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Debt Owed

Debt Owed

By uff nayenPublished 2 years ago • 10 min read
Debt Owed
Photo by rupixen.com on Unsplash

After five sons, when a daughter was born, her parents named her Nirupama with great affection. Such a fancy name has never been heard before in this group. Almost only the names of Thakurdevata were common - Ganesha, Kartika, Parvati, for example.

Now Nirupma's marriage proposal is going on. His father Ramsundar Mitra searched for a lot but the husband was never to his liking. Finally Mast found the only son of Rai Bahadur's house and took him out. The said Rai Bahadur's ancestral property, though much reduced, remains a Banedi house.

He asked the bridegroom to pay ten thousand rupees and a lot of donations. Ramsundar agreed to it without any consideration; Such a pot cannot be missed in any way.

Money is not collected anymore. By blocking, selling, even with many attempts, six or seven thousand remained. The wedding day is approaching.

Finally the wedding day arrived. One agreed to lend the remaining amount at exorbitant interest but did not turn up during the period. There was a great commotion at the wedding. Ramsundar held our Rai Bahadur's hands and feet and said, "Let the good deed be done, I will surely repay the money." Rai Bahadur said, "If the money is not available, the bridegroom cannot be arranged."

At this accident, a tear fell from the heart. The root cause of this serious danger is that he wears cheeli, wears jewellery, sandal on his forehead, and sits in silence. It cannot be said that he is developing much devotion or affection towards his future in-laws. Already there is an advantage. The groom immediately disobeyed his father. He sat down and said to his father, "I don't understand bargaining, I have come to get married and I will leave." The father said to whomever he saw, "Sir, you have seen the behavior of today's boys." There were two elderly people, they said, "There is absolutely no moral education, therefore." Rai Bahadur sat down and sat down, seeing the poisonous results of the present education in his own children. The marriage was solemnized in a melancholy manner.

While going to the in-laws' house, the father could not hold back the tears as he pulled Nirupama to his chest. “Will they not let me come again, father,” Niru asked. Ramsundar said, “Why don't you let me come, mother. I will bring you.”

Ramsundar often visits his daughter but he has no prestige in Behaibari. Even the servants look down on him. Never see a girl for five minutes in a separate room outside the inner city, never see her. Such humiliation is not tolerated in the family home. Ramsundar decided to repay the money no matter what. Expenditures are extremely stretched; And always have to resort to various nefarious tricks to avoid the eyes of the creditors.

In this direction, the in-laws are pushing the daughter to sit up. After hearing the condemnation of the father's house, shedding tears through the door of the house has become part of his daily routine. If someone says, “Ah, what Sri. Seeing his wife's face makes his eyes close." The mother-in-law got up with a bang and said, “Sri is heavy. Just like the girl of the house, so is Shri.”

Even the wife's food is not taken care of. If a Dayaparatantra neighbor points out a fault, the mother-in-law says, "That's done." That is, if the father paid the full price, the daughter would get full care. Everyone looks as if the bride has no right here, has sneaked in. It seems that all these disrespect and insults of the daughter must have reached the ears of the father. So Ramsundar finally started trying to sell the homestead.

But he kept it a secret from the boys that he was sitting in a homeless shelter. He had decided to sell the house and live in that house on rent; He will follow such a strategy that the boys will not be able to know this before his death. But the boys could know. Everyone came and cried. Especially the eldest three sons are married and have some children. Their objection became very serious, the sale of the house was suspended. Then Ramsundar began to borrow money little by little from various places at high interest. It happened that the expenses of the family could no longer be met.

Niru could understand everything by seeing his father's face. The old man's face was dry and shriveled with a look of wretchedness and anxiety. When the father is a criminal from the daughter, how can the repentance of that crime be kept a secret? When Ramsundar met his daughter for a while with the permission of Behaibari, the heart of the father could be felt just by seeing his smile.

Niru has become very impatient to go to his father's house for days to comfort the aching father's heart. Seeing his father's pale face, he could no longer stay away. One day he said to Ramsundar, "Father, take me home." Ramsundar said, "Okay."

But he has no power - the natural right of a father over his daughter is as if he had to put a mortgage instead of money. Even the sight of the daughter, she is very hesitant to ask for alms and sometimes she does not have the mouth to say the second word if she is disappointed.

But if the girl wants to come home, how can the father not bring her. Therefore, it is better to keep the history of how Ramsundar collected three thousand rupees after admitting how much humiliation, how much loss, before submitting the application about him to Behai.

Wrapping the notes in a handkerchief and wrapping them in a sheet, Ramsundar went and sat near Behai. At first he read the news with a smile on his face. A mast has been stolen from Harekrishna's house, he told the details. Navinmadhav and Radhamadhav compared the two brothers and criticized Radhamadhav's reputation and Navinmadhav's knowledge and character; There was a new bemo in town, he talked about it a lot; Finally, he put down the hook and said in words, "Yes, yes, that money is left." Every day I think that I am going to take something with my hands but I don't remember the time. And brother, I am old.” After making such a long introduction, he released those three notes very easily and carelessly, like the three bones of a cage. Seeing the three thousand rupee note, Rai Bahadur burst out laughing. He said, "I don't care, I don't have anything to do with it." Referring to a popular Bengali proverb, he said, he does not want to make his hands stink for a small reason.

