Preet has studied at the Waldorf School of Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and

has been brought up in a non-competitive, nature-loving atmosphere.

This and other circumstances in his life have not prepared him to cope
in a competitive society. Just before her death, Preets mother, based in
the USA, sends him to Viju in Hyderabad, India, to help Preet settle in
life. Viju and Preet travel together to an Arboreal Homestay, at Kesla in
Central India, to a bike-share programme and Roma gypsies in Paphos,
Cyprus, and finally to a ranch in Montana in the USA.
This is a story about Preet learning hands-on about modern political
and ecological consciousness and preparing for a world of tomorrow
where ecological restoration is the main agenda of the world. It would
also be a world where no one would be a failure. It is also about Lorry,
Chunni, Karnika, Sankalp, Soujanya, Konstantinos and Chetana, mentors
of Preet, who are actually leading an alternative life style and careers. In
the background is Vijus long life of activism and personal tragedy.

Preet has studied at the Waldorf School of

Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and has been brought up
in a non-competitive, nature-loving atmosphere.
This and other circumstances in his life have not
prepared him to cope in a competitive society. Just
before her death, Preets mother, based in the
USA, sends him to Viju in Hyderabad, India, to
help Preet settle in life. Viju and Preet travel
together to an Arboreal Homestay, at Kesla in
Central India, to a bike-share programme and
Roma gypsies in Paphos, Cyprus, and finally to
a ranch in Montana in the USA.
This is a story about Preet learning hands-on
about modern political and ecological
consciousness and preparing for a world of
tomorrow where ecological restoration is the main
agenda of the world. It would also be a world
where no one would be a failure. It is also
about Lorry, Chunni, Karnika, Sankalp,
Soujanya, Konstantinos and Chetana, mentors of
Preet, who are actually leading an alternative
life style and careers. In the background is Vijus
long life of activism and personal tragedy.

LONG
SHADOWS

T. Vijayendra

SANGATYA

LONG SHADOWS
Author: T. Vijayendra
First Print: 2016
Price: Rs. 80/Copies: 500
Copy Left: All Rights Reversed

Publishers: Sangatya Sahitya Bhandar

Post Nakre,
Taluk Karkala, Dist. Udupi
Karnataka 576 117
Phone: 08258 205340
Email: t.vijayendra@gmail.com
Mobile: +91 94907 05634
For Copies
Manchi Pustakam
12-13-439, St. No. 1
Tarnaka, Secunderabad 500017
Email: info@manchipustakam.in
Mobile: +91 73822 97430
Editors : Karnika Palwa and Vidyadhar Gadgil
Layout and Printing
Charita Impressions
Azamabad, Hyderabad - 500 020.
Phone : 27678411

LONELYNESS
The teacher corrected
my spelling of lonelyness.
She said,
There is an I at the centre of loneliness
And there is no Y!
Poem by a Migrant Asian girl in England

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
In writing this little novella I have incurred many
debts.
While some characters Preet, Asha and Jerry
are purely imaginary, I have used a lot of real names
and places in the story, although the events are of
course largely fictitious.
The real names and places are: Usha Sriram,
Naren, Raja, Mehjabeen (Hyderabad) Karnika,
Sankalp (Delhi), Lorry, Chunni (Kesla) Sana (Dubai
and Hyderabad), Soujanya and Konstantinos
(Hyderabad and Paphos, Cyprus), Chetana and Ajay
(Hyderabad and USA), and, finally, of course myself
as Viju. This may lead some readers to think that it
is a real story. I beg them to believe that it is fiction.
It is a lazy authors literary device. Instead of inventing
names and places around real events, I have invented
plausible events around real names and places. As
Sankalp said, it could almost be true or, as Chunni
said, It is like a dream come true!
Sana helped me with the section on Dubai, and
7

Soujanya and Konstantinos helped me with the

section on Paphos. Aditya Prabhakar helped me with
a lot of information about Atlanta, Georgia and about
the USA in general. The background for Montana,
USA, is taken from Death of a Dude by Rex Stout
(1969).
Karnika Palwa edited the book and made it
readable. Vidyadhar Gadgil went through a tooth
comb and took pains to remove any mistakes that
were left in spite of our efforts.
To all of them I owe my gratitude.
For the rest, I will have to be satisfied with just
listing a few names alphabetically, even though I owe
them my very existence material, mental, emotional
and cultural. There are many others, I am sure, whom
I have not been able to name for varied reasons.
Alka Saraogi, Anant Krishna, Anuradha Naik,
Arvind Gupta, Augustine Veliath, Binayak Sen,
Bhashwati, Chetana Kallakuri, Hredai, Ilina Sen,
Janardhan V., Janet Chawla, Jyoti Mudgal, Kalpana
Ram, Karnika Palwa, Kiran Shaheen, Kishwar Shirali,
Lindsay Barnes, Lorry Benjamin, Madhu Sarin, Man
Mohan Sharma, Mansoor Khan, Mariette Correa,
Mohan Mani, Moyna, Nilanjana Biswas, Nyla
Coelho, Ponnamma George, Rabin Chakraborty,
Ranjan Ghosh, Ravi Srinivasan, Renu Khanna, Ruby
Hembrom, Rukmini Rao, Sagar Dhara, Sajai Jose,
Sandhya Srinivasan, Sara Jolly, Saral Sarkar, Shailaja
Kalle, Shreekumar, Soujanya M., Suresh Kosaraju,
8

S. Srinivasan (Chinu), Usha Rao, Usha Seetharam,

Vidyadhar Gadgil, Vijay Kundaji, Vina Bhatia,
Vinish Gupta, Vir Bharat Talwar and Yogesh K.
I thank them all.
Viju
(T. Vijayendra)
Hyderabad
October 23 (Dussera), 2015

Chapter 1

Hyderabad

12

Viju read and re-read the letter several times. It was

a small letter, typed in fact a copy of the email she
had sent earlier.
Atlanta, Georgia
August 20, 2015
Dear Viju,
I know that you travel a lot but always are in town
in the first week of the month.
I never told you before but I am dying. In my
instructions I have mentioned that I should be buried
next to Jerrys grave.
All that does not worry me, but I am worried
about Preet. What will happen to him? He is thirty
years old now, an American, and his place is here.
But he cannot manage at all on his own. Maybe, as
a single mother, I have been over-protective. But there
are other issues and I have mentioned them in the
enclosed document.
I am sending him to Hyderabad. He arrives on
September 2. I want you to take care of him and do
what is best for him. I have infinite faith in your
13

wisdom. Now I think I should have sent him to you

much earlier. But I kept on thinking, What will
he do in India? He knows no Indian language
and, as you know, India can be so tough. Anyway
all that is past.
Now let me talk of some practical issues. I have
transferred my savings to your account. I know you
dont need the money and will never spend it on
yourself. But I have no one to give it to. After Jerry
died you and Preet are the only family I have. My
own family disowned me a long time ago, when I
produced a baby without a fathers name. If I give
the money to Preet, people will simply cheat him
and may even harm him.
Please spend it as you wish but please, please,
take care of Preet. I know I dont have to plead.
You will do it naturally.
But once again please feel free to spend as you
like and need, and to use your discretion in all
matters.
What more is left to say! What has been between
us will always remain precious to me. I dont have
to articulate it.
Love,
Asha

Preets Dossier
Preet was born on December 25, 1985. Like the
famous person he shares his birthday with, he is also
14

a child of love. He was, therefore, christened as Preet.

For a variety of reasons, his fathers name is not
recorded.
Preet went to the Waldorf School of Atlanta and
has been brought up in a non-competitive, natureloving atmosphere. As the school brochure says:
The Waldorf School of Atlanta embodies the ideals
of Waldorf Education. Experts in child development
are now confirming what Rudolf Steiner, the founder
of Waldorf schools, understood a hundred years ago:
children learn both eagerly and naturally.
The school embodies the ideal of Waldorf
Education:
The sanctity of childhood
An abiding sense of wonder
An evolving quest for truth.
The Values of the school are:
We explore with students the beauty, possibility
and resilience of the human spirit, bestowing upon
them the tools to become thoughtful, clear-thinking
adults, able to act with courage and social
responsibility.
We provide a safe and inclusive learning
environment rich in natural aesthetics, where the
interests and strengths of all students are honoured
and encouraged through artistically expressed
practical life skills.
After school Preet could not cope in a college. He
got bullied and never knew anything about fighting
15

back. He never complained, and was silent about

who beat him up and why. Soon he stopped going
to college.
Jerry was a big support to him and Preet was happy
at home, reading nature books and the writings of
Thoreau. But 9/11 took Jerry away and Asha and
Preets lives were completely shattered. Preet fell silent
and Asha buried herself in her science work.
At home Preet was very helpful in everything and
could do the entire household work. He cooked
reasonably well and kept everything shipshape in
the kitchen and in his room.
With visitors he was shy just smiled sweetly and
one couldnt hold much conversation with him. But
he comes alive when he is in the forest. Asha would
often get a phone call from a forest ranger, saying
that her son is fine and spending the night at the
rangers hut. Preet knew every bit of the forest and
what is happening there. Which animals have given
birth to pups, which trees have flowered and which
fruits are ripe to eat. Asha went with him on one of
the trips. They were standing near a tree. Preet
borrowed her camera and before she knew it he
had taken off his shoes and was up on the tree
photographing a butterfly! He is nimble of foot and
moves in the forest silent and fast.
Preet plays violin well and has an incredible
memory for tunes. He never moves without his violin
case. However he usually plays it when he is alone
16

and is shy of playing in front of an audience.

