‘Not without a pass, Sir’

Rajbir Singh 

Garba festival was in full swing, and all around were boys in the traditional dhoti kurta and girls in ethnic ghagra cholis. The Baroda Fine Arts faculty’s garba was a hit and everyone wanted to be a part of it. Only a few, however, could get in as the serpentine queue got longer.

I was at the entry point with my friends checking passes.

‘Sir, pass?’ I asked an enthusiastic young man. ‘Police,’ pat came the reply. True, false, one had little time to decide.

Then came this handsome boy, with four musclemen following him. Standing 6.5 feet tall, with a strong build, he had a princely smile. Bhoju Da, one of my friends cautioned me, ‘is from a royal family of Rajasthan and active in university politics; don’t mess with him even if he is without a pass’.

I again glanced at him with my fledgling artistic eyes. He had a distinctive presence. ‘Now, it is your exam, we will see your guts, Sardar,’ my friends indulged in banter. I was nervous. What if he gets agitated, what if a muscleman lands a blow?

Bhoju Da was standing in front of me, ‘Sardarji, I want to see garba.’

‘Do you have a pass, sir?’ I asked with utmost respect. ‘No,’ he replied, as his men sneered. I mustered courage and said, ‘Sir, a pass is mandatory to enter the ground.’ He simply said ‘ok’ and turned back. The musclemen were reluctant, but he ordered them to turn around.

‘That’s called courage,’ I teased my friends. But suddenly we all got anxious about the repercussions. ‘They will be waiting for you in the hostel, surely they will settle scores there,’ I was told.

We were in a huddle when I saw Bhoju Da standing in the line again. I thought it was payback time, but to my surprise, when his turn came, he took out passes for four with a smile. I welcomed them in, except the last one, who stared at me with penetrating eyes and left.

After two days, a junior met me at the entrance of the hostel building, all excited.

‘Bhai, Bhoju Da is looking for you.’ I stood still. ‘He is very impressed with you. That day when you denied him entry, his men were planning to smash you but he stopped them. He said Sardarji was just doing his duty and despite his clout did not budge. He is interested in meeting you.’

With a deep sigh, relief of course, I went to his room. I was greeted like a prince. Bhoju Da was royalty, didn’t I tell you?