DELHI DAFFODIL BLOOMS

This piece is a tribute to the Delhi Gangrape Victim which shook the entire nation. This is for the women who dare to stand apart from the crowd and walk with their heads held high. Good luck ladies!!

DELHI DAFFODIL BLOOMS

Time:-6:00 p.m.

Date:- December 29, 2012

Place:-New Delhi

It was an usual chilly evening in New Delhi. Everything was quite normal as it was in every evening. People were busy abusing government policies, price hike, tuition fees and other chore problems. The commuters trapped in traffic were as usual simply pissed off and wanted to get home. The Delhi metro was also running at its usual busy schedule. The stray street dog, Sheru, was as usual lingering his urge to have his dinner just by sleeping on both his front legs looking vaguely at this posh and life filled with hurry when no one had time for nobody. Mr. Khurana as usual was talking to Mrs. Khurana over phone and asking for ever changing list of vegetables she needs for her stupendous task of cooking purpose and his son, bittu started screaming "Papa, i want a new pencil box". Mr. Khurana gave that awry look which showed how disgusted he was of his life. Everything was as usual as it should have been in this chilly winter evening in Delhi.

                                                                      

Time:-7:00 p.m.

Date:-December 29, 2012

Place:-New Delhi

This usual stupidity of this city experienced some unusual hype of events as red-sirened cars gushed in and out of home ministry at North Block as if all heavens have broken loose. The shops pulled their shutters as Mangaram, the head constable at Kalkaji Police Station with a cane in his hand started screaming at the shopkeepers to shut their shop "Fast, Fast you idiots. Lazy bones, Shut it down before my big boss comes.". Within half an hour everyone felt that something big happened somewhere.

Time:-8:00 p.m.

Date:-December 29, 2012

Place:-New Delhi

As usual, the housewives were not seeing the daily soaps. Everyone was glued to their television sets which flashed a news"CITY IS IN RED ALERT. NO ONE SHOULD OR MUST NOT BE FOUND ON THE STREETS AFTER NINE". Mrs. Bhatia started pleading Mr. Bhatia to call their daughter, Chinky, as she is still outside and not yet home. Manisha, who was married just three months back started calling her husband who was out buying some eatables but, there was no network coverage. Everyone was worried and a bit shocked. Everyone was in a fit of frenzy and taken by surprise. What's wrong with our phone? What's wrong with our city? Everyone started shaking their trust and started gossiping among their neighborhood.

The whole commotion grasped Delhi in a matter of minutes. The streets now wore a deserted look. No vehicles..no human beings No traffic. Nothing was there. Everyone stayed indoor with gasping breath. Some big storm was coming indeed. Something happened somewhere. What was that? What has changed the daily tantrums of people of Delhi.

Time:- 9: 15 pm 

Location:-Safdarjung Hospital

Place:- New Delhi

The patients were all in their respective beds. The nurses and medicos were all going here and forth in a horrible form of restlessness. The attendants of the normal patients were all instructed to stay inside and not to go out of the premises. Every senior and junior authority was tightlipped about what was going on. The commoners were all left to guess. Some said "Neighbor country has attacked us" and some said "The government has declared an emergency due to some crisis". Sheru, the stray dog was wondering at the gates of hospital lying at the gates about this uncommon day, what happened there was no one to throw stones when he pecked at stray food of the streets? What happened to the old ambulance driver, who used to give him a bread or two. What happened to these ever indisciplined Delhi people? A layer of strict hitleric discipline seemed to be wrapped over the city.

Time:-10:00 pm

Location:-Bed no. 311, Dept of Obstretics and Gynaecology, Safdarjung Hospital

Place:- New Delhi

  

There were around 70-80 people in this unfortunate place that day including few doctors, nurses, patients and their bragging attendants. Everyone's attention was centered at this old, rusted bed. A girl was lying there dead. Her father and mother were wailing putting full effort on their epiglottis. India's home minister was standing quietly looking again and again at his wrist watch, but pulled out his handkerchief after he accidentally saw Delhi's chief minister sobbing too. Everyone was busy showing how sensitive everyone was to this tragic death. Even the onlookers started to pour their solidarity there. Neelima, a girl of 11 was there in bed no- 209. She just thought that this girl must be from a rich family or might be someone from the white-collared breed of India. Then she asked her mother "Mom, what happened to her that she died and who is she?". Her mother put a finger on her own mouth gesturing her innocent princess to keep quite and then she replied to her daughter in a tiny whisper rather in a hush-hush "She has been raped dear and bad things were done to her". Neelima couldn't suppress the urge to purge out the next question " What is rape, mom?". Her mother with a horrified look got up and went to the washroom just in order to avoid the curiosity in her daughter's eyes that could have drenched her face in tears. Jahiruddin who was there with his wife and a disabled son felt bit grasping pain suddenly inside his heart due to the constant tears of parents of the dead girl.  

                                          The policemen were in a hurry to take the body of the girl and cremate her as early as possible before the world knew. The home minister was quite strictly giving orders in a whisper to the police chief to handle all matters swiftly so that people don't feel this government is spineless. Then Neelima, the lil curious girl gave a direct stare at the bed and now noticed that people were busy taking that girl's body in a white polythene sheet. Nobody expected that this is going to happen and something bizarre and something embarrassing happened which took everyone including the so called VIPs to shame. Neelima ran and hugged the corpse, wailing and sobbing at the top of her voice. She was asking the minister sir with folded hands "Please let didi stay here. She was good. She used to give me biscuits and apples. Who is going to give me these when she is not there?". It was such a question that not even the big shots present there had no answer. 

Time:--8:00 a.m.