Preet is fine and can spend rest of his life in the
forests and playing on his violin. But he needs a
support structure and his mother provided that.
The big problem is, What will happen after his
mother dies?
*****

Memories! Memories!
Viju fell to reflecting. Indore Holkar Science
College. Asha was the beauty of the year in the
colleges and a merit scholar to boot, having topped
in mathematics! The class had several merit scholars
and Jerry was another. Over the year, Viju, Jerry
and Asha became a small group. They met every
day, discussed what they were studying, others in
the class, their future on and on. Like any group
of 18-year-olds.
In two years they separated Viju went to IIT
Kharagpur, Jerry went to IIT Powai in Bombay, and
Asha stayed in Indore to become the gold medallist
in M.Sc. Mathematics.
Roll forward: They came together again in Kolkata:
Viju at the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Asha
at the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) and Jerry at the
Indian Institute of Management (IIM). The three
often met over weekends a film at Metro and dinner
in a Chinese restaurant. All three loved fish and beer.
Roll forward: All three together once again, at the
17

Georgia Institute of Technology Viju in the

Department of Electronics, Asha in Computer
Sciences and Jerry in the School of Business. But with
a difference: now they were sharing an apartment.
Then came the black Monday morning of
December 3, 1984, which changed everything in their
lovely lives. They woke to the news of Bhopal Gas
Disaster. Early news talked of hundreds of dead
within minutes, thousands going blind. Rumours flew
around. All of them wanted to go back. But Asha
was pregnant and Jerry had a job. Also, one of the
two men had to stay back with Asha during her
childbirth, which was due in a couple of weeks. Viju
was still a doctoral student and could go. He flew to
Bhopal, never to come back.
His professor wrote to him to come back and finish
his thesis. Viju wrote that he could never come back
to the USA of Union Carbide that killed thousands
of his countrymen in minutes.
Eventually Viju got involved in environmental
issues and organic farming. His old friend Lorry was
at the Friends Rural Centre, Rasulia, near
Hoshangabad, and was publishing an Indian edition
of Fukuokas One Straw Revolution. In 1986 she
bought some land near Kesla and Viju helped her
to set up the Sir Albert Howard Memorial Trust.
Soon Viju moved to South India, and ended up
in Hyderabad as a Trustee of Cerana Foundation.
At Cerana there were several interns working with
18

Sagar. Viju did his usual storytelling and pampering.

Over the years he built a special bond with three of
them Karnika, Chetana and Soujanya. He visited
their homes, made friends with their families, and
wrote short stories about them.
*****
Viju went to his bank that is, he went to Usha
Sriram, with whom he has a joint account. The money
was supposed to come to that account. He showed
her the letter and the dossier.
Usha thought a bit and then took Viju to Raja,
the auditor. She took Naren, the ex-banker and her
colleague, along with them. She told them about the
money and said, Make everything legal taxes, PAN
card and all that. And send a bill to Viju for fees.
Raja: But what is the amount of money?
Usha: Lots. The kind of money I dream of
inheriting. It is so unfair; instead of me Viju gets it
he doesnt need it, doesnt know how to spend it.
Bah!
Naren: Viju, I think you are not going to spend
the bulk of it in the next few months. Why not put,
say, two-thirds of it in short-term fixed deposits and
earn some money?
Usha: Good idea. We will splurge the interest!
Viju: Done!
Then Usha asked Viju to dig out his old passport
and took him to Mehjabeen, her travel agent friend.
She told Mehjabeen the story and said, I think Viju
19

will be travelling abroad soon. So let us get his

passport renewed. And do charge him heavily for
your services. He has loads of money.
Usha: He is going to travel round the world. All
this talk, I have not been inside a plane for 15 years
will all be gone for a toss. I tell you, all these lefties
when it actually comes down to it they are no different
from the capitalists they love to hate. Such frauds!
Mehjabeen: Since you have not been abroad for
nearly 30 years, there is a lot of paperwork to be
done. To get visas, you will need to have your
complete itinerary, tickets, invitations or sponsorships,
bank balance etc. Passport is just the first step. So be
prepared.
Viju: Thanks. I will follow your instructions. Bye!
Then they went to the supermarket and bought
cornflakes, milk, eggs, brown bread, peanut butter
all that a young American would like.
Viju hired a cab and received Preet at the airport.
Preet was very excited. For a week they did the usual
tour of Hyderabad mosques, temple, museums,
and palaces. Viju also included the dhaba on every
highway leading out of the city and visits to some
organic farms around the city. But Preet was happiest
at the zoo and on the farms, particularly with farm
animals and dogs. Viju had plenty of opportunity to
observe Preet and think about what could be done.
After a week a plan emerged in Vijus mind. He
decided to take the help of Karnika who had moved
20

to a forest actually, in fact to the farm that Lorry

had bought in 1985. He told Preet, We will go and
live in a forest for a month. Preet was very happy.
They went shopping mainly for Viju, since Preet
was fairly well equipped for forest trekking. Viju
bought light brown colours for the forest backpack,
jeans, a jacket, T-shirts (one each of different shades
of light brown), vests, underwear and one kurtapajama suit. He packed the metal water bottle (which
Chetana had brought on her last trip) that could keep
water cold for some time, a pair of good walking
shoes and a pair of rubber slippers. Preet already
had a backpack called Camelbak that had a built-in
water bag with the nozzle coming out of a strap that
can reach your mouth even while you are walking.
He also had basic clothing, a laptop, phone, camera
and binoculars.
They took a night train to Nagpur. At Nagpur, at
8 am, they took train no. 51829, the Nagpur-Itarsi
passenger train. It was one of the loveliest slow train
rides that Preet had ever taken. The train went
through the central Indian forests that divide North
India and South India. On the way, the train stopped
at Barsali. Exact Centre of India proclaimed a
signboard on the station proudly. They reached a
tiny station called Kesla at 3.30 in the evening. From
the station they walked a kilometre into the forest to
arrive at the Vikalp Farm.

21

Chapter 2

SAHAS:
THE SUTRA
ARBOREAL
HOMESTAY

24

Karnika was very excited. Viju wrote and later called

to say that he was coming with his nephew, Preet, to
stay for a month at the Homestay and had sent Rs.
30,000 as the full months fee for one arboreal cottage.
It was Viju who had introduced Karnika and
Sankalp to the Vikalp farm at Kesla. For some time
nobody was staying at the farm and the house there
was falling apart and things were being stolen. It was
a beautiful farm. It had a feel of a sacred grove. In the
centre was a well and a huge banyan tree. Spread
over the farm were 12 large mahua trees and
innumerable other trees, such as guava, custard apple,
oranges, tangerine, banana, papaya and so on. Several
forest species such as kosam, jamun and bamboo were
also there and of course a lot of shrubs whose names
nobody knew. There was a river behind the farm and
the farm was fenced. There was good access from the
road and cars, jeeps and bikes could reach the farm
most of the time. During heavy rains, a nalla
overflowed and one had to cross it on foot and walk
for about 200 yards.
25

Karnika and Sankalp always wanted to move back

to Madhya Pradesh somewhere not too far from
Indore (where Karnikas parents stayed) and from
Bhopal (where Sankalps parents stayed). But not too
close either! A healthy distance, from where they can
reach their parents within a day in case of need, but
otherwise be on their own. Karnika had resigned from
TERI and was ready to look for new projects. Sankalp,
an architect, was still earning, and they were planning
to start a green-roofs project. During a trip to Bhopal,
at Vijus suggestion, they visited Itarsi and met Lorry
and her daughter Ayesha (aka Chunni). Chunni had
three lovely dogs: Bruno and Ginger were a Labrador
pair and there was a huge St. Bernard called Sugar.
Karnika immediately got on well with Chunni. Karnika
herself was a lifelong dog lover and had lived with
many dogs since her childhood.
Next day, they went to Kesla, about 20 km from
Itarsi to visit the Vikalp farm. Both Sankalp and
Karnika immediately fell in love with the place. They
saw an old machan on one of the trees (which
Prabhakar had built) and Sankalp said he could build
a house on the tree. Excited talks followed and the
imagination soared. The idea of an arboreal
homestay emerged. All the details came together,
and Chunni remembered Viju reciting the childrens
naughty poem:
Kangaroo, kangaroo, dirty kangaroo
Sitting on the tree and doing number two!
26

The farm was owned by Lorry. Karnika and

Sankalp rented it on a 10-year lease, so that they
would not have to pay a large sum upfront but only
an annual rent. In return Lorry and her daughter
Ayesha (Chunni) had full access to the farm and
they could have joint projects. Since Viju knew both
the parties for years, there was no distrust and
everything turned out well.
*****
They were surprised when Viju and Preet emerged
from the forest Viju with his long walking stick and
Preet behind him. At the Vikalp farm entrance, there
was this notice:

Vikalp Farm
1.
2.
3.
4.

