E Harikumar
I came back to my bedroom from reveries. Indira has already fallen asleep. Looks like she only had an intention to spoil my sleep. In between Vandana came down from upstairs and quietly gone to her bedroom. I am going back to my memories, no not to memories but to my grandma Nanimuthassi, not to hear her bedtime stories to lull me to sleep but to get ready for a sleepless night.
I had not seen this grandma ever since I was 8 years old. When she saw us she asked Kuttettan.
"What's the matter, Kuttan?"
"Nothing, Grandma. Just came around to see you." He shouted at her ear. Her sight was good even at this age, but ears gave way.
"Better not to shout so loud to mother. If you tell her very clearly in normal voice she'll be able to grasp." Valliamma said. Lakshmi Valliamma was the only surviving daughter out of ten children.
I think Kuttettan was not convinced. He started blaring at her.
"Grandma, just tell who I have brought to you?"
She looked at me for a while and beckoned me to sit by her side. She studied my face for a few seconds and said.
"This is Subhadra's son. What's your name?"
Kuttettan looked at me with a jubilant smile. I told her my name, in a low voice of course. What Lakshmi Valliamma said was true. She grasps the conversation when told in normal pace and volume.
"You're Indira." Holding the hand of Indira she said. "Oh, you've grown up!"
"Come" Lakshmi Valliamma held her and lead her indoors. "Let me have your news." She has left with the relief that for some time mother had company.
Kuttettan had warned me not to interfere when he talks to Grandma, because once the conversation goes astray, we won't be able to bring her back to track and collect the vital information we are looking for from her. Kuttettan started talking.
Indeed, she has quite a bit of information about that nalukettu mansion.
"It was an ettukettu before. You know what? Ettukettu is double the size of nalukettu. It was torn down to half its size when I was still living there."
"So that was an ettukettu before, isn't it?" He nodded with understanding.
"Then what? It was so huge and to walk from one place to reach the end of it takes a lot of time. It was then made into a nalukettu by my uncle. He was so powerful," then lowering her voice she continued, "he had a lot of business, like lending money and all."
"What was his name?"
"Ittirama Menon. He was short, but people feared him. We won't dare to venture in front of him.
"Why was the ettukettu torn down to this size?"
"A lot of family divisions took their share and left, and then there were a lot of other problems. There were quarrels between the two brothers."
"Who is his brother?"
"It was his elder brother Rayiru Menon. Heard, that they used to have bitter quarrels quite often. I was a small girl at that time. I had my first menses only after the ettukettu was demolished to size."
"What's the meaning of menses?" I asked the expert in whisper.
"Look, we got some important information but still have more important things to find out." Kuttettan said. Is seems even he doesn't know the meaning of that word.
"And then do you think all the furniture will fit into the nalukettu. So they put most of it in unused rooms and the remaining ones thrown into the attic."
"That’s why you see so many things littered in the attic." Kuttettan whispered to me.
"And then what happened, Grandma?" Kuttettan encouraged the old lady.
She was narrating the bitter quarrels the brothers had and how it affected the families living there. She lowered her voice and said.
"It was in one night that Rayiru Mama died..... It was thought to be due to voodoo by Ittiraman Mama. He was practicing voodoo and witchcraft and other tantric rites."
"He didn't have any children? I mean Ittirama Menon?"
"How can that be? He didn't even marry. What happened then? His property was grabbed by his nephews and elder brother's children. Nothing was left of him."
Nothing was left of him? We knew better than Grandma about it. What we wanted to know was what was left of his property and how problematic it was. Grandma won't be able to help us in that."
Kuttettan was listening to an imaginary call from Lakshmi Valliama. He said.
"Valliamma is calling us."
"Go ahead, you'll get something to eat."
Walking to the kitchen Kuttettan said. "We got whatever information she had in her stock. Now if we sit for more time she will kill us with her boring talk. We should duck."
In the kitchen Indira was having tea and eating something. It seems Valliamma is shrewdly collecting information on the goings at home by feeding her.
"Sit down." Placing two quarter plates in front of us Valliamma said.
"We are in a hurry." Kuttettan said, and it was then that he had noticed that Indira was eating vada made of pigeon pea. He continued. "No, not in that hurry....."
Walking through the narrow path between the fields we really came to realize Indira's talents. She declared.
"I got more information from Valliamma than what you got from Gramdma."
"What?" We both said aloud at the same time not knowing what she meant.
"You know, I got more knowledge about the nalukettu from Valliamma than you got from Grandma."
We stood aghast. So this girl had rightly guessed our assignment was of detective in nature. Any way we wanted to test it. Kuttettan asked her.
"What are you talking about?"
"You know, that old grand uncle.... what's his name, yes Ittirama Menon. He was a tantric and practiced witchcraft, and you know all people in the village were scared of him. You know he killed his elder brother by witchcraft. Why you know...... our house was a huge ettukettu before and Ittiraman Mama wanted to prune it, but his brother wouldn't allow. So he was angry and did that......"
We stood there in the middle of the narrow path dumbfounded after hearing Indira talking with a string of 'you know's in it.
"You know why all the other families left that naluketu?......" She continued, "Because the ghosts of these two brothers were haunting that house. They gave hell to the residents. Only our father dared stay there. He brought Kattumadam Namboodiri, you know that tantrik, and got hold of these two ghosts in a vessel, sealed it and took away somewhere....."
"What was the necessity?"
"Why?"
"Those ghosts must've run away seeing your father!"
Indira made a face at us.
It was just at that moment we decided to make Indira a party to our adventures and discussions.
Indira was talking about the vast store of information she had pilfered from Lakshmi Valliamma. Poor Valliamma. We were thinking that by giving something to eat she was collecting news about people in our house. It was just the contrary. She had collected more information than us!
When we reached home we went to our 'office' for a discussion. We naturally invited Indira. Given below is the outcome of an hour's discussion.
(Woh! I knew from that time onwards that Kuttettan would be a scientist when grown up. And it was true. He is studying bio-chemistry in California University.)
By saying that, he took out the chess board and started displaying pieces on it.
"Come Nandu, I'll teach you English Chess."
It was difficult at first. Not only the pieces had different names, even the movements are slightly different. Our Devan or Lord is their King, our Chariot is their Rook or Castle. Elephant is Bishop, Minister is Queen and Horse is Knight. In classic chess elephant moves along diagonally three squares the Bishop has unlimited freedom, only the diagonal squares should be free. The Queen, shamelessly, moves fast everywhere contrary to just one square at a time. The first time I played English Chess with Kuttettan I lost miserably. His pieces come from unexpected quarters, especially the Queen. As I got experience, it was sheer fun.
Now after thirty years I smile thinking about all that. The time must be at least 2 O'clock. How come I am not sleepy?
All this started with Indira question, 'Do you remember going to the attic?' After asking that big question she has fallen asleep and I am lying here with my eyelids open.
Some time must have elapsed, suddenly it happened. Like a dam burst it was coming like waves after waves of water column. Suddenly some doors in my mind burst opened and it came as a revelation. I was trying in vain to hold on against that current.
I made some loud sound and got up.
"What happened?" Indira got up with a start and asked. "What happened, Nandetta?"
