The Night By The Lake

Rajdeep was restless the whole afternoon. The next day he had to report at the Armed Forces Camp where the selection process for recruitment to the Army was to take place. He had been regularly going to the gym and kept himself fit. Recently there was a 5 km walkathon in their town, and he was among the first to complete it. He had also been persuading Atharva, his classmate to join him but he was not at all interested and did not even register his name.

Atharva had lost his mother when he was just three years old. His father could not look after him as his job required him to travel quite frequently. He, therefore, decided to remarry. All was well for some time till his mother-in-law came to stay with them. Atharva’s life became miserable. He had to do all odd jobs at home and could expect only one meal every day. When his father was around, it was a different story altogether.

Since his time would be spent in doing household work, his school studies were always in arrears. Rajdeep tried to help him with it, but he had lost all interest in studies. He was constantly thinking of ways of making quick money and was keen on leaving home for the city as he wished to act in films. He was confident of his talent which included singing, and he was sure that he would become a star very soon. Rajdeep tried to din some sense into him, but he was adamant.

Rajdeep had a soft corner for Atharva but could not change his ways and thinking. Due to the problems at home, Atharva had developed a strong dislike towards his father. Whenever his father did come home, he spent most of the time with his stepmother and Atharva felt totally neglected. He felt that his father had no interest in him at all, which to a large extent was true. Nobody attended the Parents-Teacher Meet in school nor did anyone bother to know whether he attended school or whether his performance was satisfactory. In due course, a stepsister was born, and this infuriated Atharva all the more.

At first, Atharva started to steal small things from home unobtrusively. Later, he mustered courage and felt no qualms about doing so quite frequently. As the small baby was engaging everyone’s attention, the missing items were not noticed. Whenever his father came home, he would leave a sizeable amount of money in the steel cupboard. As it was not locked, Atharva would take whatever he wanted from the stash. Initially he spent a lot of money making his portfolio to show prospective film producers and directors. He would make weekly trips to the city to present these photographs, but he did not meet with any kind of success. His futile visits did not go unnoticed. There were some by standers who were watching him closely and planned to take advantage of his gullible nature. The next time when he came to the city, two of them planned to entice him by putting on an act and make him believe that they were in fact, very close to a famous director and that they would arrange a meaty role for Atharva in their next film.

Atharva easily fell a victim during his next visit. He tried to woo them by taking them out to a posh restaurant and treating them to the choicest liquor and food. They succeeded in winning his confidence and soon Atharva was on cloud nine, imagining himself to be a star already. Within a month, he had made quite a dent in the pile of money his father had kept at home and this had not escaped his stepmother’s attention.

It was at this time that the recruitment for army was to take place. Rajdeep tried to convince Atharva several times to join the army and turn over a new leaf, but it was all in vain. Somehow, he managed to draw him out of his house to spend some time by the lake. He had hoped that the ambience would be able to influence him in a positive way. He knew that Atharva was being taken for a ride and that he had wasted a lot of money in his pursuit of a role in films. 

Atharva went along with Rajdeep but would not listen to a word of what Rajdeep had to say. His frustration in not making any headway in films, his guilt in being caught stealing money, his bad performance in school and his lately acquired habit of taking drugs refused to let him see reason. Rajdeep then fell silent. He wished Atharva to ponder over what he had said and hoped that he would change for the better. They were both silent, till it started getting dark. Rajdeep then said that it was time for them to leave, more so as he had to attend the selection process the next day.

Atharva was not at all inclined to leave the place. Rajdeep was shocked to realize that in a flash, Atharva had popped something in his mouth and within a few moments he was in a world of his own. Try as much as he could, Rajdeep was unable to make him move from the place. He kept blabbering something, laughing to himself and behaving very differently. Rajdeep did not give up and even tried to drag him towards home, but Atharva resisted so strongly, he had to let him go. “You go – you go! Captain Sahib! Leave me alone”, were the words he repeatedly kept saying. Realizing that there was no use hanging around, Rajdeep left him and went home. 

The next morning, he appeared before the selection board, and as was expected, got selected. In fact, he had topped the list and the Major who conducted the selection process personally congratulated him and asked him to report for training at the Headquarters the next morning itself. That meant that he had to take the evening’s train. After the results were declared, they had to stay back for lunch and for getting introduced to each other. It was three o’clock by the time Rajdeep reached home.