SAHMET: Sir Albert Howard Memorial Trust

SAHAS: Sutra Arboreal Homestay
PACT: Palwa Animal Care Trust
Chunnis Chicken Biryani
Another board said:
CAVE CANEM
Beware of the Dogs
They all gathered together in the common room,
and had coffee with Osmania biscuits which Viju
had brought from Hyderabad.
Viju introduced Preet to Karnika and Sankalp.
This is Preet. His mother died recently. I knew her
since my early college days and we shared a flat in
Georgia Tech. Preet is here with me for some time.
27

I will tell you more about him later.

Preet: It is very nice here. And the dogs are great!
They exchanged greetings. Preet smiled shyly and
stayted silent most of the time.
Over tea, Viju asked: So how are things here?
What have you done so far?
Sankalp: We have been here over a year by now.
We have built five treehouses one for ourselves
and three for guests. Two are small ones for families
and the fourth one, where we are sitting now, is a
large one with a dormitory-cum-social space where
everyone can gather. The fifth treehouse is near the
gate and Chunni uses it sometimes.
Viju: So you have become an arboreal architect?
Are there many like you? How did you get to become
one?
Sankalp: I dont know any other arboreal architect.
Wood cabins have been around for hundreds of years,
and bamboo houses with living quarters upstairs and
animals below are common in the North-East. Machans
for shikar (hunting) and for observation of wildlife too
have been around for some time. But arboreal houses
are different. You live there permanently, not just for
a few hours of observation or fun. Then, each tree is
different and so each house has to be custom-designed
to suit the tree and the people.
I have been climbing trees all my life but peer
pressure sent me to school and then to college to
study architecture. When I saw this bit of land
28

everything just clicked.

Viju: So what happened to your roof gardens?
Karnika: They have literally gone underground.
We are mainly growing tubers onions, garlic, ginger,
turmeric, sweet potatoes, carrots, yams and some
other local tubers. I must thank Lorry for this because
she knows all about what can grow here and has
experience. Without her it would have taken ages
for us to work out something practical.
Viju: What else?
Karnika: At the ground level we have several
animals a dog kennel you met the dogs when
you entered. It is interesting that the dogs did not
bark when you came they know their friends! Then
we have poultry, a fish pond and a few cats. Chunni
and I jointly run the animal farm, suitably called
George Orwell Memorial Animal Farm. Chunni also
runs a take-away place called Chunnis Chicken
Biryani as well as the kitchen for the homestay. We
have a cook but guests too can share in cooking. We
have our own fresh eggs and free range chicken.
Chunnis Biryani is famous and people from as far
as Itarsi and Hoshangabad come on weekends to
buy it. In winter, some friends have picnics on the
grounds but strangers are not permitted. The huge
St. Bernard dog Sugar discourages strangers. We also
have a small vegetable garden and plenty of fruits
from the trees. But we buy grains and some other
essentials from the market.
29

Sankalp: I agree with Karnika; all this was possible

in such a short time mainly because of Lorry. Twice
a week she visits the girls hostel that she runs. She
has enormous local credibility due to her work here
over the last 30 years. Everyone knows her not only
in Kesla block but beyond. She introduced us to
people whenever needed and very soon the news
spread that we are staying at the Vikalp farm. Most
people know about it and are ready to help. It is
simply amazing!
Lorry: Thanks, Sankalp. But I must also thank
you for carrying things forward. Otherwise the place
was decaying and would have fallen into commercial
control a fate none of us wanted. Also, some old
work is still going on the girls hostel. Karnika is
helping us with mathematics tuition and her mother,
Jyoti, often comes and helps in counselling of our
girls who are at a very vulnerable age.
Karnika: When Lorry is here, she always comes
with couple of girls from the hostel. They help us a
lot at the farm. Also, finding Chunni here was great!
She is so energetic and her way with dogs is quite
remarkable. She doesnt mind caring for very sick
dogs either. She is too good!
Chunni: Ok! Ok! Enough of our mutual
admiration club! It is getting embarrassing. So I wont
thank anybody but I must say that I am happy since
these two have moved in. Maybe we should all thank
Viju who brought us together!
30

That ended the evening. Viju gave Preets dossier

to Karnika to read and said that he would discuss
the details next day.
*****
Next day after breakfast they all had a meeting.
They all knew Preets story by then. Preet had
wandered off to the forest.
Viju: As you have read in Preets dossier, Preet is
a 30-year-old American. He is not able to adjust to
the American society he grew up in. The object of
our travels is to find a meaningful life for Preet. Preets
mother (an American of Indian origin) has left some
money in my care and discretion, and I am prepared
to spend a part of it here. The plan is to spend it in
such a way that it will help this place to develop, and
give Preet a chance to try out the possible alternative
here. Even if it does not work out here, it will be a
valuable learning experience and will help the next
step. The money spent will be in a good
environmental cause and I will have no regrets if it
doesnt work out for Preet. We have a budget of Rs.
5 lakhs to start with. If it works out for Preet here,
naturally more money will be available.
Karnika: You must have some ideas what you
want to try?
Viju: I want to try out many things I have tried in
the past and many other things I wanted to try but
could not.
Sankalp: Tell us your plans.
31

Viju: I will, but they are tentative. Besides, since

they have to be tried out here, your approval is a
must.
Karnika: Alright. Go ahead.
Viju: First I want to help with all the existing
activities going on here. Preet will take part in them
as much as he is able to. You will have to give a plan
and estimates of expenses. I will try to fund as much
as possible. You already know the budget.
My own interests wont cost much. I want to start
a nature library and a nature bookshop here. Next,
I want to carry out a biodiversity survey of the place
with some professional help. So, we will have our
list of birds and all other important flora and fauna
of the region. Finally, if you permit, I want to brew
local wine not Mahua as that is illegal but with
fruits. I would like to invite Sajai from Bangalore for
this. I also want to plant jackfruit here.
Sankalp: Well, I want to improve the cottages
and build one more. Theoretically, we can probably
have a total of eight cottages, but we will build
according to the need. I want to have solar panels
for electricity, Mitticool, non-electric refrigerators and
some other appropriate technology projects.
Viju: What is Mitticool?
Sankalp: It is an earthenware refrigerator invented
and manufactured in the Gujarat desert by
Mansukhbhai Prajapati, a traditional potter. He lives
in Ram Krishna Nagar village in Rajkot district, about
32

400 km from Ahmedabad. He got the idea after the

2001 earthquake when he saw a newspaper photo
caption that said, Poor mans refrigerator broken
depicting an ordinary matka! The Mitticool
refrigerator costs about Rs. 2000/There is a village near here called Shahpur where
there is a potter community. I am thinking of starting
a local Mitticool project. This will become important
not only where there is no electricity now, but in the
coming years we will be restricted to use of electricity
only for lighting and for small devices like phones
and computers.
Karnika: We want to improve the kennels and
build proper henhouses.
Chunni: We need a good, large smokeless chulha
for the kitchen. Also some shelves and more vessels
and plates.
Viju: Well, let us get started and improvise as we
go along.
*****
The month passed quickly. They carried out all the
plans. The homestay was booked months ahead and
there was a waiting list. Several visitors came, Sankalp
got many enquiries and contracts to design and build
treehouses on several farms. He had to refuse those
which came from faraway places.
Preet worked on the kennels and hen coops. He
kept them clean and collected all the droppings in
one place. Lorry helped them to start composting
33

and Preet soon learned all about it. There were two
good books in the library: On Composting by Venkat
and Humanure by Jenkins.
Preet was very happy whenever Lorry visited.
Lorry was his mothers age. His mother was not very
talkative but Lorry was easy to talk to. He often went
back with her to drop her to the hostel and came
back late in the evening. He enjoyed the solitary
walk in the jungle.
Towards the end of the month, Preet went back
with Lorry. He did not return at dinner time.
Everyone thought he was having dinner at Lorrys
and that maybe he would stay overnight. Around
midnight, there was this strange howling which went
on and on. Everyone woke up and came down.
Chunni said, This is no wild animal. Sankalp got
torches and Viju got his stick and they went towards
the howling sound. Near the nallah, on the other
side, they saw Preet in silhouette against the moon
and the moon forming a halo around his head. He
was howling plaintively. Everyone was awestruck and
stood stock still. After what seemed like ages, the
howling subsided into sobs followed by silence and
Preet lay down. The group approached him slowly
and, without talking, helped him back home. Preet
went to sleep instantly. Viju said, Evidently, he is
homesick.
The kennel was doing brisk business, but they
were not finding a mate for Sugar, the St. Bernard.
34

