Bichintopur's

Arjun boarded the 5 am bus and prayed to reach on time.

In many ways, this incident had shaken him more than his father's death.

Staring at the pitch dark Mumbai-Pune Highway, he was glad that Shakti decided to inform him.

He tried to doze off but his mind was running wild with reasons he could not comprehend.

Lata placed her palm on his shaking knees, " It is a 3 hours journey and fidgeting won't unravel anything here. Get some sleep."

This was an old habit that both his wife and his mother had always despised.

He was just shocked today and even the announcement of World War 3 could not have shocked him more.

Arjun had lost his father at the tender age of five to a disastrous mishap. His mother had not shed a tear as there was no time to do so and had joined his office on sympathetic grounds. Since the accident was a Quality Check fault, they were handsomely compensated, financially at least. But their lives changed completely overnight.

He did not actually remember his father. He was mostly away and whenever he did come he was busy with his business.

It was a small shop that sold stationery items. It was quite successful in their humble neighbourhood. He did sit in the shop at times with his father though and he held only to those flashbacks to remember him.

Now Raju understands that business was what his father's true calling was.

Raju's mother was a committed homemaker and his best friend.

She used to take care of the shop in her husband's absence. She had even suggested to him to quit his business and focus on the shop. But he was afraid and rightly so!

Business had never been taken up in their family. Venturing into uncharted waters with a family to take care of was really frightening. If only his father had half as much courage as his mother had.

Raju could not remember if he had ever seen her afraid. That woman fought like she had nothing to lose.

The bus halted at its usual stop for refreshments. Raju sighed looking at his quietly asleep wife, " What is wrong with Mom, this time."

Lata had forced him to a cup of tea and had sternly added, " Your hunger strike would only make you more cranky"

_ " Was it money? It must have been money. Why could she not ask me! Am I a bad son, Lata? Am I .."

" Will you please give it a break!"

" That shop is her life! Her whole damn life! I can even dare to say she loves it more than me!"

"No she does not," Lata added automatically.

" I just can't wrap my head around this. Why would she sell it? Why do I get to know this from Shakti..,"

" Baby will you please stop! You are spiraling wildly; the loop is infinite"

Raju frowned at her, " Don't teach the teacher; use your own words."

After a decade-long career in psychology, the last thing Arjun needed today was to taste his own medicine. "I should be allowed to be upset."

Lata knew there was no coming back from this and so she gave in " Yes please, continue nagging and tell me the reason. "

" I would not nag if I knew, right. Are you not surprised, even a little bit?"

" Of course I am! She is mad about that shop! I am completely taken aback. She was not even letting me set up a delivery business as that would ruin the nostalgia that people associate with it, remember. Then I suggested we take a poll and that is how I convinced her.

Your mother is a true-blue entrepreneur and I have seen how possessive she is about that shop."

Raju smirked," You have seen nothing. She even fought with her own family for it. She is a feisty lady and this move of hers scares me!"

Lata gently stroked her husband's shoulder, " Babe, we can't conjure up reasons, We have to listen to her."

The shrill whistle of the bus caught them off-guard as the duo quickly finished the tea to board the bus.

Lata knew her husband would drive himself crazy till they reached his mother's place and she had to distract him. But even she did not have the slightest hint as to why her mother-in-law had done this.

She had always admired Arjun's mother and it was through her that the couple had met.

As a part of one of her MBA projects she was interviewing local entrepreneurs and 'Bichintopur's' had caught her eye. The revolutionary confectionery shop was attracting people from all over Maharashtra. Even Mumbaikers would come to this lesser- known part of Pune to indulge in a sinful desire.

Lata had written about this shop in their B-school newsletter and had added fuel to an emerging fire called Bichintopur's.

In short, Mrs. Sen, Arjun's mother was no less than a celebrity in Pune. Lata had also helped set up their social media account after a lot of debate.

This was not the first time offers had poured in for this sweet paradise, but earlier Mrs. Sen had firmly refused all such offers. She really did love the shop just like her own child and at times it seemed even more.

Lata had initially thought of suppressing the fact but now she knew it could no longer be delayed, " Babe," she called to her husband, " Ma had called me on Tuesday. I knew"

Raju was dumbfounded, disappointed more than enraged.

He clenched his fist and looked at his wife with a steel cold stare ( Lata feared this more than anything), " She asked you to not tell me?"

With a pale face and her head bowed down, Lata managed to mutter, " I owed her a favor, Arjun. She held me to that."

