In a place where rain strikes and strikes
rain, one evening, an eerie silence took over the churchyard as the dense lid
of the night closed upon the horizon. There was a jarring silence which would
scare anyone, but JJ was above all this, or so she thought. Trying to stay
behind a hedge in the shadows of the overhanging coconut trees, she sped
through the yard heading towards a leading daily – News Today’s office. JJ
alighted from her bicycle and detached her camera in a swift motion from her
sling bag.
She wore a quirky red and yellow
flannel shirt tucked in her denim shorts and heavy boots which almost touched
her knees. She carried off a multi-stranded grey pearl neck piece with a
palm-sized feather and diamanté pendant, and she conveniently resembled a gypsy
punk. A dusky skin tone which she is proud of and her Lucifer’s morning star
tattoo are two things which are strikingly unique about this young woman. Since
childhood she had had the ability to pick up languages and she could
effortlessly speak English, Tamil, Telugu, Konkani, Hindi and Marathi and of
course Malayalam. Many of her pictures have been used by dailies all over India
as a cover to convey their stories.
She crouched beside the muddy bushes and
stood up, brushing herself off and taking in her surroundings. She scanned the
area for any onlookers but she found none. The original entrance was always
closed at this time, she thought. Taking baby steps towards the office, she
lurched past the corridor and went to look for the alternative way in. It was
very dark for her to figure out if it is the same place her DJI Phantom Drone
had pointed earlier that day. Yes, she had manoeuvred the whole thing, having
great hands-on with her quadcopter which takes aerial photos. She could pull
through an operation of this nature with great ease. When she finally reached
the back entrance, she gave a quick knock before opening the door.
She went in and closed the door behind her.
It was a small dark conference room with a
computer, a couple of chairs and a table. The room was illuminated only by the
glow from the computer when JJ switched it on. She opened the browser and
quickly typed in a URL and when the webpage loaded, she quickly went to the
recently visited link and clicked it. “The Queen
of Arabian Sea” she blurted out loud and that was an article with the
picture she had taken as a cover for that special edition for News today. The
next few moments were a blur.
The picture shot by Jennifer |
All the lights suddenly came to life.
Someone is here, she thought as she almost skipped a heartbeat. She peered out
from behind the monitor and sensed it was too late. She felt like the world was
spinning beneath her feet.
JJ is a photographer who loves Aerial
photography and oceanic themes and visits the Fort Kochi beach and Marine drive
often only to go to the boulevard for clicking a peculiar moment. She likes to call herself JJ and answers only
to those who call her this way except for her Appan and Appachan (Dad and
Grandfather)
JJ’s dad literally disowned her when he
started a conversation with her, almost a year ago.
"Oh, yes! You will marry the
person we chose" her Appan had said when she spoke about her future for
the first time with him.
"Oh, yes!? “, echoed JJ, annoyed.
"Is that the only comment you can find to make? I am your only daughter
and I want to live my life the way I want. I will not go to the church and I
will marry the person I fall in love with. I might even live my life happily
married to photography. But it's all over now, isn't it? I should marry some
guy, a perfect stranger—a man I have never seen—of whom I know nothing, not
even his name—nothing except that he is a Malayalee and is a Christian."
Appan frowned impatiently. He was
furious but he also knew that Jennifer’s been an alert, vigorous mind, bright
and strong like a steel trap, and arguing with her was not at all an option.
As a father, surely he could have at
least tried to persuade her. But all he said was this - "Can't coerce a girl like you. Do what
you want but never come to me for anything. Ever again"
JJ left right then and never looked back.
JJ lived with her friends in an apartment in Kochi after this event.
Of course, appearances are deceptive.
Anyone, for instance, who had been standing outside the front entrance of their
house in Fort Kochi at eleven o'clock on a sunny April morning, might easily
have made a mistake. Such a person would probably have jumped to the conclusion
that the young lady of a determined cast of countenance, talking to her Appan
in a threatening tone was extremely rebellious. But what they were about to
find out is that she was an outcast.
JJ came live in front of me with your vivid narration, Rohini! I am keen to know now why she is an outcast and who was that woman? This tale is getting interesting and intriguing! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Shipa ! :)
ReplyDeleteI like your energy... you have the same energy when reading and commenting, which is commendable :)
:) nice...
ReplyDeleteThank you :):)
DeleteThis is so good Rohini!
ReplyDeleteThank you Aurindam! :)
DeleteI liked it Rohini. The pictures make it interesting. You have written it very well!
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot, Mahesh! :)
Delete