The lockdown is running across the country successfully. No work, no outdoor movements. Life got boring in just two weeks. We are passing the time by eating, watching TV, reading books and sleeping.
My wife and I, Subimal Sen, stay in an enormous apartment in Kolkata. I am a college professor. For the past month, not only my college, but everything is closed. Shops are closed, the market closed, offices closed.
The lockdown has changed our daily routine. Now I wake up at 10 am instead of 7 am, then have breakfast, watch television (no newspaper also) and here and there within the four walls of the apartment on the 4th floor. Our apartment is one of the five apartments of River View society. There are five floors in each apartment, and every floor has four flats.
******
Things happened like this. Yesterday, we spent the entire night watching old classic films, and that’s why we woke up in the late afternoon and somehow cooked food for lunch from whatever vegetables were there in the refrigerator, then ate and went to sleep as we were too tired.
When we again woke up, it was already midnight. My wife shouted at me for not waking her up from sleep as she had to offer the evening prayers. I said sorry to her and told her to forget it as after a few hours it would be dawn. So she could do her last day’s evening prayers and the Morning Prayers together. She insisted that we already missed one Morning Prayer and evening prayer, which could be a bad omen.
Due to the lockdown, there was shortage of earnings for the past few months; although I was getting my full salary from the government on time, still coaching classes were off, and it had stopped the income from coaching over a month.
She said that she would change her dress just in a minute, say the prayer, and go back to sleep. I agreed at last because there could be no argument with her on this topic at midnight when she had already decided. So she left the bed and went to the adjacent room, which is our prayer hall, and I remained on bed, trying to regain my sleep.
Suddenly I woke up with a start by the sound of the conch. Immediately I got up from bed and went to the prayer hall. My wife was putting the conch back to the place with a smiling face, as if she had achieved the goal to receive eternal blessings.
“What have you done, darling?”
“Why? Just blew the conch.”
“Are you mad? At midnight you are blowing the conch? Do you know what consequences it could bring?”
“Oh! I forgot. Let’s switch off the lights and get back to the bed.”
We came back to our bed, switching off the lights. Oh God, after a few minutes, we heard another conch being blown, then another one, and in this way, there was a series of conches being rung together. I whispered to my wife, “See what a mistake you had done.”
Suddenly there was a bell on the door.
“What to do now?” my wife asked.
“I don’t know. Just ignore,” I replied.
The bell continues to ring, and at last, we get up from the bed and came to the drawing-room, and I opened the door, giving a surprised look with my sleepy eyes.
“What’s the matter, Mr Chatterjee?” I asked the person who was there in front of the door.
“No, no. I am not Chatterjee. I am Dasgupta. You all are still sleeping?” Mr Anil Dasgupta asked me.
“Why, what’s the matter?”
“Haven’t you heard anything? There is an earthquake that hit our town. Listen to the sound carefully,” he replied.
Some conch was still blowing from various apartments and neighbourhood. In every part of Bengal, if anybody sees or feels the earthquake, it is a tradition to blow the conch to make others aware of it so that everybody could come out of their houses, gather in an open and safe place.
I looked at my wife, and she understood what I meant then I said to Mr Dasgupta, “I am sorry. We were in a deep sleep.”
“Come on, be fast and get out of your home. Everybody else has already moved out of the apartment.”
“Yes. We are coming.”
Then I told my wife to keep quiet and not to say anything. We somehow managed ourselves and came out of our apartment. We were astonished to see that everybody except us was already there at midnight, and there were terror and panic on everybody’s face.
Our situation was terrific. Neither could we digest the entire situation that got started because of us, nor could we say that to anyone.
It was almost 2 am when the local police came into the picture, asking about the source of ringing the conch. The police officer seemed furious as he asked us why this sudden disturbance and panic.
It had spread the panic throughout the locality and beyond.
The people were running, shouting, howling here and there on the street post-midnight. And that became a headache for the police and other relevant government officials.
In this way, almost two hours past and then finally the police informed everyone that there was no news of any earthquake in the city and the country.
The police also assured us that whosoever had spread the rumour will not be spared, and they will take strict action against the person.
My wife and I were almost numb with fear and stood still. Mr Dasgupta again came near me and poked me.
What happened, Mr Sen? Let’s move on to our homes.
Yea, I replied.
My wife asked what time it was.
I looked into my wristwatch and replied 3.25 am.
We returned back and as I was locking the main door, we outburst in laugh. My wife immediately warned me and we controlled back.
I said to her, “We have to keep this secret till our last breathe” and laughed again.
@Spondon Ganguli
Really humorous. Nice story.
Really interesting!