"Did she tell you why?"

" No, she did not. She did not even tell me she was selling. She just said she was considering Mr. Hirala's offer. And I kind of knew. She specifically asked me to keep it to myself and.."

Arjun stopped her, " She left a government job, she sold my father's beloved store, she gambled all our money, strained relationships, and ate Bhaat-daal ( A very basic meal) for years to make that business run. That shop is not just a store it is her everything. "

Lata clutched her husband's hand, " I know. But her voice that day was different. You know, your mother is my inspiration. She gave me the courage to turn down the campus offer and explore my start-up idea. She even invested in my venture. But this Tuesday, I could not even recognize her voice."

At the bus stop, Shakti was standing with the familiar Swift Dzire to take them home. Arjun looked at his mother's secretary with disdain and the poor boy blurted out, " She had blackmailed me Bhaiya. " Arjun's gaze softened. His mother could at times be really frightening; she had once successfully made a grown-up man cry when the raw materials were not up to the mark. That man dared not to appear in front of her for one whole year and here Shakti was just a boy of 20. When they arrived in front of the Sen household, Lata whispered carefully, " Please don't charge her. You know she is just like you and would not say anything. Let her come to you."

Arjun knew his wife was right. His mother was a proud woman and rightly so. He had to be patient with her.

Mrs. Shourini Sen greeted her son and daughter-in-law warmly. She told them to join her for breakfast and waited patiently at the Dining Table.

The day passed along as usual and Arjun waited to confront her privately. In the afternoon, at the kitchen of their shop, Arjun caught his mother sitting alone staring at the oven. It had been defunct for ages but it was her first and she cherished it with all her heart.

"Ma,"

" Yes, Babu ( an endearing nickname), "

" What is wrong Ma? Why are you not telling me! "

" I don't need therapy Babu."

" I won't, promise. Just talk to me."

His mother looked up, her eyes filled with water;

" What is wrong Ma? You are scaring me! "

She finally surrendered to herself, " I am scared, Babu."

Raju could not suppress his chuckle, " That emotion exists for you is a completely novel knowledge for me!"

His mother frowned," See, I knew you would not understand. I should not have told you only."

" ohh Ma.. Why would I not understand? I am just surprised. What is scaring the ever daunting Mrs. Shourini Sen? "

" If you continue joking I am not saying another word."

Raju knew that if they enter that territory this mystery would never be revealed, his mother could hold on to a grudge for days.

" No, No. I am not joking, tell me."

This time his mother took a deep breath, " I can't bake anymore."

Raju knew she took pauses in between sentences and rushing her would just break her rhythm, he waited.

" In the last two years, I have not added a single new sweet."

The entire selection at Bichintopur's was her own menu.

She had even introduced events like Stranger's Thursday, Artist's Wednesday within those four walls.

Throughout his school days, Raju would see his mother burning the night lamp to experiment with her bakes. Many-a-times entire months used to pass and there would be no sale but she refused to give up. And then as the sole breadwinner, raising a young kid all alone, she stood her ground unflinchingly and now- What had shaken her this bad?

She continued with her head bowed down, " I am too afraid to fail now Babu. I have reached my limit."

Arjun understood exactly what she was feeling and came closer to his mother, " That is okay-, Ma. Fear is a very powerful emotion indeed. Albeit it's new for you and had disoriented you but the reaction should not be flight Ma. We can easily fight this."

Shourini looked at her son.

Arjun smiled again, " You just need to travel and meet more bakers. You need inspiration and hopefully you will get a muse too," he teased lightly.

" You only sell the shop Ma, if you are tired and can no longer go on. Now is not that situation at all. It is just a creative block, like all great artists have had at some point in their lives. "

Shourini had not really thought it this way. She was just confused that she did not know for the first time in her life what to do.

" And Ma," her son added, " You don't need to fight all alone anymore. I am here, Lata is here too. There is no need to carry all that burden alone anymore.

Having had to fight alone for so long that Shourini had forgotten how to ask for help.

She asked her son and daughter-in-law to stay for that week. As her son had suggested, she asked her daughter-in-law to help her research her competitors. In the meantime, a vacation was overdue for long and Shourini dared to re-visit her life when her dear Anway was still alive. Actually, she never really liked sweets it was for him she had started baking, and later their son too inherited his sweet tooth and Bichintopur was the name of Anway's birthplace. The name had always amused her.