Seven Summer Nights - Ashok aatreya (rm book recommendations TXT) 📗

the same girl in near future with whom he was ‘romancing and flirting’…and now the interesting feature of the family was going to be the entry of a foreign bride in this poor rural set-up…

Well, frankly speaking in all these years the foreigners have even married Riksha Pullers and persons belonging to even more lower status in comparison when we look into Sameers latest affairs, it seemed little convincing…at least he is an educated and ambitious man and had achieved national heights as a performing dancer even at this stage of his schooling …Besides this, his being the recipient of a national scholarship in the field of Kathak dance is no less a credit to his upcoming bright future…still tying nuptial knots with a foreigner whom he never known before was an adventure of his life…and that too and truly never expected of his type-cast, his land of the living…As a matter of fact he was absolutely a green horn who did not see much beyond his limited village life.


It was a melodrama….The journey to home of the newly-wedded couple was tedious. Although their arrival not sudden, as just after marriage in Arya-Samaj, Sameer, informed his home that he was suddenly married with a foreigner in Arya Samaj,, he is coming to take blessings of his father, mother and all elderly persons …He added to this news falsely, as he knew nothing about her background, that she was a very rich lady .He knew that the money played important role in village life. It adds feather to an ordinary man…and otherwise also he thought within himself that his ‘daliddar’(rainy days ) is over now. He brought an ‘apsara’(angel ) from heaven. He was excited in his new adventure.

The marriage ceremony in Arya-Samaj took only one hour and it ended before 12.30 A.M…After wedding was over he first and foremost thought his duty to inform his father about this. His father did not come to attend the P.C.O phone and the message was delivered to his younger sister who had come from school at that time of call and through her only his marriage story spread everywhere like a jungle fire.

It was a grand welcome of Julia in Sameer’s poor home…There was beating of dholaki a local percussion instrument and playing of shehnaee(pipe), singing of auspicious songs generally sung by the ladies of the house during the time of ‘grahpravesh’ (stepping in time of the bride.)
The younger sister of Sameer put a mark of roli- kumkum on the forehead of her foreign bhabhi and did aarati with lamps…and then after spraying water drops with beetle leaf , putting aside a pot full of rice by her right foot as was instructed by the mother of Sameer, she was considered fit to take entry in the house.
this all being formality and a part of the ritual performed at the time of first entry of the bride in the bridegroom’s home….Step by step everything was so much fascinating for Julia that she forgotten the reality of the social status of the family…for a moment she became conscious of his family background but thinking about her real motto and hidden agenda, she avoided all this and decided not to think on this issue in future…she thought, let the things settle first. As she had the indomitable nature, during past three days, Sameer’s poor background never came in her mind .On contrary one thing was definitely encircling her mind that Sameer , in their introductory phase, projected a false image of his status by lying that he came from some higher family…that he had the old house belonging to their family which is still was a tourist attraction…That statement of Sameer was creating disturbance in her mind and she was mentally perturbed that she might be cheated by him …but then she was also to be prepared for all that ‘ happening’ Everything was fair and important from her research angle

The house was made up of mud and unbaked bricks and irregularly placed stone walls.She then entered in a temporarily decorated bride-room with Sameer, and was offered Coca-Cola, She thought of asking Sameer about the status of his family…but then immediately a group of young and old ladies and children came in the room and surrounded her and wanted to ask her name…She very politely told them that her name was Julia…By listening her words they all were pleased but when one seemingly educated young girl asked her in English--‘Do you like my brother?...she smiled in response and told her – ‘I love him.’ With these three words Julia felt relieved and realized that what all was going in her mind about Sameer was not justified at this stage … she herself thought about her position and rationalized the situation .Her eyes still starring at the grass holes ,coming of dry leaves, thatch, unplanned and un-structured wood and bamboo lifting the roof ,broken tiles..(kelu) over her head . In the same room earthen containers dhoomala for keeping clothes was also lying….She thought… he must have lied before her about his family status as he might never thought that in these three days time their love story will terminate into nuptial knot…and then she again thought about her real mission of visiting India…looking all that she side-lined her feeling that Sameer ‘deceived’ her by telling a false-story of his family history and she was in peace.
As a matter of fact she had to go miles before ending her research project with his ‘temporary’ husband .The first night with his Indian husband was an experience in itself.


On contrast she thought of her earlier marriage ceremony which was very lavish. Her bride-dress cost her father, hundreds of dollars…’they’ had cans attached to the going away car, an old custom of just married pair in her town…but in this case Julia came to her husband’s home by Roadways bus…and the journey too was very tiring…more-over
Sameer was in haste as ‘their actual ‘wedding game’ was already delayed due to different gimmicks, rituals, singing, face-showing of Julia, the entrance formalities in the bride-room, she was waiting for him alone on the decorated rose bed …it was a hot summer night and the special arrangements for fans and cooler for her was made from the town tent house.

