‘Aba challenges us with dire warning in his eyes. I say, “Right. Now show us the tanpura.” He shakes his head in an “it’s-your-funeral” way, and has it brought in from a corner of the shed at the back. He has been planning to burn it. We marvel at its beauty. It is terrible to think Aba would reduce such a thing to ashes. For some reason, Girji comes to mind. When we lift the tanpura, Aba’s face is like he’s seen a ghost. He won’t even touch the money we give him. He asks us to put it on the chair outside. He will probably exorcise it before he lets it enter his home. When we get back, Sharada calls up Aba to assure him that the tanpura and its couriers have arrived safely and that we are all in one piece and haven’t as much as stubbed our toes on the way.

‘Now you must decide, Janaki. Do you want to keep it or shall we drown it in the sea?’

Janaki’s answer is to run her fingers over its strings and strum them lightly.

Anima’s mention of the sea hits Ashesh in the pit of the stomach. They still know nothing, and he can’t tell them while they are still savouring the joy of the occasion. When everybody has eaten and their high spirits have come down a notch or two, he makes a clinical announcement that does not betray his emotions. ‘An earthquake measuring 9.5 on the Richter scale has hit the seabed off the coast of Sumatra and entire coasts around the Indian Ocean have been annihilated.’

He switches on the television.

‘It is difficult to assess at this moment how many people have died in the tsunami. The water has still not receded and aftershocks continue to be felt. We will be tracking this terrible catastrophe through the day. Experts are still not certain where the tsunami is likely to hit as it travels westward. It has already hit India’s eastern coast and experts see the possibility of its hitting the east coast of Africa.’

Janaki holds Ashesh’s hand tightly. The room is engulfed in a dense silence. The friends look at each other, stunned. The tsunami is doing its tandav, the dance of destruction, on the threshold of the country.

41

To: Haridas, Anju–Atul, Gieve, Shanta–Sudhir, Ashesh–Janaki, Anima

Subject: The Tsunami
Dear Friends,

Thanks for your kind inquiries. I am OK. But it was a terrifying experience.