Because of the presence of the dogs, particularly

Sugar, there was no danger of thefts. New visitors of
course had to go through the protocol of being
properly introduced to the dogs. But as a rule the
dogs only barked and never attacked anyone. Once
introduced, children had a great time with the dogs.
They also organized proper composting of the
chicken droppings and dog shit.
Chunnis Chicken Biryani was getting large orders,
particularly from Eklavya Hoshangabad, as they were
getting trainees from the North-East who had to be
fed chicken at least once a week.
*****
At the end of the month they had a review meeting.
Viju: Well, what is your verdict?
Karnika: Well! Preet is a natural nature lover. He
knows his forest its flora and fauna. Also, he is an
animal whisperer that is, he understands the
language of many animals. I have observed him
talking to dogs.
Viju: That is very interesting.
Karnika: He is however more comfortable with
Chunnis Labradors and the Great Dane. He has
particularly bonded with Sugar. He does not spend
much time with our Malwi INDogs!
Viju: And what are INDogs?
Karnika: INDog is the name of the Indian breed.
It is the common Indian dog various shades of
brown and sharp features. The term was coined by
35

Rajashree Khalap. Her site gives hundreds of

photographs of INDogs.
Viju: Preet, why are you not comfortable with
the Malwi INDogs?
Preet: I know mainly American English dog
language.
Viju: Are there different dog languages?
Preet: Yes. Theoretically there are as many dog
languages as human languages, since most human
communities have dogs. Chunnis dogs have some
access to English dog language. So I spend lot of
time talking to them.
Viju: Oh dear! There is a whole world of dog
science and arts. But I thought dogs use some kind
of sign language too, using their bodies.
Preet: Yes, of course. But there are also as many
human sign languages as there are human verbal
languages.
Karnika: Cant they have a universal sign
language?
Viju: The difficulties, I suppose, are the same as
a common human verbal language. Yes, there is a
common Indian standard sign language. But we dont
know how successful it is. My guess is that most deafmutes are multilingual in sign languages.
Preet: In fact. so are dogs. Most INDogs can
communicate with other Indian dogs. Chunnis dogs
are a bit more comfortable with English dog language.
That is why I get on better with her dogs. Also one
36

of Chunnis dogs, Sugar, has been acting as an

interpreter for me when I am with the INDogs.
Viju: So what do you think, Karnika?
Karnika: He is welcome to stay with us for as
long as he wants. He is comfortable here, doesnt
get in the way and does important work with the
kennels and poultry shed. But his home is in America,
and I think at times he is homesick. In a way, the US
has more opportunities for people like him than India.
It is just that his people do not know the appropriate
circuits. My suggestion is, go to the US, contact
Chetana and you will find the solution. Maybe on
the way you might want to have a stopover in Cyprus
and explore with Soujanya. Soujanya is working with
bicycles and Chetana with horses.
Viju: Good. So we pack our bags. We will go to
Hyderabad first, get our travel documents and then
go to Cyprus.
Preet: Thank you all. I had a very good time here,
but I guess Karnika is right. My home is in the USA.

37

Chapter 3

CYPRUS

40

Soujanya phoned, very excited, Viju, guess where I

am calling from?
Viju: From Switzerland?
Soujanya: No, from Paphos.
Viju: Where is Paphos?
Soujanya: It is in Cyprus. I am with Konstantinos.
We have been here for a year. And I must share this
with you. There is an article about us in The Cyprus
Reporter. You must read it. It is on the net. It is called
Podilata Apphrodidi. It means Aphrodite Bicycles.
Bye!
Viju searched for the article and there it was:
PODILATA APPHRODIDI
Bike Share Comes to Paphos
By Giorgos Perdikis M. P. KOP (Green Party)
Paphos, September 1, 2015
In Paphos, you cant be on the road for more than 5
minutes before you see the ubiquitous white bicycle.
If you look closely, you will see a black sticker on
the front and back mudguard with a picture of
Aphrodite and the name Podilata Apphrodidi. And
41

sooner or later, you will see a bicycle-parking place

with Podilata Apphrodidi written in big letters with its
logo.
I stopped and asked the keeper about it. He knew
very little Greek or English but he pointed out the
big board which carried all the information in Greek
and English.

Bicycles for Hire

*

Deposit one Euro, enter your id and take

the bicycle!
*
Park only at our parking lot. They are
everywhere in the city.
*
Return the bicycle only at one of our
parking lots.
I saw one youth doing just that. His id was recorded
on a computer, with his mobile number and email
id. I asked him how it works. He said, Just as it says
on the board.
I was looking for a catch so asked, But if you
have to stop in many places, every time you park it
in one of their parking lots then you will end up
spending a lot.
He smiled and said, No. After the third Euro, it is
free for the rest of the day! You can park it at any of
the parking places and take a fresh bike when you
want to move again. You are completely free of
worries about thefts or maintenance.
I said, It looks great for tourists. But how about
42

local youths? They cant spend 90 Euros a month.

He smiled again and said, You get a monthly
pass for 30 Euros. And before you ask me the next
question, for 100 Euros you can have it for the whole
year! See the fare table on the board. And there it
was:
Single journey: One Euro
Day Pass: Three Euros
Weekly Pass: Eight Euros
Monthly Pass: Thirty Euros
Annual Pass:Hundred Euros
Life Time Pass: Three Hundred Euros.
Who are the people behind this? They are two
engineers: Konstantinos is a native Paphos citizen,
whereas his partner, Soujanya, is from India! I first
asked Konstantinos: What gave you the idea of
starting a bike share in Paphos?
Konstantinos: People talk of the Greek crisis and
the Greek exit. But here in Cyprus we have the same
crisis.
Me: So what is your analysis and why bike share?
K: One of the reasons for the crisis is that Cyprus
has almost hundred percent of its energy coming
from oil. And since 2008 till end of 2014, the oil was
$100 per barrel about three times the pre-2008
prices. So our import bill went up and so did our
costs.
The era of cheap oil has come to an end and the
whole world has to scale down on energy use.
43

Transport is the biggest sector for oil use and nothing

can replace oil in this field. Being engineers, we
thought we can do something in this field.
Me: Bike share has been around some time in
Europe. What is your take on it?
K: Yes, it is exactly fifty years old. It began in
1965 in Amsterdam, headed by the anarchist group
Provo as the White Bicycle project. In fact our
bicycles are painted white in memory of that.
Today there are about 700 cities all over the world
with 37,000 stations and some 800,000 bicycles. Spain
has the largest number of programmes (132) and
China has the largest number of bicycles (150,000)
in the programme. There is a wide variety of systems
and technologies used.
We have studied the bike share movement in the
world in order not to repeat the mistakes. The
essential problem with these programmes is that they
are futuristic not in terms of technology but in terms
of values. To put it bluntly, they are anarchist
programmes in a capitalist society. But they are a
must; otherwise, how will the society change? So we
have to design a programme that works and promotes
new values.
Me: So what is your approach?
K: The bike share movement began with free
bikes, then moved on to coin deposit and finally to
an IT-based model. Today there is a talk of a fourthgeneration programme of demand responsive, multi44

modal system. It has grown in response to thefts

and vandalism on one hand and development of
technology on the other. This has increased costs
and the movement has gone into the hands of richer
people. More important is that it has not reduced
car kilometres or pollution.
We believe that we have to keep it simple so that
it does not cost more but still have a system that is
safe and builds trust and promotes green values. We
want it to be a membership-based group, where the
members believe in green values, dont own cars
and genuinely believe in a fossil fuel-free future.
Me: (chuckling) Like members of our party!
K: Absolutely, and members of other societies
such as Episkopi Pafos, Episkopi Turtle Watch, Terra
Cypria and Cyprus Conservation Foundation and
Ecological Society. These people tend to be
responsible, honest and prepared for dialogue and
also connect more easily. Such membership will
ensure the success of the programme.
Me: How did you begin?
K: Our teachers taught us that we should start
small, work out the details meticulously, commit
fewer mistakes and learn from them, and try to
succeed in the very first trial. Nothing gives more
energy than success.
Me: So what did you do?
K: Bike share can never be profitable on its own.
So we tied up with Paphos tourist transport with the
45

Hop On -Hop Off programme. We chose the same

11 stops of the programme and had our fares
comparable to one another.
The stops are:
Stop 1: Harbour
Stop 2: St Pauls Pillar
Stop 3: Fabrica Hill
Stop 4: Tomb of the Kings
Stop 5: Paphos Old Town
Stop 6: Town Hall / Museums
Stop 7: Archaeological Museum
Stop 8: Island Cove Mini Golf
Stop 9: Phaethon Beach Hotel
Stop 10: Ledra & Athina Beach Hotels
Stop 11: Amathus Beach Hotel
We got a free cycle-parking place from the
government. The other essential thing is regular
maintenance. Soujanya has written a beautiful book
titled Where There Is No Cycle Mechanic. It is a
complete bicycle handbook and we use it to train
our people. Soujanya also conducts classes in schools
on bicycle maintenance. It is very popular with the
schools and kids. We have a central maintenance
workshop in my house, of course.
The other problem was that we could not pay for
the parking attendant in Paphos the wages are high
and we could not get unpaid volunteers.
Me: So how did you solve the problem?
K: I think Soujanya can answer that better.
46

