Ten years after Sheila was born, Anu got pregnant again. Her dreaded mother-in-law,
Subbulu, was furious. “I’m getting old, you need to take care of more
duties. I can hardly walk from my bedroom to the living room, this arthritis is
killing me. I can no longer supervise the servants, plan the daily menu. I don’t
know if you can cope with all this and a new baby. Now you can’t do any house
work, and I can’t carry the heavy burden of running this household all by
myself. And when the baby comes, you’ll be too busy feeding, changing diapers,
and all that. And then you’ll be tied down with raising the child. We should
have a one-child policy in this country. Look at China, how progressive they are.
Only one baby per couple, that’s it.” She banged her fist on the dining
table to emphasize her point. “That’s the way a country should be run.
With an iron hand. We need a strong dictatorship in this country. To stop corruption
and overpopulation.” She looked at Anu’s belly accusingly.
Anu was mad at Subbulu’s monotonous monolog. But to her credit, Anu showed
utmost restraint, didn’t say a word.
But, in the privacy of their bedroom upstairs, Anu cried her heart out. “What’s
the matter with her? Why can’t she be happy with a new grandbaby? My mother
and grandmother are ecstatic.”
Santosh took her into his arms and kissed her tears away. “She doesn’t
mean any harm. That’s the way she is, always wants her way. And if things
go in a different direction, she goes berserk. I have learned that the best way
to live in this house is to ignore her behavior. After a few days she’ll get
over it, everything will be back to normal.”
“But she hurt my feelings, I’m really hurt. We should move out, rent
an apartment.”
Santosh said, “How can we leave? My mother will be very upset, she’ll
be all alone. Apart from that, we don’t have any money of our own. You know
when my father passed away, my mother got the control of all the property, this
house, the cars, the factory, everything. We are completely dependent on her for
everything, the food we eat, the clothes we wear...”
“You can get a job somewhere, we can live a simple life. I can’t take
this abuse anymore. I’m like a slave, under her thumb, do this, do that.”
“Anu, Anu, calm down. You don’t realize what you are saying. I have
a college degree only. This is India! We have too many unemployed people. Nobody
wants to hire a simple college graduate. Even if I get lucky and find a job, the
pay won’t be enough for rent and food.”
“You are working so hard at the factory, why can’t your mother pay you
a proper salary?”
He became wistful. “She paying me salary? Forget it. We have no choice, Anu.
It’s my lack of proper education that’s working against us. I wish I
got good education, an engineering degree, move to America or Australia, escape
this torture, always controlling. Anyway, I’m hoping that all this property
will be ours after she passes on. So if we keep quiet and don’t rock the boat,
we’ll be okay.”
Anu thought, O God, how long do I have to bear my mother-in-law’s tyranny?
She prayed fervently that her children get a good education and decent jobs.
::
As her belly became bigger, Anu got short of breath, unable to move rapidly to get
the household chores done. The never-ending cooking and listening to Subbulu’s
taunts exhausted her. Whenever some friends or relatives visited, Subbulu poured
out all her imaginary sorrows, complained bitterly about her daughter-in-law’s
inconsiderate decision to get pregnant for a second time. If the guests were shocked
at Subbulu’s behavior, they didn’t say anything, but Anu who was in
the kitchen could hear Subbulu’s raving and ranting. She ignored Subbulu’s
torrential taunts, kept quiet, went about her business.
::
But, she poured her heart out whenever she visited her parent’s house in Mysore.
Her mother advised, “Ignore your mother-in-law, take care of yourself. Eat
well, stay healthy. If you want to relax, call up some friends, go shopping. Or
go to a movie with Santosh.”
Anu laughed. “Movie with Santosh? Are you kidding? The whole world will come
to an end if Santosh and I go out on our own. My mother-in-law is so controlling,
you won’t believe it. The moment Santosh takes the car out of the garage,
my mother-in-law will call him to ask where he’s going. When he says he’s
taking me to get some household items, she will retort ‘Why take the car for
two people only? Can’t you take the scooter? It will consume less petrol.’
He will tell her that since we have to bring many items, the car is more suitable.
Then she wants to know which shops we are going to and where they are located. He’ll
patiently give all the details. Then she’ll say ‘It’s a shame
to take the car for two people only. I’ll go with you, you can drop me off
at your aunt’s house in Vyali Kaval. After you finish your shopping you can
pick me up.’ However hard we tried to sneak out on our own, we never succeeded.
