"Haji Baba."

 Life in the city becomb trance and still. Every body looked scared of the speedy spread of Covid 19’ and most of the people became psychic .My wife, Shalin, sometimes laughed and quote “our life become a horror movie, in few months every person would become apocalypse".So we decided to spend the two months summer vacation in suburbs of Abbott Abad, beautiful summer resort in the North of Pakistan. Hired a Cottage .It emerged a small Cottage on small beautiful lush green pastures. made of wood,some fifty years ago, the old man maintained it in absolute condition .The whole house was in working order,especially the washrooms and the kitchen stood in perfect old styled but in fully functional order. The old man ,the owner,all habituated to call him “Haji Baba, modelled a widower,his daughter got married some years ago ,Gently tall,Voice turned out to be little gruff,always rounded a big Shawl type round covering his body or some times he put on an over coat,with a skull cap , comfortable lived in the back quarters of the cottage. Early in the morning ,he accustomed to switched on the water pump,then went to market to buy some groceries and other utilities ,this came to be his routine job .He emerged ,by nature, very funny and honest .We arise thrilled and living a peaceful healthy life.The cool and fresh breeze of pinewood continued excelling the strength of immunity. The temperature appeared mild not exceeding 16 and 18 degrees Celsius, at night sometimes we put on woolies but incumbent

to stretched out a blanket. Sensing a cut off life from the rest of the world. Sometimes my wife quoted down that our life is just like the episodes of “House on prairie”. You will not imagine ,we totally forgot the old Covid life ,our life was completely different and unfrightful.We husband and wife enjoyed morning and evening walks in the natural surroundings.

One day Shalin went towards Haji Baba 's quarters side. There she saw a woman’s back ,washing clothes and some woman clothes airing on the cloth line. She stepped back. At afternoon,she asked from Baba"I think your daughter came to see you "?.Baba gave a vague reply by saying “no".After napping we went for a walk.”. "Baba has confused you , hiding something from us, may be he had some reservations explaining but I also didn’t notice any woman in his quarters but don’t think about it ,we are here to spend some days ,do not stress ,enjoy “.My words gave her little normalcy .At seven we came back to cottage. We crop up tiring and decided to take a quick cup of coffee and to retired soon but Baba head up by saying,

“Today I prepared a delicious mince with boiled eggs, for you,come to dining room at eight. “Haji Baba smiley announced with a concerned touch on his face. Exactly at Eight,we went to have a meal. He prepared the dish with great love and affection.After having green tea, He looked towards us and said, ..”Today my heart is very heavy, wanna tell you a story of a pretty girl,Dina,living with her parents in a small village, about forty years ago ,Her father appeared a peasant ,growing farm for a Land Lord.Dina,married to a humble man but after a year, her husband died in an accident. Villagers having narrow minded and stereotypical, they directed her parents that Dina now stood an ominous woman,she is not allowed to mixed up with the other women folk especially the newly wedded or brides.Now,Dina was confide to her small room, became aloof from every body,even restricted to touch the living stocks.

One day she became overtly pathetic .she stepped out from the house and continued wondering in the green fields. It was a beautiful weather.Eventually,a gusty wind blew,She aptly decided to step back home but a strong huge figure emerged from the fields. It was Lalee ,son of a Land Lord ,a lewd and loafer, carrying a pistol in his hand and jumped on Dina “If you tried to scream ,I Will kill you ,lay straight”. Dina became frightened and got drilled badly. For about half an hour, She persisted in the fields, stepped  home didn’t say anything to anybody but an old woman saw all this scenario and announced in the village .The news touched the ears of the elders , got together and badly blamed Dina .Nobody heard Dina's Voice.Finally they decided to shoot her publicly ,the next morning. Tied up and threw her like a deadly beast ,in a dungeon. It was severely cold and snowy night, Dina was lying sobbing ,totalled jet dark,door opened and a hefty body appeared ,It depicts Lalee. “Dina,forgive me ,  here to apologise, did severe wrong to you, I love you but won’t marry you, wanna give you a favor, don’t waste time, come with me ,My man JoJo, would drop you out side the village.You wear this long Shawl and a rain coat, take this big German torch ,hurry up".Dina sat with JoJo in the car.The car left her outside the village.It was a deadly precipitation. She was standing alone under a large tree,watching the speedily car going back,while negotiating a turn, indiscriminate firing broke out ,and killed JoJo on the spot. Now she fully understood the plan of Lalee, on the one hand he saved her life ,on the other hand he killed JOJO, to put all the blame of her escaping from the dungeon on JoJo. But for how long could she stand under a tree, ? She switched on the torch and commenced walking . It was heavy for fragile legs to kick the snowy stakes ,but she had to continue, stopping was death. She walked the whole night and at dawn she reached an unexpected and un known destination ,Now she had no more strength to walk,fallen down and fainted. When she opened her eyes, she was surrounded by mysterious men, been a hideout, wearing big turbans, beard with great mustache, collaring black Malaysian clothes ,carrying guns, they were rebellions,they took arms against The Nawab, who forcefully snatch their lands and made the poor peasants helpless and miserable creatures.

 An old man stepped forward and expressed his concern. He was a chief. Dina told him the whole story. All the men of the hideouts respected her like family member,gave her a place to live privately.Two months passed .Jamie, a young rebellion becomb her paramour,wanted to marry her, Chief asked her,and she gave her consent for marriage .Arrangement made for wedlock. All the members of the hideout's got greatly excited and arranged a small musical genre inside the hideout.Dina feeling thrilled and romantic with the new opening of life. “A strong air gust could strikes the eel to turn" An idiom sits fit here.

 Transmission sheering sound alert them ,Announcement made to handover themselves in Ten minutes,. whole area was covered by the Nawab's army. situation got crucial .Chief looked at Dina and said” We are tightly surrounded by the Nawab's army,you take this money bag and run away through a secret route”. Why don’t you all save your skin by run through the secret route “Dani sobbed. “we cannot do this,we are not coward,We want to liberate the Oppressed land from the clutches of the deadly Nawab, It would be a decisive battle, go away,if we become victorious,contact you again, you are like my daughter, I have a small cottage,which nobody knows,that place would be a safer place for you, go and settle there, I wrote the address on this piece of paper, hurry up “Chief said hurriedly. Dani along with the money bag, left the hideout.She travelled in the high mountainous jungle, tiredly arrived to her new destination, the wooden cottage.She kept the money bag carefully. Dani waited for months for the chief and Jamie but nobody came to meet her.later she came to know ,all the rebellions were brutally killed by the Nawab's army,including Chief .Her parents were also told about Dani's killing in the battle.

Now a great challengeable life confronting her.She was all alone and helpless.The area was thinly populated. Her mind hit a plan.She shaved her head,put a skull cap on and wore a overcoat and adopted a guise of a man.Bought a horse cart and began with her work of supply milk and other commodities to the shops.people started mingled with her and she successfully doing business." Haji Baba stopped saying this. But Where is Dani now? Shalin asked impatiently from him. Haji Baba paused for a while and said “Dani is still living here “.”What do you mean by saying “here" .I asked abruptly .He looked us and becomb silent for a while “I’m Dani,” a woman in guise of a man,this was the only solution for me to live and cope with the Society.” Shocking and gapely looking to Haji Baba. Haji Baba ,after forty years told his painful tale to us,but all of above ,We stood happy, Haji Baba narrated the story of his life, measuring us as his family members.

The End. ”The Haji Baja”.