The Blood Drenched Rainbow

The Blood Drenched Rainbow

29 mins
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CHAPTER 1


A LAD IN THE BITTERLY COLD EVENING


On 7TH February 1991 Shiv-Ghat, a village in Haryana was covered in a thick blanket of fog. Visibility was quite low and mercury had dropped down to a level like never before. On that bitterly cold evening, a number of people were sitting around the bonfires on both the sides of the road trying to get respite from the bone-chilling weather. Trees looked lifeless without leaves and there was hardly any sign of flora and fauna. It appeared as if the entire village was hibernating.

In that freezing weather, Kuldeep was walking back to his home. He was lost in his own thoughts. He was clad in black clothes from head to toe. The color of his clothes was in sharp contrast to the emotions he was feeling that day.

 Kuldeep was young and a handsome lad of 24 years of age. He was tall and had a fair complexion. His black hair fell over his eyes and stubble on his fair face made him appear like a prince charming. He worked as an engineer in a Multi-National Corporation in the nearby city of Durgapur. He had achieved a lot at such a young age. He was a gold-medalist of his batch and was earning a handsome salary, higher than any other guy of his age in the village of Shiv-Ghat. He was not only a successful engineer but an ardent and sincere social worker too. His self- confidence and body language was quite intimidating. He was considered to be the perfect guy - an amalgamation of both beauty and brain.


CHAPTER 2

A CONVENTIONAL FAMILY

Even after more than four decades of independence, the life of the people in Shiv Ghat was still governed by the orthodox ideas of patriarchy. Kuldeep’ father Sardar Shambhu Singh was no less. He was a wealthy farmer who was proud of his masculinity as well as heritage. Since he was from a wealthy higher caste family, he looked down upon poor and lower caste people. He was of the opinion that his caste and respect earned through money gave him an edge over everyone else. For him, it was much more necessary to go as per the prevailing social norms than doing what was right. He was short-tempered and haughty and could do anything to preserve his honor. 

He wanted to make his son, his own reflection. He wanted his son to be masculine, rowdy and raucous. For him, his son was the prime indicator of pride and honor. 

Kuldeep’s mother Katyani Devi was a homemaker. Even though she belonged to an affluent and respectable family, but just like other ladies, she was the victim of her husband’s oppression. She had to remain in a veil and do all sorts of household chores. Thanks to the norms of the society she was compelled to work day in and day out without raising any sort of objection. She was keen to have a daughter-in-law. The coming of a daughter-in-law in the family would not only mean the division of work, but she would also have someone to take good care of her at such a phase of her life.

Both Shambhu Singh and Katyani Devi were utterly religious and blindly followed the teachings of their ancestors. 

Despite all this, they loved their son more than anyone else and be happy and contented in his life as long as he was doing the things which fell under the ambit of ideas of morality and social acceptance.



CHAPTER 3


THE EXPECTATIONS OF MARRIAGE


In India, soon after the children get settled in his or her life, the parents start compelling them to get married. It is a common scenario that happens in almost every Indian family.

Kuldeep had made a name for him in the professional field and was also of the marriageable age. Any girl would have loved to marry him. Given the status of Shambhu Singh, any respectable member of the society would have loved to marry his daughter to Shambhu Singh’s only son Kuldeep. 

Marrying his son to a girl from a rich family would have dual benefits for him. Not only will he get a lump sum amount in dowry, but will also get an opportunity to further extend his business links. 

Katyani Devi on the other hand too wanted his son to enter into wedlock. For her, marriage was a sacrament as and she wanted a choicest bride for her son. In her opinion an ideal daughter-in-law should be clothed from head to toe in a saree, should know how to cook and do other household chores and should follow all her commands without any visible sign of objection. In the past, she had shown Kuldeep photographs of a number of girls, but he never paid heed to the issue.  