Soujanya: We got in touch with the Gypsies. As

you know, they are originally from India and while I
dont speak their language, I can understand it and
they can understand my Hindi. We got permission
from the government for a programme to help the
Gypsies. The deal with the Gypsies is that they can
stay at the parking place, play music, sell kebabs
and also help us. No money exchange is involved.
Me: What do they do?
Soujanya: Nothing much. Their very presence
ensures safety and regulation. All the rules are selfexplanatory and the users can follow them on their
own. When bicycles are returned, the caretaker parks
them properly and cleans them immediately. They
do preventive maintenance: cleaning, checking air
and oiling once a week.
I must add that we are not just helping them.
They are our major source of inspiration and
environmental consciousness. They have such a low
carbon footprint! They do not live in houses and
earn their living by music, trading horses and mules,
and selling kebabs. So inspiring!
Me: What else from India?
Soujanya: The other issue was to get distinctive,
sturdy and cheap bicycles. I decided to use the ladies
bicycle that I used in India in my school days. They
look old-fashioned, are sturdy and do not attract
thieves and vandals. They do not even have gears,
let alone any electronics! We are importing them
47

from India.
Me: What is the size of your programme now?
K: We have 300 bicycles and 30 parking stations,
mainly at the hotels, since they gave us free parking
space. Our clients are mainly tourists. We want to
serve the local people too, so that the bicycles are
used throughout the year. We want a membership
base be it monthly or annual. We would also like
some life members at 300 Euros. They can use the
bicycle from any station all their lives. They dont
have to worry about maintenance or thefts.
Me: What are your goals?
K: In the next 3 years we would like a membership
of at least 1000 and about 100 life members.
Me: Any other plans?
K: (Laughs) Oh! Our heads are full of ideas. We
want to introduce animal transport with the help of
the Gypsies. Then we would like a Transition Town
Group to emerge, which will plan a complete fossil
fuel-free future with ideas on local production of food,
local management of health, education and local selfgovernment.
Me: I am with you all the way and here is a cheque
for 300 Euros for a life membership of Podilata
Apphrodidi.
S: Well, that is really nice! We invite all your party
members in Paphos to become members of Podilata
Apphrodidi. Also we would like your Party to promote
public transport and reduction of car use.
48

Me: In our next meeting I will propose this.

Meanwhile I personally will stop using my car. And
I invite you to become our party members. So there!
*****
Back in Hyderabad, Viju showed the article to Preet
and said that they would go to Paphos and then
head to the U.S. from there. Let us go to Mehjabeen
to organise our tickets and visas for myself, Viju
said.
At Mehjabeens place, Viju asked her to book
two tickets for Paphos.
Mehjabeen: Where is Paphos?
Viju laughed and said, For the first time in my
life, I find that you dont know an air destination!
So they booked tickets to Paphos via Dubai and
Athens, with an evening in Dubai to have dinner
with Mehjabeens lovely daughter Sana. Mehjabeen
also organised for visas to Dubai, Cyprus and the
US for Viju. Preet did not need visas for any country.
Viju settled all his affairs, giving legal responsibility
to Usha to look after all his assets. He met all his friends
saying that he was going on a long trip. But he had a
gut feeling that he may not see them again. Usha sensed
this and bawled when he was leaving at the Hyderabad
airport and kept saying, Come back soon.

Dubai
They flew IndiGo and reached Dubai in the evening.
Dubai looked like nothing on earth from the air.
49

The Burj Khalifa rose like an Arab phallic symbol

penetrating the very sky. It is said that civilisations
on the verge of collapse indulge in such
megalomania.
Sana was there at the airport. She looked very
fetching in black tights and a floral top and matching
shoes. Preet was dazzled. She took them on a car
tour of Dubai and then, around 9 pm, she took them
to a beautiful restaurant called the Olive House
an illustrious place for uniquely delectable and
authentic Middle Eastern food. It was a prominent
restaurant in Dubai and was also surprisingly
affordable. It was close to the Middle East
Communications Network, where Sana worked.
As Sana entered the restaurant, the head waiter
came forward and gave her a welcoming smile. Then
the manager came up and told Sana, I am so glad,
Sana Beti, that you have brought your uncle to our
place. Turning to Viju, He said, I am Yusuf Khan,
a Pathan. As you know sir, we Pathans never
accepted the partition of India.
Viju replied, Yes, I know and that is why the
most ethical leader of the subcontinent, Khan Abdul
Gaffar Khan, was in Pakistani jails for 24 years. What
a shame! Turning to Sana, he said, You know Usha
Aunties uncle, Dr. M. Krishnamurthy, travelled with
the great Khan in a ship from England to India in
the 1940s? They became great friends during the
voyage!
50

Sana said, In Dubai, there is neither Hindustan

nor Pakistan, there is only Filmistan!
Viju laughed and said, Yes, I have seen the film.
It is great! Turning to Yusuf Khan, And your name
sake, (whose screen name is Dilip Kumar) played a
great role in building the Bombay film industry. What
great films! Daag, Yehudi, Mughal-e-Azam, Naya
Daur and of course the great Devdas!
Yusuf Khan: It is a great honour to us that you
have come to our place. Our head waiter will help
you select the menu. Please enjoy yourself. Thank
you!
Viju and Preet appreciatively surveyed the food
set at the table. They had before them warm pita
bread, Zaatar, Fattoush, Baba Ghanoush, Hummus,
Shwarma, Grilled Halloumi, Grilled Lebanese Kafta
and Labneh and olive sandwiches. As everyone dug
in contentedly, Preet said, So Sana, what were you
saying about the immigrant help from Third World
countries?
Oh, its a tragic thing. Most of them who end up
working for local Arab families have a really tough
time, said Sana. Theyre regularly abused by their
employers, beaten, denied food and rest and are
direly overworked. Basically, theyre treated worse
than animals.
The colour faded from Preets face and he gasped.
I knew it was bad, but this bad?
Im afraid so, said Sana. I dont like to generalize,
51

but most Arab women are constantly wary about

their husbands infidelity. Their primary suspect is
always the maid and so they make her life a living
hell.
The only lucky ones are those who end up
working for non-Arab families. There are lots of
affluent Indian, European, American and Pakistani,
Turkish and Lebanese families who employ maids
but dont mistreat them.
Viju was equally appalled. Cant anyone do
anything for the poor help employed by the Arabs?
he asked.
Not after they enter this country and are employed
by the citizens. Sadly, the government enforces no
rights for them, Sana replied. This has to be
monitored and controlled from the source. A few
Third World governments have restricted
immigration clearances for maids to Arab countries,
the Indian government being one of them. The help
from Africa, Bangladesh and the Philippines,
however, still suffer at the hands of Arab employers.
They all stared at the food pensively. It seemed
as if suddenly no one had an appetite anymore.

Paphos
Preet and Viju landed at Paphos International Airport
by Ryan Air which just took an hour and a half from
Athens.
At the airport, Konstantinos and Soujanya were
52

waiting to receive Viju and Preet. Soujanya hugged

Viju warmly and took the baggage trolley. Outside
they walked to the parking place where two white
Indian ladies cycles were parked. Konstantinos said,
I think Preet and I would go on the bicycles while
Soujanya and Viju can come on the bus. We will
meet at the Harbour stop. You will see our bike
station there. From there Soujanya will bring you
home in a cab.
At the bike station at the Harbour stop, Soujanya
and Viju arrived first and they met Ram, the Gypsy,
grinning widely at the sight of Soujanya and another
Indian. They managed to converse a little bit in a
mix of Hindi and the Roma language and then the
Gypsy brought out his violin and played a Hindi
film tune Awara Hoon ... ! (I am a vagabond, I am a
tramp!). Viju of course immediately recognised the
tune and began to sing the Hindi words. This
enthused Ram even more and he began to play with
gusto. Soon a crowd gathered to listen to this
performance in a strange language by this strange
pair. Preet and Konstantinos arrived on bicycles and
were a bit alarmed at the crowd. Preet recognised
the tune because it was a favourite of his mother and
uncle, and he too began to hum.
Ram stopped, a bit embarrassed, and greeted
Konstantinos. The crowd was shouting Encore! And
so Konstantinos asked Ram to go ahead. Meanwhile
Preet took out his violin and began to play the tune
53

along with Ram. And Soujanya who had by now

picked up the words also began to sing along with
Viju. So it was a quartet and the crowd cheered and
began to hum Awara Hoon...
*****
On the way back, Viju told them about the song. It
was written by Shailendra (Shankardas Kesarilal, 1923
1966), a progressive peoples poet, a lyricist par
excellence the greatest lyricist ... ever in the Indian
film industry, in the words of the poet Gulzar.
Soujanya: Wasnt there a Hindi film called
Awara.
Viju: Yes, of course. It was a Raj Kapoor film,
released in 1951. The music was by Shankar-Jaikishan
and the voice was that of Mukesh. All of them the
lyricist, the music director and singer were Raj
Kapoors favourites. The film and the song, Awara
has stolen the hearts of millions of people world over,
especially in Russia, China and Turkey. I will not be
surprised if the song reached the Roma people
through Russia and they recognised the Indian
language and tune in it.
Konstantinos: But what does the song mean?
Viju: When roughly translated, it means, I am a
tramp, with no family or lovers, I travel in desolate
cities and on unknown paths. I am always broke. I
carry a lot of wounds in my heart but I always smile
and sing. It evoked the tramp in everybodys hearts
and both the film and the song were hits in those
54

days. The song, of course, still lives on.

