Nisha walked down the road from her workplace. It was
already 6:30 pm .It would be 8 before she reached home after a long bus ride
and a train ride later. She looked at the long winding road ahead of her. The labyrinthine
rows of cars of varied shapes and colors moved in the slow traffic. She
wondered if she would ever be the one sitting inside the car looking down her
nose upon the people walking on the road. Will it be in this life time?
She distracted her thoughts to the tasks ahead of her. What
meal would she cook? Hope the maid had cut the vegetables and put the cooker
on. She was dying for a cup of coffee. She wished she could just grab a cup
from the inviting cafe coffee day close to her bus stop .But she could not
afford the luxury of spending 50 rupees on a coffee cup which could fix
vegetables for a day for her family. Family...yes her family her husband and 2
children...
How happy she had been when she had married Naveen. He was the
most eligible bachelor in her community with his fancy management degree, tall
dark good looks, beautiful sea view flat and the well-paying job at a multinational.
It was a dream comes true for her when the perfect match went through. It
had made many heads turn and also made many jealous including her aunt who
always thought her daughter Ekta was a better candidate. Even today a memory of
her aunt's disgruntled face through the wedding celebrations brought a smile to
Nisha's lips. She had no doubt been lucky.
Life after a perfect marriage was even more perfect and
dreamy. Naveen was a loving and doting husband, she had a beautiful home by the
sea which she kept spic and span and two adorable babies. She had all the
comforts she could wish for including a swanky new car. They planned to buy
their own apartment soon and maybe a second car for Nisha. Life was just
glorious. Naveen was truly a perfect match for her.
But “Life” as they say has its own agenda. One day without much
warning, Naveen's multinational company closed shop due to a financial scam.
The company flat on the beachside was gone and they were forced to move in a
small flat in a distant suburb. They sold the car and their dream of their own
home dissolved into oblivion. Naveen remained jobless and depressed for months
as he never found an equally paying job in the economic downturn. As the
savings dwindled and expenses rose a reluctant Nisha had stepped in and had
taken up a job after more than a decade of being a full time homemaker. How
torn she had been to leave behind 10 year old Ashima and 5 year old Ninad with
her mother in law and travel to the other end of the city to eke out a
living.
She had been so angry with life, her situation and most of all at
Naveen. Initially he had been “adequately” guilty and apologetic at Nisha’s
predicament. But as months passed, Nisha noticed Naveen becoming complacent. He
stopped trying hard at interviews saying he had always “dreamed” of starting
his business. But he mostly whiled away his time away at home watching TV and
running an occasional errand to help his mother with the kids. Nisha squirmed
but helplessly watched her "ideal match" of a husband change to a
good for nothing nincompoop. Her job as an Executive Assistant to the CEO of a small time start-up was interesting and
challenging but definitely not well paying. Nisha just about managed to keep
the home fires burning with the help of her very supportive and kindhearted
mother in law. But they really had to cut corners. While Nisha cowered at their
fall from grace, Naveen seemed oblivious to the watery subji and thinning dal
on his plate.
Eventually, Naveen started working with a small time share broker
near their home. Nisha knew he could do much better than that but Naveen felt
it was best he was closer to home so he could keep an eye on the home and the
kids. Nisha was happy that at least Naveen had stepped in. Life would now get
better as Naveen would settle in the new field. She could eventually quit her
job and take back the reigns to her family. Her daughter was nearly a teen and
needed her mother around. Besides her mother in law had started keeping unwell
and was unable to bear the burden of household chores.
But Life had not had it out with her. Naveen got bedazzled by the
false glitter of speculative stock trade and lost more money than he had earned
and quit the job at the Stockbroker and back to his seat in front of the TV. Nisha
was back to being the sole bread winner barely trying to make ends meet.
The rude blaring horn of a latest SUV model brought her back from
her chain of thoughts. She stopped in her tracks and glared at the twenty-
something lady driver with blazing eyes. She hated the lucky woman. She couldn’t
help but feel sorry for herself and wished she could free herself from this
life she had never imagined or wanted for herself. She did not find her “perfect
match” not so perfect any more. But for Naveen it couldn’t have been more
perfect.
