REWARD

A Story by Ankur Sharma

When this curfew will end? Will it end when I will be dead? Will it let me meet my friend? I just wanted to meet him one last time. Oh my God please finish this nonsense!

Since morning he was very upset, for the last forty years they used to meet at least once in a week in the evening. It was Friday of last week when both friend meet in front of jama masjid where they used to meet usually. But for the last two days the curfew, due to communal riot in Delhi, frustrating him.

The wall clock was showing ten ‘o’ clock which was increasing his agitation. So he decided to grab a chair from the sitting room and sat on it at the door of the house facing towards the main road. But the silence of the road could not capture his imagination.

Vende matram, vande matram, inqlab jindabad, inqlab jindabad, angrejo bharat chhodo, angrejo bharat chhodo, all of these ardent slogans started to flow in his mind. Mahatma Gandhi was protesting against the British government with his quit India movement. Dharam and Hamid, both friend of age thirteen or fourteen, used to play on the street of chandni chowk, old Delhi. When their fathers decided to quit their work for the country both these children used to bring food and waters from the homes of the freedom fighters. They were told by their fathers that it is a great job to do, you are serving your mother land very well and you too will also be known as freedom fighters like us. Whenever a demonstration of freedom fighters used to go in front of their houses they shouted the entire slogans as loudly as they could. It used to be a little competition for both friends. On that day when Dharam came Hamid saw the wounds on his forehead and hands and on the back. Dharam told him about the incident which happened when he was with his father participating in the demonstration against the police. Police lathi charged against us and I got little injured in between of this. Father told me these are not just the ordinaries marks; these are the greatest reward a freedom fighter could get always take care of these throughout your life. Now it was the term of Hamid how could he left behind in this fight se he took a vow he will get the same reward anyhow. It became a daily routine for them to watch out for the demonstration in their locality. Finally one day they saw one, this time Hamid requested Dharam not to go there. Dharam accepted it with a condition when Hamid will get one bruise he will have to come out of there immediately. Hamid went there and started to shout all the slogans. Police was in a fierce mood this time, so police men started to beat brutally all the people, Hamid injured badly. For one month he could not move out of his bed. Dharam was there all this time. When Hamid got little better Dharam told him you already got more and enough reward.

When they heard the news the news of India will be a free country after 14^th of August they were so happy that they danced on the street of chandni chowk and they stopped everyone and told the news to them who passed nearby them. But this happiness came with sadness too. India will be divided into two countries; this news made everyone furious and thus spread the communal riot between Hindus and Muslims. Hamid’s uncle asked many times to his brother to go to Pakistan but he refused to go there. All of their family member the brother and sisters left him and went to Pakistan. The riots were in peak on the request of Dharam father Hamid family decided to move in the Dharam’s house for some days. Dharam and Hamid were happy because now both best friend could spend all of their time altogether. If Dharam’s father teaches them Hindi and English, then Hamid fathers used to give them the knowledge of Urdu. Riots end when finally Mahatma Gandhi went on fast until death against these riots. Then Hamid father decide to go to their house but they studied together in school and college.

You old man get in your house otherwise we have to shoot you ……… it was police, who was patrolling and shouting on him to go in the house. He went in and started to talk himself that for this people die to watch these kinds of days, everyone gets mad easily these days. He then start to watch chandni chowk from his windows, suddenly he realized that the building and the roads of chandni chowk are as old as he himself. We both could not escaped by the hands of time. He could see that his eyes which were deep inside if his skull like those holes on the road and the wrinkles on his face resembles to those old building a time ago used to the glory of chandni chowk, now ruined by the time.

He remembers the times when he and his best friend were young and handsome. They used to go the college together on their bicycle. They used to talk about the movies and the novels. Sometimes they used to irritate each other. If Dharam used to like nor jehan and her movies on the other hand Hamid’s favorite was vyjayanthimala. Hamid used to asked him what will you do your nor jehan fled to Pakistan, then Dharam too used to told him I will see how will you get vyjayanthimala. But both friend were favorite actor was Delip Kumar; they never missed any movies of him. They used to go to the regal in Connaught place to watch his movie specially.

It was seven ‘o’ clock now he decided he would go to the jama masjid and meet Hamid. Every one, his son, his grandson, granddaughter, tried to stop him but he said no to them. He told them he is feeling not well and he will not until he meets his friend. He decided to walk in the direction of jama masjid, he saw the blood on the roads, which was spread everywhere, he saw the peoples who were crying and running here and there. He saw the burning shops. He was just going and lost in the smoke thinking about all those days when they used to read that India is great country where we respect every religion, where we respect every human being, where everyone lives in peace, where everyone is considered as equal. He lost then completely in this nowhere to be found.

His body was laying some ten meters away from the body of his best friend both were having lots of bruises and wounds ,but this time those marks were not reward but the sign of the cruelty and hate between humans.