‘Haya ye chuna Habhea Kadal’

Characters:

D Sabh

Makhanlal Saraf (Saraf Sabh)

      And

S Narayan (T Sabh)

Besides,

Narayan Swami

          And

Soom Nath Sumbli ( S Sabh )

Azima, the boatman ferrying people from one bank to the other of the River Jehlum

Venue: 1.Kala Kendra Dramatic Club at Shivala mandir Chota Bazar.

            2. Rama Krishna Temple within the  Shivala Mandir premises

            3. Sumbli Tea Stall Regal Chowk

            4. Road from Regal Chowk to Neelam Chowk

            5. kanyakadal Bridge

            6. Habbakadal Bridge .

Except Swami the rest were the theatrical doyens of the Kala Kendra Dramatic Club at ShiwalaMandir, Chotta Bazar, Srinagar .

Rama Krishna Temple within the  Shiwala Mandir premises

Early seventies. Sunday morning the entire summer world was bright and fresh and full of life. Cheerfulness was in every face. Summer green all around gave the valley look of a wonderland of joy-dreamy, restful, and inviting.

After hectic rehearsal, before retiring for their respective homes, as usual, D Sabh, Saraf Sabh and TSabh called on Narayan Swami (Triple MA) the keeper of the Rama Krishna Temple in the premises ofShivala Mandir. Usually the Swami used to refresh the trio with a cup of coffee, but on the day, he along with the routine cup of coffee, entertained them with a little sweet pudding they had never tasted before. They liked it. The Swami refused to give them more on health grounds. Little caring for their health, the three could not resist the temptation to have more. In the meantime, the Swami was going in and out intermittently to attend to his routine work. They seized an opportunity when the Swami remained out for a longer period. Took almost one kilogram of pudding from the tin container nearby, wrapped it into a few news papers and proceeded to share the booty with their fourth ‘kalakar’ S Sabh, who had started a part-time venture of a tea stall at Regal periphery.

By the time the three reached the tea stall, they had continually swallowed their saliva.

Sumbli Tea Stall Regal Chowk

Sumbli Sabh was delighted to see the untimely and unexpected visit of his friends. Exchanged pleasantries. The three revealed their venture and all the four finished the pudding to its last lick. Soon with double dose, the three Sabhs started to feel giddy.

Now they felt that the Swami had played some mischief with them. Instantly a resolution was passed in unison. As per the resolution, they were to go to the Swami and ask him for the ingredients of the pudding. But the million dollar question was how to go.

Soon a full-tonga was requisitioned from the Regal Chowk. Now the problem was how to mount the tonga . Again an instant meeting was held and finally it was decided to arrange for a steady ladder to ascend the tonga .

One of the Sabhs felt that his trousers were of its own coming down. He pulled his trousers up time and again that were maintaining status co. Their erratic actions bothered their well-wishers around. Before any scene could crop up to entertain passersby, they bundled the three on to the tonga and directed the coachman to Neelam Chowk. 

The coachman obliged Saraf Sabh and left him at Chota Bazaar Crossing, while the other two were helped by the tongawalla to alight from the tonga at Neelam road proceeding to Shivala Mandir. En route to Shivala mandir, they were to cross a small drain hardly six inches wide. They took it for the River Jhelum. Seeing no boat around and knowing well their inability to swim, they gave repeated calls to Azima to ferry them across the ‘river’. Somehow they reached Narayan Swamy. Surprised! He never expected that the little dose of pudding should aggravate their imbalance to such an extent. The two confessed their guilt and instantaneous herbal treatment saved them from permanent disability that could be caused by the excess dose of the ‘bangh’ pudding.

It was already dusk, Saraf Sabh was trying to cross over the railing of Kanyakadal Bridge . People around, fans of the handsome artist rushed and saved him from an attempt to suicide. They probed and learnt that Saraf Sabh had wrongly taken kanyakadal for Habbakadal   and was trying to cross over to the pedestrian passage to escape any accident.

When pulled back, Saraf Sabh said: “Haya ye chuna Habhea Kadal,

Tela mai watnaviv Habhkadal tanie. Tetie peth ha gachea bhea panaie.” (Is it not Habbakadal? Kindly take me to Habbakadal. There from, I shall go of my own)

Some of his fans escorted him up to Habbakadal Bridge . Walking slowly and steadily the pedestrian to his left, he finally reached the other end of the path. Near the police beat, he continued to mark time (kadam tal- march without moving forward) for hours together. Realizing that walk of  hours and still the signboard of kapoor Brothers was maintaining status co distance, exhausted, he finally preferred to make the police beat his rest house.

The last shopkeeper who closed his shop at 12 in the night was Mir Provision Store. He presumed that Saraf Sabh was doing some yogic and tantric exercise and preferred not to disturb him.

(I did not change the initials of Sarf Sabh, with his permission)