My
Credit Cards, Hotel reservations, Sunglasses, dry snacks...Oh how can I forget
my Road Map... The list was running into pages as I was getting ready for an
exciting road trip to Kolhapur for taking the blessings of goddess Mahalaxmi.
This was for first time in our life that my sister Neela and I were planning for
an adventurous road trip. All thanks to the movie Zindagi na Milegi Dobara. We
were very excited about the road trip, the lure of the open roads filled with
greenery, the rains and most importantly, the promising getaway from our
routine lives of packing lunch boxes for our kids and grandchildren.
On
the day of our trip, Neela arrived with a huge hand-bag.
'What
all is there in this huge bag?' I asked her.
Nothing
dear, just some snacks and empty bags for shopping, she replied.
I
smiled. Till then our driver also arrived. First, I checked my petrol tank, it
was full. We boarded in my car and the much awaited road trip began. We prayed
to Ganpati Bappa for a safe journey. Both of us were very excited.
It
was raining lightly; the streets of Mumbai were wet. Our car was filled with
the freshness of Godrej Aer air freshener. Being a Saturday morning, we were
enjoying the rains on the relatively empty roads of Mumbai. I then realized
that the air freshener was on the verge of getting over. So I asked my driver
to stop the car near a shopping mall to buy some more Godrej Aer Air Freshener and other articles.
We entered the Air freshener section. There was a pretty pregnant sales-girl
who showed us the Godrej Aer Car Air Freshners like Godrej
Aer Petal Crush Pink, Cool Surf Blue etc.. I picked up Petal Crush Pinkas it would render a unique
fragrance to my car. The sales girl thanked me for shopping. Being curious, I
asked her, "Which month?” she said, "Sixth month." "Bye
take care," I said. We then left the mall and boarded into car again.
"Did
you observe that pregnant Sales Girl? I am sure she is going to deliver a baby
girl." Neela told me. "But how can you be so sure about that? I questioned.
"You
didn't observe her carefully Nandini. Have you seen her face, she was looking
so fresh. Even her baby bump was not visible near the front but was visible
from the back. So she is definitely going to deliver a baby girl. I can bet on
it." Neela was very excited.
She
continued, "You know, but my daughter-in-law is going to deliver a baby
boy. I am very confident about that. This is her first time and I want a
grandson."
Again
I questioned, "How can you be so sure that your daughter-in-law will
deliver a baby boy?"
Neela
continued, "My daughter-in-law, Sonali is always tired. She is not able to
do household work like she used to do."
I
said, "It’s okay Neela, she is pregnant, how can you expect her to do
house hold work?"
Neela
continued, “And you know, her baby bump is clearly visible from the front, but
you will not be able to make out that she is pregnant from the back. Also, she
always has craving for sweets. If you crave for sweets, then the chances of
baby being a boy are very high". Neela was very excited about her
discovery.
We
realized that we have crossed Mumbai and were amidst a lot of greenery. We
asked the driver to take through Pen village, as we wanted to have the
delicious "Potato Vada" of Pen village. We stopped near a small
restaurant and ordered "Potato Vada" and Coffee for breakfast. The
Vadas reminded us of our childhood days when we used to savor Batata Vada with
our parents while going to our native. We relished the vadas in the company of
a mild rainfall.
After
Batata Vada break, we boarded the car again and realized that there was some
bad odor in the car. I realized that my driver was smoking in the car.
'Kya
aap smoke kar rahey the?'I asked the driver.
"Sorry
Madam, galati ho gayi. I will not smoke again," the driver replied. I
could notice some tension on his face. So did not say much to him.
I
opened my car windows and there was a lady selling Sonchafa flowers (Plumeria). We bought some
flower and the car was filled with the pleasant fragrance of Sonchafa it refreshed
us again. I wish Godrej could come up
with such a pleasant fragrance of Sonchafa.
Our
car was moving on the roads near Khandala and Lonavala. The roads were filled
with number of waterfalls. People were getting wet under the waterfalls. We
asked driver to halt. The road was full of gushing waterfalls and greenery. The
climate was pleasant. There were dazzling lakes and a very breathtaking view.
We started capturing the greenery in our camera. We again boarded the car and
continued with our journey. We captured lots of scenes in our cameras and our
hearts. Since
the mud was wet, we could experience a cool Muddy fragrance of rain which was
very pleasing. I wish Godrej could come up with such a pleasant fragrance of
first rains.
Our
car was moving fast. We then stopped at Wai for our Lunch break. We indulged
into Village delicacies like Zunka Bhakar and Thecha with raw onion & green
chillies. It was heaven for us. We invited our driver also for lunch, but he
refused saying that he may feel sleepy during driving. He continued smoking
sitting under a tree for a while. I observed that he was a bit stressed.
After
having the delicacies, we started with our road trip towards Kolhapur via
Satara. My driver’s phone was ringing in between. I asked him not to talk on
the phone while driving.
Again
the mobile rang, but this time it was my sister Neela’s mobile. It was my nephew’s
call. She sounded very tense but then calmed down.
“Please
keep me posted and take care. We will return at the earliest.” said Neela and
she disconnected the phone.
“What
happened? Anything serious?” I asked Neela.
“Nothing
serious as such, but Sonali has been admitted to the hospital now. But Neil
assured that there is nothing to worry. Sonali may deliver the baby any time.
So we need to rush back to Mumbai then.” Neela said.
