RUSTIC LANDSCAPES AND WHIRLING WINDS

CHAPTER -1

ARADHYA’S LITTLE WORLD

Little Aradhya is very happy today. Her final exams are over. It was a hectic schedule. She had a tough time mugging up concepts like a parrot. Her parents are happy as well. Aradhya is the only child of her parents. A 4-year-old is much smarter than children of her age group. The teachers of her school like her the most. Disciplined and well-mannered. Her parents left no stone unturned to give her a perfect childhood. Her father an architect by profession loved her the most. She was just 4 years old when her parents had to shift to Bhubaneswar. A kid who gets very little time to spend with her parents she often clings to her mother for bedtime stories. Tired after her daily schedule in the profession of doctor at AIMS Bhubaneswar, her mother seldom response to her request. Yet both have tried their best to give their daughter the best they could. She feels happy when she hears about the beauty of Assam from her mother. The beautiful state of northeast India having lush green fields, mountains, and valleys. The melting pot of people from different tribes-Mishing, Rabha, Karbi, Ahom has added to the glory of Assam. India’s best-kept secret as it is known as Odisha has been her home for the last few years. Every year during the summer break she would accompany her parents to sea beaches, zoological parks, and temples. Her father has a great interest in temple architecture. He has done extensive research in the Kalingan school of temple architecture. Aradhya feels happy when she gets to accompany her father on Sundays. Bhubaneswar is also known as the temple city. Several times she had accompanied her father for Ekamra walks. Her mother has a passion for poetry. She takes Aradhya to many of the literary fest and the sessions organized by new poets to I. G Park. Herself being deeply fascinated by the literature she has tried her best to give her little one a taste of it. In one of the storytelling sessions, Aradhya got to hear a story of Ruskin Bond, one of India’s most loved authors from the hills. The story was about a blue umbrella. Coming back home she pestered her parents with her truckload of questions” Mama, someday I wish to have a blue umbrella. Her mother replied back, Ya I will get one for you dear. The next question followed Papa, Can we keep a pair of goats with us. I want to play with them after school. Her parents would continue to respond to her until her attention shifts to some other works. Aditi had to remind her, Aru, have you finished your homework for tomorrow? She would then help Aradhya finish it.

Aradhya had many friends at school, Pakhi her best friend from Assam, Snighdha from Bihar, Arushi from West Bengal, and Riya from Delhi. The children's park in the colony was the best place for her after school. She would dress up well every evening to meet her friends. Her mama would help her to be ready tying a bun and at times a ponytail. She would then cycle to meet her friends at the park. In the last few years, Bhubaneswar has seen immense change. It has grown up to be an educational hub in the eastern region of the country. Many institutions like the Kalinga Institute of Social sciences (KISS) have been the home to many tribal children. New infrastructure has replaced earlier ones to make Bhubaneswar a smart city.

Aradhya played different games with her mates. Luka –chuppi (hide and seek), teacher-teacher and many. She returns home when it's dusk. Her mother would wait for her at the gate. This was the time of the day she enjoyed the most. She gets to be so much herself. A very good Odissi dancer she had performed several times at school. The evening cycling to the children's park sometimes gets hampered when it clashes with the timing of her dance. Her mother had arranged an Odissi dancer to help her learn classical dance. She had also taken her to Old Town to meet Ileana Chitaristi, a lead Odissi dancer, a recipient of Bharat Ratna. Aradhya has grown up listening to stories from Indian mythology, Aesop’s Fables, Panchatantra. Her best among the stories are those of Cinderella,Snow White, and the Seven Dwarf. Her parents had arranged a library in the house where she has her little corner with collections from different parts of the world. Neel has a great fascination for books. A vagabond Neel had developed the habit of buying a book during his travels though he gets less time to read all of them. He ensures that whenever they have a family trip outside India they are far ahead of the boarding time. This was to sneak through the stacks of books in the numerous bookstalls. Aditi has to pull him by his hand at times to remind him that they are about to board. The habit of reading has been with him as a child. He has won numerous story writing competitions. In his collection at Bhubaneswar, he has several books of notary literary gems starting from Rabindranath Tagore, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Pablo Neruda, Jawaharlal Nehru, Gandhi, Gyanpith winners Mamomi Raisom Goswami and many more. Aradhya has been inspired by her father into reading. Every time he returns from his foreign trip he would have a book for her. She was her father's darling. Books have thus been her friend as a child. Her school library at St. Francis is the icing on the cake. It has a huge collection of old and new books. Every Friday she would line up for the school library during the library period. Her library teacher Miss Anju would issue her the 3 copies of the book and then she could keep those for a week. A fast reader she would at times complete reading her own and exchange them with her friends.

