Kaki lifted her head; she didn’t cry or say anything. Silently she dragged herself back to her room. Rupa’s tone was so cruel that her entire mind, her senses and all her feelings were drawn towards it. When a big tree from the riverbank falls into the river, water from the vicinity rushes to fill the gap made by it!3
The feast was ready. Leaf plates were laid out, and the guests began to eat. The women sang the songs that are sung during festivals. The barber and other servants who came along with the guests also sat down to eat at some distance from the group, but as a matter of etiquette no one could get up before everyone had eaten. One or two guests who were somewhat educated were annoyed because the servants were taking too much time. They considered this restriction to be useless and irrational.
Sitting in her room, Kaki was regretting her adventure that had brought so much humiliation. She was not angry with Rupa, but cursing herself for her own impatience. She was speaking the truth—how can the members of the family eat before the guests? I could not show this much patience and had to face disgrace before everyone. Now, I won’t go as long as I’m not called.
Thinking along these lines, she began to wait for the call. But the tasteful aroma of ghee was testing her patience. Every moment began to seem like an age to her. Now the leaf plates must have been laid out! The guests must have arrived. People are washing their hands and feet, the barber is serving water. She surmised that people must have sat down to eat. The songs were still on; she lay down to take rest and began to hum a song. Now she felt that she had been singing for long. Were the guests still eating? She could not hear any sound. People must have left after the feast. No one came to call me. Rupa is angry, she might not call me. She must be thinking that I will go on my own. After all, I was not a guest that she should come to invite me. Kaki prepared herself to go out. The anticipation that she would encounter puris and spicy curry tickled her senses. She began making all kinds of plans in her mind, First, I will eat the puris with vegetable curry, then with curd and sugar. The kachoris will be yummy with raita. I will demand several helpings, never mind what people might think. They might say that I have no control over myself. Let them. I am going to eat puris after such a long time and can’t be content without having my fill. She sat on all fours and slid down to the courtyard. But fate betrayed her again. Her impatient mind had miscalculated the time, the guests were still sitting. Some had just finished eating and were licking their fingers; some looked from the corner of their eyes to see if others were still eating. Some were worrying about how to take the remaining puris with them. Some had finished the curd but were longing for a second helping for which they were hesitating to ask. At this moment, Kaki slowly crawled amidst the guests. Several men stood up, startled. They exclaimed, ‘Who is this crone? Where has she come from? Take care that she doesn’t touch you.’
Buddhiram flared up at the sight of Kaki. He was holding a plate of puris. He threw the plate to the ground and, just as a cruel moneylender pounces on an unfaithful and fugitive borrower, he held Kaki with both hands, dragged her to the dark room and flung her inside. Kaki’s imaginary scene was destroyed in a moment by the blow of a whirlwind.
The guests finished eating. The family members also ate. The musicians, the washer man and the cobbler, too, had eaten. But no one remembered Kaki. Both Buddhiram and Rupa had decided to punish her for her shamelessness. No one took mercy on her old age, her destitution and her helplessness, except Ladli who felt an ache for her grandmother.
Ladli was deeply attached to Kaki. An innocent and simple-hearted girl, she had no trace of childish play or restlessness. On both occasions when her parents had dragged Kaki away with such cruelty, Ladli’s heart cried for her. She was annoyed that her parents did not immediately give Kaki a lot of puris. Would the guests eat all of them? And would the earth fall if Kaki ate before the guests? She wanted to go to Kaki to give her solace but couldn’t for fear of her mother. She had not eaten her portion of puris at all, but had kept them hidden in the doll box. She wanted to take them to her and was growing restless. Hearing my footsteps Kaki will get
