Rakhi Purnima

Rakhi Purnima


The SBI(State Bank of India) calendar reminded me of having two important events on August 16th, one the Rakhi in the morning and the lunar eclipse in the evening. The astrologers have already warned us not to take food from evening seven to mid night one. I was happy that some ever hungry middle class people will have to remain with out food for six hours. We are not supposed to move out which too will help us from petrol expenses. But my wife who was twenty kg of extra weight, mostly in form of ugly fat here and there was worried as to how she can manage such a long fasting period? She had asked me the previous day to bring her some fruits and sweets to over come the eclipse effect.
I had brought some apple, and banana for her at a very high price as most of the husbands were there to help their over weight wives from the menace of the lunar effects and the vendor was having a roaring business. One gentleman even commented there should be more frequent eclipse so that our hungry wives remain fasting. Another gentleman retorted back but at whose cost? Most of us who were there laughed except the shop keeper.

On 16th morning she told me that she would love to take some south Indian food for the morning break fast. As an obedient husband I went to the nearest Udipi restaurant and ordered ten idlies and ten “badas’.I was given a token after the payment and was asked to collect the packet from another counter.
As I was waiting, I saw many young student couple of the near bye college of engineering enjoying their breakfast. There were mixture of girls and boys of different sizes and shapes and with variety of attires. So tight were their modern garments that I could visualize every thing in side as a medical professional.

I was interested to see who will pay the bill the boy or the girl. As I have seen it’s the boy who invariably ends up as the bakra/loser. For a change the beautiful girl seating next to the counter where I was standing paid the bill.
The boy was very excited and was smiling when the girl brought out the “Rakhi” from her vanity bag and before the boy could say anything it was tied on his wrist. The smile vanished as Fast it appeared and he brought out his hanky and wiped off some of the sweats from his eye brows which have rolled down warmly on to his face.
Now he has to pay the ‘bahan’ for the sacred thread of love for the brother. There were other students who after watching with awe, they immediately left their respective tables not to be seen in the near vicinity. A huge loud satirical laughter which was about to lunge forward was some how or other controlled by me before I left the counter with my packet for the starving wife.
When I narrated this incident to my wife she asked ‘have you ever faced similar fate in your college days’?
‘I have never believed in spoiling the sacred relationship between a brother and a sister for a gift and political gimmicks’. Was my sharp reply

Sanjoy Kumar Satpathy
Patia, Bhubaneswar.