In her apartment in the capital city of Bhubaneswar, she had a bird as her pet, a parrot. She was her favorite. Whenever she went shopping with her parents to a mall she ensured that she carried back some chilies for the parrot. Both of her parents had arranged an Aya for their daughter, Prativa. When they came to settle in Bhubaneswar, one of the collogue of Neel recommended Prativa to him. She was searching for work and was new to the city. She was about 35 years of age and belonged to Paradip. There are many people who have moved to Bhubaneswar from districts like Balesore, Jagatsinghpur, Puri. There has been a movement of students in search of good educational opportunities. Some of the people have moved to the city in terms of new job opportunities in Info-Tech Smart City and some as daily wage laborers. Thus the city has been home to many.

CHAPTER-2

VISIT TO PURI

May 26. It was her birthday. Aditi jumped up from the bed and arranged for the morning prayers after her shower. It being a Sunday both of them had planned the night before a surprise for their heartbeat. She was the result of their love and meant the world for them. Ever since her birth she had filled their lives with bliss and have made them complete. Neel took out his car from the garage as Aditi helped Aradhya in dressing up. She decked up in her new frock and her mama made a ponytail. She looked in front of the mirror and her mother planted a kiss on her. When they came downstairs from the top floor Neel waved them. The scheduled destination was to visit the Jagannath Temple at Puri. It was nearly a two and half hours journey after which they reached the temple. Offering their prayers then they visited the Sun Temple at Konark also known as Black Pagoda. After a tiring homebound journey, they reached Bhubaneswar at about 8 p. m in the evening. Aradhya was tired yet happy for this surprise. Her grandmother called her just before dinner to wish her. Keeping the phone on loudspeaker both of her parents went to arrange for the dinner. Aradhya said,”Aaita,ki khobor”(grandma, how are you?)Mainu,mur valei,tumaluk vale asa nohoi,janmodin r akhesh hubhokamona jasilu,dirghojivi hua. (Mainu,I am good,wish you long life). Thank you aita. Aditi said,ma,ratipua re pora taik apunar logot kotha patibole lage. (She wants to talk with you since morning). Taik eibar bihu t ghorole loi ahiba,bohut din hol,suwali joni loi borkoi monot pori thake. (Bring her home this Bihu, I miss her so much). Hbo ma moi Neel r logot pati lou(let me talk to Neel)

CHAPTER -3

THE ONSET OF THE EXTREMELY SEVERE CYCLONIC STORM

Starting from May 2019, the formation of a low-pressure belt was announced by Indian Meteorological Department at the Bay of Bengal. Evacuation of people was done by NDRF jawans from the high alert districts. Every year Odisha prepares itself for tropical cyclones. This time it was the approach of Fani, extremely severe cyclonic storms with wind speeds of 110-120 km/hour. Taking her tablet given to her by her father on her 5th birthday, Aradhya googled to know the status of the cyclone. It was due to make landfall on the 5th of May. Since the last few days, there had been incessant rainfall in parts of Odisha. The state government announced the closure of educational institutions in the capital city starting from the 3rd of May.