He wished to convey the happy news to his parents, but his father was not at home. His mother could guess that he had been selected and as she hugged him, she said, “Beta, I have bad news for you. Atharva did not return home last night. This morning they recovered his body from the lake. Your father has gone to the cremation site.”

Rajdeep was shocked and inconsolable. If only he had stayed with him the previous night, this could have been averted, he felt. He felt so guilty that he could not forgive himself for it. He wanted to meet Atharva’s father and express his regret, but there was no time for it as he had to pack up his suitcase and leave for the station if he had to catch the evening train.

His father had not returned till he left home. With a heavy heart, he made his way to the station, bought his ticket and got into the train. The whole journey was spent in thinking about the times he had spent with Atharva. No other thought entered his head. The next morning, he reported in good time for training and was allotted accommodation in the barracks.

It was a totally new experience, and it was also hard work, rigorous discipline and routine, that he had no time to think about anything or anybody. The kind of training, both physical and mental they had to undergo was much more than what he had anticipated. He did not regret having taken the decision but was exhausted.

Time and tide wait for no man, they say. Six months flew very quickly, and it was time for a short break. It was just a weekend but that was most needed. Rajdeep had shed some more kilos, sweating it out day in and day out and was very trim and handsome. He looked forward to going home, but more than anything, he longed to meet Atharva’s father first.

When he reached home, his parents were pleasantly surprised because he had not informed them of his coming. He had a quick wash and told his mother that he would meet Atharva’s father and then have lunch. When he went to Atharva’s house, he came to know that his father was away and that he would return only the next morning. Atharva’s stepmother did not even wait for him to say anything, but started condemning Atharva’s behavior, his bad habits, the bad company he kept and also his having stealthily stolen money. At that time, the baby cried and she went inside and Rajdeep came home.

He now had the time to speak to his parents and tell them how he was with Atharva the night before he drowned. All three of them mourned his death and felt sad that the young boy had met this kind of an end. His mother’s premature death, his father’s lack of attention, his stepmother’s harsh nature, his failure in studies as well as his inability to achieve his ambition, were all things they talked about.

Late that evening, Atharva’s father called on them. Rajdeep was pleasantly surprised that he could meet him that day itself. He prostrated before him and begged forgiveness for having left Atharva alone that evening. If he had not done so, probably Atharva would be among them now.

His father made Rajdeep rise, hugged him and said,” I have been wanting to tell you all this time that you should not feel guilty at all. It was his fate that he was destined to die young and it was his own doing. I was to return home only tomorrow, but as my work got over soon, I was home by lunch time. After lunch, as I was cleaning up his cupboard, I came across this note” and held it out for Rajdeep to read.

“Dear Papa, by the time this reaches your hands, I would have left this world. I am extremely sorry for letting you down. Even as a child, I did not have anyone to turn to. You were away most of the time and when you did come home, could not find time for me. That is not any excuse for me to have behaved badly, but there was no one to show me the right way. The household chores I had to do and being starved most of the time are things which you may not have been aware of. I lost interest in studies and was keen on making a career on the big screen. Lured by men who were out to cheat simpletons like me, I squandered money in the hope to get good roles. That was not to be. I also fell into bad company, as it was easy to be led into temptation. Rajdeep tried his best to put me on the right track, but I did not pay any heed to him, though I repent it. I beg your pardon for stealing money, but I had no other way before me as I was steeped in debt due to my falling a prey to drugs. The lake by our house has been drawing me close to it. I propose to end my life there. Kindly forgive me if you can. Tell Rajdeep that I admire him for all the efforts he had put in for me. I hold him in highest regard and hope that in some future birth I will be his brother and prove worthy of him”.

Tears rolled down Rajdeep’s cheeks as he finished reading the note. Atharva’s father said that at first, he was angry with Rajdeep for letting Atharva be on his own, knowing fully well that he was high on drugs. As a matter of fact, he had even thought of reporting the matter to the police but refrained from doing so as his entire career would have been a question mark. No good would also come out of it.

Rajdeep sat down and wept, but now his mind was clear. He could erase the guilt from his chest as Atharva had made it clear that he was not to be blamed. That evening, Atharva’s father, Rajdeep and his parents went to the lake, spent a long time in silence there and prayed that Atharva’s soul would find peace wherever it would be.