WHITE SPOT

Ila was waiting for the bus for a long time.After a long wait the bus came, Ila entered the bus but did not get a seat.She wanted to get down from the crowded bus.But before she could decide to get down , the bus started.

Now she has to travel standing.She was accustomed to travel like this.But today her condition was bad, so she felt uncomfortable.

Ila got a vomiting sensation.She wanted to sit somehow as she could not stand any longer.Passengers could see Ila’s restlessness.She felt bad when they looked at her in a strange manner and wanted not to embarrass them by vomiting inside the bus.

Passengers did not know the reason for her restlessness.Somehow their eyes fell on the white spots all over her body.Her face was full of white spots which looked disgusting to the passengers.

Some people get a few white spots on some parts of the body.But Ila had white spots all over her body.She had them on her lips,nose,ears,head,neck,hands which could even be seen inside the covered portion, under her kurta ,like chest, back,thighs,legs etc.

People could guess correctly that she had white spots all over her body.They could feel for the poor girl because it would be a minus point when it comes the question of her marriage.The people could guess that she was not married .For a girl from a poor family it was difficult to get a suitable boy once she crosses the age of twenty.

Ila was not worried now about her white spots or marriage. She was worried that she should not vomit inside the bus or on somebody.For this reason she proceeded towards the rear door of the bus finding herself out of control.She requested the man sitting there ,”I am not well.Would you allow me to sit for a while?”

The man, who was compassionate, offered her his seat. Not that the man felt pity on her but in fact he wanted to avoid her body to come in contact with his own under fear not to get white spots

Ila thanked that person and sat in his place. To make herself comfortable she leaned her head at the back of the front seat.People could now see the uncovered back portion of her neck and the body which also had white spots .

Usually the white spots look odd but on Ila the white spots were so much that her brown skin of the body looked odd.It looked as though she had a lot of brown spots on her fair body.Ila was not very beautiful.

Ila could not control herself .She vomited inside the bus.The passengers who were already disgusted suddenly became more vocal and started cursing her “ “See, she has vomited inside the bus.When she is unwell ,why did she come out of the house?”

Samad has lived seeing many things in life .Service,money, marriage,children,relatives,friends,etc .But he has not derived satisfaction from anything.He got fed up with job after some time.He earned money but had no love for it.He got married and the wife wanted to show off by telling others“ My husband earns a lot and loves me very much”.He got a child due to the stubborn nature of his wife and not because of his wish. His wife’s full attention now went to the child.Now his wife goes on telling everybody” We would give the child the best education.My husband has made all arrangements.Money is no problem.”

Samad started losing patience and creating discord among relatives. He told them frankly” For your sake,I have lost myself. I want to live quiet lives away from the people.I want to live alone at a far of place for some days.”

How can a married man live alone leaving the family? Everybody started guessing that Samad was preparing himself for of a second marriage after finding the life boring.Samad’s wife was warned by her relatives that with the independent view of Samad he may leave her one day.Ultimately their marriage ended in a divorce.All her relatives severed connection with Samad.He was left alone.Samad had no ambition to live a life.He lived a life wandering here and there.

Samad felt bad when he saw the people getting annoyed with Ila, for vomiting inside the bus.He gave the bottle of water to her and said,”Please drink water, you may get some relief.”Ila found that Samad was the only person, in the whole bus, who had no aversion for her white spots or ugliness particularly when she had vomited sitting by his side.

Seeing the smile in Samad’s face Ila took the bottle from his hand and keeping the bottle over her mouth she wanted to drink water.But suddenly the driver applied the brake which jerked Ila’s hand , spilling a little water on her face and clothes.Samad gave her his handkerchief and told,” Don’t worry , please drink keeping the mouth on the bottle .

People could see that Ila got a person to sympathise with .In the meantime the conductor came to issue tickets. He got annoyed seeing the vomit,” Who has done it? Who will clear it? he asked.

Samad took the bottle from Ila’s hand and cleared the vomit.The conductor told in annoyed tone,”Why do you travel with madam when she is unwell?.Take her home and show to some doctor.”

After hearing the conductor,Ila and Samad looked at each other a little amused.The conductor had brought a strange relationship between them.

Ila was thinking ,” Has not Samad seen the white spots on my face?Does he pretend to be blind intentionally?”.

Samad indicated that Ila should get down from the bus for treatment.She complied immediately seeing her worsening condition and came down.Ila found only one person in the whole bus who had the human compassion to help her at this juncture. Extending help to one who had never asked.

Both had come down from the bus and were waiting on the street.Ila did no know what to talk with Samad. Understanding her shy nature Samad proposed,” Let us go to some doctor.”

