I do? Only he (God) is the doer and I am just his instrument. He gives me strength, guides me and advises me what ought to be done. I just follow his advice."

Father John came with the Bible, the Holy Cross, the rosary, and the Holy Water. He came to the cursed church and chanted, "Oh Father! Forgive your deceived son. Pardon all the sinners."Then he began to throw the drops of Holy Water around the boundary of the church. Then he chanted, "Amen!"

After some time, people became amazed to see Father D'Costa come out of the church. His eyes were filled with a unique wild fearsomeness, sharp canine teeth were glistering in his jaw, and he seemed pale and lifeless. In his very getup and fearsomeness, he took after a Demon. The villagers realized that their lovely Father had been turned into a vampire!

Finally, Father John threw the Holy Cross on D'Costa. His full body took fire. He howled, he shouted in agony, he cried. Then the body of the vampire was turned to ashes. With the end of D'Costa, Saturn left the place. Thus, the curse ended and the place became again beautiful. Happiness and prosperity came back.

D'Costa's evil ashes were buried deep under the ground beneath a Deodar ( Indian cedrus). People would tell that D'Costa's evil soul had not been pardoned and the evil soul would wander about the church, which was then turned, into debris, the nearby Christian cemetery, and the dense Sal and Teak forests. No man even in the bright shining daylight would go there.

Even the famous birds of Dooars (black-crested Bulbul, Ashy Wood swallows, the Drongo, Warbler, etc.) and animals like rhinos, elephants, wolves would avoid the place. Only there were owls and howling jackals. This place was wretched, lonely and haunted. Villages were far away from them. Even the wood-cutters who are till now frequent in the forest of Dooars would avoid the horrible and 'manhuz' (unlucky) place.

But in the turbulent shower, we had to take shelter in the church. Trayee stopped. The train with its breakneck speed was passing through the bridge of the vast river Mahananda and was speeding to Malda town. I looked at the deep eyes of Trayee and exclaimed, "Wow! Such a beautiful story it was. The blood running through my veins seemed to curdle. I am still now so much thrilled! Such a beautiful storyteller you are." Looking straight into my eyes, Trayee told, "Listen, my story has not been ended." Then I became amazed and said," Well, NJP is not far away.

I will take pleasure in hearing the rest of your story on the way to NJP. Your story had made my monotonous journey thrilling. Please carry on."

Trayee continued," So, we took shelter in the church. The rain had set in and it was the twilight of dust. The daylight was quickly fading away.

Indra was holding my hand tightly and I noticed a sudden change in his personality. "Why is his voice so changed? Why does his hand appear so cold? Why is he being so furious?", the thought appeared in my mind. Slowly was blowing the cool montane wind and in the horizon, there was lying the grey ridge of the mountains. A pack of jackal started to howl from some nearby places. I felt something supernatural, something very scary, and something uncanny!

Suddenly, Indra started to kiss me at random. I was deluded and felt a sensational feeling of romance and desire. I flew in the river of romance. Suddenly, I noticed sharp canine teeth coming out from his jaw and he is taking his face near my neck. His eyes were burning in rage and anger. He was feeling the insatiable thirst for human blood.

Suddenly I got back all my senses. I realized it was not Indra, Indra had been a victim of the evil spirit of Father D'Costa. Indra's body was then occupied by the evil soul of D'Costa. Now, it had come back to quench its thirst for human blood. And now not children, a full-grown young woman is going to be its victim.

That very moment I felt that I lacked Holy Cross and the Holy Water, which father John had. Only Holy Cross and Holy water could dominate the evil ferocious vampire. I was unfortunate, hopeless­! I had nothing to do. In that forested place, there was no one (no human or animal) except us. The vampire embraced me tightly, took his mouth near my neck, drank my warm human blood, then kissed me again, had sex with me forcefully, and then drank my blood again and then threw my bloodless and lifeless body in the shrubs."

The moment what I saw with my own eyes (And I can surely tell the readers that then I was not dreaming. I was very much in my sense.), I cannot believe still now. Even now, when I think about the incident on the train, blood in my veins seems to curdle. I become horrified and panicked.

Trayee vanished, just vanished from the seat in front of me. In the AC compartment, my whole body was sweating. And the Bihari young girl named Archana Jha, woke up from her sleep and asked me, "Akele akele mein kya bakh rahe ho!"(What am I saying myself where there is no one to listen!)

My poor nerves felt a mountainous pressure and my whole body started to tremble.

Who was telling the story? And whose story was it anyway? The words fluttered and flew in the wind.

I realized how the ugliest things take place in most beautiful places. Thank God, the sunrise was not far away. After some moments, from the eastern horizon rose the reddened chariot of the Sun God. I took some relief. The miserable and haunted night was ended. And the train stopped at Dalkhola.