Close to the city of Paithan, in a small village called Sauviragram, which lay along the banks of the great river Godavari, lived a woman named Ilaa. Being cotton farmers, her family was well to do, but not among the richest in their area. It was the harvest season, and cotton had to be picked from the plants. The wholesalers and traders from Paithan would be arriving in just a few weeks, carrying gold and goods for barter. They would exchange what they carried for the cotton that the farmers grew. The bales of cotton had to be ready in time! Work was at its peak!
But Ilaa was not to be found in the fields. She wasn’t working. Instead, she was sitting by the banks of the great river Godavari.
“I am sick of this!” she grunted loudly. It was not the monthly menstrual cycles and it’s associated five days stay-in-house non-clean ban that was bothering her. It was because the new muhtasib now knew about her son-in-law. “There is another 19 days to go to finish the Ramadan month, I do not know what happens after that”. Ilaa did not know much about Mirza Khan. All she knew was that her daughter’s life was at his mercy; it was just that the sentence was delayed due to the Ramadan month. It was her weaver friend Sulekshana who told her about Mirza Khan. This ruthless Afgan was introduced to Sauviragram by Aurangzeb to execute his main agenda of converting local Hindus to Islam. Within one month of his installation, he had become a terror in the village. Anyone who did not obey him would eventually vanish from earth. It was told that they were taken away to Agra, but actually – whoever was taken away never returned.
[color-box color=” customcolorpicker=” rounded=false dropshadow=false]It was because the new muhtasib now knew about her son-in-law. “There is another 19 days to go to finish the Ramadan month, I do not know what happens after that”. [/color-box]
Ilaa’s thoughts went to a week back when her son-in-law and his friends were caught for their anti-Mughal activities in village as part of a Maratha group. The group was brought into the central market of Paithan by Mughal spies and produced before Mirza Khan. He was about to give his verdict when someone reminded him of the Holy month of Ramadan that was on. He said “I know who you all are, my scouts will be around you all the time to check on to your activities. I give you this month for repentance. I’ll re-evaluate your case after a month; If you follow my path, all will be well for you, else I will show you the way to Agra. Believe me, pardoning sinners is not my way of doing things, but because I am observing Roza, you are getting this favor. You may go now”.
Just then Ilaa realized something was touching her feet and she woke from her thoughts with a jerk.
It was a lutt (a spinning wooden top) that span down the steps of the river bank and landed at her feet. She stood up to see Ram Mohan coming towards her, with the thread of the lutt in his hand. Mohan was her 4 year old grandson.
“Why are you roaming around alone? Where is your mother?” asked Ilaa.
“Amma is also coming, in search of you”, Mohan said walking down the steps. Ilaa left the clothes she was washing on the steps and picked up her grandson to kiss him on the cheeks. Then she saw her daughter, Shravani, walking towards the river bank. Shravani was in her early 20s, a young and beautiful girl.
“Shall I help you Amma?”, asked Shravani.
“No dear, I am just done- take this boy”. She handed over Mohan to Shravani and started putting clothes in the aluminium vessel she was using.
“How many more years Amma?” asked Shravani.
“I don’t know. Now I am 43, past one year it is very irregular and is painful at times. It bleeds like hell on the 3rd day.” sighed Illa.
She went to down the water, washed her hands and the three of them started walking back home. The sun was about to set. Mohan continued to wind-up his lutt for this second session.
Bhairav, Ilaa’s husband was 56 years old and the head of the cotton farmers in the village, who ran a godown for storing cotton. Being the season of harvest, his work extended till late evening. The couple had a late dinner and lay down in the bed room.
“Did you talk to Purajith about his decision?” asked Bhairav.
By this time Ilaa was half asleep and was not listening to Bhairav. She was sleeping on a mat on the ground; he got out of the bed and sat next to her on the mat.
She got up and asked “Do you need something?”
“No, nothing, what is final decision from Purajith?” Bhairav replied.
“Purajith is not yet back. We asked him to go and meet Dorogaji, just as you told us.”
“He is not keeping well for some time now, he must meet Vaidye* (*an Ayurvedic doctor) as well”, Ilaa continued.
Bhairav interrupted her “Yes, Doctor James sahib met me in the evening; it seems Purajith had already met him and given blood samples for some tests and diagnosis”.
“But you do not like English medicines?” Ilaa asked.
“That is correct. I was sending him to Dorogaji only. But he met him as well”, Bhairav confirmed.
[color-box color=” customcolorpicker=” rounded=false dropshadow=false]After all it was Purajith who had agreed to marry Shravani even though he knew that she was not completely mentally stable since birth.[/color-box]
“I am very worried about my daughter’s fate. If Purajith continues to be adamant, Mirza Khan will take him to Agra. I heard, whoever goes to Agra never comes back”, Ilaa showed her anxiety.
“I think I need to talk to him at length”, Bhairav went back to his bed.
Hearing someone walking in Bhairav asked, “Who is there?”
“It is me Puru”, the voice answered from outside.
“Shravani, Shravani ?” Ilaa called her daughter loudly.
“Looks like she has slept off. Let me go and see”, Ilaa stood up and started tying her hair.
“Ask him if he has some time to speak”, asked Bhairav.
“Ji . I am very tired, am coming back from Aurangabad, we can talk tomorrow”, Purajith answered from outside.
Bhairav went back to sleep, and Ilaa moved out of their bed room.
Days moved quickly. Ilaa’s fear was growing day by day about her daughter and grandson. After all it was Purajith who had agreed to marry Shravani even though he knew that she was not completely mentally stable since birth. Bhairav and Ilaa had tried all kinds of treatment for her during her childhood. Externally, there were no visible signs but Ilaa knew her daughter. Shravani would often not realize where she was, would forget periods in time and many a times be unable to follow conversations. It was with great difficulty they managed to wed her to Purajith as everyone in Purajith’s family was against the marriage. But he treated her like a normal person after the marriage.
Ilaa still remembered the initial days of their daughter’s marriage. Most of the days she would not be with her husband, wandering away. They saw the sacrifices that Purajith made for their daughter. They had been seeing lot of improvement in Shravani after Ram Mohan was born. Shravani did not fall back into depression ever since then.
Purajith was always sentimental about everything that he owned and belonged to. It was very late that Ilaa and Bhairav came to know the he was leading the anti-Mughal group activities, which he planned under the cover of his evening ‘Geeta’ classes. His pride at being a Maratha, the original owners of the land and the river, and the belief that Mughals are outsiders ran deep in his blood.
Ilaa and Bhairav decided to meet Begum Zainaba, queen of Aurangzeb. Their family friend and famous weaver in the village supplied weaves to the royal family. Ilaa knew that Sulekshana and family were in the process of completing the weaves for the royal family to be worn on the occasion of the coming Id festival.
As per Bhairav’s suggestion, Ilaa and Sulekshana went to Aurangabad to meet Begum Zainaba. Seeing the friendly the behavior of the Begum towards Sulekshna, Ilaa was relieved. She found the Begum to be a very noble woman in her 30s.
Suleshkshana said to the queen “Begum Sahiba, I have a friend who has come along with me from the village. She would like to talk to you. It’s a mercy plea, if you could spare a few moments for her”.
“Yes, why not, if it’s anything that I can help, I am willing to do so. What is it?”
Just then the 3rd wife of the emperor, Udaipuri, came rushing into the room.
“Begum Sahiba, where is Zubair?!”…..