After this incident, no one offered to bring the girl home - only Ramsundar thought, "I don't like the shyness of all those relatives anymore." After being silent for a long time, he finally spoke in a soft voice. Rai Bahadur said without mentioning any reason, "He is not happening now." Saying this, he left for work. Ramsundar did not show his face to his daughter and tied a few notes to the edge of the sheet with trembling hands and returned home. He vowed in his heart that he would not leave the house again until he could claim his daughter without hesitation after paying all the money.

It's been a long time. Nirupama sends people after people but does not see the father. At last he stopped sending people out of arrogance - then Ramsundar felt a great pain in his heart, but still he did not go. Ashwin month came. Ramsundar said, "This time I will bring mother home during the puja, if not I will" - took a very strong oath.

On the fifth day of the sixth day, Ramasundar again tied a few notes on the edge of the sheet and started the journey. A five-year-old grandson came and said, "Grandpa, are you going to buy me a car?" For a long time, he has had a hobby of riding a wheelbarrow and eating air, but there is no way to satisfy it. A six-year-old granddaughter came and told Sarodna that she did not have any good clothes to go to the puja invitation.

Ramsundar knew it, and the old man thought about it a lot as he ate tobacco. Remembering that when Rai Bahadur's house is invited to worship, his brides will have to go like poor people in very modest ornaments, he has sighed a lot; But there was no other result except that the aging line on his forehead became deeper.

Hearing the cries of the afflicted household, the old man entered his mansion. Today he does not have that shyness; Gone is that startled look on the faces of the doorkeepers and servants, as if entering your house. He heard that Rai Bahadur is not at home, he will have to wait for a while. Unable to contain his excitement, Ramsundar met the daughter. Both eyes began to water with joy. The father cries and the daughter cries; Neither of them can talk anymore. It took a while. After that Ramsundar said, "I am taking you now, mother. No more goals."

At that time Harmohan, the eldest son of Ramsundar, entered the house with his two younger sons. He said to his father, "Father, should we float on the way?" Ramsundar immediately turned into a fire and said, "Will I go to hell for you?" Will you let me keep my truth?” Ramsundar is sitting selling the house; The boys did not know about anything, they had made many arrangements for him, but when they found out, they suddenly became very angry and annoyed with them.

His grandson clasped his knees tightly and raised his face and said, "Grandpa, won't you buy me a car?" Natshir Ramsundar did not get any answer. The boy went to Niru and said, "Pisima, will you buy me a car?" Nirupama understood everything and said. , "Father, if you give one more penny to my father-in-law, then you will not see your daughter again, I said touching your neck."

Ramsundar said, "Chi Ma, don't talk like that. And if I can't pay this money, it's an insult to your father and you too." Niru said, "If you give money, it's an insult. Does your daughter have no dignity? Am I just a bag of money, as long as there is money I am worth it. No father, don't insult me with this money. Besides, my husband doesn't want this money." Ramsundar said, "Then he won't let you go, mother." Nirupama said, "If he doesn't, tell me what to do. You don't want to take it anymore." Ramsundar lifted the note-bound sheet on his shoulders with trembling hands and returned home avoiding everyone's eyes like a thief.

But it was not a secret that Ramsundar had brought this money and left without giving it due to his daughter's prohibition. An inquisitive neighbor told this news to Niru's mother-in-law. Hearing this, his anger knew no bounds. His in-laws became a bed for Nirupama. On this side, her husband has moved to the country after becoming a Deputy Magistrate shortly after the marriage; And lest association should teach inferiority, Niru's interviews with relatives of the paternal house have recently been completely forbidden.

At this time Niru suffered a severe affliction. But her mother-in-law cannot be entirely blamed for that. He was very neglectful of his body. During the cold season of Kartika, the door is open all night, no clothes are worn during winter. No diet rules. When the maidservants sometimes forgot to bring food, he did not even open their mouths to remind them. He who is living depending on the grace of the servants and housewives of the next house, this reform was taking root in his mind. But the mother-in-law could not bear such a thought. If she saw any neglect of the bride towards food, then the mother-in-law would say, "Is she the daughter of the Nawab's house?" The food of the poor man's house does not reach his mouth. Sometimes he used to say, "Don't look at it once, don't look at it, it's getting burnt day by day."

When the disease became serious, the mother-in-law said, "All his wickedness." Finally, one day, Niru said to her mother-in-law, "I will see my father and my brothers, mother." Mother-in-law said, "It's just a trick to go to father's house."

Don't believe it if someone says – the day Niru's breath appeared in the evening, the first doctor saw him, and that day the doctor saw him end.

The elder wife of the house died, and the funeral was done with much fanfare. Just as the Rai Chaudhuris have a popular reputation in the district for the ceremony of idol burial, the Rai Bahadurs have a reputation for the cremation of wives - no one has ever seen such a sandalwood pyre in this country. By doing this, Shraddha was possible and heard only in the house of Rai Bahadur, in this they incurred some debt.

While consoling Ramsundar, everyone talked about the tragic death of his daughter.

At this point the letter of the Deputy Magistrate came, "I have made all the arrangements here, so send my wife here immediately." Rai Bahadur's buffalo wrote, "Father, I have arranged another girl for you, so take leave and come here immediately."

This time, twenty thousand rupees bet and cashed out.

fifamls

About the Creator

uff nayen

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