Soujanya: If there is a tramp hidden in all of us,
why are the Roma people so vilified?
Viju: That is why. Let me explain. We hate all
those people who are like what we yearn to be in an
unconscious way. It is the same reason why anarchists
and gays are vilified.
But Roma people are not tramps. They are a
proper community who prefer to live in the open
and have specialised in music and animal rearing
and trading. At heart we envy them and there is a
hidden desire in us to be like them. Hence we run
them down and criminalise them.
The conversation ended when they reached
Konstantinos place. It was a big place with two
houses and two garages. In one house Konstantinos
stayed with his parents and in the other his aunt
stayed. One of the garages had a car and a big bike,
both kept in excellent shining condition but evidently
not used very often. Their tires looked too clean and
new.
Konstantinos said: Well let us organise your stay
both of you stay in the guest room. We will have a
small meal now and in the evening we will have a
proper meal with some good wine. After lunch
maybe you will have a siesta. Around 4 pm, you can
have some coffee and have a look at our workshop
here.
They had a small meal consisting of a mixed
55

vegetable soup, garlic bread, Halloumi cheese and

frappe. Viju was tired and retired for a siesta.
After coffee, they saw the workshop. It was very
neat. Since they were using only one model of the
bicycle, they had all the spare parts neatly arranged.
At the centre, there were two spaces for overhauling
a bicycle. Each day they overhauled one or two
bicycles and carried out any other major repairs,
which was rare. Thus every bicycle was overhauled
once a year. With regular preventive maintenance,
all the bicycles of the programme were in good shape.
Soujanya presented them her book, Where There
Is No Cycle Mechanic and invited Preet to join her
in her school training programmes where she took
classes in bicycle maintenance.
Viju and Preet went for a short walk around the
place to get a feel of Cyprus. Every one greeted them
as they had heard that they were guests at
Konstantinos place.

Dinner
Konstantinos prepared a sumptuous dinner and he
even printed the menu!

Menu
Drink: Ouzo
Appetizers: Goat Cheese w/ Olives, Lemon &
Thyme, Dried Fig Souvlaki
Starters: Grilled sausage & grilled Halloumi

56

Main Course & Sides: Pourgori Pilaf, Gamberoin

Provincale (King prawns in garlic butter), , Stifado
(Stew made with beef & onions, cooked in red wine
and herbs)
Desserts: Chocolate Baklava
Over dinner they talked about India, Europe,
Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Roma Gypsies and how
Soujanya and Konstantinos came back to Cyprus to
lead a holistic life.

*****
Next day, Konstantinos said: We will all go to
Harbour bike station. Preet will register for a onemonth pass of Podilata Apphrodidi so that he can move
around independently. He can get a copy of the
Paphos guide at the shop. Viju will go on a Hop-OnHop-Off trip and see whatever place he chooses to
see. He will also have a copy of the Paphos guide.
There are English-speaking guides at each of the
tourist places. We will all meet at 12 noon at the last
stop of the tour, the Amathus Beach Hotel. There is
a bike station at the hotel.
So they met at the Amathus Bike station. The
Gypsy caretaker immediately took out his violin and
played Awara Hoon. What happened was that since
all the Roma Gypsies stay together, the news had
reached them all. While they were talking, the floor
manager of the hotel came down carrying the local
newspaper. He said, As soon I heard the violin
playing I know you people are here. There is a
57

photograph of all of you playing at the Harbour bike

station. Come inside and let me offer our guests a
glass of Paphos wine.
So they all trooped in. The place was getting filled
up by early lunchers. After the wine was tasted, the
manager said, May I request our guest to sing the
song Awara Hoon?
Viju hesitated but Soujanya jumped up and
dragged Preet out and then they sang and Preet
played on the violin. There was an encore and Viju
said let us try Mera Joota Hai Japani. Preet knew
the tunes and Viju somehow remembered the words.
And so it went.
The manager got more wine for them and asked
them to be his guests for lunch!
Soujanyas phone rang. I am B. N. Singh of New
Delhi Palace. I want to meet you. Where are you
just now? Soujanya replied, I am right next door at
the Amathus Hotel in the dining room. B. N. Singh
asked, Can you spare a few moments? I will come
over.
In five minutes, he came over to their table,
carrying the same Beach Newspaper which had their
picture. Viju groaned inwardly. Mr. Singh very
enthusiastically welcomed Viju and invited him over
to his hotel. Viju protested, I hope you are not going
to ask us to sing. We are not professional singers.
Singh: Yes, I know that. While I will be happy if
you repeat the performance, that is not the reason I
58

came to meet you. I am interested in the Roma

people. You see I am from Haryana and although I
write my name as Singh, I am from a low caste. The
Romas original place is very close to my birthplace
and I follow their language a fair bit. I wish I could
do something for them. You see they are like my
cousins and in a sense I am also a Roma an exile.
Viju: You are right. Their place, what they call
Badothan in their language, is somewhere on the
Rajasthan-Haryana border. You know Romas are
good musicians and make great kebabs. Why dont
you have a Roma band and a Roma night selling
their kebabs?
Singh: That is a great idea. I want you to help me
organise this.
Viju: Well, as to kebabs, I am sure you can take
care of it yourself. I think Preet can create a string
quartet with them with some Roma dance music and
some Hindi film music thrown in. You know that
the Spanish flamenco music and dance owes its origin
to the Romas.
Singh: Done. But be our guest tomorrow evening
and bring Mr. Ram, the Roma, with you. Bye!
*****
Preet settled into a routine. In the mornings, he would
go with Soujanya to schools and help her out. Soon
he became fairly good at bicycle maintenance. He
also worked on overhauling bicycles and by the end
of the month, he could do it all by himself.
59

In the evenings, he would go over to the Roma

settlement and practise with the band. The Romas
were natural musicians and Preet learned a lot. The
fast melodies are accompanied with tongue-clacking,
hand-clapping, mouth-basses, clicking of wooden
spoons, and other techniques. He also learned to
play the Cimbalom, which, unknown to the Western
audience, added its characteristic sound to the violins
played in a Romani style.
Viju financed purchase of dresses and fancy shoes.
Mr. Singh financed modern kebab equipment and
soon the band was performing regularly. They began
to get bookings from other restaurants in Paphos
including the Keralam South Indian Restaurant at
Kato Paphos and Taste of India on the Tomb of
Kings Road.
Viju leisurely saw all the historic places...
Paphos Archaeological Park houses a number of
attractions, including the House of Dionysos and the
House of Theseus, both ruins of large Roman villas,
famous for their mosaics. The mosaic floors of these
elite villas dating from the 3rd to the 5th century are
among the finest in the Eastern Mediterranean. They
mainly depict scenes from Greek mythology.
The Tombs of the Kings, whilst not actually the
burial place of ancient royalty, is worthy of the name
nonetheless. Within this area are found the cave-cut
tombs of high officials and rich citizens. Although all
the tombs have been plundered, what is left is still a
60

very impressive impression of life back in the fourth

century. The larger tombs in this complex are
awesome, carved out of solid rock and with a view
for the inhabitants that would make anyone among
the living jealous!
Paphos Fort, at the tip of the marina, is a squat
box with a colourful history as a fort and prison under
many administrators. The present incarnation was
built by the Turks in 1586.
Tala Village is found high up north-west of Paphos.
Tala is a pretty traditional village with beautiful Agios
Neophytos Monastery nearby and a good range of
popular restaurants.
Episkopi Environmental Centre is in Episkopi
village, a small and interesting old village with
winding streets and its renowned cliff face. Situated
in the beautiful Ezouza Valley, the old primary school
was transformed in 2013 into an excellent
Environmental Centre with films, displays and a
garden to demonstrate the local flora and fauna.
One day Viju went to Nicosia, the capital, to meet
Giorgos Perdikis MP of the KOP (Green Party). They
had long discussions about the Greek crisis, the crisis
in Cyprus, the problem of unification of Cyprus,
future of Europe and the role of the Green Party.
Viju also gave a talk on the potential of green politics
in India. He emphasized the fact that India is a subcontinent, a group of nations, with several eco-zones
and variable levels of economic and social
61

development. He said that only in the deep south

and in south-west India could there be a possibility
of development of a Green Party. Ethnic issues,
uneven development and class issues dominate the
rest of Indian politics.
*****
It happened during the fourth week of their stay.
Preet had gone to the Roma settlement. Often he
had dinner with them. So no one was worried if he
was late in coming back.
It was a full moon night and Preet was wandering
around the settlement. Suddenly they heard a strange
howling sound. All of them came out and saw Preet
howling relentlessly. The senior Romas understood
it immediately. It was the song of the exile.
... You shall leave everything you love most:
this is the arrow that the bow of exile shoots first.
You are to know the bitter taste of others bread,
how salty it is,
and know how hard a path it is for one who goes
ascending and descending others stairs...
Paradiso XVII (55-60)
Durante degli Alighieri or simply Dante
(1265-1321)