After few such incidents, we gave up trying to get away. Simple things like going
out to eat, go to a movie, go to the shopping mall are all beyond our reach. Not
even a fly can move in that house without her permission.”
Her mother said, “Be patient. After she passes on, you’ll take charge
of the house.”
“I’ll be an old maid by the time I get the keys to the house. She complains
of many ailments but there’s nothing seriously wrong. She’ll outlive
us all.”
::
When Anu went to the gynecologist’s office for a routine examination, she
was told that she had gestational diabetes. Although this was not a serious condition,
could be managed with diet control, exercise, and insulin shots if needed, Anu had
to be careful.
Subbulu told Santosh, “Now she has diabetes. God only knows how the baby will
turn out, may have some birth defects. I don’t think that Anu is strong enough
to deal with an abnormal child. She should have an abortion.”
Santosh escaped from his mother without saying anything. He never paid any attention
to what went on in the house. His focus was the family business. But, now he was
caught between his mother and his wife.
Anu and Santosh spoke to her gynecologist about the risk of having a child with
a birth defect. The doctor informed them that the likelihood of a birth defect was
extremely low. She told them there could be a risk if the mother’s diabetes
was out of control. But Anu’s blood sugars were under control.
::
When she heard that the ultrasound revealed that the baby would be a girl, Subbulu
went ballistic. “Oh, my God, will there be no end to my suffering? I thought
that before I die, I’ll hold a grandson in my arms. First you get pregnant
at an inopportune time. Then you get diabetes, endangering the baby’s life.
Now you are going to have another girl. Who is there to carry the family name after
Santosh? Now after Santosh, there is no male member of the family to manage the
factory. What to do? What to do?” She wailed loudly as though somebody had
died.
Anu didn’t even bother to reply. She thought, What’s the point telling
the wicked witch that it’s her son’s sperm that didn’t do the
job. Why blame me for conceiving a girl? Telling the old lady about X and Y chromosomes
is a waste of time. If she thinks it’s my fault, so be it. I don’t give
a damn anymore.
But if Anu thought that would be the end of it, she was very wrong. Subbulu didn’t
give up that easily. The next day, Subbulu got hold of Santosh and Anu, “You
both should think of an abortion. We simply can’t have another girl. We must
have a boy to continue the family line.”
Santosh mumbled something and slipped away. Anu was caught with the harridan, who
said in a stern voice, “What do you want to do? You must listen to me, go
to your doctor before it’s too late.”
Anu didn’t trust herself to speak, ran upstairs; Subbulu’s arthritic
limbs didn’t let her climb the stairs.
::
Anu said, “Your mother is hell-bent on an abortion. She is mad, goes on needling
me.”
Santosh, always timid when it came to confronting his mother, held his head between
his hands and groaned. “I really don’t know, Anu. Let’s talk to
Veena. She’s the only one who can tackle mom. She should be back from Goa
next week.”
Santosh caught hold of Veena as soon as she returned, before she got busy with her
hectic law practice. When Veena heard about her mother’s latest tantrum she
blew her top. “What nonsense? Abortion! My foot! What’s wrong with a
girl? People in this country are crazy. Everybody wants a boy, as though they’ll
bring salvation to the whole family. Look at what they have done in Punjab. They
are killing female babies, aborting women with female fetuses left and right. This
has been going on for so many years, and now the boys are having a hard time finding
girls to marry. It’s a pity that the government is so helpless. And the doctors,
they are butchers. They’ll do anything to make money, opening up ultrasound
facilities in every nook and cranny, doing abortions.”
Santosh didn’t care about the goings-on in Punjab or Timbuktu. “But
what shall we do about mom? She won’t leave Anu alone.”
“Santosh, don’t worry, my boy. I’ll talk to her.” She patted
her younger brother.
::
“What’s all this talk of abortion?” Veena asked in an uncharacteristically
soft tone.
Subbulu assumed that Veena was on her side. “I told that stupid girl to get
rid of that baby. You know she’s going to have another girl.”
“Mom, it’s illegal to abort a female fetus. We can’t do that.
If people find out that you are forcing Anu to have an abortion, our family name
will be ruined. We’ll become pariahs in the society. You know we move in highly
educated circles. What will people think of us? Dad worked very hard to come up
to this level, and we can’t ruin our reputation just because you want a grandson.
Anu is still quite young, she may have one more child after this one. You have no
right to tell her what to do. How would you have felt if someone told you to get
rid of me when I was in your womb?”
While Veena could move many a jaded judge to tears with her passionate appeals on
behalf of the downtrodden, the abandoned, and the abused, she was unable to convince
her own mother.
