The Paavai Vilakku (The Elephant lamp)

 

Meenakshi Bhalla and her World of MB ( Make Believe)

• She bore the name of an all powerful goddess, Meenakshi but all these years later, I can only recall her as an avid fan of  a very non-spiritual literary genre, that of Romantic Fiction. She was the type who makes friends easily, a nice girl, with a cheerful face and a permanent warm, smile. A trifle gawky and unstylish, but the warmth was there for all to see.We were all students of the Arts stream in the Intermediate Course at SSLNT College, Dhanbad. Dhanbad is a large coal based industrial town in Jharkand. Its demography consisted of engineers, scientists, businessmen and miscellaneous  contributors to the local Economy. It was a brave new world right out there, with technocrats and small industrialists alike toiling  to make some money in the land of the BLACK DIAMOND and the pioneering work of spreading quality education through English was being done in stages by the nuns of the Carmelite order. Carmel schools were opened at different community/ industrial colonies …..thus we had a main  and older Carmel school at Digwadih, a Suburb of Dhanbad and then another came up later in Dhanbad to meet the  demands of the growing business class there.  We, the children of this nascent very powerful socio economic order attended the different Carmel schools and our value systems were ingrained fairly early…..concentrated study in order to achieve set professional and economic goals. I have gone into great detail over this in order to highlight the general milieu and consequently, our  tastes and hobbies.
• I studied in Carmel Dhanbad and Meenakshi came from Digwadih Carmel. She was a  year junior to me but definitely very adult in her literary tastes.We were all students of SSLNT College, the only Women’s  College in the area with predominantly Hindi speaking students. The Carmel crowd, with their different and better academic accomplishments, therefore stood out. By the same token, we therefore mingled also only among ourselves, i.e. the Carmel group. I do not remember our first meeting . I suppose it must have been with a cheery, “HI! I am Meenakshi”, kind of  greeting and  very soon, a new hitherto unheard and unknown genre of books started circulating  widely in the friends’ groups. HEY PRESTO!  To the  giggling, awkward bunch from the prudish MORAL SCIENCE sermons of Sr. Felicia’s class, it was as if the floodgates of the world of Adults had been opened.
• School life had given us Enid Blyton, Richmal Cromton, Frank Richards, Alistair MacLean etc with their varied fare of adventure, fun and excitement all instilling values in mild doses. We certainly had not heard of Mills and Boon in the unsophisticated, professionally middle class world of the Dhanbad neighborhood…. our mothers were not the type who would have ever read  a Mills and Boon. They were staid, no nonsense types with their feet planted firmly on the ground and expecting the same value system in their children. Reading was greatly encouraged except during exam time. A visit to Rajendra Market definitely had a treat in store for the bibliophile- the purchase of a Famous Five or Secret Seven.
• However now the Fives and Sevens made way to the world of Adult Passion.  “Hi”, and Meenakshi’s curly head would bob uo from the covers of “ Virgin Bride” and the book would change hands after she was done. Alluring, colourful book jackets with a picture of man and woman in differing degrees of intimacy; the ubiquitous symbol of a rose tucked between the catchy logo of mills& Boon; all designed to draw the unsuspecting teenager. The  naughty childishness in us urged on to glimpse the absurd ( We were still at the stage where Romance was considered absurd) world of a Romance novel. Typically  one of the girls one day, piped up with" Man of Granite " is very good". "Why",chorused the rest.  Because the hero is unscrutable; the heroine can't read his mind and  he has very stern looks". So playing Hard to Catch and possessing dark, forbidding looks were the key to the spell that M &B books cast on the SSLNT gang.. 
• Now there is one secret, that I will let you into. Very often, a title with a voyeuristic undertone was given ,accompanied by a passionate love scene on the cover just to attract readership. Gentle romance was encouraged but not blatant permissiveness. M & B readers had their guidelines laid out…. exotic locales to set the romantic tone and mood, some intimate scenes to accelerate the path of true love and to provide meat to the reader, and the predictable ending of a happy marriage. The heroine coud have plain looks but she had to make up this deficiency with her personal qualities like smartness, elegance and a degree of female and professional independence, all of which must be sacrificed eventually in the altar of True Love. True Love was the single most goal of these women. By contrast, the hero would have perfect physical features, modelled on a Greek God ( no wonder, Greek heroes were a big favourite with the writers ) and the most essential quality of being impervious to feminine charm and guile. Of course, the heroine would succeed in bringing a change of heart after many trials and tribulations.
• So, if one got the above formula right, one made the grade  and joined the group of successful writers of the Mills and Boon books. MB’s collection tumbled onto us with audacious titles…..DARK AVENGER, HANDSOME PREDATOR and the like. To this day, I have wondered how Meenakshi managed to lay her hands on to such a big collection. How did she escape the watchful parental eye etc.?   
• Mills and Boon readers have spanned generations of women.Like so many others, I can’t understand the spell that they cast on their young readers.  Perhaps it was because of the first peek that these books offered to most of us into the fascinating world of adult behaviour.Perhaps we identified ourelves with the poor waif of a heroine who had to face  emotional challenges while struggling with the practical realities of life. Which is why it was all important for us to find out if the heroine got in the end, what she deserved.
• Otherwise M & B fiction  had very little  values or ideas to offer. If anything, these books showed their heroines in a poor light—women with no mind of their own, incapable of leading a life of economic and social independence. Finding Mr. Right was what life was all about.
• We passed out of SSLNT. The once close group of friends  dispersed and scattered to various destinations in the course of  life’s changing fortunes. I, like so many others lost touch with Meenakshi. To date, she remains elusive , as elusive as those Mills and Boon heroes that she fancied so much. But there is one thing, for sure.  I hope and believe that life dealt her a good hand; that a nice, simple girl from the back of beyond succeeded in  fulfilling her romantic  dream.
• M & B has gone desi nowadays. So young readers can read of either  Deepak or Shyam, replacement of  Peter Dedalus etc.
• 
  