CHAPTER 4

WHEN WORDS INVITED THE TROUBLE


Whenever Katyani Devi talked to her son to convince him to marry, he used to get annoyed and storm out of the room. But last week on one such occasion he yelled at his mother and uttered few words that rung the death knell for him. Out of sheer frustration and anger, he yelled,

“Ma and Bapu, I am not interested in getting married at all and especially not with these girls. These girls might be perfect for me in your opinion, but in my opinion, I am not a suitable groom for them. You guys are not aware of the reality of my life. I was too not aware of it for years, but now with the grace of Shiva I have come to know my true self, my desires, and my interests and also about the one with whom I will feel like heaven on this Earth.”

As he was uttering these words he was visibly shaken and was sweating as if he was standing outside on a scorching summer afternoon. He added, “Ma and Bapu, I have no idea how you will take this? This might come out as a jolt to you. But I have fallen in love with someone.” After uttering these words he went silent. He wanted to say something else too, but couldn’t muster much courage and with tears in his eyes, he left the room.

Shambhu Singh and Katyani were left gobsmacked. This confession from their son came as a shock to them and they were left confused about how they should react.



CHAPTER 5


AND THE SEARCH BEGAN 


In the wee hours of the next day, Shambhu Singh along with few other men of the village went on a searching spree to track down the girl with whom his son was in love. He inquired at every possible place he could; his son’s office, from his friends as well as from other acquaintances, but at last he had to return back home empty-handed.

It was necessary for Shambhu to track down this girl because his son was quite broad-minded unlike the other members of the village. Shambhu was not only worried about the girl but more importantly of her caste and family. 

In the hearts of his hearts, he promised himself that he will not wait for too long. He would track down that witch who had cast evil magic on his son from any part of India and send her to a place from where she would never be able to return back to his son’s life.

The main reason why Shambhu wanted to kill his son’s so-called girlfriend was that he had promised Yogeshwar Singhania, a wealthy businessman of a nearby village that he would marry his son to his daughter in exchange of a hefty dowry equivalent to 50 lakh Indian Rupees.

In this way, his greed combined with his ego turned him into a detective who was using every tool in his kitty to search for his son’s sweetheart.



CHAPTER 6


CONSTITUTION: A WORTHLESS DOCUMENT FOR THE VILLAGERS


The constitution of India granted every citizen of India fundamental rights under Part 3 of the Indian Constitution. All over the world constitution is considered as the ground norm. No kind of deviation is permitted from this law of the land. 

But for the people of the Shiv- Ghat, constitution was nothing but a useless book. Forty years had passed since it came into force, but still, the people of Shiv- Ghat didn’t follow it. 

It was an orthodox village. The works were divided by the genders. Religion was a matter of pride for the town dwellers. Love Marriages, Inter- Caste Unions and Western Ideologies were condemned. The diseases were considered to be a result of the wrath of God and elaborate yajnas were conducted to get the blessings of almighty. Any kind of deviation from the cultural norms was considered as a sin and the sinner was subjected to extreme torture. They were outcasted and in some cases were even killed in the most brutal ways possible. In case the family of the so-called sinner supported such a brutal treatment then they were looked with respect or else they were excommunicated. 

The centuries-old ideas formed the backbone of the everyday life of the village. The decision of the village Panchayat was considered to be final even if they were inhumane or against the provisions of the constitution.

Honor and pride of the village and family were of utmost importance and if a crime was related to these then the accused was publicly humiliated and executed in the village temple. No one, not even the police authorities interfered in such matters.

In such a situation Kuldeep’s love affair could land Shambhu Singh in a hot soup. Shambhu Singh could die, but could not tolerate even a minute imputation on his reputation. 



CHAPTER 7


THE EVENING OF 7TH FEBRUARY


On that chilly evening of the 7th February when Kuldeep returned back home, he was happy but his family members were not in their high spirits. Almost a week had passed since the intervention took place between him and his parents, but still, the situation had not normalized. Kuldeep’s parents started avoiding him and always spoke in a harsh tone with him.          

The moment Kuldeep entered his house, his mother who was cooking food in the kitchen spoke in a sarcastic manner,

“How are you, the best son, in the world? Are you OK or are you feeling cold?” Kuldeep did not answer. This agitated his mother even more. She added,

“I am such a fool. Why will you feel cold? I am sure that you have spent some quality time with your girl. Moreover, when you are getting the warmth of love, then why will you feel cold? Our family pride is not at all necessary for you. The only thing which matters to you is hanging out with your girlfriend. You are a shameless boy.”

