‘Are you being polite, Haresh?’ asked Savita warmly. ‘You’re not eating anything at all. Politeness doesn’t pay in this family. Pass the pastries, Arun.’
‘I must apologize,’ said Arun to Haresh. ‘I should have mentioned it this morning but it slipped my mind entirely. Meenakshi and I will be out for dinner tonight.’
‘Oh,’ said Haresh, puzzled. He glanced at Mrs Rupa Mehra. She was looking flushed and upset.
‘Yes. Well, we were invited three weeks ago, and couldn’t cancel it at the last moment. But Ma and the rest will be here, of course. And Varun will do the honours. Both Meenakshi and I were looking forward to it, needless to say, but when we got home from Prahapore that day, we looked at our diary and – well, there it is.’
‘We feel awful,’ said Meenakshi gaily. ‘Do have a cheese straw.’
‘Thank you,’ said Haresh, a little dampened. But after a few minutes he bounced back. Lata at least looked pleased to see him. She was indeed wearing a pink sari. Either that or she was very cruel! Today he’d certainly get a chance to talk to her. And Savita, he felt, was kind and warm and encouraging. Perhaps it was no bad thing that Arun wouldn’t be there for dinner, though it would be odd to sit down at his table – and that too for the first time – in his host’s absence, Haresh could feel muted pulses of antagonism emanating from his direction, and to some extent from the darkly radiant Meenakshi too, and he would not have felt entirely relaxed in their company. But it was certainly an odd response to the hospitality he had offered them.
Varun was looking unusually cheerful. He had won eight rupees at the races.
‘Well, we didn’t do so badly after all,’ said Haresh to him.
‘I’m sorry?’
‘After this morning, I mean.’
‘Oh, yes, cricket. What was the closing score?’ asked Varun, who had got up.
‘257 for 6,’ said Pran, astonished that Varun hadn’t been following it.
‘Hmrn,’ said Varun, and went over to the gramophone.
‘Don’t!’ thundered Arun.
‘Don’t what, Arun Bhai?’
‘Don’t put on that damn machine. Unless you want me to box your two intoxicated ears.’
Varun recoiled with murderous timidity. Haresh looked startled at the exchange between the brothers. Varun had hardly said a thing that day in Prahapore.
‘Aparna likes it,’ he said in a resentful tone, not daring to look at Arun. ‘And so does Uma.’ Unlikely though this was, it was true. Savita, whenever she found that legal Latin did not put Uma to sleep, would sing this song to her while rocking her to and fro.
‘I do not care who likes what,’ said Arun, his face reddening. ‘You will turn it off. And at once.’
‘I haven’t turned it on in the first place,’ said Varun in creeping triumph.
Lata hurriedly asked Haresh the first question that came into her head: ‘Have you seen Deedar?’
‘Oh, yes,’ said Haresh. ‘Thrice. Once by myself, once with friends in Delhi, and once with Simran’s sister in Lucknow.’
There was silence for a few seconds.
‘You must have enjoyed the film,’ said Lata.
‘Yes,’ said Haresh. ‘I like films. When I was in Middlehampton I sometimes saw two films a day. I didn’t see any plays though,’ he added rather gratuitously.
‘No – I wouldn’t have thought so,’ said Arun. ‘I mean – there’s so little opportunity, as you once said. Well, if you’ll excuse us, we’ll get ready.’
‘Yes, yes,’ said Mrs Rupa Mehra. ‘You get ready. And we have a few things to do. Savita has to put the baby to bed and I have a few New Year’s letters to write, and Pran – Pran –’
‘– has a book to read?’ suggested Pran. ‘
‘Yes,’ agreed Mrs Rupa Mehra. ‘And Haresh and Lata can go into the garden.’ She told Hanif to put on the garden light.
16.22
IT was not yet quite dark. The two walked around the small garden a couple of times, not knowing quite what to say. Most of the flowers had closed, but white stocks still perfumed one corner near the bench.
‘Shall we sit down?’ asked Haresh.
‘Yes. Why not?’
‘Well, it’s been such a long time since we met,’ said Haresh.
‘Don’t you count the Prahapore Club?’ said Lata.
‘Oh, that was for your family. You and I were hardly present.’
‘We were all very impressed,’ said Lata with a smile. Certainly, Haresh had been very much present, even if she hadn’t.
‘I hoped you would be,’ said Haresh. ‘But I’m not sure what your elder brother thinks of all this. Is he avoiding me? This morning he spent half the time looking around for a friend of his, and now he’s going out.’