May 5th, 2019. Aditi woke up early in the morning. The temperature was very high for the last few days. She woke up to a bad dream. The local news channel in Odia warned for immediate arrangements to be made. Neel had already collected the goods needed from the local grocery store. Aradhya removed the curtains of her living room as Aditi and Neel peeped outside. The weather was cloudy. Dark clouds were hovering high in the sky. Slowly it started raining. Residents of the city were shut indoors. At about 8 a. m there was a power cut. The landfall was exactly at around 10 a. m. There was destruction everywhere. Aradhya hid behind her cupboard to avoid the noises of the breaking trees uprooted nearby and the branches falling. Outside her windowpanes shattered to thin pieces and lay on the floor. Aditi tried closing the windows but the wind was far too strong. The windows rattled time and again. The winds washed away roofs of high-raised apartments and inundated coastal areas. As the storm weakened leaving a trail of destruction, it continued to rain. Near the balcony, Aradhya saw a pair of birds searching for food in the rain. She felt bad for them. She went to the kitchen to collect some grains for them to eat. Those in the cyclone shelters were safe. Lots of Casurina trees which acted as a barricade to cyclones were gone. They lay along the highway road to Puri and Chandrabhaga beach. Bhubaneswar saw the falling of many trees. The many trees in the I. G. Park area fell. The airports and the railway station had extensive damage. Aditi had never seen destruction as such before. Back in her home state Assam, she had seen several of its districts reeling under floods during monsoons but the experience of a cyclone was new for her. The next few days saw a surge in the number of train tickets as students of KISS, KIMS, RIE vacated their hostels for home. The lines on the railway platforms were flooded with eager eyes of students who waited for several hours to get a train ticket. The entire city was in complete darkness as the power cut continued for the next days. The electric post lay on the ground as the administration struggled to remove those from the streets. Aradhya went to bed early. She struggled to sleep as her mother cuddled her in her arms and caressed her forehead. Her father brought her closer to him. They understand the child is too young to understand the ravage of the cyclone.

The next morning when Aditi went to dry her clothes in the rope tied on the balcony she saw the municipality carry the fallen trees. She said to herself, well it would take time for situations to improve. Being a doctor in the surgical Department she has always tried to do justice to her profession. Her husband and her little one had supported her immensely. Whenever she has a case Neel would even ensure that the household works are taken care of. She met him during her P. G days in Dibrugarh Medical College. She was in the final year of her MBBS course when she met Neel on his visit to the hospital. Neel had to go for a health check-up. His father had to undergo a gall bladder operation. Aditi was an intern under one of the senior doctors of the hospital, Dr. Prakash Gogoi, a well-established and renowned doctor in the Surgical department. For her then Neel was just like any other patient. His operation was done successfully and the day he had to return to his home town Tezpur, he met Aditi. He thanked Aditi for her help in the operation. She took a piece of paper with her phone number in it from her notepad and gave it to Neel.

Work assignments made them center around their own worlds. And one day Neel saw Aditi’s number on the page of his personal diary. He called her. The phone rang several times and there was no respone. At around 10 p. m Aditi rang up. Being a doctor her number remains with many of her patients but she picks up the numerous phone calls and responds well to her patients. She said, Hello, Dr. Aditi here” Hello,moi Neel,sini paisa ne?Hei je log paisilu hospital t. (Could you recognize me,I am Neel)Aditi couldn’t recognize. She has many phone calls every day. Neel spoke again,apuni mur deutar gall bladder r operation ata korisil,monot porisene. (You diod my father's gall bladder operatrion)Aditi recognized after around 15 minutes. She has this strange habit of forgetting. O monot porise,apuni bhale ase ne?etiya kiba complications anubhov kore nki teu?(Yes I remember, are there any complications now?)That was the first phone call. They talked nearly for an hour with topics ranging on contemporary issuers. They started speaking to each other every alternate day. Aditi began to feel a strong bond with Neel. Messages began to roll to late-night phone calls. Often Neel would make her sleep to his stories from the books that he read. At times he would sing to her to bollywood numbers he loves. That was few years back when Neel went to her home as a groom. She looked like the full moon on the day of her wedding. It was a perfect Choklong in Ahom's ways. She looked like the most beautiful bride in her white mekhala sadar. After few years it was the birth of Aradhya who became the most significant episode in their life.  