As a novice and an unexposed young man, he had no idea of fore-play in the sexual game…rather he behaved like a kid in this matter .Although in Pushkar they developed sexual relations but that too was only one night stand. She allowed him to undress her specially designed ‘ghaghara loogari’(bride-attire)not telling ‘no’ ,even for once .She observed and enjoyed the entire game from her research angle…rather thinking about the concluding part of her thesis and a ‘blogger’ she would write next week about this romantic journey. she took this all as a rustic sporting event…kidding his boy friend turned husband in her own way in the new adventure of sex…They both were left alone in a shabby small room just attached to ‘cow-dung area in the backyard space. Sameer’s younger sister Sonoo left a glass of milk for her brother. Julia also overheard silently spoken ‘best of luck’ from her young and innocent school going ‘Devrani (husband’s sister) for her brother…answered by Sameer.’chal bhaag’(go away ) bhabhi ko jyada pareshan mat kar ( don’t trouble the bride ).Sameer was in ‘Choodidar payajama, Shervani and colorful headgear with a rose flower in his hand entered in specially decorated ‘suit’ like a clown copy of a maharaja…she did not like all this and that made her sick for that moment, when he was drawing close some bad smell of local wine dreaded her...she was petrified by his such a strange behavior…but Julia immediately became conscious about her pertinacious role and accepted him as a true –researcher…Sameer immediately revealed that he is not drunk but his distant relation bhabhi (elder brother’s wife) had sprinkled some drops of wine on his shervani as part of a jape, rather played on such occasions…on part of her it was rather a faux pas…she also knew it from her heart that it was a part of the stint which she is supposed to manage beautifully. Julia’s mind was clear…although she felt she was foolish but it was‘pond wise penny foolishness’ Just the reverse.
One more summer night was over…with the chores of grinding of daily requirement of grain on the millstone much before the sun-rise…the other male members of the house were engaged in ploughing, women folk in every house hold became busy in cleaning the house, younger and elder for fetching water from Panghat and milking the cattle…dragging grass and preparing cakes for fuel …cooking…etc...such routine activities kept the house engaged in one way or the other…and lastly Sameers father’s came back home from his posting which was far from the home-town to receive the new Americal bride at his home…He had already consented the marriage and had expressed no objection when informed by his own son. He was an open mind teacher and old body-builder who had earned name and fame in teaching and wrestling both…Besides all this he was a staunch critic of old fashioned norms of society….

But most unfortunately the morning stored wrath of people outside the family and everything suddenly turned into a frenzy affair. In the very start up of her first day-break, she heard the uproar outside. The situation seemed tense and Julia noticed his husband Sameer almost running out of room. At that particular moment, apparently, she thought she might face trouble and may be forced to relinquish her marriage with Sameer…The high-tide of voices made her disturbed. She wasn’t the only one with weighty thoughts on her mind but the entire house seemed collapsed. In clear view of the cul-de-sac now, she saw Sameer sunk in worries from tip to toe and moving thoughtlessly here and there without telling her anything about this sudden fall of the sky on their head. The world outside this small house seemed clumsy and neurotic. …she chuckled over her own decisions, but now she was not free to choose what she liked and how to behave as things surrounding her had suddenly gone from bad to worse. She was helpless to decide her future course of action…the odd -timid time disillusioned her totally. One drunkard monster-like muscleman knocked the door of their room before the dawn, challenging their marriage, claiming tall that Sameer was already married with a village girl living in the nearest town and henceforth the marriage with this ‘firangi’ was illegal. Even trying to enter the room forcefully the old stout man even looked at her with an evil leer. He brought with him a group of goons, some local journalists and two police constables for further investigation and news coverage. The matter seemed very serious…someone standing at a distance was ready to snatch her away immediately and wanted to take both Sameer and Julia to police station. He was commenting on their marriage in the very filthy language and asked Sameer, from which street he had brought this billy ka goo…chhajala..leir phainkiya eene varna thanaa mei jayer sadeigo ( Throw her away from pooper scooper otherwise you will be behind the bars).Some other outsiders were questioning for her valid passport etc.

The entire episode looked bit confusing and alarming and Julia noticed features of worries on the face of Sameer . The mob was threatening to call ‘Panchayat’on their marriage outside the community. The most dangerous story she gathered from the fragments of furious voices was gruesome possibility of even burning of ‘them’as an outcome of ‘honor- killing’ in their case too. It had already happened in so many cases within the boundaries of this village earlier. The so called ‘Panchayat’ never bothered,