A Scene from Tumbbad

I hear the loud banging against the bed, our maid Malti and my beloved husband’s laughs while I sleep in the next room, while he thinks I am sleeping.

He enters our room, and falls to our bed, falling asleep in a very short while.

I gather myself, from the shock that I cannot afford to express to anyone, not even to myself. I breathe carefully, trying not to let him know that I cried.

Our landlord brought Malti to our home, 2 days back as my husband thought I needed a maid. She was a Vidwa, a Widow, whose husband died and she was rescued by our landlord to protect her from the Sati pratha. She was beautiful with very long hair, I wondered why they didn’t cut her hair since

That is what they do with widows, cut their hair so they’re ‘far less pretty’ enough to be safe. They believe a woman’s beauty lies in her hair, the bigger it is, the prettier she is. I always felt it was in their eyes, that say a lot about women.

I wait patiently for the morning, so I can confront Malti about what happened earlier.

I wake up early the coming day to finish up all my house chores, my Husband, wakes up at his leisure and finds his way out to the Verandah, to read the paper.

I enter Malti’s room, she is dressed in her regular Crimson red sari covering her head, the dressing she is expected to adopt after becoming a widow.

With all my anger and frustration I hold her hand and drag her out of the room, slap her. ‘How dare you get close to my husband?’ ‘Didi, I swear, nothing happened between us, I did not even touch him.” I slap her again and drag her towards the entrance. ‘Get out and never show your face to me.’ “What happened Dear, why are you hitting her?” my Husband asks, I look down and take a deep breath, “She stole my money. I cannot let her stay in this house.” My husband smiles, “Alright.” He says and goes back inside. Malti leaves, and I sit on the swing, breathing heavily, enclosing my emotions, a little proud of myself about how I solved the ‘problem’ .
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Adapted from a scene from a very beautiful Movie ‘Tumbbad’.