Life’s Game – by Crowning Glory

 Chapter 25

Read the previous chapter here

Shekhar was flabbergasted. He pulled himself up and grabbed Tara’s wrist as she held on to his collar. He pushed her and looked at the audience that had suddenly arrived from nowhere.

“I..I..how..you..?” he started

“What are you doing here Shekhar and where is Roohi?” demanded Jennifer. Shekhar could see the anger in Jennifer’s eyes; her nose was flared and it seemed she was trying very hard to control herself from doing anything bad.

“Where is Roohi, you moron? Why did you bring her here?” Tara cried out, as she stood up from the ground with her elbows bruised. Cyrus lurched forward, launching himself at Shekhar and gave him a shove that made him fall on the ground. Shekhar was momentarily taken aback at the turn of events.

“Speak up Shekhar or I will make every bone in your body cry for help” Cyrus shouted.

“All was going as planned.” said Shekhar, getting up on his feet. He started pacing back and forth and as if nothing had happened.

“Thank you Jennifer for coming home for that stupid photo shoot. The day I saw your tattoo, I knew what I had to do. It was so easy to plant the suspicion in your head against Tara. You being an inquisitive person working for a magazine, I knew you would try to dig information on how Tara climbed the ladder of success so quickly. Thereafter, I followed you everywhere like a shadow, watching you closely and whom you meet and what you do. Your intellectual boyfriend, this dumbass lawyer cum blog enthusiast, was so thrilled when I called him and gave him details of the Gala Gang that he put it on his blog and showed it to you. I wanted your past to dance in front of you and make you to see the similarity between yours and Tara’s past. I called you for Roohi’s birthday and planted the visiting card with that number written behind. My plan and you were following it like a puppet.”

Cyrus, Jennifer and Tara were stunned and stood frozen with their eyes following Shekhar pacing up and down. They could not believe what they had just heard. It was all Shekhar’s doing especially behind this discovery that Jennifer thought she had made. She was just doing what Shekhar had made her do. But why?

Just as Tara was about to open her mouth to throw a round of abuses towards Shekhar, they heard Roohi coming out of the darkness and as soon as she saw Tara, she ran towards her with a smile on her face, ignorant of what was happening around her.

Shekhar moved forward and picked up Roohi “Dare anyone come forward and I will kill her” he threatened with a vengeance in his eyes and everybody stood still.

“Tara, you bitch, what did you think? Being your husband for seven years, I would not be aware of your dirty past? You will sell your kid to those goons and think that all will be fine and no one will find out? Guess what, I found out! You knew how much I wanted a baby of our own. You had one and you hid it from me. You sold your own daughter and you betrayed me, my trust and my love. "

"And to top it all, you started to flirt with that bastard Aryan Ahuja. one of the key players of my game,I knew who he was by the research I did on your past, Tara.I called him here to blackmail you for money and send you to jail.he was my bait , my evidence against you.

But, you did not spare him too Tara, was he so charming? Did he make you laugh more than I did?  ” Tears started to flow from Shekhar’s eyes as he continued

“These past few years, all I have heard are comments from outsiders, your fans on what kind of man I am, sitting at home and enjoying the money of my wife. A good for nothing man, an unsuccessful writer and not a good husband too. Did I not love you Tara? I loved you more than my life, my career and what did you give me? You used me to fill your life, have a family for namesake and Roohi, You did not give her the love of a mother she deserved”

Tara fell to her knees, crying, as Jennifer and Cyrus tried to figure out how to get Roohi safely away from this madman.

“All was going according to plan, Jennifer would have put you behind bars and Roohi and I would have enjoyed your wealth, happily ever after. But you sick woman, you wanted to divorce me and give everything away to Roohi! What did you think that I would see my plans washed away so easily? No, I will kill Roohi, make you go to jail and take all your money.

Yes, yes. I will do that.” Shekhar was blinded by his greed and Jennifer could see the revenge in his eyes

Tara started pleading to Shekhar and told him that she would do anything to redeem whatever she did in her past and start a new life with Shekhar and Roohi.

A loud siren broke the spell of silence that had been put over Jennifer and Cyrus as they witnessed the turn of events. It was Mumbai Police and they were right on time. Shekhar tried to flee but the officers were fast enough to catch him around the waist and made him taste the soil as he fell, face down on the ground.

Tara ran towards Roohi, who had fallen down and was crying on seeing all the drama unfolding in front of her and her dearest daddy being taken away by some uniformed people.

 Jennifer stayed with the mother and child as Cyrus explained the details of the night and Shekhar’s confessions of trying to kill Roohi.

Tara was looking down in shame and could not control her tears as she was taken away by the police for interrogation

---------***

The police station was silent at that time of the night and apart from few constables and a superintendent, all had gone for the daily night patrolling of Mumbai streets.

The officers had officially recorded  Tara’s and Shekhar’s confessions and had registered a complaint against them. They also had an arrest warrant taken out against Aryan Ahuja after the statements given by Tara and Shekar.

Meanwhile ,Roohi was peacefully sleeping in Jennifer’s shoulders, tired after the eventful night.

“She has to be given to a child protection society for the time being” explained the officer, “Poor kid, she became an orphan again.”

Jennifer and Cyrus looked at each other, held their hands and said “No. Not this time sir, we think she finally found a permanent home”

 Alls well that ends well! read the epilogue here

The smell of old rocks of a 1000 year old temple-Helebidu

Dating back to 12th century, The Hoysaleswara temple in Helebidu in Hassan district in Karnataka ,is a masterpiece, studded with a profusion of carvings.you will be blinded by the intricacies and the minute detailing carved on the rocks.

The basement of the temple has the most richly sculptured friezes. Horsemen charge, war elephants charge, all in stone. Scenes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata add to the grandeur.

I visited the temple a second time recently and found that half a day is not sufficient to  explore the carvings. the temple enshrines the deities of Hoysaleshwara and Santaleshwara, named after King Vishnuvardhan Hoysala and his wife Queen Shantala

the carvings on walls

 Shivlingam in the sanctorum has been commended as a perfect prototype of Hindu style of architecture. Its architecture is considered as the pinnacle of Indian architecture.

visiting the temple in the monsoons gives it an even grandeur look and feel . walking towards the main temple you can smell the wet grass and soil from the garden around it and get the earthy aroma.

inside the temple

once inside the temple, you get surrounded by cold blanket.

instead of getting a damp ,dark and a confined space smell, you actually smell of old rocks with water dripping inside the small hole and pores. the fragrance is mixed with the garlands on the shrine and the smell of the flame of "Aarthi" or "Karpoor" burning.


its a mix of fragrance of  fresh flowers ,burning cotton strands dipped in pure ghee and the old rocks.



Its like the smell we get in villages inside the houses made of clay roofs and walls but it is surprisingly refreshing and clean .

The play with the sun and shade and placement of the pillars inside the temple is spell bounding. the pillars inside are carved in a such a way that lights reflect from each and falls directly on the main diety which is shiva. the shine on the pillars and floor is still the same . when light falls on floor, it looks wet and shines tremendously.

the play with pillars and sun and shade

the walls outside which are lined with carvings of mahabharata and ramayana stories. You can actually take a full round of the temple and see the stories unfold itself in the form of 3D sculptures.

the rain makes the exterior of the temple shine and when you go near to the small carvings or sculptures you get a earthly smell of old rocks mixed with water. you can feel the labor of the people who have tolled for years to make this masterpiece.

temple during monsoon

it is indeed a HOLY fragrance, with a difference. one you would not get inside crowded temples.