Kuldeep didn’t pay much heed to what his mother was saying and went inside his room. 

His mother was yelling at him at the top of her voice. His father was trying to pacify her. But there was a flame burning inside Kuldeep that could burn away all the negativities.

That day Kuldeep was lost in his own world. Never in his life had he been so delighted. He was jovial but could not share his happiness with anyone. After spending 24 years of his life he had found someone who was perfect for him. Even though that someone didn’t fall in the conventional definition of a spouse given by his mother, but the person with whom he was in love was perfect for him. That person complemented and supplemented him in every possible way ever. 

But deep inside his heart, there was fear. He decided not to reveal the identity of his love to anyone. He took out the photograph of his love from the pocket of his jacket, kept it close to his bosom and got lost in his own world.


 CHAPTER 8


THE MISUNDERSTANDING


On the 8th of February, Kuldeep returned back to his home from work quite late. His father inquired to him about why he was late. At first, he did not utter even a single word, but on being pressurized by his father some words came out of his mouth. His father misunderstood those words and soon reached to an uncanny conclusion. 

Kuldeep said, “Dad I was with U...Ujw”

His father bellowed at him and said, “Who the hell were you with? Who the hell is this Ujwalla? A son like you will surely bring disgrace to our family.”

Hearing this Kuldeep was left heartbroken and with tears of sorrow rolling down his eyes, he once again locked himself inside his room. 

At this juncture, it was quite clear that Kuldeep was hiding something from his parents. But what was he hiding was not clear to anyone.

But Shambhu Singh had reached a conclusion. He was sure that there was a girl named Ujwalla with whom his son was in love with. He had finally achieved something after days of a failed struggle and asked his friends and other acquaintances to go on a searching spree for finding Ujwalla.



CHAPTER 9


A PLAN TO NAB THE LOVEBIRDS


On 9th of February, a very close friend of Shambhu Singh named Narad Singh came to him. He was known to be a very immoral human being. He was always interested in interfering in the personal lives of others. For him, the pains and sorrows of other people had been just a mode of entertainment. 

He walked to Shambhu Singh, who was sitting in the portico of his house and sat beside him. He was aware of the fact that Kuldeep’s love affair was the main reason behind his friend’s anguish. 

He came up with a plan to nab that girlfriend of Kuldeep. They decided to keep an eye on each and every movement of Kuldeep. They decided to follow Kuldeep for a day and check whom he meets.

In the end, they decided to nab both of them red-handed, kill the girl in the most inhumane manner possible and later on to marry Kuldeep to the daughter of Mr. Singhania. Once Kuldeep will get married, they will get a hefty amount in dowry. Then later on whether Kuldeep had a happy married life or not was something of their concern.

After he left, Shambhu Singh called up his men and divulged them the details on the future course of action.



CHAPTER 10


WHEN NATURE INDICATED THE IMPENDING APOCALYPSE


On 12th of February, Kuldeep came back home to his home late on a new moon night for the last time. The entire village was shrouded in a thick blanket of fog and everything appeared to be quite dark and dingy.

The atmosphere in his house was unusual too. To his utter shock, neither his father yelled at him, nor his mother criticized him. A grim silence prevailed in the entire house. Even the ticking of the clock could be heard distinctly. That night, no one uttered even a single word and after having their last supper as a family everyone retired to the bed.

The howling of dogs and the cries of bats indicated that something grave was about to happen. Soon there was an untimely storm. The strong gush of winds kept whistling the entire night as if they were carrying a message with them. Doors and windows were shattering and things were falling down and breaking into bits and pieces.

It was something that Kuldeep could not decipher. He was lying down on his bed happily unconcerned about what was going to happen in the future.

It was his last comfortable sleep in the premises of his house under the life-threatening umbrella of protection of his father and scalding warmth of the love of his mother.

Soon everything in his life was going to change forever and ever.




