Yass! I am back again with an unplanned erratic update. Hope you all are safe and doing well. I ended up writing reasonably long chapter. So enjoy reading!

***

I felt a push but since I was on Daddy's shoulder, I didn't feel much impact.

Everyone shouted, "Ganapati bapa moraya!"

I shouted, albeit a few moments later, "Ganapati bapa moraya!"

"Anu, look over there," both Mummy and Daddy shouted. I swiftly turned to see a huge idol of Lord Ganapati being moved. Mummy joined her palms into a namaste and bowed slightly. When I did the same, excitedly, I bumped my chin to Daddy's head. I decided to not cry because nobody would have heard my cries. Why waste energy?

We moved with the crowd. I shouted until I could. When I felt my throat was too dry to shout, I stopped. I got some looks from people below me, so I started shouting again. All of a sudden, huge rush people seem to be pushing us. I felt less impact but I saw Mummy being pushed away from us. That's when Mummy screamed, "Let's go home now."

Daddy screamed, "The idol has just left this place, the procession will follow till Girgaon Chowpatty. We will wait for some more time."

She looked angrily at him. After a lot of pushing and screaming, Mummy started looking around nervously. I saw many men, looking at her, smiling. When someone smiles, I feel nice and smile back. But this was not one of the nice smiles. Looking at those smiles made me feel uncomfortable for some reason.

She screamed, "We should just head back home."

"Arre, we have not even moved 100 metres-"

"Show me at least one woman and I will stay."

Daddy took her hand and we started walking. I screamed, "I want to be here for some more time."

He replied, "Mummy is not feeling well it seems Anu. We will come back tomorrow."

"What do you mean tomorrow? Today is the visarjan, right?"

"She doesn't need to know that."

I looked at them clueless. Nobody bothered to answer my question on what 'visarjan' is. Soon, we boarded a train at a crowded station. There we got enough space to stand. Whilst we were stood there, I saw a man giving an uncomfortable smile. Immediately, I flipped my head. Is he still smiling? Tightly clutching Mummy's dress, I turned my face towards him. With same smile plastered on his face, he started unzipping his pants. I quickly turned my face away. That's when an incident reminded me of what his problem might have been.

"Mummy, until you speak with Anjali Aunty, can I play in this park?" I asked.

"Sure, but don't wander a lot. Someone might actually kidnap you," she warned.

I nodded. I looked at Samarth playing with some boys and asked them if I can join. He commented, "Nahi, go and play with those handicapped people. It's best for girls."

"What do you mean girls? Can't girls play games?"

"Sure, they can. Only if they are not a nazook kali like you girls."

"Nazook kali? What are you then hatta-katta kali? Stupid sookda bombil! Even if I get hurt, I will bleed but you will directly hit your bones. Then everyone will be able to see your white bones. Like a zombie!" I shouted and ran towards Mummy.

She looked at me and said, "Good that you came. We have to go home now, you must be hungry."

I nodded. After saying bye to Anjali Aunty, I asked, "Mummy, what is handicapped?"

"Handicapped people are those whose one or more body parts are not functioning properly."

"Huh? Meaning" I asked, kicking a small stone laying on the road.

"Meaning, some may have their hands not working properly or legs."

"Oh!"

"These are physical deformities."

"Ah! Don't use such big words!"

"When will you learn then? Physical deformities are like. . . hmm. . . like outer body, or more like you can see the deformity. Then, there's mental deformity."

"Oh! What's that?"

"It's like a person who is as old as me but has mind as old as yours."

"Me-eeee-aning?"

"They might look like me but their mind doesn't know how to eat properly, how to sit or even how to pee."

I understood a big thing. I am pretty sure this man has a men-mental. . . argh! Why can't Mummy use simple words? He has a body like Daddy but a mind like mine. I have to help him.

"Make sure you hold Anu properly," Mummy said. Daddy took me in his arms and said, "This is a better option."

"Daddy-"

"Not now Anu, we have to get down now."

"But-"

"Anu!"

After that stern voice, I just shut my mouth though it was difficult. Just before the train was about to stop, I felt a huge push that almost threw us out of the train. As soon as we stepped out, I announced, "Daddy, in the train there was a men-mental deform person."

"Huh? Mental deform? What's that?"

Mummy deciphered, "She must be trying to tell mental deformity."

"Oh! Anu, how did you come to know?" Daddy asked.

"That man was unzipping his pants to pee."

"Arre how's that possible? There are toilets in the train too."

"No Daddy, he has mental deformity. He was big person like you but has a mind like me."

"I am sure it is not a mental deformity-"

"No Mummy-"

Daddy stood in aghast. "Chaitra, did he try to flash his-"

"Anu doesn't need to know about this," Mummy cut him.

He asked, "Where is he? Can you point out?"

I turned to see that the train had left. But I spotted him on the opposite side of platform. I screamed, pointing towards him, "Daddy, there he is going."

He said, "Hold Anu for a second-"

Mummy looked at him unbelievably. "Oh! So now Mr. Hero will go and try to punish that person? When I said that let's not go today to see Lalbaugcha Raja on the day of visarjan, you said we must go. You must realise that these places will be super crowded and perverts like him will be roaming everywhere. I have heard that during visarjan, people throw buckets of water. Or even worse it might rain. If Anu gets sick, will you take care of her? No, you will rush to office. If that pervert's act had left any scar in Anu's memory, I would have gone back to Bangalore."

"Perverts wouldn't have roamed there?"

"They would have roamed. They roam everywhere. But at least I would be more careful."

"Is it not right to see Lalbaugcha Raja?"

"That's not what I meant. We could have gone on Sunday, couldn't we? It wouldn't have been this crazy."

Tired with the journey, I had dozed off. The next day, I cried as Daddy had gone to office and he had broken his promise.