'Aditi, are you ready, I will drop you at AIMS, and then I have to go to the GSI office for some work. 'Aradhya was left alone in the house. Trying to push the car through the numerous fallen trees they reached Aims. Back home Aradhya thought to herself, I have to make phone calls to Riya and others. I don’t know-how is the condition of the trees in the Children's Park. I will cycle there and meet my friends. They met at the park and werte devasted by its condition. The roof of the temporary stage was gone. Electric wires lay on the ground. The wildflower they played with had been destroyed. She remembered Ekta making crowns for her during the play. She made bangles, chains, etc for Aradhya. They had so much fun in this playground. They sat under the shade of a jamun tree and cried together. Aradhyya tried to console her friends. After spending some time there she returned back home. When her parents returned home she pestered them with her long line of questions. Mama 'where are the birds of the children park gone?'What happened to their nest? Will the baby birds find a safe haven? Tears rolled down Aditi’s eyes. At one point in time, Aradhya fell asleep on her mother's lap. Seeing her condition both the parents were worried. They discussed with each other and decided to take her to Assam to her grandparent's house. Neel booked the flight tickets in Indigo and made arrangements for their onward journey.  

   

 

CHAPTER- 4

ARADHYA’S VISIT TO ASSAM

On the day of the scheduled flight, Aradhya woke up in the early morning and Neel dropped them at the Biju Patnaik International Airport. She kissed her father as she left the terminal for her flight. A flight journey of one and half hours dropped her at Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport. Her uncle came to receive her at the airport and he drove them home. Her grandmother was waiting eagerly for Aradhya to arrive. She felt happy on entering her birthplace Tezpur. The highway stretching from the gateway to the northeast, Guwahati to Tezpur via Nagaon is very beautiful. The Kaliabhumura bridge over the river Brahmaputra offers the perfect sightseeing to onlookers. Aradhya remembered her mother waking her up in the night when their bus crossed the bridge. Many times she had taken boat rides with her village mates on her holiday visits to the city. A hoarding read Welcome to the city of Eternal Beauty,Tezpur. Aditi felt the city has seen many changes in the last five years. There are new shopping malls now in the form of Reliance Mega Mart and many. The city holds many memories to her.

She was a newlywed when Neel married her and brought her to his home in Da Parbatia. They have spent their evening sitting on the stairs of Ganesh ghat, in rock garden, and in Agnigarh when they were dating each other. Walking along the lanes of the city she remembers Neel taking her to have ice cream in Delight Bakery. The Chowk Bazaar present in the middle of the city is one of the places she liked the most. Most of their dates involved spending time around the city,going for a boat ride in Podum Phukhuri and then returning for a cup of tea and Kachori in one of the hotels. After a hectic day when she gets a phone call from Neel, a smile pass through her lips. 'Aditi, if your works are all over can we go for a cup of coffee?'She often responded with a solemn yes. She has a craze for litchi. The Tezpur litchi is famous for its taste and has also ben accorded the Geographical Indication (GI) status by the ministry. As one passes from the road starting from Porua Chariali to Tezpur University during the summer month,they get to see rows and rows of litchi trees laden with the fruit. From the top it looks like a whole field in red. Neel has accompanied her to the bagan. He feels happy to see the way she runs from one tree to another pulling at the fruits. They would return after clicking some pictures . Her mother-in-law saw her as her own daughter. Being a working woman she had to leave home early for the Kanaklata Civil Hospital. Aditi believes her support was immense when Aditi was pregnant. Lost in her thoughts Aditi woke up to a shake from Aradhya,' Ma, we have reached home'. Aditi sdaw her in-laws sitting in the verandah. Aradhya run to her grand mother and hugged her. Her grandfather smiled at her and continued reading the newspaper. Aita,moi ahilu (grandma I came).

Aditi after staying for a week had to return to Bhubaneswar. She asked Aradhya to behave well with everyone and not to roam around. Aradhya felt happy. She has a whole month with her. Her school was closed due to Fani and now the summer break had started. When she was in Bhubaneswar, every year during the summer break she attended summer camps for children, Eco retreat, dance festivals, go to dance classes, finish the home assignments given at school. Sometimes she accompanied her parents for trekking in the hills. But this time it was very different for her.