Subbulu said, “Either she gets an abortion or all the property will go to
charity. I’ve made up my mind. Santosh and Anu will not get even one rupee.”
Veena was shocked. “How can you do that? He’s your only son!”
Subbulu smiled benevolently, exposing her toothless gums. “It’s very
simple, Veena. Tell that girl to go to the doctor before it’s too late.”
::
Santosh and Anu met Veena at her posh penthouse apartment in a gated community.
Veena was a little late. “The traffic is horrible, phew... Bangalore is becoming
too crowded.” She threw her jacket on a chair and plopped down on the sofa.
“Mom has become a bloody dictator. I don’t know how to handle her.”
Santosh said in a meek tone, “Maybe we should listen to her; otherwise, we’ll
be on the street.”
Anu was in tears. “But it’s my baby, my baby. How can she be so cruel,
so unfeeling...”
Veena paced the living room, thinking hard about the situation. She went into the
kitchen, put the kettle on. Back in the living room, she said, “You guys will
have to separate.” Seeing their shocked looks, she winked. “It’s
a game, yaar. Just to jolt Mom. Anu, move to your parents’ house.
As for Sheila, she can stay back at the big house, she is smart and independent,
she can continue to go to her school. Now Santosh, you carry on as usual, run the
factory, take Mom to the doctor when needed. Once Anu leaves, Mom will come to her
senses. She has to spend money on a cook. She is so miserly, I know she’ll
hate to shell out the cash. Cooks don’t come cheap. Ha, ha, ha.” When
the kettle started to whistle, she ran into the kitchen. In a few minutes, she was
back in the living room with tea and biscuits.
Anu sipped her tea. “Santosh, do you think it’ll work?”
He said, “What’s to lose by trying? At least you’ll be off the
hook until you deliver, right?”
::
When Santosh knocked on her door, Subbulu asked, “Why are you bringing my
coffee? Where’s Anu?”
Santosh kept the mug on the side table. “She left, went off to Mysore.”
“What do you mean? She has to run the house, I’m too feeble.”
Santosh looked unhappy. “Mom, we are going to have a divorce. Veena is doing
the paper work.”
Subbulu sat up on her bed. “Rama! Rama! Divorce? It’s unheard of in
our family. No, no, no, you can’t have divorce.” For Subbulu, family
reputation was very important, and she knew that a divorce would set tongues wagging.
Santosh enjoyed seeing his mother squirm, but kept a deadpan expression. Veena coached
him and they rehearsed the scene several times. “Mom, I told Anu many times
that she should listen to you, have an abortion, but she’s too stubborn. I
begged her to reconsider, I told her that she can’t disobey her elders. But...”
He made a face and wrung his hands.
“Nonsense. Let’s call her. I can talk her out of this crazy idea. C’mon,
dial the Mysore number, give me the phone.” Subbulu was on a warpath.
Subbulu barked curtly. “Tell your daughter to return to Bangalore immediately,
there’s a lot of work here, what? what? Ha, okay, okay.” She told Santosh
who watched anxiously, “That woman! I never liked her.” She switched
the phone to the other ear. “Ha, ha, Anu! How are you, we miss you, you must
come back immediately. What? What? That’s it? After all I did for you all
these fifteen years, I bought you expensive gold and diamond jewelry, silk saris,
you lacked nothing, nothing at all, all this luxury, motor cars, drivers, servants
at your beck and call. You want to give it all up for a baby? Hmmm. So be it, so
be it.” She hung up, her face became hard. “Well, nobody’s indispensable.
Santosh! Go find a cook. Call Veena, she might know of someone.”
::
Shanti—whose husband had run away with another woman—joined the household, to
cook and help Subbulu to get around. Although well-mannered and clean, her rudimentary
repertoire and curtailed culinary skills disappointed the matriarch.
At the dining table, Subbulu was mad and yelled, “Shanti, these cauliflower
florets are not cut uniformly, some are too big, others too small, and look at the
potato cubes, you left them too long in the skillet, they are mushy, where did you
learn to cook, ha?”
Shanti stood with her hands across her chest and looked down. “I’ll
do better next time, Madam.”
In spite of Subbulu’s relentless reprimands, the food didn’t get any
better; it was either too salty, too spicy, too oily, or too bland. Every meal was
a rude shock, every meal a disaster, every meal an assault on the unsuspecting palate.
