SAMUDI/8
Harshad felt initially that whatever he had dreamt in the early boyhood of a bride is no one else but Nayna. Sometime elders used to talk lightly about Harshad’s marriage, once Samudi asked in the presence of those elders: ‘Tomone Harshadbhaee, chevi sodee gam aa’. (i.e. What sort of girl do you like Harshad bhai.?) On hearing such a question Harshad went to some other room and all the elders had a roaring laughter in the house. Harshad would lie down in a coast and read some book. He would read something and would get lost in his fanciful world. He would keep open book on his chest. Dreamy eyes would be slightly shut, and Harshad was often lost in reveries. The whole jungle seemed to be gilded due to the moonlight of the Posh month. (i.e. Posh - the third month of the Vikram year) Harshad and Nayna loiter in the jungle with hand in hand inhaling with all those ten senses. Suddenly they could hear the noise of those dry leaves being trampled. Soon after they could see cows, deer and rabbits jumping and trampling in the moonlight through wild growth of bushes and trees. The whole jungle seemed to be splitting away due to that cow’s bellowing. One could notice glittering skin of the tiger from the same direction and due to fear Nayna entangled, embraced Harshad, it was quite a thrilling experience. Her soft and small hair flurred up. She could shut up her eyes and thrust herself in the chest of Harshad very much like an ostrich. Part of her sari slipped off. Her protrodue breasts began to have throbbing. She wanted to scream but somehow she couldn’t do so due to fear. She felt as if something had choked up in her throat shivering body seemed to be pale cotton bendage. Harshad said, while keeping his fingers upside down in the moonlights loose hair of Nayna, ‘Oh! you are too frightened! We have come out in the midnight to move around the jungle. Harshad’s breathing would be too fast, and that upturned book also used to be up and down, he would read few pages, once again he would keep book open on his breast and get lost in his dreamland. He often thought of honeymoon ought to have fourteen years living in the jungle, nothing more or less than that. Harshad loved to loiter in the jungle even as a boy. If Samudi had sometime she would run to meet him in the jungle at a fixed place. Samudi might be the daughter of the jungle in the Golden Era! God knows! Harshad had grown up by now, whenever he was restless, he used to wander in the jungle. Thereby, it was just to retain normalcy. In addition to this, he would be in the very company of a dream girl. There used to be good deal of discourses at the back of his mind! But soon after his betrothal he began to think that the way he had invented a bride in the making was really Nayna – who could carefully nourish his lofty sentiments, would never hurt anyone slightly, she would be always alert, highly sensitive, transient as clean stream, innocent, unthinkable transparency….so smooth that even with a feather there will not be a scratch, butter delicacy, would never hurt bird as well as animal, that dream girl is Nayna, yes only but Nayna. Once Harshad took Nayna to garden and said: ‘Nainoo, let us sit in grass.’ ‘No, Harsh, this fresh sprouted grass will be trampled.’ Harshad felt at that time that Nayna cares a lot even of newly sprouted grass. If so, how she would be taking care of him! Harshad used to be quiet introvert from the beginning. His communication with the people was rather difficult. His natural discourse was with each one of trees of the jungle, every blade of grass, every stream and each drop of rain. Harshad did not like to go among the crowds. Shanta Aunty had to go in search of him whenever he felt offended, he would go upto the pond of the outskirts. Harshad would be seen under the babul tree. As soon as Shanta Aunty used to see him, she would call him loudly. But thin and lean not make any movement at all. Seven year old Harshad hardly make any movement at all. Shanta Aunty would go very close to him and find him in sound sleep. She would notice his dry tears in the dull shade of that babul tree. However, his dark eyelids used to glitter in the sunlight. Harshad would never cry in anyone’s presence, whatsoever might have happened to him. He would go to the upper storey hiding his face and cry behind the wooden stand of beds. By chance, Samudi would notice and keep her hand on Harshad’s shoulder. Sometimes Harshad used to cry all alone in the shade of a babul tree and be at ease. Probably he had some tie up with the quietness of the outskirts and his mental makeup having cried a lot, he would be in deep sleep there and then. Sunlight through those thorns of a babul tree would wipe off his tears from the eyelids! Sometimes Harshad might be in deep sleep, a bird on a babul tree would have droppings and fly away.