Page 32 of A Shimla Affair
Later, I ask Noor why she said yes to helping the Shimla Circle.
She held my hand and said, ‘Because it’s the only way we can save the hotel.’
‘I don’t understand.’
‘We have until the end of the season. And then we have to begin the process of handover. They took everything from us, our father, our old life, now even our happiness. But I won’t let them take away the hotel. If we are made to leave the hotel at the end of the season, so will they.
‘If the plans works out, and if by helping the Shimla Circle we can really drive the British away, we can come back and reclaim the hotel, our town and our home. This is the best hope we haveof coming home again, and I am not willing to let go of this chance.’
We were young and naïve and believed we could change the world. We failed to see the truth that was out there for everyone to see: that we could never come back home again. That coming home would elude and haunt us for the rest of our lives.
ACT THREE
Shimla Calling
12
Dear Charles,
I hope you are well. You have been in my thoughts over the last few days and I finally found a chance to write to you. We had all been very busy with my sister’s wedding, and moreover, I have been afraid to step out ever since the riots in town. However, I would be happy to see you again and teach you how to drink a proper chai! Besides, there have been too many monkeys on the road leading up to the hotel and we really do need someone to drive them away.
I hope you are enjoying the sunny days.
My best regards,
Nalini
We had decided that we would fight for our freedom, but we also knew what we would lose for it: our father had taught us long ago that loss was built into the very nature of freedom. As I could not really bring to fruition whatever feelings Charles and I harboured for each other, I might as well use them tobring about the independence of our beloved land. At least that would be my salvation. I was able to bury the aching protest in my heart, consoling myself with the idea that any information I gleaned from Charles would never directly harm him.
None of what I had written in the letter was a lie, I meant every single word. He had been in my thoughts ever since the day I met him, and I truly had been too busy to reply to his most recent letter.
Charles’ answer, which was quick and equally friendly, catapulted my aims much further along than I had imagined. He wrote that he would be able to protect us all at the hotel by driving away the monkeys, and that he should like to invite me for an evening at their club. That he would be proud to be with me there. But on the chai, he must disappoint me, ‘as those who are gravely wrong must be disappointed,’ he had cheekily added. I had to laugh at that, and with trepidation, I accepted his invitation.
The club was housed in a beautiful cottage perched on one side of Summer Hill, accessible from the Mall. Getting down from the rickshaw and gazing upon this exclusively English establishment, my doubts ebbed away, and every step I took empowered me. I felt all my earlier hesitation melt away, remembering that my purpose for meeting Charles was cloaked in service to the nation.
I could hear the music right from the grounds that surrounded the timbered cottage; could also see some people outside around the stoop, the small light from their cigars, and the outline of their hats. Walking up the steps, my heart drummed under the chiffon sari I had wrapped around myself, yet I was confident of what I was there for—until I saw Charles come halfway down the stairs in a hurried descent, dressed impeccably in a dinner jacket. He stopped earnestly in front of me with a wide smile that flashed brilliantly in his eyes, and for a moment, all my resolveleft me. He held out his hand towards me and I grasped it, returning his smile, taking a step towards him, holding the edge of my sari with my other hand.
‘Thank you for coming,’ he said, ‘I was afraid I wouldn’t hear from you again.’
‘Well, that would have been my loss entirely.’
‘Rubbish,’ he replied, ‘on the other hand, I know where you live. I wouldn’t have given up so easily. I’m quite adept at climbing trees, as you might have noticed, if all else failed.’
I had to laugh at that.
‘You look resplendent!’ he said to me with another smile as he led us up the steps. ‘But well, I don’t need to tell you that.’
‘You don’t do badly either,’ I said, and he seemed happy that I had noticed. The sounds of saxophone and the piano came closer, and so did the cheers and the claps that accompanied the music. Now that we were nearer to others, I remembered that I was actually there in service of my motherland, and not for a romantic dalliance. I pulled myself back to attention and looked around.
The large room that housed the party was split into two sections—in one, there was the band and the people who danced, and in the other, more drinks, conversations and cigar smoke. The room was ordinary and lightly decorated, set up precisely so the men wouldn’t knock over precious things once drunk. The music was faster, the kind we played in the latter halves of dance parties at the hotel.
When we entered, it was very crowded, yet there was enough space for people to turn around and pass me looks as I walked by them, following Charles, with my sari and curly black hair. I passed them with a bright smile and was surprised when some people smiled back. I felt taller than I was, feeling all of my sari’s grace and beauty on my person.
‘… Is she royalty or something?’
‘No, I have never seen her—’
Charles looked back at me and took my hand as we walked further. I felt my heart stop in its tracks and reminded myself that I was merely carrying forth my duties. So much of my focus went into ignoring the drumming of my heart that I didn’t realize who stood in front of me until I was face to face with the man who commanded our lives: the Viceroy. His tall and imposing figure filled the room, flanked by two guards. Everyone oriented themselves around him. His hair was greying but it was his face, long and stretched with wrinkles, that showed the cruelties of life. I felt small and insignificant in front of him, as he stood deep in conversation with the Lord Commander-in-Chief Ripon, surrounded by more men: the District Magistrate, the Chief of Police and Ripon’s aide, Lord Beeson.