CHAPTER 11


THE SURPRISE BIRTHDAY PARTY

On the 13th of February, with no idea of what the day had stored in for him, Kuldeep dressed up in his best clothes. He was smiling to his ears and had made all the arrangements for the surprise birthday party of his love. He wanted to make it the best birthday for his love, something that both of them were going to relish for years to come.

 He told his parents that he will be going out for dinner that night and will come home quite late. On the way, he stopped at a gift shop and purchased all the necessary items. He booked a hall in The Heaven Inn and decorated it beautifully with red-colored décor items. He even ordered a red velvet cake from a very expensive bakery. 

Though it was a private party, still there was one guest who was invited and he was Kuldeep’s best friend and his match-maker, Prabhu Sharma. If there was anyone in this world who could understand the love of Kuleep it was only Prabhu.

Narad Singh was keeping a check on each and every step of Kuldeep like a hawk. He was keeping a note of each and every single movement of theirs. He came inside the Inn as an imposter. He went to the hall and saw a board on which it was written in English and Haryanvi, “Happy Birthday Dear. You are the one who changed my life. You are my food as well as water!”

It was quite evident that the birthday party that Kuldeep had arranged was for the one with whom he was in love with.

He immediately informed Shambhu Singh about this and Shambhu Singh arrived at the spot with his men equipped with rods, swords, and guns within moments.



CHAPTER 12

WHEN ADAM MET HIS STEVE

Shambhu Singh along with his men was all prepared to catch the lovebirds that evening. 

In the twilight, Kuldeep brought his love blindfolded to the entrance of the hall. His friend Prabhu had gone out to fetch the gift that Kuldeep had bought for his love.

Whatever was happening was quite natural and within the ideas of morality. It was not something wrong. But for Shambhu Singh it was a major blow. He was left dumbfounded by what he saw and for a few minutes, he could not utter even a single word. His face was red with anger as well as with shame.

Kuldeep’s love was around six feet tall and was wearing spectacles. He had a beard on his face and was clad in jeans and a jacket. He was fair and was completely normal. The name of Kuldeep’s boyfriend was Ujwal. After reading the board, there were tears in his eyes and soon he affectionately hugged his lover Kuldeep. 

Both of them had met three years ago while Kuldeep was still studying. They were introduced to each other by Prabhu and they instantly fell in love. They knew that due to the rigidity in the laws of their country they will not be able to marry or get physical, but for them, their love was above sexual pleasure. They just wanted to stay together with each other and die in each other’s arms. They were very well aware of the fact that society was going to look down to them and their families were never going to accept it. Their love could be the reason for their death. 

Fearful of the consequences they had decided to go to Italy, where same-sex activities were allowed since 1887.1 It would separate them for their families, but they were sure that in this way both they and their families will be able to live a happy life.

But Shambhu Singh was not going to let this happen. The union of Kuldeep and Ujwal would result in crashing down of his world. He was no longer worried about the dowry money. He swore to kill Kuldeep as homosexuality for him was a sin and an insult of almighty. It was a mental disease and the result of a curse. He was sure that by eradicating those two rotten apples God will shower him with his choicest blessings and his stature in the village would also be elated. He forgot that Kuldeep was his son and in the effect of anger combined with frustration, shame, and ego, he did what no father in the world would ever do. 



CHAPTER 13


AND THE PUNISHMENT BEGINS


In a fit of anger, he went to the hall and threw both Kuldeep and Ujwal on the ground by pushing them with utmost force from the back. Both of them landed on the ground heavily with a loud noise. The boys were left flabbergasted and were not able to understand what happened to them. 

When they turned back Shambhu Singh was standing there red in anger. He picked up Kuldeep by grabbing him from his neck and started slapping him repeatedly. He didn’t listen to any of his pleadings and kept on beating him mercilessly. All through this Ujjwal was grabbed by Sambhu’s men. He was crying and begging Shambhu to spare Kuldeep but all his pleadings fell on the deaf ears. After that, he approached Ujwal and started hitting him on his head with his slipper. His men also gave blows to him on his face.

When Kuldeep tried to intervene, he was hit on his head with a rod and he started bleeding and soon became unconscious. Ujwal was too bleeding badly. During this fight, Ujwal hit his head on the table and fell on the ground in the state of unconsciousness.

