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Click here to read articles from Professor Iyengar.“I have had a discussion with your daughter. I shall discuss the matter with Manjunatha. I shall write to you tomorrow itself; or perhaps I may go over here”, Munna told a lie trying to avoid any further talk with Mahabala Bhatta. Trying to get at the truth, in a sarcastic manner, Mahabala Bhatta asked, “What’s there in that secret?” Munna wriggled out saying that it was a matter connected with only Mala and Manju. “I’ve promised your daughter not to reveal it to anyone”, he said. Gowramma felt sad and uncomfortable saying, “I cannot just understand the behaviour of modern girls.” “It’s a petty matter. You need not worry”, Munna assured her with this falsehood. Munna got ready to go to Shimoga after an enforced bland lunch; his tongue had lost its taste buds; he bid goodbye to his host. Malini did not come down from the first floor. Even though he told Manohara that he would go to the bus station all alone, Manohara was eager to go with him. Jani too followed him merrily frisking about. Munna climbed the upward gradient heaving vigorously. Unable to resist the temptation to look back, he succumbed to it and saw Malini standing just behind the make - shift gate and looking at him. That cheered him up a little. With a smile, he bid goodbye to her. She reciprocated him waving her hand, and then abruptly turned back and ran into her house. The bus arrived with most of the seats vacant. Some passengers got down. He took leave of Manu and was about to get into the bus. Suddenly, Manu took out an envelope from one of the pockets of his trousers and handed it over to him, saying, “Malakka asked me to hand it over to you”. Munna put the envelope in his shirt pocket and got into the bus. Manu waved him goodbye. The bus started moving. Munna occupied a window seat. Now, once again, Munna experienced a terrible turmoil. He was wondering what Malini might have written in her letter. He was itching to open the envelope and read the letter. But some strange fear checked him. He was fidgetting as though he had kept a time bomb in his pocket. At last, he tore opened the envelope, pulled out the letter with his quivering hand and began to read it in a highly agitated manner: Dear Munna, This is not a decision taken in a hurry in a highly emotional state. I am writing this, sitting all alone by myself, in my room on the first floor. I have weighed the pros and cons of my decision with cool mind. Even now I am your Malini – if you accept me.
Waiting for you, yours
Malini Munna felt a wave of current snaking through his whole body. He felt as if he was choking with a myriad emotions rushing upwards from within him. He wanted to cry but checked himself. His eyes were filled with tears, despite himself. “Can this be true?” mused Munna. “Can I believe this, what she has written – even after knowing that I am a Muslim. She has written that she is ready to be mine? What madness is this? What an adamant boldness? Why is it she is infatuated with me? Do I deserve this? Is it true that in the innermost depths of my being, I love her and desire to possess her? If true, why was it impossible for me to tell her so? How can I reject a girl like Malini, who has volunteered to be mine? Shall I get ready to accept her? If so, what are the consequences? Am I brave enough to face them? Is it right for me to retrace my steps when a girl like Malini has grown so bold? How can I face Manjunatha now? What shall I tell him? Munna was struggling hard, having been caught in a violent turmoil. When the bus stopped at Teerthahalli, he got down and drank a cup of coffee in the bus stand hotel. He lit a cigarette. He was still in a highly confused state of mind. A bus conductor was shouting that his bus would soon be leaving for Sringeri and Kammaradi. Munna turned back and saw the bus about to leave for Kammaradi. All of a sudden, he seemed to have taken a decision. He threw away the cigarette, rushed to the bus and occupied a seat. The End Translated from the Kannada Original
Prof. V. K. Janardan Iyengar Click here if you would like to Contribute or send a feedback.
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