Azadi --- Do Fitoori Krantikariyon ki Kahani

Neither Was She Familiar, Nor Was She Ignorant

On opening the door, Anirudh comes to a dark room, with all it's windows closed. Many huge trunks are kept on the floor of the room, loaded with English Weapons --- rifles, pistols, bullets, gunpowder, swords etc. And one dark solitary figure is opening all these trunks, one after another, and removing all the weapons from inside. 

As soon as Anirudh sees this, he immediately rushes to the figure, thinking that the person is a thief, a criminal, stealing English weapons with bad intentions. The person hasn't noticed him yet.

Anirudh rushes and holds the left hand of the figure by his right hand. He pulls the person towards him, to make it turn around towards him. The figure does so. Anirudh sees that the person is wearing a black dress, which covers the whole of it's body. With this is a pair of black trousers, covering the lower part of it's body. Feet are covered by black shoes. The person has a black turban tied neatly around it's head, the loose end of which is covering it's face. Only the two naked eyes are visible.

These two eyes maintain an eye contact with Anirudh's eyes for sometime, as if their eyes are trying to convey something to each other. Then the figure tries to release it's hand from his grip. Anirudh looses his grip, the person draws back it's hand. 

Anirudh:- (shouts) Kaun ho tum? Kya kar rahe the tum yahan?

   Hearing Anirudh's loud voice, the person senses danger, as his voice could alert the others outside. It immediately puts the index finger of it's right hand on Anirudh's lips, as a sign of asking him to stop shouting.

The touch of the index finger on his lips feels something special for both of them. That touch is different from the other usual touches they face in their day-to-day life. Remaining in that posture,

The person:- Sshhh...

Anirudh understands the meaning of this.  He softly holds the right hand of the person by his own right hand, and slowly moves it away from his lips, expressing that he wants to talk to the person. The slowness in his recent actions foretold the low tone of his upcoming words.

Anirudh:- (in a low tone) Maine punchha kaun ho tum? Aur kya kar rahe the yahan?

The person does not feel any need to answer to his questions. It turns back to the trunks and starts redoing it's work. This time Anirudh loses his patience. He moves towards the figure and abruptly unties the turban on it's head, to see who it is! The turban rolls down and slips from the person's face, and comes fore the beautiful face of a girl. Yes, it is a girl!

Uss chehre mein ek alag tej hai,  aankhon mein hai sapna, kuch alag karke dikhane ka. Chehre pe nidarta ka nishaan hai, sirr pe fitoor hai, jism mein junoon ki aag lagi hai. Baki ladkiyon ki sadharan sundarta se kaafi alag hai uski sundarta --- saahas ki sundarta.

Anirudh:- Chor ho? Aatanki ho?

These words made the girl angry.

The girl:- (being frustrated):- Krantikari hoon main. Main nahi chahti ki yeh sab hathiyar angrezon ke kaam aaye, waise bhi inn hathiyaron ke vaar se marte toh hum bekasoor Bharatvaasi hi hai na, aur shaasan aur shoshan karke nikal jaate hai yeh zaalim angrez. Faida inka, aur nuksaan humara! Humse faida uthate hai, aur humpe hi atyachar karte hai. Ab tum batao, kya sahi hai inn logo ka hum Bharatvaasiyon pe yun atyachar karna? Desh humara hai, toh ispe raaj bhi toh humara hi hona chahiye na! Areh desh chhodo, iss desh ki mitti ka ek kan bhi hai kya inn firangiyon ka? Nahi na! Toh kyun inka atyachar hum Bharatvaasi sehte rahe? Kyun naa uthaye iss anyay ke khilaaf awaz? Tum yeh bilkul mat samajhna, ki angrezon ko desh se hatakar main apna koi bura irada poora karna chahti hoon. Aisa bilkul nahi hai. Main toh bus apne desh ko azaad hote huye dekhna chahti hoon, -- azad inn firangiyon ke kehr se. Aur ek krantikari bankar iss desh mein azadi laane ke iss mohim ka ek chhota sa hissa banna chahti hoon. Bus! Isiliye main chahti hoon ki yeh banduk, yeh gola barud inn angrezon ke nahi, balki humare desh ki azadi ke kaam aaye. Haan main chori kar rahi hoon, par kya tumhe abbhi lagta hai ki main kuch galat kar rahi hoon?