CHAPTER-5

THE VACATIONS BEGAN

'Aradhya, wake up dear, your friends Ninni and Ryan have come to meet you'. Aradhya woke up rubbing her eyes as she jumped from her bed. Her grandfather had long woken up. When Aradhya said that she would come home for the vacations her grandfather decided to share his bed with his granddaughter. Ever since the day her mother left for Bhubaneswar she slept with her grandfather. Aradhya feels there are so many advantages to sleeping with her grandfather. She gets to listen to many stories from him every night, stories of the little cowherd Krishna, and his playful acts in Gokul, his love with Radha in the forest of Vrindavan, his killing of the demon king Kansa. Every night after lunch she sat with her grandparents on the lawn as he opened up his basket of stories to Aradhya. Many times the children of the neighborhood have visited their home to listen to stories from her grandfather. In the village, there are often power cuts at night. Her grandparents often have to fan her with a handmade fan. Grandfather Aradhya believes is an amazing storyteller. Each of his stories ended with a moral. Grandmother would offer him betel leaves at the end of a story. Aradhya feels that she is very lucky to have such caring grandparents. Aditi and Neel often ring up home to know about her health. These days Aradhya seems very busy. She has so many works to do, wake up early in the morning, accompany grandfather to the fields, attend to the newly born calf and feed the goats, help grandmother in household works, explore the open fields searching for fallen bird feathers. After all of these activities during the daytime every day, she has to spend an hour with her grandparents to listen to stories. Neel assures Aditi that their daughter is in the best place in the world that they can ever have for their child.

CHAPTER-6

BORDOICHILA COMES TO HER MOTHERS PLACE

On one of the days as Aradhya sat on a mat in the lawn to listen to her grandfather, he said,” Aradhya, you know Bordoichila” No”, grandpa, I have never heard about it. You should have been here during the Bohag Bihu, you could have experienced it. Bringing her closer to his lap grandfather started.

There are many stories associated to Bordoichilla in Assam. Every year during the Rangali Bihu,this wind comes home to visit her mother's house. She is considered to be a beautiful young lady married to a faraway land. As she comes home people take out a pira for her along with other decorative elements like Comb, flowers,gamusa to decorate herself. Often she leaves trail of destruction by taking away roofs of houses. She is a part of the assamese oral tradition. At one point of time grandfather stopped when he saw that Aradhya was asleep. Grandmother took her in her arms and left her in bed. Aradhya dreamt of Bordoichila coming to Assam decked in wildflowers on her hairs and sitting on her lawn to feast on the chira kept for her.

 

                                                                CHAPTER-7

ARADHYA GOES TO THE PADDY FIELD

Aradhya woke up one morning at around 4 a. m. Her grandfather had promised her the day before that he would be taking her to the fields the next day. The monsoons had already arrived. The farmers are busy in the fields tilling the land. Aradhya on one of her visits to her mother's friend's house in North Sabish Parganas at West Bengal had come to terms with the beauty of rustic landscape. The rows and rows of Rajnigandha fields,the banana trees at Naldugari are still in her memories. As promised grandfather came near Aradhya to ask her to get ready. Aradhya dressed up wearing a yellow frock and putting a gamusa (Assamese handwoven garment) and tied it to a bun. Waving at her grandma who stood watching her from the veranda she followed the footsteps of her grand father. Her grandfather had a japi on his head. It was raining like cats and dogs since the last two days. He had made a small japi for Aradhya before she came. Aradhya wore that and was frolicking all along the road like a little squirrel as the rain pattered upon her head. The road leading to the fields was full of mud. They reached the fields at the end of the road. Aradhya carried the little tiffin given by her grandmother. She had prepared pithaghuri ladoo for both of them. Along with that grandfather had a flask of tea to the field. There was a little house made of bamboo near the fields. The boy at grandfather's house Shyam had made the house to protect the fields from the herd of cows. Shyam helped Aradhya to climb up the bamboo ladder leading to the bamboo hut. Above was a roof made of thatch. The hut was enough for a single person to sit and rest for some time. Shyam belonged to the Putabil village of Assam. He belonged to the Mishing community. This tribe of Assam have their small houses by the side of the river banks. They are spread over districts like Lakhimpur,Dhemaji of Assam. His father died in a road accident hit by a tractor when he was just 3 years old. His father was a fisherman. Every morning he left bed at around 4 a. m and then taking his fishing net and fishing rod leave for the river bank. After fishing in the Ranganadi river for about an hour he would lit up his beedi and smoke while collecting the fish in a pot. This was his daily schedule. After coming back home he would go along with other fishermen to sell it in the neighboring villages. Every year the village bear the burnt of floods.

