Unkindled Love

Chapter-7

Neither had Abhi travelled much nor had he had much exposure to the outside world. Since all his relatives lived in and around Mumbai, he had not got the opportunity to go anywhere else. Only after joining IIT did Abhyudaya get to meet and know about people from different parts of the country.

IIT-Mumbai had a sprawling campus. It was located in Powai, a suburb of Mumbai. The atmosphere inside the institute was a stark contrast to the crowded, bustling city outside. The campus had a lot of greenery, and the many buildings—offices, classrooms, labs, auditorium, canteen, hostels—were spread out over a large area. There was no distraction; it was an ideal place for studies. There were very few girls in the engineering course. Whenever Abhi came across a girl in the campus, he would think of Gautami.

With her intelligence and capacity for hard work, she would have definitely got a place in IIT. He often imagined what life would have been like if Gautami was also there.                                                         

At first Abhi was very homesick. He missed his family. He felt a misfit in the cosmopolitan crowd. But as the days passed he began to enjoy the course, he made friends and got used to the food. All his classmates, no matter where they came from, what language they spoke, were there because they were really bright, and very focused. Before long, he found he was happy in IIT.     

As he had promised, he wrote to Gautami every second and fourth week of the month, and shared all his feelings with her. He described in his letters the course he was doing, the food in the hostel mess, the new friends he had made. Through his words, he introduced her to their world, and to the charms of Mumbai.

Gautami, on the other hand, did not have much to say. There was no great change in her life. Yet she replied regularly to his letters every first and third week of the month. She never forgot to enclose a bakula flower. Whenever Abhi received her letters, he felt as if Gautami was standing next to him, the gentle, mildly fragrant, homely but extremely affectionate Gautami!

One day, as he was holding the bakula in his hand, he suddenly realized why the flower meant so much to him. The bakula was now, for him, a symbol of Gautami, a personification of her! Abhi collected all the bakula flowers in a small bag and placed it beneath his pillow. He knew that the scent from the flowers would not fade with time.         

Time marched on. Gautami completed her BA degree successfully, getting two gold medals in her subject. Urmila managed to get through,while Mansi passed with a second class. The next step was to apply for an MA course at Mumbai University. Urmila opted for political science and Gautami for history.The two friends commuted to the university every day, covering the twenty five kilometre distance by the university bus rather than by the local train.

Both of them enjoyed the ride and used the time to compare notes on their respective courses and classmates. Gautami was eagerly looking forward to Dr Rao, the present Vice-Chancellor, returning to his parent history department the following year.

She had heard so much about his brilliance as a scholar and his wonderful teaching skills that she was confident he would inspire her to give her best to the subject. However, they did miss their friend Mansi.As promised, Abhi visited home every December but in the summer holidays he would take up training with different companies to get practical experience and greater exposure. Only the last ten days of his vacation, which invariably coincided with the beginning of the month of Shravan, would he spend at home. Those days were for Gautami.

Gangakka looked forward to Abhi's visits too. She would cook a variety of dishes to make up for the time her son missed home food. She believed that he came home to be with her. Gangakka never dreamt that it was Gautami who drew him home and that it was her he yearned to see.Now, although they could meet at the University campus, they continued the ritual of their early morning chat under the bakula tree. The tree, sole witness to their conversations, smiled indulgently on them, their conversations, smiled indulgently on them.                                                                                                    Urmila soon came to know about Gautami and Abhi's friendship. But she did not mention it to anybody. She knew that if Gangakka found out, the consequences would be serious.