THE BEGGAR GIRL

It was my 25th birthday and my friends had arranged a birthday party. Normally, the birthday boy gives a party to his friends on his birthday. However, here, my friends were giving me a party. Actually, one of our close friends, Kinjal, was giving the party. He had secured a scholarship to study in Singapore and therefore he was giving a party to his friends to celebrate the occasion. It was also a kind of a meetup with our friends, before he left us for Singapore to study for his course. He was to leave the next weekend. Therefore, this weekend he decided to party with friends.

On Saturday, when I left my house for the venue of the party, I came across a small girl on the street. She was begging me to get her some food from the Irani restaurant that overlooked my house. Her clothes were dirty and she was around 5 years of age. She was continuously tugging at my shoelaces and beckoning me to buy her something to eat, as she was very hungry. The time was about 0830 pm on a Saturday night. I was in a hurry to reach the party venue and therefore I did not pay too much attention to the beggar girl.

However, her adamant attitude forced me to take notice of her. She was approximately five years old and she was sitting outside the same Irani hotel from where she wanted me to buy food from her. I had stopped by to buy some eggs for my breakfast the next morning. I had a practice of eating eggs every Sunday morning for breakfast. This was when the beggar girl accosted me. She was continuously tugging at my shoelaces. When I did not take notice at first, she began tugging at my trousers. Finally, I decided to give my attention to the beggar girl.

I sat her down on the pavement outside the Irani hotel and began asking her what she wanted. She pointed her finger towards a small child who was lying on the pavement. She was telling me to buy her milk for her younger brother and some biscuits and tea for her. One glass of milk would have cost me Rs 15, while tea and biscuits would have cost me another Rs 10. I decided to buy her what she wanted. I told the manager of the hotel to give her one glass of milk and one tea and one packet of Parle G biscuits.

The beggar girl looked thankfully towards me. She took the biscuits, tea and milk glass to her brother and they began having their meal together. I went to her, disregarding my hurry to reach the party venue, and asked her name. The girl replied, "I am Sushmita and this is my younger brother Shah Rukh." Looking at them busy eating their breakfast, I decided to take my leave. However, the beggar girl offered to pay me for the food and the milk that I had bought her. I declined the money and asked her to visit my house the next day, as I wanted her to help me in my work.

The girl took my mobile number and told me that she would call me up the next morning for the address to visit my house. I went to my party, thoroughly enjoyed the Saturday night and came back at 12 midnight. My mother had already slept for the night. The next morning, I woke up at 9 am and had forgotten about the beggar girl of the previous night. But, she had not forgotten her word. I received a call bang at 10 am on Sunday morning. It was the same beggar girl and she was waiting outside the same Irani hotel from where I had brought them food.

She wanted me to come to the hotel and buy her the same things once again. I called the beggar girl to my house telling her that I would offer her more goodies if she came to my house. The girl obeyed and came to my house, with her younger brother. I told her to come to my house every Sunday for breakfast. She said yes and I gave her three chapattis' and some vegetable from the previous day's food that my mother had made. Both the brother and sister ate the food and then decided to leave. I had a chocolate hamper to give them. The girl declined to take the chocolate hamper and left.

Little did I know that this was the last I had seen of the brother and sister team? After that, I never saw them. They never came to the hotel or to my house. I wondered what had happened to them. I started scolding myself for not having taken her address. I could have tracked her down and helped her. Neither did she call me nor did I meet her. I tried asking the hotel owner if they had been spotted anywhere. He answered in the negative. Three years have elapsed since I met the beggar girl. There is no sign of her. I am still wondering what could have happened to that BEGGAR GIRL.