Before leaving Shambhu Singh destroyed the entire decoration of the house and crushed the cake with his feet. 

Shambhu Singh ordered his men to call the Panchayat the following day. Both the boys were tied with ropes, thrown in the jeep and were driven away on the last journey of their life.

When Prabhu returned back, he was frightened to see the place in a state of destruction. The cake was lying crushed on the floor. Décor was torn down and on the floor, there were a few drops of blood. Red is the color of love and passion, but amidst those red things, Prabhu was left in a state of remorse and repentance for leaving his dearest friends alone. Overcame with emotions, he shrieked loudly and prayed for the well- being of his friends.



CHAPTER 14


THE HUMILIATION


14TH February is celebrated all over the world as the day of love. But in Shiv Ghat, this day was going to take an ugly turn and was going to be remembered for decades to come as the day when two innocent lovers fell prey to the stones of ignorance, narrow idea of religion and fake honor.

When both the boys regained consciousness, they were lying in the village temple. Their hands and feet were tied up with ropes and blood were still dripping out of their wounds. Their hair was unkempt and clothes were in tatters. They were terrified as in the hearts of their hearts they were aware of what was going to happen to them.

Soon Sarpanch along with the other members of Panchayat arrived at the temple. Everyone bowed down in respect.

Shambhu Singh and Katyani Devi were also standing there and the expressions of disgust were quite evident on their faces.

The death was knocking on the doors of those two innocent lovers. They were proceeding towards facing the trial of their life. It was a trial that was going to change everything forever and ever. It was a trial that was going to be remembered for generations to come and was the one which was going to provide a whole new definition to the concept of humanity.

Soon the brutal trial commenced.

The boys were more dead than alive and in that crowd of 500 people there was not even a single person who had sympathy towards them and they were hurling choicest of the abuses on them.

Shambhu Singh came forward and started saying,

“My own son is a rascal and a blot on mankind. Today, I have lost everything; my respect, my honor, my prestige only because of this worshipper of lust and I will do anything for protecting the prestige of this village as well as of my ancestors and family. I will not even hesitate from beheading both of them with my own hands. Their blood will wash away these blots on my honor and their severed heads will be my gift to Rudra as I would have murdered those who were going against his set norms. Please, Sarpanch Sa let me do this. This is the only way I will be forgiven by God. Please Do Justice.”

To this Sarpanch responded by saying, “The act of the guys is even worse than that of animals. This is a horrendous act and does not deserve to be pardoned. People like these are a disease. If we leave these boys today then apocalypse will come. All of us would become victims of His rage. The future generation will be berated and all of us will go to hell. Mark my words boys! You guys will be punished in the gravest manner possible so that no one can think of indulging in such acts in future.”

After this, he proceeded towards Kuldeep and inquired from him in a way of mockery,

“ Chore! Have you run out of girls that now you want to have sex with boys. If you were so interested in having sex with guys then you should have told Shambhu and Katyani, they would have made you undergo castration. Then you would have lived with Hijras on the outskirts of the town and would have earned money by dancing. If still, you would have run out of cash, then you would have opened up a brothel. You wasted the money and the love showered on you by your parents. Your father always used to say that his boy will one day make him proud and look at what you have done to him. Today he is standing ashamed with his head lowered. An able-bodied young man like you is a blot on the name of the entire village.”

“And you...Ujwal have you forgot who you guys are? You spoilt a boy from our village. Ew! Couldn’t you find anything else to do? Shame on you! But don’t worry because the hell is waiting for you now.”

As was customary Kuldeep who was the accused was given an opportunity to speak. Even when his words were not going to change anything but still he spoke,

 “Sarpanch Sa... Ram! Ram! All of you have today gathered here to take a decision on our fate. But what is our crime? What will be the justification of punishment that you are going to give us? 

We are lovers and in all the religious books love has been equated with the worshipping of God.”


Sarpanch interfered and shouted at the top of his voice and said, “Are you comparing your lust with love….How many more sins will you commit in this life?? Have some fear of God.”