*****
The trip was a great success. Preet had lost a lot of
his shyness and was mixing easily. He had learnt a
62

lot more about music and bicycle maintenance. But

it was time to move on.
Viju gave a check of USD 10,000 to Soujanya. He
was feeling restless sort of moving inexorably
towards his destiny. Soujanya could not stop crying
at the airport. She knew she wouldnt see Viju again.
Preet was silent but looked contented. He went to
the Romas to bid them farewell and he thanked
Soujanya and Konstantinos profusely.
Viju met Sara Jolly at Heathrow for a couple of
hours. Sara had aged gracefully and looked very
attractive. Both were glad that they could meet one
last time.

63

Chapter 4

THE RANCH

66

Chetana wrote to Viju:

Dear Viju,
I am getting desperate. Six months after a masters
degree from Yale, and here I am at a WOOFER
farm with no prospect of a job. It is nice work at the
farm; I am learning a lot, lost some weight too, but
how long can I go on? I am down to my last 500
dollars, dropped most of my friends, not keeping
touch with India, not even answering Karnikas
WhatsApp messages. And there is this education loan
of $40,000 hanging round my neck.
I have applied for every possible job, including a
matrimonial agency to help Indians in the US find
partners. No go!
Find me a job starting yesterday. My CV and
work permits are enclosed.
LOL.
Chetana
Viju wrote to Ajay:
Dear Ajay,
Do me a favour. Get Chetana a job ASAP. I am
67

forwarding her mail.

Viju
Fortunately Ajay got the mail during working
hours. Within two hours he wrote to Chetana with
cc to Viju.
Dear Chetana,
Take the evening flight to Helena, Montana. Get
a bus or taxi to Timberburg and check in at Shafer
Creek Motel. Someone will pick you up in the morning
around 11 oclock. You can go with a duffel bag and
with your papers. Carry a coat, though; it will be
cold. Two thousand dollars a month, free stay and
food. Today is May 3 but your job starts from May 1.
Your plane ticket is attached and you can run an
expense account of up to $500 to reach the motel.
You can pay for the ticket after you get your first pay
check. They will probably pay you a relocation
allowance, which will cover the cost of your ticket.
Best wishes,
Ajay

But what is the job? Chetana wondered. But

beggars cant be choosers and she was excited about
having landed a job so quickly. Viju tussi great ho!
she said to herself.
*****
At 11 am a station wagon came to Shafer Creek
Motel and a tall man came round and asked for
Chetana. Chetana was hanging around in the lobby
68

and identified herself. He said, Great! I am Goodwin,

I have some errands to run, and if you need some
time I can come back and pick you; otherwise just
hop in. Chetana said, I am ready. Let us go.
Goodwin started the wagon and said, Timberburg
has a population of only 7463 but it is the county
seat for Monroe County and the major shopping
place for the whole county. So we do a lot of our
shopping here. The Ranch cabin where we are going
is at Lame Horse, 28 miles from here.
They stopped at various stores doing purchases
for the kitchen supplies and stationeries. They passed
the Public Library and finally stopped at Continental
Cafe.
Goodwin: You must be hungry. The split-pea
soup here is great.
Chetana: Thank you, Mr. Goodwin. Yes, I am
hungry. I will have the soup.
Goodwin: Call me Archie as in the comics. We
will have the soup with crackers and then some hot
coffee.
On the way back they stopped at the Presto gas
station and filled up the tank.
As they approached Lame Horse, Archie showed
her Vawters General Store and the Woodys or the
Woodrow Stepanian Hall of Culture. About 3 miles
further they crossed a small bridge over Berry Creek
and reached the cabin.
*****
69

As the station wagon stopped in front of the ranch

cabin, an attractive lady in olive green shirt and dark
green slacks came out on the porch. As they got out
of the station wagon and mounted the five steps the
lady extended her hand and said, Welcome! I am
Lily Chetana shook her hand and introduced herself,
I am Chetana. Lily carefully pronounced, Come
inside, Chetana making sure that the t was
pronounced dental. This pleased Chetana.
Inside there was a 12x14-feet rug, and comfortable
sofas and chairs were strewn around. Lily made the
introductions, This is Chetana. This is Diana, an
actress, and this is Wade, an author. But Chetanas
eyes were on the cat lying with her eyes closed next
to the fireplace. Lily saw that and said, Yes, of course!
And this is Queen of Sheba.
Chetana moved closer to the cat. The cat opened
one eye, got up, stretched herself and began to rub
against Chetanas legs. Chetana picked it up and
brought her up to her chair. Everyone was watching
this performance with amazement. Chetana, totally
unaware of their gaze, was scratching the cat all over
first behind the ears and throat, and finally she
turned her over and began to rub her stomach. She
looked up and said, Which is the door from which
the cat leaves the house? Please lead me to it and
bring her bowl and a glass of some non-sugar fizz
drink soda, beer or even champagne will do.
Lily woke from her trance and said, Of course,
70

only champagne will do. Archie please open a bottle.

Archie Goodwin popped the bottle open and poured
a glass for Chetana and went out. Lily let out a huge
sigh and said, Wow, she is amazing. Sheba always
ignored all strangers and never went near anyone.
We need to celebrate. Let us all have a glass!
Outside, Chetana sipped the glass to check the
temperature, put some fish paste in the cats bowl
and poured a little champagne in it and coaxed the
cat to have a sip. After a little hesitation the cat lapped
it up. Slowly Chetana made her drink the whole glass.
Everyone was watching from the porch. Suddenly
the cat jumped out of Chetanas arms and went
behind some bushes.
Chetana, sitting on the stone, waited patiently. So
did the others. Suddenly the cat came back and
jumped on to Chetanas lap. Chetana brought the
cat back in the room and said apologetically, Sorry,
the cat was constipated. I think she had a good shit.
Everyone laughed and Lily said with evident relief
in her voice, Thank you so much, Chetana. I was so
worried. The cat was lying listless for the last two
days. You seem to have some experience with cats.
Chetana: Well, yes. I brought up 89 cats in my
home in India.
Lily: Wow! That explains it. I was meaning to
interview you. But I think we can skip all that. You
are on. Ajay mentioned $2000 and free stay and food.
I think in view of your abilities with cats we can make
71

it $3000. Also I should pay you some relocation

expenses your airfare from New York and other
expenses. Would $1000 cover that?
Chetana: Thanks. That will be fine.
Lily: Well, that is settled then. Mimi Deffand will
show your room and give you a thousand dollars. I
think you may want to make some purchases. I saw
you came only with a duffel bag. Take the day off
and you can start from tomorrow.
*****
Mimi took her to her room and then showed her the
log cabin. The cabin is all at one level. Crossing a
stone-paved terrace with a roof, you enter a room
34x52 feet, with a ten-foot fireplace at the rear. There
are two doors at the right: one to Lilys room and
one to a guest room. A door on the left leads to a
long hall. Then there was a big kitchen, followed by
Mimis room and then another room that was to be
Chetanas. Finally, there was a storeroom and the
three guest rooms.
Mimi showed her the cupboards and said, You
will need to know it well. This is the toilet cleaning
stuff, this is soap for the washing machine and here
is wax for the wooden surface. Toilets need to be
done on a daily basis and it is best to run the washing
machine on a daily basis too, so that clothes dont
accumulate. You can do all the ironing in this room.
You wax the floor by rotation or on the basis of
what appears to be in need of. And yes, pay special
72

attention to glass panes. They become dirty quite

easily. Use vinegar to make them really clean.
It finally hit Chetana. She was hired as a
housemaid! She felt miserable and Mimi thought she
was tired. Mimi said, No need to start worrying right
away. You are tired. Go to your room and I will
bring a cup of tea.
In her room after the tea Chetana sat thinking for
a long time. I cant walk out of this. Where will I go?
These people are good and the pay is good. With
tears flowing down her face freely, she made the
resolve, I will work for two years, save a minimum
of $2000 per month, pay back the loan and go straight
back to India.
Next morning she went cheerfully to work and
within a week she got into the rhythm. In her spare
time she explored the surroundings and began to
spend Sunday mornings with the horses. She had
never been close to horses and she thought this was
a good opportunity to learn. She observed and
offered help. She cleaned up the stables, brought in
hay and learned to scrub a horse down. Soon she
became comfortable with horses and the horses also
began to know her.
*****
One Sunday Dr. James Herriot, the vet was visiting.
He systematically went stall by stall and Chetana
also followed him. He had heard about Chetanas
knowledge of cats and so he treated her with respect.
73

