Taare Zameen Par

As the bell rang, all the children ran towards the main gate with their bags packed. Shruti was the last to leave her class of 2B. She looked at the wall clock, it was still 10 minutes before the higher sections' classes got over. So, she went out in the open area, and sat near the basket ball court as her classmates were received by their parents and went for their homes.

She had almost lost count of the time when the second bell rang. A few minutes later, she felt a tap on her shoulders. She looked around. "Nitesh bhaiya! I was waiting for you here. When did you arrive?"

"You were busy in your thoughts. Let’s go home. Driver and dad's car would be waiting.", Nitesh replied.

"Let’s have ice-cream, please.", she insisted. He smiled, "Would have loved to, but you know, right? Dad doesn’t give me any money as he doesn’t like me."

"Ohh! Dont worry, I have 20 Rs which Dad gave me this morning."

"No, seriously! I wouldn’t like to. You can take a bigger cone.",

Few minutes later, as they stepped out of the school gates, she searched for the car and found it a few meters away.

"Hello baby! Where were you? Very late! I have to get your dad for lunch too."

"I was having ice-cream", she replied innocently.

"Baby Shruti. Your father would be waiting...", he started

"Bhaiya insisted!", she cut him and sat on the back seat of the car which the driver had opened for him.

"Hmm”, the driver smiled moved to sit on the driving seat. As her brother sat on next to her, she giggled at him as he smiled back.

"Bhaiya! What are you doing?", she asked as the clock struck 10:00 PM

"Nothing!", Nitesh hurriedly kept away the pen and diary as Shruti reached out to his side of bed. "You done with your homework?"

"Please bhaiya! I want to know!"

"You will tell dad. And you know he is always angry with me. He doesn’t love me!"

"Why wont dad love you?", she asked with innocent eyes.

"You are too young to understand it", he assured her.

"No! I want to know! I am 8 years old now, she got off the bed and showed off her full height." And only 3 years younger to you."

"You know it already, Shruti.  He hates me because I am his step-son. Our mother married him after my father left us for some unknown place."

"So, how does it matter. I like you. Why would dad not like you?"

"I told you, you won’t get these things. Leave it. He loves you coz you are his real daughter. You were born two years before mother died. He doesn’t like me."

"I will talk to him. He always listens to me.", she said authoritatively. "Please tell me na! What were you doing?"

"Promise you won’t tell dad! You tell everything to him"

"OK! I promise!"

"See mother's photo in the room?", he asked

"Yes, along with dad."

"I met a person this evening. And he told me if I write down a particular verse and my name on a piece of paper, and sign it, mother will talk to me from photo."

"Is that possible? We can talk to her?", she asked, her eyes wide with surprise.

"Not we! I will talk to her."

"Bhaiya! Please Bhaiya. I also want to talk to mother.", she was almost on verge of crying.

"No! Only if I am able to talk to her, will then you get an opportunity to talk to her. That’s a promise"

"OK But can I listen to your talks? I will stay quiet! I promise", she pleaded

"Alright! But it’s a long process. Let me finish the paper and then we will start the process.

Half an hour later, Shruti turned to Nitesh as they both sat facing the photo of their mother.

"When will she talk with you? I am feeling sleepy."

"That’s fine. I told you it’s a long process. You can sleep now. If I am successful in talking to mother, you can talk to her tomorrow."

"Alright bhaiya. Good night", she kissed him on his right cheek and lay on her back.

Her sleep broke when she heard some faint sounds in her room. She tried to open her eyes and saw her brother talking to the photo as the photo also seemed to reply back. She tried to get up and listen clearly, but as she tried, a heavy wave of sleep engulfed her once again.

"I saw! I saw! Mom talked back from the photo!", she giggled, as she got ready for school.

"Ohh! Did you? I thought you were asleep."

"I got up during the night but went to sleep again. Bhaiya please let me talk to her once."

"Alright! But, dont tell Dad, or else he will get angry. If you tell Dad, our deal is over."

"Cross my heart and hope to die!"

As they sat on the breakfast table, Shruti sat in front of her Dad, as Nitesh sat next to her.

"Dad! Could  take a half day today, please?", she asked as she ate her bread.

"Why? Whats the problem?", he asked, looking at her.

"I am not feeling too well. Please write an absent note."

"But you will be all alone in the house then! If you are not well, then..."

"That’s fine!", she interrupted, "Nitesh bhaiya can take a half day as well. ", she said and looked at Nitesh and winked. Nitesh looked at him and kept on silently eating his corn flakes.

The father looked at her with slight expressions of anger.