Anirudh:- Par main kaise maan loon ki tumne jo abhi yeh sab kaha, woh sach tha? Main kaise maan loon ki tumhare yeh saare iraade sacche aur achhe hai? Main kaise maan loon ki tum sachmein ek krantikari ho, balki koi aatanki nahi? Main kaise maan loon ki tum koi jhoothi, koi hinsa-karnewali nahi ho? 

The girl:- Meri aankhon mein dekho, jaan jaoge -- ki main koi aatanki hoon ya krantikari. Meri aankhon mein iss desh ki azadi ka sapna hai, aur awaaz mein inqulab. Mere dil mein iss desh ko azadi dilaane ki aag hai. Chhoonkar mehsoos nahi hota (woh apne baayein haath se Anirudh ka daayan haath apni taraf kheenchti hai, aur use apne gardan pe rakhti hai) ki yeh ghaav azadi ke jang ke ghaav hai, inki pukaar sunai nahi deti? --- azadi ki pukaar? Yeh khoon ki garmi,-- yeh kya keh rahi hai sunai nahi deta hoga na? --- Ki yeh sirf aur sirf apne vatan ke liye baha hai. Aur agar tumhe phir bhi lagta hai ki main koi aatanki hoon, toh jaao -- bahar Viceroy hai, unke mehmaan hai, Rani Sahiba hai, Angrezi Police hai, sabhi hai --- jao jaake kehdo unn sabke saamne ki yahan par ek krantikari maujood hai. Bus unko yeh mat kehna ki main koi aatanki hoon, 'krantikari' bolna.

Anirudh:- K...K...Kyun?

The girl:- Kyunki main apni aakhri saans tak 'krantikari' hone ka damka apne seene pe liye chalna chahti hoon. Phir uss 'krantikari' ko woh log jo saza dena pasand kare, mujhe qubool hai. Jeeti toh azadi ke liye hoon, toh uske liye marna bhi qubool hai mujhe. Pata hai, desh ki azadi itni bhi sasti nahi hai, agar uske liye shaheed ho jana pade, toh woh koi najayas baat nahi hogi mere liye. Qubool hai.

Anirudh:- Thik hai, tum jo kar rahi thi, woh karo. Par sambhalke karna. Boht saare log aur pehredaar hai yahanpe, pakre jaane ka boht khatra hai. Kamra hai bhi washroom ke kareeb, koi bhi aa sakta hai. Isiliye sambhalke karo, warna agar hathiyar chudaate huye pakri gayi toh kuch bhi ho sakta hai tumhare saath. Janti hi ho

The girl:- (nods) Hmm...

Anirudh:- Kaam khatam karke jitni jaldi ho sake nikal jaana yahanse. Main chalta hoon. Darwaza acche se band karlo kamre ka andar se. Hmm?

Anirudh leaves the room. The girl closes the door tightly from inside, but without making a single noise.

Anirudh party hall mein wapas aata hai, aur aake chupchap apne Kaka ke bajoo mein khada ho jaata hai. He remains silent, and falls in deep thoughts. He gets detached from the reality.

Kaka (Trilochan):- Kya hua beta? Sab thik toh haina? Kuch khoya-khoya sa lag raha hai jabse wapis aaya hai.

Anirudh:- (suddenly coming back to reality) Haan Kaka, sab thik. Mujhe kya hoga? Kuch nahi, kuch bhi toh nahi, sab thik hai, sab thik. 

Kaka (Trilochan):- Accha. Ghusalkhane se aane mein itna waqt kyun lag gaya? Koi jaan-pehchaan wala mil gaya tha kya udhar? Jisse baat karne mein samay lag gaya ho.

Anirudh:- (murmurs) Jaan-pehchaan toh nahi thi, lekin anjaan bhi nahi lagi.

Kaka (Trilochan):- (zor se) Kya? Jo bol raha hai zor se bol.

Anirudh:- (coming back to reality once again) Nahi matlab, jaan-pehchaan kisi ke saath nahi thi. Anjaan hi hai sab yahan.

Kaka (Trilochan):- Areh kahan sab anjaan hai bete? Hai na humare dost Ramanuj ji aur unki patni yahan. Milwaya toh tha tujhe unse. Unhi ke saath toh hum baatein kar rahe the itni der se.

Anirudh:- Haan haan. Yaad hai, yaad hai mujhe. Sab yaad hai.

#*Anirudh Thinks* :- Akhir woh sherni kaun thi, jisse main itni der se baat kar raha tha?#