Ila heard him carefully,”Let us go to some doctor.”She tried to find the meaning.She was getting entangled in her own doubts.But Samad stood beside her ,without any difficulty ,as if he was a member of the same family.She had not felt the sense of belongingness ever before in her life. From childhood till date she was disliked by everybody and they wanted to avoid her.But here was a strange who considered it his responsibility to take her to a doctor.

Lastly when she could not understand anything she said “Yes” to Samad’s proposal.While going to the doctor they could exchange a lot of information about their lives by opening themselves.They could know that both were the victims of the society. After getting the medicines from the clinic, both were in a predicament .They did not know what to say? Whether to say “Ok let us meet again”,” It was nice meeting you “Or something more?

Both stared at each other ,standing on the street and waited for the other person to talk.Samad knew that Ila, being shy ,will not talk.Then he told,’” Please take care of your health”and smilingly left the place. But Ila kept standing there.After moving a little distance when Samad looked back he found Ila at the same place standing. From her face it looked as if she was about to cry .From a distance Samad signaled her not to cry and kept moving towards her.Finding Samad coming towards her ,Ila could not control herself and tears of joy rolled over her eyes.

Samad wiped out her tears and said, “Are you mad?”

Ila had no answer for this.She held Samad’s hand tightly and with tears in her eyes probably wanted to say,Please don’t leave me alone on the street again.Samad looked at her with love and keeping his hand on her shoulder silently said,”Come,let us go home.”

Samad was well educated.He knew that it was difficult to cure the white spots, but it was not impossible.He consulted the best doctors to cure Ila’s white spots and consoled her that she may be cured completely of her malady one day .You will be so beautiful that people may envy you.Ila had no faith in Samad’s words.But she liked his love and sympathy.

Samad got a mission of life.He set forth with earnestness and labored hard to cure Ila of her leucoderma completely and make her beautiful.He had earned enough money working for all these years.He set aside all his earnings and his time to make Ila beautiful.

He kept Ila at a healthy place with greenery ,far from the crowded cities, where he had no houses nearby.This was to save her from the sight of such people who commented adversely on her white spots and beauty.Ila too surrendered to Samad completely.

Samad used many formulae for the cure.He gave Ila the juice of Tulsi leaves and juice of lemon to drink. He gave her tablets of Vitamin B , Folic acid,Vitamin C to swallow. He applied the fine clay, found by the side of the river, mixed with ginger juice on the white spots .He also applied mustard oil mixed with vermilion on her body.

He used homeopathic medicines along with allopathic .He kept a copper vessel filled with water overnight and asked Ila to drink on empty stomach.He gave the juice of pomegranate leaves

Ila got body massage with coconut oil thrice a day.He gave Ila the juice of neem leaves to drink which she disliked .But she could not refuse to drink ,seeing the love and affection of Samad.

Although Samad tried his best , there was no sign of white spots disappearing from the body of Ila’s.Of course, the color became faint.The desire to know how she would look after complete cure made Ila undress and stand before the mirror one day.She was disappointed to see her body in the mirror.

She found that the white spots had increased in her body instead of disappearing.She covered her body immediately and searched out her medicines which were used by her.She went through the entire report but she could get no clue. Till now she depended on Samad thinking that he would manage. She started thinking why more spots had appeared.

Ila wanted to tell Samad at night,” Let us consult some other doctor”.Just then she found a letter in between the reports after reading which she was at her wit’s end.The attending doctor of Ila wrote to Samad,” As you desired ,the white spots on Ila’s body will cover up her entire body soon”.

Reading “As you desire”gave a big jolt to Ila as if the walls of the room and ceiling came crumbling down on Ila .She again came running and stood with her bare body before the mirror .Whatever written in the letter were true.The white spots had spread even to the other areas where they were not seen earlier.

She promptly went to the internet and read about leucoderma.After reading the available literatures she got a shock.Ila found out that while Samad was trying to cure of the white spots he was feeding her such things which were prohibited for use by the people suffering from leucoderma.For example he was feeding milk immediately after feeding fish.He was feeding more sour things He used more salt .He was feeding sweets,Rabadi, milk, curd altogether.More Urad Dal used with meat and fish.He included Jaggery,oil chilies in the food.

Ila started thinking “All these items are prohibited to the patient of leucoderma”.She could not understand what she should do further ?She started blabbering , “ How could Samad do all these with me?He had assured me of a cure for white spots. But Samad and doctor jointly work to increase my white spots.Why are they doing that?”

However much Ila tried to know the reasons , she remained still in the dark.Then she tried hard to get the address of his first wife Julekha and met her after finding it.Julekha told her, “ Samad is not created for a family life.He wants freedom in doing everything.He did not believe in relation or relationship.He wanted a new girl every day.He left me only for that sake. Don’t know why is he doing all these with you.”