Rambo Has An Adventure In The Land Of Eternal Happiness

Wonderstruck by all that they had heard and seen, Sunil and Rambo walked on. In this strange country, they saw orderliness, cleanliness in the buildings and roads, and people going about their work briskly and happily. Soon they hit the City of SUSTAINABLE ETHICAL EMPLOYMENT. As the name said, the city bore signs of development.  They saw parks and roads, shops and malls, hotels and houses but did not have a coin in their hand to buy even a drink. “ I think I’ll die of thirst and hunger”, said Sunil almost in tears. “ Come on, Sunil”, barked Rambo encouragingly. “ Take heart. I am sure we’ll run into some refreshments soon “. Sure enough as if  on cue, they came upon a small Darshini called Akshayapatra which was selling sandwiches, chapatis and snacks. “Wonderful”, they said, rubbing their hands in glee and then their faces fell. “ How could they pay for the food? “ Not to worry”, said the genial looking man at the Cash Counter. “Here we serve all  without prejudice, even those who cannot pay. Service above Profit is our motto. But those who can can afford must pay according to their ability. All you have to do is to sit in front of your plates and mentally order the food that you would like to eat.” Rambo and Sunil looked at each other in amazement. Whoever heard of a hotel serving free food?

They sat down at a table, ravenous with hunger. “Tomato Sandwich,” Rambo licked his mouth in anticipation and immediately two sandwiches appeared before him. Similarly Sunil got a Masala Dosa.  They tucked into their food hungrily, watching a fat man also eating at the next table. The man kept on ordering while dish after dish appeared before him and  disappeared into his cavernous mouth. Rambo and Sunil wondered when and where it would all stop. They were to know  soon enough.

The man ordered and waited for the  next dish to appear on his plate. But nothing happened. Instead a piece ofpaper appeared on his plate but it was not just one piece of paper. An endless roll of paper started to stretch out on to the table, on to the floor, like a carpet. Rambo and Sunil stared in amazement. Sunil went a step forward to find that it was A WHOLE REAM OF BILLS. Must be BILLS FORI ALL THE FOOD THAT THE MAN HAD EATEN. The man almost fell off his chair in shock and fright. He got up to walk away rapidly to the exit without drawing notice. But just then two men approached his table and stood menacingly on  either side of him. “ Trying to run away without paying your bill, you greedy glutton. Dirty dishes await you in the kitchen ”, they roared, marching him off to the kitchen.

Rambo and Sunil’s eyes almost fell off at the scene they had just awitnessed. Hearing a sound, they turned around to find the proprietor clapping his hands and saying loudly, “ Haha….. THIS IS THE PUNISHMENT FOR TAKING ADVANTAGE OF OUR GOODNESS HEAR EVERYBODY. TO THE NEEDY, WE ARE GOOD BUT THE GREEDY, BETTER TAKE HEED”.

Rambo and Sunil quietly exited. So should you if you ever visit the Akshayapatra Darshini

Where Have They Come?

It turned out to be even more giddying little later for they suddenly found themselves losing height and flying lower and lower. Houses, people and animals suddenly and slowly grew larger and they were flying crazily and frighteningly close to rooftops. Nothing was in their control as they swung close to some tall building and suddenly and almost violently were lifted clean off it. “ Phew that was close,” muttered Sunil alarmed. suddenly a big patch of ground opened out before them and as suddenly and alarmingly as it had begun, their crazy flight came to a sudden abrupt end. the two hit the ground suddenly with their breath nocked out and their heads in a whir. “Goodness”, said Sunil breathlessly.“ Where have we come?” “We will soon know “, said Rambo who had already got up nimbly  and was running ahead. “ Come on Sunil. Hurry up. This is our big adventure.”