“But
her Expected Due Date is after 15 days, hope everything is fine?” I asked her.
“Hey,
this is one of the symptoms of delivering a baby boy. When there is a
baby boy, the delivery is before the EDD and if it’s a baby girl, then it is
after the EDD. I can bet with you now, Sonali will deliver a baby boy.
Thank god, nobody in the family has delivered a baby girl yet. I am going to
call my sister-in-law first once Sonali delivers a baby boy. I want to prove
her wrong, who predicted grand-daughter for me.” Neela was very excited.
Again
my driver’s mobile rang. But this time, he stopped the car, went outside and
was talking to someone. On returning he asked me,”Madam, I wanted to make a
small request.”
“Tell
me, what happened?” I asked him.
“Madam,
my sister is standing on the road with her children, but not getting any bus
since past one hour. Can we give her a lift? Her home is on our
way. She has to visit a hospital, which is only 7-8 kilometers from her house.
If you don’t mind, I will give her a lift till the hospital.” He asked me.
“No
problem,” I told him as it was a question of only half an hour.
After
some time, I saw a girl in her early 20s standing with her two daughters on the
road. My driver stopped the car. She entered our car and was trying to fit her
two daughters in front seat.
“Please
send the children to back seats, there is ample space here.” I told my driver.
His sister smiled at me and asked her daughters to go and sit on the back
seats. The two little girls were very cute.
“Baby,
what is your name”, I asked those cute little girls.
“I
am Manu and she is Babu”, the little girl replied.
“Her
name is Manali and the younger one is Madhuri” my driver replied. But his
sister was quiet. She was not talking to us. To break the ice, I asked her “How
old are your daughters?”
“The
elder one is 4 and the younger one is 3 years old” she said. This time I
observed her face. She was looking very weak and pale.
The
journey continued, and our driver stopped the car near the hospital. His sister
got down along with her daughters. I gave some chocolates to her daughters. Our
driver gave some money to her and we continued our journey.
“Who
has been admitted to the hospital?” I asked my driver.
“My
sister herself is going to be admitted.” He replied.
“What
happened to her? And her husband has not accompanied her to hospital? I asked
him.
He
was reluctant to disclose anything to me. But me and my sister bombarded him
with lots of questions.
“She
is 18 or 19 weeks pregnant and going for an abortion in this hospital. Her
husband or in-laws will not accompany her as they are very busy and most
importantly there is a baby girl in her womb. Since she already has two
daughters, they want only a Baby Boy” Driver was telling us with lot of pain.
“Oh
my god, this is so cruel. We are living in the 21st century. One should not
differentiate between a baby boy or girl. Both are equal in today’s world.” I
replied.
“Madam,
we are poor people and she already has two daughters. The girls will marry and
go to their in-laws place, but we can depend on our sons during old age. My
sister got a strict warning from her in-laws for a son this time” said my
driver.
Now
Neela got annoyed. “You should take her in-laws to the court. How can they
behave so irrationally with your sister? And most importantly, determination of
sex of foeticide is banned in India. You should file a case against that clinic
where they are doing this illegal act. And most importantly your sister should
never go to such clinic for determining the sex of unborn child”
“My
sister’s mother-in-law is very knowledgeable like you Madam, she also can find
out whether there is a baby boy or girl in a mother’s womb. This time she
realized that there is baby girl in my sister’s womb and asked her to get it
confirmed and aborted.” Driver replied to Neela.
It
was a virtual slap on our face. Neela realized that she was talking about
gender equality, but wanted a grandson. We both didn’t utter a single word thereafter.
I realized that giving gyaan to someone was easy, but when it comes to self, we
act in an opposite manner. This time I remembered Saint Tukaram’s Abhang,
“Bole taisa chaale, tyachi vandavi paoole” (You should respect that person who
speaks and acts in the same manner)
We
were heading towards Kolhapur. Both of us were looking at the view outside.
There were sugarcane fields on both the sides. But it was looking sad. Then
Neela’s phone rang. She smiled and disconnected the phone.
“Sonali
delivered a baby boy and both are safe” she said.
“Great,
Congratulations, should we return back to Mumbai immediately?” I asked Neela.
“No
I want to take Mahalakshmi’s darshan as it’s not very far from here.” She said.
I found that there was no excitement on Neela’s face, even though she was
looking very happy.
We
were now experiencing the stunning beauty of Kolhapur, with its flowing rivers
and rivulets. The ancient monuments were carrying their age with elegance.
We
reached Kolhapur near Mahalaxmi’s temple. It was evening time. Neela bought
sweets and ‘Oti;’ of Saree & Coconut for goddess Mahalaxmi. There was a
small ‘Gurhal’ near Mandir, where we had Sugar cane juice. Then our car headed
towards the Mahalaxmi Mandir.
Since
Neela had to follow “Soyar” of child’s birth for 10 days she asked me to go
inside the temple and perform pooja. While entering the temple, she called me
back.
“Nandini,
can you pray for a granddaughter for me?” she asked me. I smiled and went
inside Goddess Mahalaxmi’s temple. However, I changed Neela’s prayer a bit.
“Hey
Goddess Mahalaxmi, next time Neela and me both want to come along with our
granddaughters for your Darshan.” I prayed.
We
boarded our car for a return journey immediately. The journey was truly very
memorable as it changed our mind sets.
This is my entry for the
contest Inspire
a fragrance organized by IndiBlogger for Godrej Aer. Please visit http://www.godrejaer.com