Even though Ujwal could visualize his death, but still he uttered a few words from Mahabharata. He said, “In Mahabharata, Lord Krishna has said, “What ineffable joy does one find through Love of me, the blissful Atman. Once that joy is realized, all earthly pleasures fade into nothingness.”2 

He continued further, “In this Shloka Lord Krishna has said that if one wants to attain inner peace, then the first stepping stone towards that journey is self- awareness.3 The moment we realized who we were and shared our deep-rooted emotions with each other we got that inner peace. In Mahabharata, Krishna said pure love is the one which liberates and our love is doing the same. It is allowing us to liberate ourselves from these shackles of morality and fake honor. It is helping us to get the true bliss out of our life. You might call us dogs, but even we adore Krishna from the bottom of our hearts. We do believe that these bondages of ego, fake pride, wealth and money are only going to bring hatred and displeasure in this world. Please let us live our life the way we want to live it. Please! I beg.”

After listening to all of this the Sarpanch got up on his feet and erupted in laughter along with the other members of the Panchayat. 

He said, “Wow…Now the interpretation of Mahabharata's Shlokas will be given by people like you. You are pathetic human beings who are engaged in an immoral and unnatural are using epics to justify them. Shame on you! ” After this, he approached Ujwal and gave him a blow on his face. After he fell down on the ground, he spits on him and said, “This is what you deserve.”



CHAPTER 15


THE UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS OF A TRUE FRIEND


While all of this was happening, Prabhu was standing behind the trees and observing each and everything. It was heart-ranching for him to see his friends going through all this.

He immediately approached the police station to seek legal protection. He was sure that the policemen would do something to protect his friends from what was going to happen.

He came rushing into the police station. His breath was heavy and fear was visible on his face. He asked the Additional Sub- Inspector for help but to his utter shock, he refused to help him.

The ASI said that,

“Whatever your friends are doing is illegal. The Indian Penal Code, 1860 does not permit it.” He added that “Section 377 of IPC clearly mentions that whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal shall be punished with imprisonment for life which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable for fine.”

He continued, “Sarpanch Sa, is a wise and knowledgeable human being. Whatever decision he will take, it will be for the welfare of the entire village. And by the way, why will we go and save those bustards? We don’t want to become victims of the wrath of God.”

“Moreover, what will you do with such friends? Let them die. They are carrying a communicable disease. You will get infected too. Now go and don’t waste our time.”

Prabhu pleaded before him with folded hands and begged for his help. He even tried to remind him of his duties, but nothing could pursue that high-headed ASI. Rather than helping him, the ASI threw him out of the police station and warned to arrest him.



CHAPTER 16


HUMANITY PUT TO SHAME


While Prabhu was pleading before the ASI to help the village Panchayat had reached its decision. Both the boys were going to be beheaded in the village temple. But before that for purifying the village certain tortures were to be given to them.

Kuldeep looked at his mother and shrieked in a cry full of emotions and said, “Ma…Ma…Listen to me… I am your Kuldeep, Just listen to me, at least once.”

But she only turned back and said what any mother will never say to her child. She said,

“You are a blot on my motherhood and a curse of God. It would have been better if I were childless.”

Both Kuldeep and Ujwal felt helpless in that situation. They used every weapon in their kitty to justify their love ranging from ancient scriptures to The Indian Constitution but nothing turned out to be fruitful. 

They even said that they will leave the village and go forever to Italy. But they were shushed down by saying that such an act would bring disgrace to their village at a global level. 

At last, the village Panchayat chanted, “Har! Har! Mahadev! And the punishment of the boys began.

Their clothes were removed and they were beaten by the entire village. They were hit with stones, pebbles and with slippers. Black ink was applied to their faces and they were paraded in the entire village naked. The entire village was of the opinion that homosexuality is a mental disease. They were of the opinion that the guys have possessed with some witches who will soon make all the boys and girls of the village like Kuldeep and Ujwal.

Thus they were brought to the village temple where a priest performed a yajna while the boys were being repeatedly hit with whips. Boiling water was poured over them and injuries were inflicted on their private portions too. Their bones were broken and salt was rubbed on their wounds in the name of purifying ceremony.

After this horrible treatment, both the boys were thrown naked in a cage. It was declared that at the time of sunset both the boys will be beheaded. They were not even given any food or water.

