This post has been published by me as a part of the Blog-a-Ton Season 2 edition 18; the eighteenth edition of the online marathon of Bloggers; where we decide and we write. To be part of the next edition, visit and start following Blog-a-Ton.
Rohitash ran to his mother, crying. His mother, Neela had to leave everything & rush for him. He seemed inconsolable. Following him was the whole gang of the society's little ones. Rohitash was the Bhaichung Bhutia of the society. He used to like football & was good at it. His father had brought him the best football. It had the FIFA emblem on it along with snaps of many a football heroes. Presently he started explaining Neela what had happened.
Hitler uncle had once again confiscated their football. Whenever an opportunity would present he would do a thing or two which would annoy the kids in the society. The name Hitler, was coined for him by the kiddos themselves. He would always scold the kids for breaking the silence around his flat. His Flat was on the first floor right in front of the only open area in the society. The kids had no other option. They would try to control the noise but soon they would forget it & would get noisy. With kids even Chess would be a noisy game. :-) To his dis-credit, in the past, Hitler uncle had even confiscated their chess boards & carom boards. The kids would complain to the elders in the society about Hitler uncle but nobody would dare talk to him. He was a known as a highly volatile, attacking person. He could get very abusive at times. Everybody would keep a distance from him & prefer not to cross ways with him. The only person who could talk to him & get things done was Kelkar uncle. He was friends with him & would often get back the things confiscated by him. In fact Mr. kelkar was like his link with the surroundings. Last 2 years Mr. kelkar had not been around, he was out of country on a 2 years long assignment. Rohitash & team knew that only kelkar uncle could get them their football back. But having learnt about his absence they were so sure of not seeing the football again. That's why the team had joined Rohitash for the complaining. episode. Neela consoled Rohitash & patiently listened out the boys. She knew she was hardly of any help. But she promised to get them a new football the next day. That changed the mood of the gang. Moreover she also got some good chocolates for each one of them. The kiddos gang was happy again, Hitler uncle was forgotten for the moment.
Satish Khandekar was a well known advocate in the high court. He was working with the Mudholkars, a very well known legal advisor firm in the city. Being amongst the best, he was a busy man. Apart from being volatile people were wary of his being an advocate. They knew he would talk himself out of any situations. But there would be times when he would not be out of home for days. Nobody knew much about them apart from Mr. kelkar. There would be hush-hush talks around about the family. The couple was a lonely one & things were not going smooth with them. There would often be quarrels between the two. At times his wife would be gone to her parents for long. Mr. Kelkar was a regular visitor & would often try to spend time with his volatile friend during the crisis situations. On the face of it, Hitler would seem such an apt tag for the man. In reality he was not much of a Hitler. The only thing was people had not seen that side of him. His acquired loneliness, the dis-figured family life had taken a toll on the man. The hitlersque persona was like the rust formed on a fine metal pot. Unless the rust is gone one can't see the reality.
Soon the exams were on and the kids & the parents got engrossed in their own world. It was time to forget & forgive the Uncle Hitler. Books, studies, schools, teachers, child care etc. were the priorities now. Most of the kids would find it difficult to get to the playing fields & away from the burgeoning parents. For many, the pressure of the parents was the real thing than the exams themselves. The society premises would become a no man's land during the exam times. For, the premises would ware such a quietness as would be seen in the breeze less jungles.
Eventually The exams got over. Suddenly, the quietness was gone like the steam gets off from the pressure cooker. The premises again became a busy happening place. Cycling, football, cricket were again the flavour of the season. As it often happens with children, they are quick to forgive & forget. Uncle Hitler would be forgotten during the off-exam times. He was any ways always there & the kids had found their own ways of working around the problem.
The game of chess was on & it seemed an interesting battle. It would often be difficult to get the gang around chess board. But never the less, some of the kids would get on with it. and Chess being the brainy game the gang would want to show off their brainy side. Although Chess was a rarity, whenever it would be played, there sure would be a crowd around. Soon the gang took sides on the board. The suggestions started pouring in.
"Chimmo, move that rook & take that pawn".
"Swaral, get out your queen & Kill that white Bishop".
Suddenly there were 20 kids playing on the chess board. The noise had reached a crescendo. It was time for Mr. Hitler to arrive on the scene. It was time for Mr. Hitler to arrive on the scene. and he arrived without delay. There he was watching over their game. The kids were astonished to see hitler uncle. Having Known him, they were afraid. In a hurry somebody just took up the chess board & collected the pieces in their bag. They thought he would scold them & just pick up their chess board. But the kids were pleasantly surprised, there was a marked change in hitler uncle's ways. He was smiling. By wearing a smile you can be friends with any kid in the world. What was happening was a testimony of that. Soon he brought out a bag of some American chocolates & distributed those among them. He stayed there for a while & then invited all the kids to his home. They hesitated but never the less followed him up to his home. He took them in a room & the kids were surprised to see all their confiscated things there. Everything was properly kept. The footballs, the bats, the cricket balls, the chess boards, all was put in a glass cupboard. He handed over everything to the kids & again some more chocolates. They could not believe their luck. They had got back all that was theirs. The best part was, they were now sure he was no more Hitler uncle. It had now changed to Satya uncle. The transformation was sudden but so complete, from hitler uncle to satya uncle. The kids returned to their homes & soon it became talk of the housing society. Everyone was wondering what was wrong.
Satish Khandekar was seated in his chair looking at the television screen but his mind was beyond it. Clearly,He was thinking about the future. He was overwhelmed with the umpteen positive possibilities the phone call had brought to his life. The phone call in the morning had changed his life. His wife had called up in the morning to inform that he was going to be a father. The news they had been waiting for, since 10 years had finally come. & it was just about the right time. Everything in his life had got so stretched, he was on the edge. The news was just the thread which would save him. The past just went through his mind. Those umpteen visits to those fertility clinics, those never ending enquiries from the relatives about the absence of a child in their lives.
"Sorry, it did not worked out. better luck next time."
"We tried our best, I think we must go for another laproscopy"
"There are 70 percent chances but we are not sure. Its just statistics"
"We have a 30 percent success rate & there is no way this would fail"
He was very fond of kids & would always talk to them whenever they would be seen. But there would be some people who would say "Okay !!!!! that's why he always makes it a point to talk to kids.That consoles the absence of kids in his life.". They were so wrong. Kids or no kids of his own he was so good with children. They would become his friends in no time. Such were his ways. But those caustic comments had changed him forever.
They had listened to so many doctors over the years & had finally stopped the treatments. These treatments would make big holes not just on their pockets but it would also throw the couple on the edge. It were no less that an emotional breakdown.
Sometimes the relatives would be so blunt about it. Whenever they had been to a family function people would often enquire about their treatment.They would just ask why it was not happening. Some would just throw Over the suggestions albeit with the concerns. The prime suggestion would be visiting a particular shrine. Satish was not much of a believer but still the suggestions of different shrines would not stop. Finally there came a time when they stopped meeting their friends & relatives. They would hardly be seen in those family functions. It was no wonder, Over the years this all had drew the couple apart from each other. The domestic life became a mess. It was to their credit that in spite of all that they had been through, they remained a couple.
But now, things had taken a different turn. The news had come just out of no where. He did not know what to do ? what to feel ?. He was so confused. That was when he heard that noise. Generally it would annoy him but today was a different day. he suddenly knew what he should be doing. He just walked over to the children & did what his heart told him. He was no more the hated Uncle Hitler. He was now satya Uncle. The rust was off the pot now. It was shining with lustre. The world had just become a better place.
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