Julekha’s words kindled the fire inside Ila’s mind.”She could realize that she was restless but when asked she would brush aside saying “ Nothing”.Samad gave Ila all medicines as prescribed with utmost dedication.He applied the medicines himself which were meant for messaging the body.Had he wanted he could have hired the services of a nurse.

Ila felt that Samad was quite unconcerned with the increase in white spots.Instead he told smilingly,” All those white spots will vanish soon”.But Ila had found it otherwise.

Ila was convinced that Samad was trying to increase the sports so that in the pretext of the white spots he may leave me one day.His intention might have bern to marry another girl.Thinking about all these tears filled Ila’s eyes.On the other hand Samad felt that Ila was so happy with her treatment that tears of joy came into her eyes.

Ila could do nothing for her body.White spots had spread all over her body.Her white skin was shining so much that she started hating herself.One day she broke the mirror in the fits of temper so that she need not see her white skin anymore.

When asked by Samad she said,”It is good that it broke.I do not feel the need for one in this house”Samad felt that Ila was angry, so he did not ask her anything.

But one day while working in the kitchen Ila overheard Samad’s talk with the doctor. Samad talked with doctor in a happy mood.He said,”Thanks doctor Saheb!You have made my job simple.Now the spots have spread all over Ila’s body.

Ila felt that some one had dropped a burning coal into her ears.She wanted to cut her veins with the kitchen knife used for cutting vegetables.

She had so much anger in her for Samad that she felt everything burning inside her..She felt that everything in front of her had white spots.Pots in the kitchen, floor , walls roof – all had white spots.Ila closed her eyes tightly because she had aversion to see them.While going from kitchen to her room she heard Samad telling the doctor smilingly ” Just , one more week.”

Ila thought that Samad would throw her out in a week.But she had a plan of her own.She wanted to do something which would teach a lesson to Samad that “ He should not play with the feelings of a woman.”While sleeping with Samad at night she looked constantly towards the ceiling .Samad kissed her forehead and told ,” ”After one week”,”Look at yourself, “In a mirror”

”Ila told concealing her anger,”But I am sorry , you will not be seeing that day”

“Why”Samad asked with a smile, trying to kiss the face of Ila once again.But Ila took out the knife kept hidden below the bed sheet then pierced the knife at the throat of Samad with full strength, near the vocal chord.

Samad could not make out anything so he asked, “ What is all this?”Holding the knife he rolled down looking towards the ceiling.

Ila came down from the bed and shouted,If you wanted to leave me why did you spoil my body.You could have told me , I would have left to a far of place silently.” What have you thought about women?”I have already met your wife Julekha.She has briefed me everything about you.After a week you were planning to leave me to trap another girl.Samad was profusely bleeding.His breathing rate came down but he could hear Ila fully.Samad stretched his blood soaked hand towards Ila and could say only this much,” “Look at your face after a week in a mirror”.Saying this he looked at Ila once more before closed his eyes.

Ila thus saw the brutal death of Samad before her eyes.The flowing blood from his throat spread all over the bedroom. Ila buried Samad’s dead body at night at the backyard of her house.As none lived nearby that house , there was no scope for any doubt .She rubbed of the stains of blood from the floor.She could console herself by telling,”I have taught a lesson to Samad.”After safely disposing of the dead body and removing all possible evidences Ila took a deep breath of satisfaction.She had to buy ration after a few days because the outside jobs were looked after by Samad. Ila felt a sense of freedom.But while passing though the market she got embarrassed when the people stared at her.

Ila had the doubt ,” Hope these people do not know about Samad’s death.”She heard some people whistling,and commenting,” What a beautiful girl?Looks as though she is straight from London!”

Hearing them, Ila’s feet paced up faster automatically.She dumped the items quickly and stood before the mirror, which Samad had replaced in his own interest for a broken one, to see her face.Ila had looked at the mirror after a long time.But today she felt some change in her face.She saw her undressed body which had also shown some change.

Her white spots, instead of being pale white looked healthy with blood.She looked beautiful from head to foot.Then she remembered Samad’s words” After one week”,”Look at yourself”, “In a mirror”

Now she realized ,” What Samad wanted to say on that day”She went inside the room quickly and tried to search out the report from out off the heaps of medicines.From inside the report she got another letter of the doctor who was treating her.Ila opened the letter and started reading.

It was written in the letter,’Samad,Ila’s white spots have spread all over her body. Now we shall start the actual treatment.This is the first case in the medical history of the world where after the spread of white spots on the whole body the beauty of a woman would get enhanced.I feel that it would be better if we keep Ila informed.Poor woman may feel miserable to see the white spots spreading all over her body .

After reading this report Ila felt as if she was standing alone at the foot of a mountain and the whole mountain falling on her.