On and on they ran till they suddenly  came upon a huge signboard mapping their location. WELCOME TO THE LAND OF ETERNAL HAPPINESS, it said. THIS WAY TO THE TO THE TOWN OF GOOD WILL”, it pointed towards a particular direction. Both looked at each other in wonder but decided to follow the signboard. They walked on, now tired and hungry but not seeing a soul on the way. “ Hey Look”, said Sunil suddenly pointing his finger.”Isn’t that a policeman? Looks like one.” It was one. On drawing nearer they found a man dressed in a policeman’s uniform.  “ Excuse me”, said Sunil to the policeman. “ We are new to this place. Can you guide us to somewhere where we can get food and shelter?” “Welcome to our World of Eternal Happiness”, said the friendly policeman.” “ You look to be from a different country. Right now, you are in the Town of Good Will.  Here we have schools and colleges where  our children learn the qualities of honesty and hard work and to earn a sustainable living in harmony with nature and society. “ Over there”, he waved pointing out his hand in one direction, “Is the Big City of SUSTAINABLE ETHICAL  EMPLOYMENT . See those buildings and factories. People work  hard  there  to create GoodWill and Wealth, the tools of Prosperity. There you will get plenty of whatever you want because this is the festive season of Diwali.”

Rambo's Wish Comes True

Wooshhhh,…. there was a strong gust of wind.  As if to make his words come true, Rambo heard very close a loud sound… FWAPPP as if a big bird was flapping its wings vigorously.” Oh , What’s that?”, cried Rambo, startled by the sudden loud noises. “What’s happening here?” Suddenly Rambo found himself growing lighter and shaking all over. Totally frightened, he looked down at himself and WHAT A FRIGHT HE GOT FOR ON EITHER SIDE OF HIS BODY, TWO SMALL WINGS HAD APPEARED. To his horror,the wings grew bigger and bigger even as he looked on. “ Help, help,” he shouted to Sunil.

     Sunil who was intently lighting a cracker with his back bent, looked up at the cause of the commotion. IMAGINE  his  consternation…. Rambo had grown two big strong wings and even as Sunil looked, Rambo was slowly being lifted into the air. “ Hey…hey”, shouted an alarmed Sunil and grabbed Rambo to save him. BUT WONDERS WILL NEVER CEASE. ,"Hey”, shouted Rambo. “Look Sunil, YOU ARE ALSO GROWING WINGS, perhaps because you touched me and the spell has passed onto you!”

   Sunil looked down upon himself. To his astonishment and dismay, he found that two tiny stubs of birdlike wings were protruding from his sides too, growing bigger by the minute. “ Oh, whatever is happening to us”, he cried in fright. He was soon to discover for both of them were lifted clean off the ground higher and higher into the air i. “Yeeeeek Rambo”shrieked Sunil clutching Rambo in fright. “ What’s happening to us?” “ We are flying and stop howling like a baby. This is an ADVENTURE of a lifetime and enjoy yourself. ”, announced Rambo.

Indeed that is what happened exactly. Higher and higher they soared into the skies till they were flying in a clear propelled manner, a dog and a boy clutching each other for dear life as they were carried into this big unknown adventure. On and on, they flew over land and seas. It was an eerie experience spanning space in a straight course, with the inhabitants of the earth below looking like midgets. “Gosh,” said Sunil who had by now recovered and was thoroughly enjoying himself. "I feel like a spaceman, flying on my own, with the wind against my face and head almost in the clouds. It’s gratifying and giddying…..”.

Rambo is disturbed

Rambo, the Labrador was quite unhappy. How he liked to sun himself on the terrace, with his ears flapping spanning his cute face and generally gaze idly at the world passing by. but his idyllic world would soon be disturbed. Why? Because Diwali was around the corner. To the world at large, it was the festival of Lights, the triumph of Good over Evil- a time for festivities and celebration.Men and children shopped merrily for crackers while women were busy cleaning their homes and preparing elaborate sweets. “ All fine”, thought Rambo to himself. “ So long as these human beings just feasted and made merry, I have no problem. But it is those crackers which my friends on Spencer Road burst which bother me very much “. “ Bow, Bow”, he moaned. “ Nobody cares about us dogs.....nobody  understands the torture and torment we undergo when crackers are burst. It’s as if  our brains explobe and our skulls and brains aaare shattered into a million ragments.... So deafening is the noise in our earsOur nerves are taut and strained from the physical trauma and pain. Many of us even die of restlessness and anxiety, BUT WHO KNOWS AND WHO CARES?

But Rambo was not one to leave matters like that. Always a dog of action, he decided to approach his best friend Sunil and his friends from the neighbouring apartments to seek their help in the matter. Of course, they were boisterous and fun-loving but good children at heart and would understand his problem. So Rambo got up from his comfortable perch and padded off in search of his best friends. To his luck, he found Sunil alone messing around with some cracker which he was about to light, “ Good”’ thought Rambo.” Sunil is quiet and steady. He will think clearly and help me.” “ Wait. Wait,’ said Rambo. “One minute Sunil, don’t light that cracker. Crackers cause many problems to us dogs”. And Rambo went on to tell him his woes.

But Sunil was in no mood to pay heed to all this. “ Really Rambo” he said, “Are you sure all dogs suffer from the noise of crackers so much? Maybe you are an exception. Also bursting crackers so much fun.” “ Bow Bow”, barked  Rambo in despair. “ How will I ever make humans like Sunil understand our distress? How I wish we dogs grew wings to fly away from this cracker polluted world of Human Beings?’ 

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నాదనీరాజనం | Nadaneerajanam | 14-08-19 | SVBC TTD