Subbulu camped out in the kitchen to supervise Shanti, how to cut potatoes uniformly,
how to chop cabbage, the exact millimeter pieces, how much turmeric, red pepper,
and other spices to add. Shanti listened respectfully, but was never able to meet
Subbulu’s exacting standards.
One day Subbulu sat in the kitchen and sipped coffee. “Shanti, watch that
pot, it’s boiling over, for god’s sake reduce the flame! Okay, now add
one teaspoon of salt and stir slowly.” When she saw the cook carelessly tossing
a whole tablespoon of salt into the pot, Subbulu lost it completely and screamed,
“You nincompoop! what the hell are you doing? The dish is ruined! No wonder
your husband ran away!”
Suddenly Subbulu slumped on the chair, her mouth slack and open, her right hand
fell to one side, as if lifeless. The coffee cup fell to the floor, breaking into
many pieces.
Shanti panicked and screamed, “Madam, are you okay?”
When Subbulu looked at her with her eyes wide open, unable to speak, Shanti knew
right away something was terribly wrong, and called Santosh and Veena.
At the hospital the doctor said, “Looks like she had a stroke. We’ll
do some scans.”
::
Subbulu was discharged after a month or so. Partially recovered, she was feeble,
unable to speak, and unable to walk. But in spite of these dreadful drawbacks, Subbulu
was aware of what was going on. Whereas her family members were relieved that, at
long last, her verbal diarrhea came to an abrupt halt, Subbulu was totally demoralized
and devastated. It was her passion to comment on this and that, to pass judgment,
to critique, to harass her hapless son and everyone else. Resigned to her fate,
Subbulu communicated with the tinkle of a bell; a bell tied to her wheel chair,
another by the bedside, and yet another in the bathroom. She summoned people with
a gentle tinkle or two, and when no one came promptly, she increased the frequency
as well as the amplitude of the tinkles, so much so, everyone in the house rushed
to her.
Veena, not one to miss such a golden opportunity, quickly moved the judicial system
to declare her mother incompetent to control the vast family enterprise. Santosh
took formal charge of the business empire.
Anu returned triumphantly, now the rightful mistress of the house. She did not empathize,
did not wait on Subbulu hand and foot, did not even throw a passing pitying glance
at her mother-in-law. Anu was relieved that the old witch was no longer capable
of delivering her nonstop, mocking monologs, no longer capable of hurting her feelings,
no longer capable of demanding that she have an abortion. Now with a bigger belly,
she waddled around, huffing and puffing, constantly out of breath even with the
simple task of climbing the stairs. To Subbulu’s dismay, Anu hired a highly
paid cook, who in a seemingly effortless manner, whipped up three tasty meals daily.
Anu took pity on the homeless Shanti, let her stay to help the cook and do other
minor chores. The house was again running smoothly, and peace and quiet prevailed.
Anu hired a full-time nurse to care for Subbulu, another expense that the old lady
begrudged but was unable to veto. The nurse, a young flaky girl, was no Florence
Nightingale, but lacked empathy and was in fact extremely apathetic. She was forever
busy texting and browsing the internet, or talking to someone on her iPhone. She
tested Subbulu’s patience, not that she had any to begin with. Although she
appeared promptly enough to Subbulu’s noisy summons, the nurse simply stood
in front of the patient, pretended not to understand what Subbulu wanted. She didn’t
bother to change her diaper, didn’t bother to help her drink water or coffee,
didn’t bother to feed her. But in the presence of the family members, she
appeared to be caring, adjusting the shawl on Subbulu’s legs, cooing to her,
wheeling her out to the colorful rose garden in the backyard. But when no one was
around, she neglected her charge. Santosh and Anu, already overwhelmed with Anu’s
difficult pregnancy, the frequent visits to her gynecologist, and to the endocrinologist
who kept an eye on her gestational diabetes, failed to notice the nurse’s
shortcomings.
Dealing with the recalcitrant nurse, Subbulu had another stroke, this time a massive
one. She was now totally paralyzed, unable to move, unable to eat, laid on the hospital
bed attached to numerous tubes—tube in her mouth, tube up her nose, probes
and tubes stuck in her arms. She was heavily sedated and even when she was awake,
nobody was sure if she recognized people around her. Barely alive, she survived
in that vegetative state, and but for all those machines, would have died in a hurry.
In the end, the machines could only do so much; it was like installing a new transmission
in a badly battered vehicle.
Subbulu was unaware that Anu gave birth to a baby weighing eight pounds. To honor
his mother, Santosh named the baby Subbulu.
is a writer who lives in Wilmington, North Carolina.
More Writing by Rudy Ravindra