"Please dad! Bhaiya will take care of me. Please write two absent notes.", she pleaded. The father nodded his head in frustration and took out two papers from his bag. He wrote two absent notes.

"Thank you dad! I love you!", she kissed him on his cheek and then turned to Nitesh.

"I am so excited. Will talk to mother today!"

"Mother! What are you talking about? Who will talk to mother? What mother?", the father snapped at her.

"Ohh! It’s nothing! I was joking", she said, frightened.

"Shruti, you better tell me the truth...", the bell rang before he could complete. He went ahead to open the door.

"Are you mad?", Nitesh whispered. "Dad would get so mad at me. You know he doesn’t like me and talk to me"

"Sorry! I will take care. Please dont get angry. I want to talk to mother!"

"Who is talking to mother, beta?", she turned to the voice, as his father's friend, Mr Narayan entered the room.

"Ohh! It’s nothing. Me and Nitesh bhaiya are getting late for the school, uncle. Bye!"

"Ok Bye both of you!", he waved and laughed a bit. He turned to the father who was looking a bit frustrated.

"What happened? Not in the right mood?"

Half an hour later, Mr Narayan spoke, "Ravi, you should be very careful. As you know I have Vastu knowledge and have read a lot of Tantric books. When you shifted here, I told you the Vastu of the house is not proper. I also told you this place was built over a lost town. Lately, I have heard a lot of stories where some unknown and unidentified people are convincing children of small age and making them perform tantrik tasks. The children go missing soon after. People have to talk and play along with their children, no matter how much they dont like it or hate it. You have got to set things right."

The father nodded,"You are right. Let me also take half a day and spend time at home. Maybe it will help us."

"Why isn’t mother talking", she was getting impatient.

"Shruti, I told you it’s a long process. We talked yesterday, and I am sure, we will talk again. "

"Bhaiya what if I again get sleepy?"

"Whats more important to you? Sleep or talking to mother?"

"Of course, talking to mother!"

"And you almost let out the secret today. I thought he would throw me out of the house after that."

"Sorry, na! When will the mother talk?", she asked.

"She will...hey look, she is moving in the photograph", he pointed out as she saw her mother's image move slightly in the photograph.

"Yes, she is moving. Can I touch her? Can I talk to her? Mummy, I missed you!", she was almost crying.

"No, dont go near the photo. The person I met strictly warned me against it."

"Can she listen me?", she stopped as she heard the photo make some strange faint noises.

"What is she saying? Why is it not clear to me?"

"I dont know!", he himself looked confused. "I must have done something incorrectly."

"So, you can correct it, right", she asked him.

"No, the material is all gone. I will get more material from the person tomorrow. Evening."

"Can I come with you?"

"No! Dad will get furious if he gets to know we met him. I would rather go alone."

She got back disappointed, looking at her mother's moving photo.

"OK! You can come with me! But, remember, I will do all the talking."

"OK! Promise! Please ask mother to go back or she will get tired. We will talk to her tomorrow.", she said as he nodded and both of them went to sleep.

"Dad! Can I take a leave today?", she requested

"What has happened to you? Why do you not want to go to school?"

"Me and Nitesh Bhaiya, both won’t go to school today as we have lots of homework and we will complete it today."

The father started to say something out of irritation but stopped. "But, Shruti! This way you and Nitesh will lag behind the rest of the class. You both should concentrate on your studies!"

"Dad! Just one more time, please. I won’t ask for a leave again. Please Dad!"

"Alright, in that case, I will stay at home as well."

"Bhaiya!", she whispered to Nitesh sitting next to her, “How will we meet that person if Dad stays at home?"

"Which person", the father overheard her. "Whom are you two going to meet? Whats going on?"

"It’s nothing! We will just go out to play in the evening!"

"Shruti, tell me the truth! Whats going on behind my back?"

"Nothing Dad! I meant me and Nitesh bhaiya will meet our other friends.

"I will also come with both of you, in that case."

"No, dad. Then how will we talk to mother?"

"Talking to mother? Again? Who is talking to mother?"

"Nitesh bhaiya! And I will also talk to her today."

"Nitesh bhaiya talked to mother? How did he? How will you talk to her?"

"Through the photo of hers in our room. Dad, why not you join us as well. It will be fun. That’s why I and Nitesh bhaiya are going to meet the person who told us how..."

"Alright Shruti! Enough is enough! I cannot let this go on forever. I dont know what pleasures you get out of it, but I dont want to hear about your imaginary brother one more time, coz if you do it again..."

Inspired by "The Mobius Trips" by Mukul Sharma