***

"Anika, it's 9:45 am! Are you still not ready?" I heard a voice from the window. I climbed the diwan in a second and bent outside the window. From the grills, I could recognize Vamsi's face. Does he even eat his breakfast? I didn't realise when Mummy came and stood next to me, shouting, "She will come little late today, you can go without her."

I chewed the last bite of the upma and made a dash after grabbing my drawing bag. While walking on the road to my drawing classes, I pondered. Ever since this Vamsi has come to our building, he is too particular about time. Just then I spotted Diya Aunty, whom I tried to avoid but she had already seen me.

"Anu, where are you going?"

"Drawing classes, Aunty."

"Oh my! Did you finish your homework?"

"Yes Aunty."

"Did you study?"

"Yes Aunty."

"Did you revise whatever you had studied?"

I looked at her nervously. "No Aunty."

"Oh my! I shall go and speak to your mother immediately. You should be revising instead you're wasting your time learning this drawing."

Wasting my time? Yes of course that's what it will be like to people like you. Can your son whose revision is finished do drawing at my level? I bet he cannot. Hmph!

Diya Aunty was always bad news. Whenever she would visit my house, either my play time or Pokémon watch time would get reduced. Now she wanted to get rid of drawing classes too. Why can't she look after her two kids? Why does she have to give advice to Mummy? Why does Mummy follow her advice?

She made Mummy shift my drawing classes timings from evening to morning. Now, I wake up at 8 am, take bath at 8:45 am, start eating my breakfast at 9:15 am, go to classes at 10 am, come back to home by 11:15 am and then dress up for school. I would have to leave for school by 12:40 pm and then come back home at 5:30 pm. Earlier I would go to play by 6 pm and return at 8 pm but thanks to Diya Aunty, I go at 6 pm and come back at 7 pm.

While I was thinking all this, I had reached the drawing class. When I climbed two floors and knocked on the door, Drawing Aunty (that's what I would call her) would open it. But today, Vamsi opened it. "I bet you didn't finish eating your breakfast today also. Who eats so slow?"

I argued, "It was upma! I can't eat upma fast."

"You said the same thing on Monday!"

"That was idli! That sambhar had many vegetables!" I reasoned.

Today, Drawing Aunty wanted me to draw and colour a dolphin passing through a loop. It looked difficult. If I managed to draw this properly, maybe I can tell Mummy that I can draw well. In my quest to prove things, I didn't realise how time flew by. It was at exact 11 am, Vamsi stood up. "Anika, come let's go home."

I got up irritated. Vamsi was not a person who would stay in our building before we shifted. It was in October he shifted, and now in November he has joined the same drawing classes thanks to Mummy suggesting the same to his mother. His mother is a school teacher and Mummy said they speak the same language as Diya Aunty's, which was Odia. But the differences in their way of speaking, thoughts and dressing was astonishing. I liked Vamsi's mother's sense more. But why did it seem astonishing? Because Mummy would always categorise people according to their mother tongues.

While my mind was thinking all these things, I realised I had coloured the whole loop, instead of leaving a part where dolphin's body was supposed to pass. So now it looked like the dolphin was just jumping behind the loop. I was scared, ashamed and embarrassed; to an extent that I felt like taking my bag and running to home. Seeing me in nearly tears, Drawing Aunty said, "It's okay, Anika. Next time be careful."

While walking back, I had this fear – what if Mummy stopped me from going to drawing classes? Because I had made a simple mistake. Vamsi consoled, "Frankly, it was not such a big mistake. It has happened with me many times."

"Are you sure?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's quite common right? My mother won't stop me from coming to classes, right?"

"Don't be silly. Your mother won't stop you for such a small thing."

When I went home, Diya Aunty was still there. She snatched my bag and took out the drawing book. After seeing my dolphin disaster, she said, "Look, she goes to waste time over there."

Mummy said, "It's okay. Even if she wastes her time over there, I am fine with it. At least, she isn't couped up like your son is."

Diya Aunty stood there for a minute and said, "It's late now. I have to go home."

Mummy replied, "Okay, let's meet next time when you will have more time."

We are meeting again? As soon as she closed the door, I started crying. Mummy asked me once; I kept crying. She asked me again, I kept crying. When I didn't reply for the third time, she raised her hand, "Stop crying, otherwise I will give a slap on your mouth."

I tried to stop crying but I couldn't. Please stop, Mummy is looking angry.

"Now, tell me what's wrong."

With sobbing voice, I explained to her everything. She said, "Why can't pay more attention while doing anything? You don't have proper concentration."

Before I could start crying again, she exclaimed, "It's very late. Now get dressed up for school. Hurry up, let's wash your face."

Translation/Notes:

Lalbaugcha Raja: Literally translates to King of Lalbaug from Marathi. It is a public Ganesha idol kept in Lalbaug locality of Mumbai

Visarjan: Immersion of idol, in this case, immersion of Ganesha's idol in Girgaon Chowpatty

Nazook Kali: Literally translates to 'delicate bud' from Hindi. It is used especially for physically weak people

Hatta-Katta Kali: Literally translates to strong bud from Hindi

Sukda Bombil: (this one's legit funny) Literally translates to thin Bombay duck. It's a term for dried Bombay fish, which would have have become thin because it was dried. Hence, it is used as a slang in Mumbai language for a thin person. Also, Bombay duck is actually a fish.

*

I was pretty nervous writing about the first part of this chapter because I have taken many such incidents/stories and woven into one part. I admit I took quite some time to write it. Also, about Chaitra and Manavendra's decision of not telling Anika about that man flashing his p**** was purposefully written to be hidden from her because from most of the stories/incidents I have read/heard, the girls/women didn't know what had happened to them until they grew a considerable age.

Thank you for reading.