Date:-30 December, 2012

Place-New Delhi

Everything was normal. Everything was calm and serene. Mrs. Khurana was as usual trying to convince his husband to get back from office at time time. She was also shouting him to get her spectacles right. Chinky was busy on her cellphone with her boyfriend to book two tickets for a new cinema going on at PVR. Sheru, was lying somewhere and searching for some scrap to have a munch on.  The red-sirened cars were quite smoothly going on their business on busy streets of Delhi. Beautiful daffodils were blooming at Mughal Gardens smiling at everyone. The gardener was chopping the branches to make it look more cute and was saying "these plants never die.  Again they grow in few days." These grunting words of the gardener was heard by the daffodils and they smiled more wide and as if they didn't smile for ages. In this smile, they had something to say "We will bloom. We will shine. No matter how much you crush us or tear us apart".

SUBRAT

Author's Note

This is my first try at writing. Please feel free to suggest me if it could have been better by any means.

Reviews

[Cerise]

OMG!!!..I have no words for what you have written..anythign i say will be less...you have done a wonderful work..truthfully,.y de heck were u even getting scared..you have done such a wonderful piece..am glad i got to read it...and u r thousand times better at writting than me..i thnk i shud tak advice from u on writtign this day forth...well done..u reali have the talent to write storys quite well..

[Prritiy]

The gardener was chopping the branches to make it look more cute and was saying "these plants never die. Again they grow in few days." These grunting words of the gardener was heard by the daffodils and they smiled more wide and as if they didn't smile for ages. In this smile, they had something to say "We will bloom. We will shine. No matter how much you crush us or tear us apart".

there are tears in my eyes, nicely written.

[Subrat]

thanks prittiy maam....i am bestowed.

[Prritiy]

you are welcome

[SOUL LESS]

Well, the ideology is fine. I would however recommend increased reading to improve your grammar and expressions. They are rather anti climatic. The politic angle has been wonderfully explored by Orwell in Animal Farm. Just an example.
Your ideas get through, but this could have so much more strength written by a person better skilled at manipulating the language.

[Subrat]

welll....i am an amateur. I will try to keep these things in mind next time. Thanks 4 ur constructive comments.

[SOUL LESS]

Keep in mind? No. Read some more novels and stories. Preferably not modern. You'll get better :)

[tuvi]

I'm glad to have read this ...this is my first read on your work ....
errors happens as part of flowing with the flow of thoughts process .. but that's admissible considering the fact the way you've done your little bit to bring out the atrocity so well relating to a woman's soul .... anything that happens physically would gradually heal but something that gets ingrained as memory just doesn't leave no matter how hard a person tries .....

I hate the fact that the societies find a tarnished image of a raped victim....

Its very well written. Thoughts are well communicated. Keep writing. Hope to read more and more from you :)

Thanks for sharing this piece of work !

Tuvi

[Reeti]

The suspense has been withheld quite successfully. The characters have been focused on from time to time providing different perspectives. The point remains that the atrocity and the defiling of a woman's body is revolting.

Certain grammatical mistakes are present such as repetition of words 'as usual' and 'time time'; 'posh and life' (it should be 'posh life'); since this is a formal writing (considering the topic is a grave and formal one), it is better to rephrase 'pissed off' as 'anguished/exasperated' and 'lil' as 'little'.

I am glad to have read this. I fancy this writing as the format is that of a journal or periodical newspaper. It is a wretched happening that a woman's body is mutilated physically and socially. I hate the fact that the societies find a tarnished image of a raped victim. Where is the love and pity?

[Subrat]

thanks reeti. I will be careful next time. You know i just tried to write for the first time. It just came to me to write about delhi's rape victim and i just wrote in about 2 and half hours. Thanks very much letting me know about the mistakes. I am glad that you read it so keenly. Thanks buddy.

[Reeti]

You're welcome! 2 and a half hours! That was hard work. =)

[Neha Godambe]

My friend, you have the power of putting down your profound thoughts on paper. I am glad you invited me to read your writing. I do not believe this is your first literary piece ever :) Its very well written. Thoughts are well communicated. Keep writing. Hope to read more and more from you :)

[Subrat]

Its my first writing though all the time dear, i always thought and thought and only thought to write, but finally i decided to write. So, its my first writing. Thanks for this encouragement dear. Awaiting to get more such encouragement from you.

[Racy Daniel]

Hello Subrat,
As I see you have some kind of power to write in a such a way to penetrate the inner meaning of any piece of writing. I liked this story very much. You know while you write two things are important one is patience and another is determination. I see both of them in you. As this is your very first writing so my word for you is just keep writing and be open to nature. So that will help you. All the best...........

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^DANIEL

[Subrat]

Thank you Daniel. Your encouraging words shall be quite helpful. Thanks friend

[Katherine S.]

This is such a sad story, it's terrible that things like this happen. But you did an amazing job at writing this, especially for your first piece of writing! And I agree with Derek, the ending really did bring the whole story together. It was very well written, and it's a great piece of writing, good job. :)

[Subrat]

Thank you Katie!!!! You made my day. Thanks for this inspiration.

[Katherine S.]

You're welcome. Haha, I'm glad I could. :)

[Time's The Bond]

More like an hour by hour journal. It was well written I enjoyed it quite so.
But what was with this no one should be seen in the streets after 9pm? Was that kind of an everyday common thing or was it a new thing?

I grow curious...keep writing!

[Subrat]

It was a new thing as the city was on red alert. Thanks anyways Wickedly kind.

[Derek Nall]

I'm not much of a story writer but I see good things in this. Very sad parts that pulled me in...so sad, and the end of it was great. Love the flower talk and how it springs hope in the reader...even through such tragedy.

[Subrat]

Thanks Derek...I m grateful.