It was 1942. The swadeshi movement was going with great guns and the fight for independence had gripped the entire country. Chaos and nuisance was common everywhere. And often enough you might be stepping out of your house for some purpose only to end up joining some gathering, instigating people to take up arms against the govt. Zamindari system prevailed under the British Raj and on the ground level. It was the zamindars who had immense power and control over the junta. In short they were the immediate bosses of the people. The Zamindars kept themselves aloof from the masses and they had their officers who looked in to every affair of their administration. Corruption was rampant during this period and when people took up arms, the immediate target was the zamindars.
Our story dates back to such a period, in Bengal. About 200- 250 kms away from Kolkata, is Burdwan, where conditions were pretty much the same. Ananda Mohan Bannerjee, an affluent zamindar in that area bore the same burnt as others. His ancestors previously had been shrewd bankers to the East India Company and had acquired huge masses of wealth with which they had later on bought the Burdwan zamindari. A man himself a shrewd businessman had invested in many businesses including the indigo business which at one point was the point of contention in rural Bengal. Ananda was not much of a family man. Married twice, he had 2 sons from the first marriage and a son and a daughter from the second marriage. Though he was not fond of children much, his little daughter Aleya was a darling to him.
Since her birth he felt a strange inclination towards her and had been very particular about her upbringing. Aleya herself was also very much fond of her father. At the age of eleven, she was not like other girls of her age. While other girls were fond of playing with dolls and other indoor games, Aleya thought that these games were boring and there was absolutely no sense in wasting time playing these games. What fascinated her was adventure. She often dreamt of running through the rice fields in to the forest areas which her father owned and exploring what life could be in those forests. Ananda had bought this forest which was on the bank of the river Ganga and stretched for about three miles. The forest was rich in high quality teak and mahogany wood and that’s what attracted Ananda. Aleya since her young age used to stand in the balcony all day long gazing at the forest which could be seen from her room. At night in the bright moon light the forest had a different appeal to her. It seemed to her as if the forest might be calling out her name- Aleya, Aleya. When the gentle breeze blew across the forest she used to feel a strange sensation of joy in her heart. Somewhere distant she could hear an owl crying. The light of the oil lamps which the fishermen used to lit up in their boats before going to sleep could be seen. She used to imagine how romantic it was for the fishermen to spend the entire night in their boats in the lap of the river under the moonlit night and a sky full of stars. The shadow of the moon shivering as the silent waves dashed against each other. The clouds moving across the sky as if in a hurry to deliver some message to some place far off. How beautiful nature was at night. As if nature attains a new avatar. She used to think of what might be going on inside the forest. She had heard from her father that the forest was a home to all sorts of wild animals- tigers, lions, jackals and poisonous snakes in large numbers. Often enough her father used to tell her stories about incidents when a tiger had attacked a fisherman in his boat or a farmer sleeping under his shed in the fields while guarding his fields from jackals. But she didn’t believe these stories. She had heard jackals crying in the fields. But tigers? Not possible. She had always wanted to explore the forest on her own. But that was impossible and she knew it. Her father would not allow that under any circumstance. At least not in this birth. She wasn’t even allowed to step out of the house alone. The Zamindars and their family throughout Bengal were targets of common people. Someone would always accompany her even in the day light. But as the moon rose up in the sky, the forest had an appeal of its own which she couldn’t resist. Sometimes she thought of asking her elder brothers to take her out at night. But that was like asking for trouble. Already her brothers were jealous of the fact that their father did not pay as much attention to them as to her. Moreover asking for help from them, that too on an issue that serious was suicidal.
So one night she decided to explore her world all by herself. That would be fun. Something she had always wanted to do. But how to step out of her house? There were guards always guarding the house. They would not let even a mosquito slip out of their nose. So she decided to take the help of her play mate, Anju, a girl of her age who used to work at their house. She was the one with whom Aleya shared all her books, toys and even her feelings. She was the one who was closest to her in all respects. When she told her about her intention she had no hesitation in saying no. But Aleya was a stubborn girl. She was persistent in her demands and finally she gave in. They decided to drug the food of the guards. After everybody that evening had their dinner and had gone to bed, she decided to step out. By the time the gong struck eleven she was ready for her maiden adventure. Anju wanted to accompany her. She knew of the dangers. If someone noticed that would create trouble. Even if no one noticed, the forest was not a safe place to be in. that too at that hour of the night. Moreover social conditions were also not good. But Aleya would not listen. She always had dreamt of stepping out alone in to the forest. That would be fun- she thought. Finally she stepped out of the house.