On one morning Ghana took out his cycle with a tin on the back of his cycle and a bag in front. This time the floods had washed away all his paddy fields. He has to work very hard to feed his family of six, three sons one daughter, and his wife. He went to the local Mandi. It was Sunday. There were many other people hurrying to the mandi with their goods. The goods included banana bunches, pumpkins, clothes, and bamboo products. A tractor hit him while he was just about to reach his mandi. He immediately died on the spot. Rashmi his wife on hearing the news hurried to carrying 3 year old Shyam holding him in her arms. She collapsed on the spot. There were people everywhere around. Some suggested for a police complaint in the local police station. Some criticized the tractor driver who fled immediately from the accident spot. It was a tough time for Rashmi to take care of her kids. She grew feeble. Her eldest son Anil left school to support the family. Rashmi remembered her husband keeping some money in a bamboo pole. The day the accident occurred Ghana had cut the pole to take out the money. He had planned to get some new dresses for his children and gift them in Bohag Bihu. Rashmi had tried to snatch away his money purse from him. She knew they would have a tough time feeding the kids later on. He smiled and left assuring Rashmi that he would get her a Mekhala Sadar as well. Rashmi knew how much he loved her. They had met on the banks of Ranganadi some years back. Her youthful days were amidst the mustard fields in the village of Putabil. She was returning back from the river bank carrying water in a pot for her home. The evening was fast approaching. The shimmering rays of the setting sun in the western sky glowed like dewdrops on an October morning in the waters of Ranganadi. He smiled at her and said,'oi koneng,eman deri leke ghar jua nai je?beli dhubu dhubu,ja ja hunkale ghoroloi ja,ghabhoru suwali eman poroloiu bahirot thoka thik nhoi. (What are you doing staying here so late, it's about to be evening, go back home). This was their first meeting. After that, there were several times they sat long back in the makeshift bridge over the Ranganadi to talk with each other. Many times his furtive glances had stole her heart. At night he visited her house to have dinner. She then offered him a bowl of Apong (homemade alcohol) and then ask to wait for dinner. It was as if he had become a part of their family. One night he took her in his cycle and brought her home.  

Shyam was the second son of his parents. Shyam had no formal schooling. His mother had taken him to the nearby M. E school where he studied till class 6 and then dropped. He started working in the mustard fields with his mother,take care of the buffaloes, take care of his younger sister and help his mother in the house hold works. Aradhya's grandfather was a teacher of the Putabil M. E. school. One day during recess he saw him sitting under a banyan tree. He went near him and holding him closer asked “Shyam, why are you so sad”. Sir, ma r gaa val nhoi (my mother is not well). After school Aradhya's grandfather visited the family and asked his mother's permission to keep Shyam with him. After a week his mother passed away. Since then this has been his home.

'Shyam da, I will stay here for some time,you help grandfather with the bullock'. Aradhya sat on the floor of the hut with her legs dangling below. From ther ground grandfather warned Aradhya to be careful. Her glances went all over the fields. Every where peole were busy plowing the land. A crane walked with small steps in search of fishes in the stagnant water pools. Above the mango tree, two baby birds were busy gathering twigs to build a nest. Aradhya saw high atop an orchid hanging down. It had bloomed during April. Nearby was another orchid bhatou flower. Her state is home to different orchids which bloom mostly during April. She shouted to Shyam, 'dada, bring me one of those flowers from the pool nearby, I want to have them for my hair'. As afternoon approached they returned back home. Aradhya brought some beautiful bhatou flowers in the pocket of her yellow frock. She danced back home as she walked in the road.

One day grandfather took Aradhya to Agnigarh. He showed her the magnificient beauty of the Brahmaputra from a tower. Back home Aradhya pestered her grandfather with her endless questions. He then opened before her the historical significance of the City, the story associated with its places until she slept.

 

CHAPTER-8

BRINGING DHONMONI HOME

One day grandfather brought Aradhya a puppy while returning from the Naamghar. She named him Dhonmoni. The puppy was left by his mother two days after his birth. There were several others. The village boys took the others. After offering his morning prayers her grandfather saw the little puppy shivering under a papaya tree. Putting it up he brought it home.