While all this was happening Prabhu was standing there as a mute spectator: hapless and terrified. In the hearts of his hearts, he was blaming himself for such a situation of his friends.

The sun was about to set. Both the guys were crying and pleading for mercy, but they were soon going to be killed.

The boys somehow managed to hug for the last time. 

They were tied to two separate poles, which were in front of each other. First of all, the Panchayat members hurled stones at them and soon Shambu Singh – a father who was lost in his fake pride and ego beheaded them with a single blow of the sword. The so-called parents and law enforcers were drenched in the blood of both the boys. Their heads were offered in a yajna to the Rudra as a pleading for mercy for the irreligious and unnatural thing that happened. Their bodies were not cremated but were later fed by the stray dogs.

While the entire village was celebrating the death of the boys it was the mother earth celebrated their eternal meeting. 

The sun was setting on that beautiful evening which signified the purity of their love. The sky was filled up with a plethora of colors to celebrate the meeting of two souls in heaven. The birds were chirping like the orchestra in the church. The cool breeze was rejuvenating just like their love.

On the shore of the river, there lied two headless corpses with their fingers touching each other. White flowers from the treetops covered their bodies in a beautiful shroud and the ground was red with their blood which had now mixed up into each other.

The villagers of Shiv-Ghat could separate two bodies but they could not separate their souls.

Both Kuldeep and Ujwal died; but before dying, they set an example for the future generations. They showed the world the real meaning of love.



CHAPTER 17


A SILVER LINING AFTER 27 YEARS


Prabhu could not save his friends, but the incident made him much braver than he was before. He was now determined to prevent any other homosexual couple from falling prey to such beastly acts.

He was now an ardent supporter of homosexuality. He was a journalist and ran an NGO for the upliftment and for providing equal rights to the homosexuals. He now helped a number of youngsters to face the dogma of homosexuality with their heads help up high.

On the historic day of 6th September 2018 when the judgment of Navtej Singh Johar V Union of India came out which legalized the homosexuality all over the nation, Prabhu while addressing a group of journalists said,

“27 years ago, I lost my two very close friends due to homosexuality. They were brutally murdered in the name of religion and mortality, but little did those people realized that even in the ancient times homosexuality existed. In almost all the ancient civilizations ranging from Roman to Greek and from Chinese to Indian homosexuality has been mentioned. It has been glorified on the walls of ancient temples and caves. Those people failed to realize that the concept of morality is dynamic and keeps on changing with time. Their shrewd mentality and orthodox thinking overshadowed the righteousness in their views. For those murderers, the only thing that mattered was their fake honor. Their ideas of humanity were long lost.”

The journalists inquired him to name his friends and the villagers who murdered them, he said,

“Even though their parents murdered them, yet they loved their parents from the core of their heart. I don’t want to name my friends or their parents because I know that wherever my friends are today they will be happy and in a state of ecstasy. They never wanted their parents to become an object of ridicule. Today the justice has been rightly served. From now onwards there will no other guys who will go through the same.”

Later on, he added that’

“This judgment is a stepping stone towards paving a better future, but still the dogma has not been removed. Even when we are celebrating the victory of love today, but still in some corner of India, there is an innocent being that would have been going through the brutality of corrective rape. He would have been hiding in a closet waiting for the right time to come out.”

“This judgment is not sufficient. We have to still win a number of battles before the good sense prevails over the society. Even the homosexuals should be allowed to get married, adopt children and live a happy and fulfilling life just like any other ordinary citizen of India. We have just taken over a fortress in this battle, but the battle still continues.”

 When he looked up once again the sky was filled up with a plethora of colors, but this time these colors marked the beginning of a new era- AN ERA WHICH WILL BE AS BEAUTIFUL AS A RAINBOW.

His eyes got moist with tears; he looked up at the sky and said, “Long live your love Kuldeep and Ujwal. You were not able to be together in this life, but I hope that you are together in heaven. Your love was true and pure as the holy Ganges. But in the eyes of people of Shiv-Ghat, you were a criminal. Your only crime was that you dared to love.”


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