Page 119 - DENG105_ELECTIVE_ENGLISH_II

Elective English–II

Notes Madhav was afraid that if he went inside the hut, Ghisu would finish off most of the potatoes.
So he said, T am scared of going in there.’
‘What are you afraid of? I’ll be right here.’

‘Why don’t you go inside and see her?’
‘When my wife died, I didn’t move from her side for three days. And, just think, she would
be ashamed if I saw her lying like that, wouldn’t she? I have never even seen her face behind
the veil, so how can I now see her uncovered body? She would be in no condition to cover
her modesty. If she were to see me she won’t be able to thrash about freely.’
‘I have been thinking—what will happen if there is a baby?
‘There is no ginger, sugar or oil that one needs for such occasions.’
‘Everything will be taken care of. May the good Lord give us a baby. The same people who
now refuse to give us even one paisa, will call us tomorrow to give us rupees. I had nine sons
and there was never anything in the house; but each time God saw us through somehow or
the other’.
In a society where the lot of those who toiled day and night was little better than Ghisu’s and
where those who knew how to exploit the peasants were much richer, it is no wonder that
Ghisu had such an outlook. One could say that Ghisu was much more intelligent than the
peasants, and instead of joining the hordes of mindless toilers, he had gone over to the disreputable
band of idle gossips, though he didn’t have the will to follow the rules and regulations of
diehard gossips. Therefore, while others of this motely gang were chiefs and big wigs of the
village, everyone pointed a disapproving finger at them. Anyhow, Ghisu for one, was happy
that despite his rags, at least he didn’t have to put in the back-breaking labour that the
peasants had to and that no one could possibly take undue advantage of his simplicity and
innocence.

The father and son were digging out the roasted potatoes and eating them piping hot. They hadn’t
eaten a morsel since the day before and now they didn’t have the patience to let the potatoes cool.
They burnt their tongues several times. After peeling, the outer surface didn’t seem very
hot but the moment one dug one’s teeth into it, the fiery inside would scorch the tongue,
throat and palate. It was safer to swallow that live-hot coal rather than let it stay in one’s
mouth. Once it reached the stomach, there was enough material there to cool it. And so the
two of them would swallow the hot potatoes as soon as they could, though the effort made
their eyes smart with tears.
At this moment Ghisu remembered that Thakur’s wedding, which he had attended twenty
years ago. The satiation he had experienced at that wedding feast was something to remember
all his life, and its memory was still vivid. He said, ‘I can’t ever forget that feast. I have never
eaten such a meal again—nor have I gorged myself like that ever again. The bride’s family had
served everybody with puris—everybody. Old and young, everybody ate those puris, puris
made in real ghee. Chutney, spicy yoghurt, three different kinds of greens, a curried vegetable,
curd, sweets—how can 1 describe the relish and taste of that food. And no shortage of anything—
you could ask for whatever you wanted and eat as much as you wanted. Everyone ate so
much that they couldn’t sip even a drop of water. And those who were serving us just went
on putting hot, round, savoury pasties on our plates. We would tell them that we didn’t want
any more, we would even put our hands above our plates to deter them, but they would insist
on plying us with more. And after everyone had rinsed their mouths, there was betel and cardamom
too. But I was too far gone to worry about the betel leaves; I could barely stand on my feet.
I ran towards my blanket and lay down on it. What a large-hearted man that Thakur was.’

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