I was walking from the station. It was not that dark, just foggy and cold. Northern India gets into a thick sheet of fog. It results in many road accidents and delays in flights and trains.
He must have been in his fifty and one eye covered. He mentioned the eye operation he had undergone. It was a property fight with his sons. My talkative vice must have made him open up or my smile. He introduced himself as Kalandar. We continued talking and ended up catching over a chai. He was on his way to Delhi to her daughter’s place. She was married a few years back and worked in a private bank as a clerk.
Kalander mentioned this was his last train for life. Afterward, he will stay and die in Delhi with his daughter’s family. I asked about others in his family. On hearing this, his eye went numb, and his voice mellowed. He mentioned that he lost his wife six months back in a road accident.
He did not say much about his brother and other members. He asked me what am I doing here. I mentioned I was there to see my parents. I don’t know what happened to him, and he started crying loudly. I asked what happened.
Kalandar: babuji agar beta nikamma nikla to bete ke paas he zake marna padta hai na. (a useless son results in dying with daughters and family.)
Me: Aaz ke zamane mae beta bete kaise alag hai.(How is a son or daughter different in this era?)
Kalander mentioned that his son took a huge loan and moved to the Gulf. It’s been over six months, and he has not sent any money. At the same time, loan sharks made Kalandar’s life miserable.
He is on his way to her daughter’s home for life after selling his ancestral property, his two bulls, bullock cart, and flowering sarso plants.
I had not much to say besides hugging him and crying. I got a call from Mom and was called for dinner.