Unshackled by Vinita Shaw, Chapter 21

    Aloka was an escapist by nature. She left her village as a young teenager with the first boy who made a pass at her.

    Her father had died and her mother wanted to marry her to an old man in exchange for some money. She had overheard it all when her maternal uncle had come to visit her recently widowed mother. They both thought she was asleep in the small corner of their dark and dingy hut. She had been asleep but the sound of hushed conversation accompanied by the sound of big raindrops falling noisily to the ground had woken her up. She had been very tired. The heat and humidity typical of the little village close to the Bay of Bengal was awful. The rain was a welcome sign and she changed side on her untidy little floor bed and kept her eyes closed and quietly overheard their conversation.

    “How will you take care of her? Look at her. She is growing up and soon she will attract a beeline of men. You are better off if you marry her to the old man. She will be safe and you too will have money for your old age.” 

    Her mother nodded her head. “You are right. Now with her father no more, how will we feed ourselves and her younger siblings? I know you mean well. Alright then. You do as you deem fit.”

    Aloka knew her fate was sealed. But she did not wish to marry. She had been watching movies and listening to the radio broadcasting romantic songs. She had dreams of her own. She did not wish to waste her life here in this impoverished little village. She wanted to see the big city.

    Her mind was frantic with scheming and immediately went back to the village  rogue who had been making passes at her. If anyone could get her out of this poverty-stricken village it was him.

    Babu was the rebel of the village, detested by all. But he was ambitious and enterprising. She had often overheard him bragging about his escapades in the big town to the eyes-bulging and open- mouthed villagers. He would often take the bus to the city and bring back things to sell to the villagers.

    For Babu every village girl was a potential target. He had often whistled at Aloka when she would return from the well balancing pots of water on her head and holding a couple of others in her hands. The evening Sun would illuminate her sultry oval face and small eyes. She was voluptuous and had dark long hair. She knew she looked good.

    As the first opportunity presented itself, she approached Babu. “My family wants to marry me off against my will. Can you take me to the city? Please help me,” she blurted. Babu was surprised at her boldness. They decided to leave the village the same night and never look back.

    In the big city, Aloka lived with Babu for a few months but soon he began bringing his friends home to her. “I am making money for you. How else will we survive in this city? We’re unemployed and don’t possess any skills,” he said.

    He was right. Work was work. Her needs were being met and she was much better off than the girls in the brothel. Here in a small rented flat, it was just them and the clients. Life was good.

    They got used to each other and this way of life. Aloka would go to the city and explore the markets whenever she got time off.

    As time passed, with good food, Aloka grew healthy and turned into a woman. She had no regrets about her life and the men who came and went meant only work until she got pregnant.

    Babu knew everything and took her to an abortion clinic. She rested for a week before she began entertaining clients again.

    Time passed and she had many abortions. She wondered why each time, she grew more and more depressed and suicidal. She wanted to quit this way of life. But Babu refused. He tried to humour her and please her in different ways, to no avail.

    One day, she decided that she had had enough. Once again, silently, she schemed her escape. Like her mother who had not known what was going on in her mind, Babu knew nothing about her scheme.

    There was a truck driver from Haryana who used to visit her often. He was a big fellow with beard and a turban. He had often asked Aloka to come away with him. “I live up north in Haryana and there are no girls in our village. I will marry you. You can escape from this place. Nobody will know. I will fix Babu…”

    Until this point, Aloka had not given it a thought. But now after a number of abortions, she wanted to leave this life behind.

    One day, she eloped with the Haryana driver and came to Delhi. She could not speak a word of their language and saw their clothing and food habits were very different from what she was used to. It was a big joint family of many brothers and old women. Most of the brothers had wives from other parts of India.

     Aloka tried to settle as a family woman but with the passage of time, when she did not conceive, she began to get restless. Her husband began to get upset with her. He wanted children and she could give him none. She began to get bored and one day she asked him, “When you are gone for days, I get bored. There is a factory nearby. Why don’t I pick up a job? I can make tea for them or cook for them. What do you say?”

    Her husband agreed and he got her the job. Once again Aloka’s scheming began and she began to go with the men in the factory in order to get pregnant. But she did not.

    Here at her home, she was humiliated by her mother in law. The other women had borne children and they were one growing brood.

    Humiliated, Aloka would break down time and again. But only when she was alone. She began to recede further into isolation.
    One would think that with the passage of time, the wound of her barrenness would heal. Maybe if left untouched it would heal, but if raked up day in and day out--the  wound would ooze again.
    One morning, she played with the radio knob and heard a melodious song being played. It sounded like a religious program. She had never heard this one before. That was the first time she heard the name JESUS. She felt a strange peace fill her heart. She felt compelled to call the telephone number given at the end of the program. She quickly made a note of the telephone number on a piece of paper. At the first opportunity she got, she called up the number and was warmly responded to. Hesitantly, Aloka spoke to the counselor requesting for prayer for her to have a child.

    She was encouraged to continue to listen to the radio program which she began to do on a weekly basis. She told her husband about the program and they both began to listen to the programs.

    Weekly conversations with the counsellor became a habit. Aloka shared everything about her personal life. The pain, the humiliation, and the bitterness of it all. She was listened to. Unburdening to a stranger felt like therapy. She wanted to mend her ways. The counsellor encouraged her to be faithful to her husband. Time continued to pass.

    One day the much awaited call from her came to our counsellor saying, “I am pregnant. I have just come from the Doctor and after my husband you are the first one I am giving this good news to. Thank you for introducing me to Jesus. I want to come and see you. I want to meet you. God has answered my prayers.”

    The news of Aloka’s pregnancy spread like wild fire in the village. “Women are listening to our radio broadcast and calling up to request for counselling and prayer. We have a big group here and all of us want to meet you. Please come and visit us.”

Purchase this complete book, Unshackled by Vinita Shaw, on Amazon here.
Purchase Vinita Shaw's first book, Unveiled, on Amazon here.