RECAP

Murali comes to the brothel and asks Malini to send one of her girls with him to satisfy a rich customer in a hotel. Malini, after a brief argument, sends Sandhya with him. The customer is a social worker, who not wanting to be seen in such a notorious area, prefers to meet the prostitute in the hotel room. Sandhya goes there. She finds him talking politely to a woman on phone; while he passes lewd comments on her once the telephonic conversation is over. They start making love, but shortly after the policemen raid the room. The man offers a bribe and escapes the situation. But, Sandhya is arrested. Not even this, they force her to get into the clothes in front of them. Murali, on seeing her mobbed by policemen, goes straight to Malini.

CHAPTER  17

“Malini bai… Malini bai… Malini bai…” Murali was quickly ascending the stairs, skipping a few steps in between.

“Malini bai…” completely exhausted, he fell on the ground as he saw her. He was breathing heavily. It seemed as if he had covered many many miles running.

“Aye hey, what happened, pimp? Earth cracked or sky fell?” Malini asked playfully.

“Sandhya’s arrested,” his voice broke into a whistling sound.

“What?” she knitted her brows, but did not seem to be too surprised.

“I dropped her at the hotel. It was raided. They arrested her,” he said in between gasps.

“Bloody Saxena! This month I didn’t send him money, so he arrested my girl. I’ll see that bastard,” she murmured.

“What do we do now, Malini bai?” Murali asked her.

“Arre, it’s not a big thing. That dog just needs some meat! Wait a minute, I’ll just come,” she went to her room.

She took out some money from her almirah and stuffed it inside her blouse.

“Now, take me to the police station,” she said as she came out.

“Come,” he turned as he prepared to leave.

Soon, they both left for the police station.

Sandhya, in the lockup, was still brooding over the humiliation she faced in the hotel room. The vulgar comments that those constables passed on each and every part of her body were nibbling her flesh. But today, she was not cursing herself. Her customer’s attitude towards Mrs Sen, the lady on phone, had disillusioned her of the prestige of so-called ‘honourable’ ladies.

“Every woman is subject to humiliation. These men, these torchbearers of morality can never think beyond our curves and creases,” she reflected, “Look at that hound, under the garb of a social worker! On the one hand, he was appreciating Mrs Sen’s efforts for opening a nari niketan, and on her back, he was giggling and using such crude language for her. He said he considered prostitution a blot on the society. But he had come there to buy physical pleasure from a prostitute. Who knows, like many of them, he too might be running brothels in his vidhwa ashrams and nari niketans.”

Suddenly, she heard a loud laughter of Inspector Saxena.

“Hehehehe… you bloody sister’s pimp!” he shouted while laughing.

“And, this inspector! What is the difference between him and us?” she contemplated, “If we sell our body for money, he sells his soul for the same. Who’s not a prostitute in this world? Everyone sells something or the other for these bits of paper.”

She could now hear some familiar voices. Malini and Murali had come. The former was having a word with the inspector. But, Sandhya could not listen to what they were saying.

“Inspector saheb! You’re too much. Why did you arrest my girl?” said Malini coquettishly.

“Because you didn’t pay me my share this time,” he smiled.

“Oh, come on! You know, saheb, this is also a business. We too face profits and losses,” she gently stroked him.

“Now, don’t tell me lies, Malini bai,” he patted her cheeks, “I know, this is one business that never goes in loss.”

Malini laughed at this and her laughter got merged with that of the inspector.

“Okay, okay! So here’s your money,” she offered him a few notes.

Counting the money, he looked at her and said, “Humph! And, what if I still don’t release Sandhya?”

Malini looked into his eyes and said in a husky voice, “You’re one big swine! Tell me what you want, sweetheart.”

“I want her,” he demanded.

“I knew it,” she chuckled, “That goes without saying, darling. She’s all yours. Let me just speak to her.”

Sandhya heard a few footsteps coming her way. The sound of the clinking of bangles was also familiar. She looked up and found Malini standing in front of her.

“Di…” that was all she managed to say.

Malini looked at her through the bars of the jail and said, “Don’t worry. I’ve warmed his purse, now you go and warm his bed. He’ll release you.”

Sandhya said nothing in response. Silence prevailed between the two women for a few moments. Malini began to feel a little uncomfortable. She had become so habitual of exchanging curses and abuses that quietness even for a handful of seconds used to scare her.

As if instigating Sandhya to speak, she grumbled, “What a waste! I thought I’ll make two thousand bucks, but ended up paying a bomb. This son of a bitch! First he took money from me, and now he’ll sleep with you for free. Plus, so much waste of time and energy.”

Sandhya was still silent, while Malini perhaps expecting her to confront her for being money-minded stood there for some time. When she got no reply, she turned and said, “I’m leaving. You come soon after pleasing the inspector.”

Malini left and soon after a constable opened the lockup to let Sandhya out. Inspector Saxena came grinning and pulling his trousers up.

“Come whore! You’re yet to pay me,” he whispered.

He took her to the nearby cheap guesthouse and extracted the complete price for releasing her. Sandhya’s senses were benumbed. What was lying on the bed was not a living woman, but a chunk of cold meat. There was no pain or grief in her heart. She had seen the ugly face of the system beneath its white mask. She no longer pitied herself; she pitied the world.

After ‘pleasing’ the inspector to the fullest, she caught an auto-rickshaw to her brothel. Owing to the heavy traffic because of the evening peak hours, it was completely dark when she finally reached.

As she got down from the auto, she found Bhargava’s car parked outside the brothel. Sandhya, instantly, experienced a sudden onrush of all kinds of emotions. She ran up the staircase. She was delighted. She thought she would share her feelings with him, and that he would act as a soothing ointment for her lepered heart.

But on the contrary, he gave her a mortal blow. In the brothel, she saw him entering Kaya’s room.

“Bhargava ji!” she literally fell from the sky.

On seeing her, he smiled in the most grotesque manner and said, “Oh Sandhya! I’ve had enough of overripe oranges. Let me taste the raw lemons today.”

“Hahahaha…” Malini laughed, “Bhargava ji! You’re our most precious customer. You’ve made up for the entire loss that I had today.”

Bhargava winked at her and closed himself in the room with Kaya. Soon their loud noises of lovemaking started echoing the whole atmosphere.

Sandhya was devastated. She went to her room and wept for several hours. She tried hard to sleep… all in vain. Shattered, she got up and looked out of the window. Darkness was lying flat on the road. The butcher was preparing to close his shop. He was discarding the stale meat.                                                           

                                                              To be continued ….