Man-O-Wara

Her name was Man-o-ara,

She used to come to my house almost every morning

when i was painting or reading.

she used to sit watching me mixing colours or

selecting brushes or washing the brushes in

the liquid. i could see her head moving with every movement i made while painting . when i stopped

and looked at my painting from distance

she followed me and followed my deep contemplation

When she sat down again , she sat exactly the way she was sitting before.....her small chin resting on her palm and the small body resting on another hand.its always the same style used to remind me of JaminiRoy's painting. Her eyes were always slightly watery but wide, the eyebrows like the bow. She used to cover her face partly with the veil,mostly dark coloured. Sometimes i used to say ' why do you cover your face like that?. She never answered but simply smiled and she knew her smile used to say more than few words.Some day I Insisted her to sit for me for painting and with much reluctance she did sit and i painted a portrait of her.When I finished that painting

she looked at it for a long time with wondering large eyes,then looked at me and then suddenly she hugged me and rested her small head on my chest and whispered "Thank you,I shall keep it with me all my life. can I take it home and show it to my mum ?" Its a kind of request artists always face and they are always in a dilemma. But for man-o-ara it was different.When I said she could she danced and danced around holding the painting in front of her as if she was holding a mirror. Then in a few minutes she left ,through the backdoor of my house ,started to run towards her home across the garden .When she reached her door ,she turned around and looked and waved and smiled ,her veil surprisingly vanished , her lyrical body stood still for a few minute ,stared at me and then the door closed.

For next few weeks i didn't see her and I got worried. I asked everyone and at last my caretaker said " babuji,

Man-o-ara will not come any more. She is getting married.Man-o-ara got married indeed with a businessman and left .

Why

When we embraced

day after day

night after night

we thought

our love will last .

We thought

our kisses would

sanctify our soul.

Then life was responsibility

Life was duty

life was apathetic bed sheet...

The embrace appeared shameful

kisses appeared venomous,

Love staggered away.