They say marriages are made in
heaven… Well I wouldn’t say that is true for all marriages, but one
relationship I have witnessed recently, was certainly heavenly beyond
imagination! Having heard about larger than life love stories like Romeo and
Juliet, Heer and Ranjha you start to wonder if these kind of stories are ever
possible in real life. Or are they just a result of the author’s imagination.
Well, I saw one which I found unreal… Almost epic! Here is a small attempt to
pen it down and may be inspire others to love… Love like there is nothing else
in the world to do! Love like you would want to be loved!
So the story is about a very
influential man and his wife of 45 odd years then. A renowned name in the World
of local politics and literature, he had been an inspiration for many. His
political career saw him work tirelessly for a political party which ruled the
nation for most of its independent history. And there was no evening where he
wasn’t the guest at one or the other kavi
sammelan. And then it struck! Over a leisure trip to his sister’s place at
the age of about 70, he suffered a vertebra collapse!
With the advent of science and
medicine, you would imagine that an influential man like him should not have
much of a problem coming out of a physical setback like this. But when I saw
the pain in his eyes while he was being lifted by 5 other men, I had no option
but to believe what doctors across various cities said. That he might never be
able to walk again! Having known him closely, it was hard to believe that a
super active man like him, may now never be able to stand on his feet. May have
to be bedridden for the rest of his life. But every one of us who saw him then,
had no option but to convince ourselves of the hard reality. Everyone but one!
Over the next one and a half
year, there was just one person who believed that this man’s life would not be
spent confined to a bed! That he should move and walk again! And she worked
tirelessly to make it happen. Night after night, taking all his complaints, all
his irritation. Working tirelessly to bring a life back on its feet. For that
one and a half year, there was just one mission for her and all her energies
were directed to achieve that one mission! She was of course his wife and she
was living by the vachan she took in
front of the holy fire 45 odd years ago. To live by him in all his sukh-dukh and to never leave his side
all life long. About one and a half year, some physiotherapy and a lot of care
afterwards, he walked, and yet again, she lived up to the promise she made to
him on their wedding day.
Over the next few years, he
recovered almost to normalcy. The doctors were amazed at this “unbelievable
recovery”. Love made it happen! But it can never be love if it does not go
through regular agniparikshaas. And
this time, it was her turn to bear the pain. Having fought a brain tumor in
the early years of her life, she was now diagnosed with the most feared disease
on the planet! Doctors said that cancer had plagued her body and treatment at
the age of about 70 could be very risky. The news was a melancholic bell for
the family.
Her husband was the most
affected. He had never lived without her! Every trip she had made to her
pre-marital home had always been shortened as he was too used to her around. She
was the one who stole laddoos for him
under her saaree just to have him
enjoy a festive occasion and keep the diabetic concerns of others at bay. She
was the one who ensured that he never went to bed hungry no matter what time he
returned home. She was really the woman behind his success. She had been the
real warrior in his recovery to a new life. He could not imagine his life
without her! He quit! Not knowing that she was fighting! Fighting to live with
him for a few more years… On the day he breathed his last, I saw him! I saw the
pulse going weak! I saw the doctors trying to revive it, knowing that there was
no way they could. And then I saw them stop. And with that, he left her…
Forever…
But destiny had played its game.
In almost flimsy a manner, a week before he left her, she had to be hospitalized
for some treatment. And of course the hospital was the same! Having lived as
man and wife for 51 years, destiny got them together under one roof, for one
last time… You had to be there to believe this, but as she left the hospital
after getting discharged, his pulse dwindled and the medical parameters started
to show the signs, till a few minutes later, when the pulse went blank. She
didn’t know. At least we think she didn’t as she was still on her way back to
the place she had made a home for them both!
The man in the story is Late Shri
Narayan Das Ji Kasat and his wife, Smt. Deepti Narayan Das Kasat. And today, my
aunt, struggles to fight the cancer and the effect it had on her body. Doctors
say, that they cannot do anything more, that there is no point in troubling her
with more medicines. Somewhere out there, uncle probably waits for her to join
him. He couldn’t live without her, and she struggles to survive without him.
But not this time! This time bhabhi ji,
you’ll have to fight! And bhai ji,
you’ll have to wait! You've fought and won many a battles… One more time! One
more time!