A strange feeling of elation filled her mind. As if it was her victory. A victory so big that everyone would have wanted to achieve. And at that hour of the night, when the whole world was in deep slumber, she stepped out in a new world to explore it. She walked past the gates easily as the guards lay asleep in intoxication. She walked past the fields taking the road by the river. It was dark as far as one could see. Only the light of the kerosene lamps which the farmers lit up in their sheds to keep animals away from the fields could be seen. A sense of adventure mixed with fear overwhelmed her. After walking through several stretches of the field she finally came to the edge, from where the forest began. She looked back towards her house which appeared no more than a mere shadow. For once she thought if it was right to step in to the jungle. What if her father was right? What if the forest really had tigers and lions? Even if presence of tigers and lions are remote, chances of encountering a poisonous snake can’t be ruled out. For the first time in her entire journey she felt fear overpowering her. Her hands and feet turned cold and numb. What hour of the clock could it be? She thought. Might be past midnight. A girl of eleven, alone at that time in the forest, what was lying ahead of her?
But that was what she had been waiting for so long. And then when it was a reality it might be foolish to back off. She finally decided to carry on. As soon as she set her first foot in she felt something strange. She had not experienced such a kind of feeling inside her before. Was it from the heart? Or from the guts? Or the stomach? Well no point in thinking these things. She moved on. Tall trees standing on all sides greeted her. They were so tall as if they were competing against each other to reach the sky. It did not seem to her before that the trees would be so tall. From her balcony it seemed so different. There was no specific road inside the forest. You have to make your own way through the tall trees and the bushes which came your way. Even the wild grasses were tall enough to make her journey difficult. The breeze as usual was blowing across the forest. As she made her way forward she repented for the first time about the decision made by her. It was foolish. Really a foolish decision. She could easily be a victim of some poisonous snake waiting for her inside the tall grasses. But she carried on. For once she looked up towards the sky. But the tall trees had formed a canopy that prevented even the moonlight to enter in to the forest. There were trees all around. She could hear the jackals crying in a group. But that sound was different from the one she used to listen from her bed room. It was louder and even more painful. Do jackals eat small children? She thought. She had heard stories in the past where jackals come and pick up children who do not obey their parents.
She wandered about in the forest for another hour or so trying to find out a way out. She knew that crossing the jungle and reaching the other end of it was impossible. And then she made a big decision. She turned back and made her backward journey. But was she taking the correct path? Because it was difficult to remember from which direction she had come. Everywhere she looked at seemed the same. But she had no other choice. She repented about not bringing her friend along with her. At least two would have been better than one. But it was useless crying over spilled milk. She walked for another half an hour when she realized that she might be in a wrong direction. Now what to do she thought. What would happen if she could not find her way back out. What would her father’s reaction be when he would learn that her darling daughter was absent. She felt sorry for her father who loved her so dearly. Even the night showed no sign of ending. But she did not loose hope. She decided to go ahead wherever her two eyes and two legs took her. She felt like hearing strange sounds which she had never heard before. Were these sounds of some animals? Or was it her imagination. No point in thinking all these things, she thought. She could feel cold sweat on her forehead. After much beating round the bush she finally came to the edge of the jungle.
But where was she? It was not the place from where she had entered the jungle? Was she lost for the second time in the night? She could only see rice fields all around. But not the ones which she knew. Anyways in those days girls were not allowed to step out of their houses. Even if they did some elder in the family or servant accompanied them. That was why she did not get any chance to know any other routes except the ones which could be seen from her house. She was helpless. She felt like crying. But that would not help her. The only encouraging sign for her was that she could see the river and realized if she took the correct direction she had a faint chance of reaching her house as her house was also on the bank of the river. She decided to move on. She was now exhausted. Her legs were now giving up. Never in her life had she traveled so far on foot. Very often she could hear a loud noise coming from the field. She remembered that her father had once told that it was of the farmers who made the sound by beating tin drums to keep wild pigs and jackals away. She looked up in the sky. Stars were still visible as usual. But the location of the moon had changed, she felt. It seemed to her that even the heavenly bodies were taking pleasure on her. She imagined how nice it would have been had she not stepped out of her room. She was missing the warmth of her bed. She could see grey lines in the eastern sky. She realized that it was the sign of the dawn. Little time was left for her to make her return. Or else every body would know about the escapade. Although she was tired, this gave her a new dose of energy. Her tired feet started working.
After walking some quarter of a kilometer she could finally see the glimpse of her home at some distance. She could not believe her eyes. Was this a dream? She thought. Even if it was it was a pleasant one indeed. Tears came rolling down her cheeks. She began running with all the energy she had and stopped only when she reached the gate of her house. The guards still lay asleep as they were. She ran through the veranda straight into the house to her bed room. When she reached her room, she was panting. She went near the window only to have another glimpse of the forest. It was the same forest that she had seen through her window in the past. It was the same she had visited the previous night. The only difference was that it did not appear romantic to her anymore.
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