Aradhya was very happy to have her new pet. She told Shyam to make a small house of cardboard for him. The whole night she didn’t sleep. Both her grandparents were awake as well. The puppy was too young to be left alone. He became a new member of the family.

Grandmother tied a little bell around his neck. Every day Aradhya played with him in the courtyard. He accompanied Aradhya everywhere. Grandmother's routine has praying two times in the Naamghar during morning and evening. Taking the gamusa around her neck Aradhya would accompany grandmother When Aradhya would sit by her grandmother’s side in the Naamghar for the evening prayers Dhonmoni would sit at the back with his legs at the front and his whole body flat on the ground. Grandmother would start

Srimanta Sankar o Hari Bhokotor o

Jana jeno kolpotoro

Tahanto binai nai nai nai

Amar param guru

When the prayers would end Aradhya would return with Dhonmoni. In a few day's time, he became the whole world for her. From helping grandmother prepare food for him in the morning to help her give the puppy a bath Aradhya carried every task with sheer dedication. The best part of Aradhya's stay in grandmother's house was seeing grandmother milking the cows in the early morning.

CHAPTER-9

AND HE NEVER CAME

One evening Aradhya saw grandfather taking Dhonmoni out for his evening walk. He returned after an hour. That day several dogs followed Dhonmoni back home. Grandfather chased them several times. Aradhya walked out of her room on hearing the barking of the dogs. It was evening. Everyone in the house was busy. It was that time of the evening when the puppy played on the lawn. Grandmother was busy preparing for the evening ritual in the temple. No one noticed little Dhonmoni walking out of the house through the open gates when some people had left it open while coming to drop some newly brought furniture. When the evening chores were done Aradhya heard grandfather calling Snowy several times. She was alarmed. She ran out of her room to find out where he was. To her utter dismay, she found that he was nowhere to be seen. Grandfather went out with Shyam and enquired at all the homes of their village. Somebody said they had seen him walking past the temple gates of the village. But he was nowhere to be found. That night Aradhya couldn’t sleep well. She was at a loss and was very sad. The next morning she woke up early and accompanied grandfather to the fields. All the family members searched but the puppy was nowhere to be found.

CHAPTER-10

ARADHYA RETURNS TO BHUBANESWAR

Several days passed and the holidays were about to end. She packed her bags for Bhubaneswar. Her parents came few days before her holidays ended. She touched her grandparent's feet and returned. They wished her luck. Back in the temple city life rolled on and she got busy in her schedule. Time and again when memories flashed back she opened the files in her tablet to see the videos and images of her moments with Dhonmoni. One day grandfather went to the paddy fields to bring the cows back home in the evening. He informed Aradhya that he saw a dog in white playing with some other dogs. The villages sometimes informed her grandparents of seeing the puppy in the roads. Everyone had a different story to share. For Aradhya Dhonmoni became a part of her own,a beautiful episode of her life. For her, nothing could compensate the loss of her dearest friend. There were different interpretations of the stories of the villagers. Some said Dhonmoni met with an accident, some said she had been taken to Arunachal Pradesh.  

Aradhya had some beautiful stories from her village to share with her friends. She regaled in the tales which she felt was a miss in the city. Life went on with lots of activities getting attached to her daily schedule yet she longed to be back again in her grandparents home to hear the tales of the Ahom kings,hear stories of Panchatantra in starry nights when grandfather would take his mat and open up his basket of stories and the little ones from the village would listen attentively to the stories written by the doyen of Assamese literature Lakshminath Bezbaruah –One of his most famous book being Burhi Aai r Xadhu. Grandfather would fan himself with the dokhua bisoni (fan) and grandmother would crush the betelnut for him and sit by his side. Dhonmoni would wag his tail whenever Aradhya called his name to offer him a biscuit. She felt blesses at having such caring grandparents who atternded to all of her needs. She had so many stories from her vacation to share with her friends and parents. Memories of her days in her grandparents home gave her memories to last a lifetime. She felt she had never seen the beautiful Usha and Aniruddha yet their story of love from the city of eternal romance shared by her grandfather helped her to know about the historical significance associated with her home state. She enjoyed each moment of her stay in her grandparents home.

*Choklong-marriage ceremony of Tai-Ahom community of Assam.