Cursed

Episode 01

A cold morning in December.

A White SUV was speeding across the green fields. Suraj was excited about visiting his paternal village. He was visiting Motu after 15 years. Nothing has changed in the village since the last time he visited it. It seemed as time had frozen over here. Suraj could see small urchins running in the field with catapults in their hands. The scarecrow stood proudly in the middle of the field. The fields were flashy green, and it looked even brighter with the rays of the sun falling on it is piercing the blanket of fog. As the SUV proceeded ahead, Rohan kept on staring outside with his mouth wide open. He was staring at the pond which looked like a sheet of glass spread across the ground. They could see fishes floating in the pond and occasionally hopping in the water. Swayam looked around. There was greenery all around. The only time he had seen so much green was when he painted the scenery during his interclass painting competition. Lush green trees covered both the sides of the road. They could hear the chirping of birds. Some villagers were taking their buffalos out for grazing. Rohan and Swayam were mesmerized with the beauty and were in loss of words.

'So how do you like my village?' started Suraj.

Rohan and Swayam were still staring outside. 'Uh...hmm... Can't we settle here forever?' stammered Rohan.

Suraj laughed and said, 'It may look beautiful to you, but after a couple of days you might feel bored.'

'Bored, Really? I would give away everything to stay here forever. This is heaven, my friend.' Said Swayam relaxing in the back of the SUV.

The three worked together and decided to take a break from their daily routine.

Suraj had suggested this place. That would solve his dual purpose. Getting a good break and meeting his 92-year old grandfather, Pyare Mohan. Suraj was always the apple of his eye. Every vacation, they would go to the village, but with passing time, he just got busy building his career and was never able to visit his beautiful village. He used to call up his grandfather from time to time and talk to him. But this time he decided to surprise him by visiting him directly. The SUV parked directly in front of a big house. It looked like a bungalow. The SUV stood in front of a big iron gate which was surrounded by big coconut trees. A massive brick wall surrounded the home. Suraj got down and opened the gate. A concrete path leads directly to the bungalow. The trail was surrounded by trees, plants, bushes and shrubs. They could see solar-powered lights in the borders of the track. As they proceeded, they could see, the entire garden was lit by solar-powered panels. They could see a big fountain in the middle of the garden. A tea table, along with two chairs, were placed in the park. It was Pyare Mohan's place to have tea in the morning and in evenings.

As the SUV was parked in the driveway, Shankar came running outside. 'Arey, Suraj baba. That's a surprise. At least you could have informed us.'

'Then how come it would have been a surprise, Shankar anna.' exclaimed Suraj.

With this, Suraj touched his feet. He was taken aback. 'Why do you do this always baba?'

'That's called respect.' said Suraj.

He hugged Shankar and introduced him to his friends.

'These are my friends Rohan and Swayam. They both had never experienced village life, and that is why I recommended them to come with me to our village.'

'You did the best thing. Babuji would be so happy to see you.' said Shankar in a happy tone.

The three entered the grand old house of the village. They crossed a massive iron door, and in front of them, they saw a large open courtyard. Some people were working. They all stood up on seeing Suraj. He gestured them to continue working and proceeded forward with Shankar. The walls looked freshly coloured. The festival of Diwali had just gone by. They crossed the courtyard and entered a large room. A large grandfather clock stood in the side with its pendulum striking 11 am. The room was densely populated with ancient wooden furniture. A huge painting of Pyare Mohan was hung near the exit door to the open backyard. All around the walls, there were paintings of the village and the ancestors of Suraj.