Then they came to Lilys horse, named Cat. Lily

named her Pinto Mare Cat because of the way she
had jumped a ditch the first day she rode her, three
years ago. The vet frowned and carefully examined
each of its feet, rubbed the stomach and even took
out his stethoscope and listened all over the body.
Finally he turned to Chetana and asked, Can you
figure out what is troubling her?
Chetana hesitated and then went close to the horse
and started stroking him along his throat. She went
closer and took deep breaths. Everyone was watching
her. She finally turned to the vet and said, I think
she has got an ear infection.
*****
One day Harvey Greve, in charge of Bar J R Ranch
(J R stands for Jim Rowan, Miss Rowans late father)
came to Lily. Lily asked How are things?
Harvey: Fine. Actually, I came to talk about your
girl Chetana. She is quite amazing. She says that she
has never known horses closely but she gets along
so well with them. She has been cleaning stalls
regularly on Sundays and once she actually
diagnosed the condition of your horse Cat for our
vet.
Lily: Yes, I heard about it just as you must have
heard about her curing Queen of Sheba on her first
day here. She seems to have a natural affinity towards
animals. Does she ride a horse?
Harvey: Reluctantly. But she is fond of the big
74

white horse. She calls him Chetak; apparently it is

the name of a horse which a medieval Indian king
rode. What I want is to have her on the ranch on a
daily basis to ride with the horses during afternoon
grazing. I spoke with the boys and they all agree that
she will be good at handling the horses. They listen
to her I mean both the horses and the boys.
Lily: Fine. But I will have to give her a raise. Do
you think $5000 will be okay?
*****
A big white envelope came bearing the Yale
University logo, addressed to Chetana. Everyone saw
it on the table. A few days later another envelope
appeared. Then another and then another. Everyone
was getting curious but there was no change in
expression on Chetanas face. So no one asked.
Then one day a taxi came and two people got
out, one of whom was obviously a cameraman. They
asked for Chetana. Chetana came out. Everyone was
curious and stayed on in the living room. The man
said, I am Bert from the New York Times and this is
Bill, my cameraman. I wrote to you and even tried
to get you on the phone but you never responded.
Chetana kept quiet. Bert said, Ok. Give me a
hearing. I have researched your story your
background, your stay at Yale and about this job.
Lily intervened. What were you doing at Yale,
Chetana?
Bert: Oh! Didnt you know? She has done her
75

Masters in Environmental Sciences at Yale. She has

got a gold medal and an offer of doctoral work and
a teaching assistants post. Apparently she did not
respond. I came all the way from New York to ask
her why.
Chetana excused herself, went in and came out
with all the fat envelopes, unopened. She said, I
did not respond, because I am not interested. I have
not even opened these envelopes. And she threw
them on the table.
She continued, You want to know why? You have
come all the way from New York so I suppose you
do deserve an answer. I did not respond because I
got nothing from Yale except this loan of forty
thousand dollars. In two months here I learned more
than I learned at Yale in two years. Here the pay is
good, the work is interesting, food is good and the
air is healthy. I will pay back my loan in two years
and then go back to serve my country. That is all.
Bert: Do you call cleaning dirty toilets more
interesting than doing doctoral work at Yale?
Chetana: Yes, it is honest work and
environmentally more sound.
Bert: (turning towards Lily), Any comments?
Lily: I agree with Chetana. You live in New York
which has the famous public library. Go to it and
check James Rowan. He made money by cleaning
and maintaining New York sewers. He was my
father.
76

I am sorry to hear that Chetana will stay only for

two years with us. But I will make it good. I will
match what she would have got for her doctoral work
and teaching assistantship. And now you may go.
After he left everyone was babbling and
congratulating Chetana. After the hubbub died,
Chetana said, Miss Rowan, thank you. Now I will
be able to pay back my loan in a much shorter time.
But I will stick to my promise of two years. Also,
with the extra money, I hope to buy a small piece of
land and may be a horse!

Horses! Horses!
Preet and Viju arrived at the ranch and were
directed to a field. They slowly moved towards the
field and began to hear a sort of loud hum, like the
one you hear when you are near a school with lot of
children. On turning the corner they saw scores of
horses moving together, whinnying.
Then suddenly in the middle a young woman
appeared on a white horse. She was thin, like a
jockey, but with black hair flowing and skin glowing
in the evening sun.
There was a cluttering sound as Vijus stick fell
down and Viju collapsed. Slowly the horses stopped
whinnying and there was a dead silence. Preet
lowered his backpack and began to sit down near
Viju. Chetana got off her horse and came down
slowly and took Vijus head on her lap. She took a
77

blade of grass and put it near Vijus nose. Viju was

still breathing. She untied her scarf from her neck
and began to wipe Vijus sweating face slowly. Viju
opened his eyes, took a few seconds to focus and
said, You are looking so beautiful! and closed his
eyes once again.
*****
Chetana and Preet shifted Viju to the cabin. Lily
came out and told Mimi to get a guest room ready.
Viju recovered slowly and then told Chetana and
Lily Preets story and showed them his dossier. He
said, I hope Preet finds this place congenial. To me
this is his last hope. I am running out of energy.
Please give him a chance.
Lily said, I am confident that Chetana can take
care of Preet. She is very good.
Viju: Dont I know it? That is why I came back to
the US after so many years.
Chetana: Thanks. I will do my best.
*****
Preet fell in love with the place. He explored the
place and the Fish Tail River and found good fishing
spots. He made friends with Harvey Greve and
visited his home. Harveys wife Carol and daughter
Alma were nice to Preet. Carol was a prize-winning
rider and helped Preet with riding lessons. Chetana
introduced Preet to work in the stables. The other
boys were curious about this Indian boy who spoke
with an American accent but was otherwise shy. But
78

they helped him because they knew he was a guest

of Chetana and Lily.
After a week Preet came to Lily and said, Can I
shift to the Ranch with the boys? Viju does not need
me constantly and I will feel better if I live like the
other boys instead as a guest in your cabin.
Lily: Fine. But come every evening to see Viju.
And now that you are working regularly I will ask
Harvey to fix an allowance for you.
Preet: Thank you so much, Miss Rowan. It will
be the first time I will get paid for some work.
*****
Viju began to go to Woodys regularly for a glass of
beer and chatted with Woodrow Stepanian.
Woodrow kept a book shop and had views on many
subjects. Preet also visited the Woodrow Stepanian
House of Culture on Saturdays for a film show and
the dance afterwards. He surprised himself by making
friends and even talked to some girls. By the third
Saturday he was dancing with Alma and Chetana!
On the fourth Saturday Viju met Lily and said, I
think the time has come for me to leave. What do
you think of Preet?
Lily: I think he is settling here nicely and next
month we will give him a monthly salary.
Viju: Great. Now there is another matter. You
know that Preets mother left some money with me
to help Preet settle and use the money anyway I
like. I am thinking that I will pay half of Chetanas
79

loan with that money so that she feels less burdened

and lives with a freer mind.
Lily: Fine. I will match it and we will pay off her
entire loan. Except that she wont accept it from me.
So I will make it an interest-free loan and deduct
repayment from her salary. This way, by the end of
the year she will be free. It feels like how in the old
days some good white people used to buy up slaves
and then set them free!
Viju: Slavery keeps on reappearing in history and
some of us have to keep on struggling against it.
Many thanks for everything. I feel I have fulfilled all
of my lifes responsibilities. Tomorrow Preet and I
will visit Atlanta to visit Preets mothers grave. Then
I go to India and Preet will come back here.
Chetana hugged Viju and bade a tearful goodbye
to Viju. I know I wont see you again, she bawled.
She hugged Preet and said, Come back soon. There
is work waiting for you.
Preet: You bet! I will be back before you know.
Bye!

80

Chapter 5

Atlanta, Georgia

81

82

So Preet and Viju picked up their backpacks and

travelled to Atlanta. A storm was blowing and there
was a heavy downpour. Viju and Preet desperately
searched for a taxi. Viju was looking very dishevelled
and ill. Finally an Indian taxi driver took pity on
them and drove them to the cemetery.
It was evening by the time they reached the
cemetery. The storm had subsided and a weak sun
came up. The shadows were lengthening. Viju slowly
came to the graves. Preet stayed behind and sat on a
gravestone some ten feet behind.
Viju began to speak slowly. I left you behind to
face all the turmoil of life. I was very selfish. What
did I achieve by being politically active in India? I
should have come back at least after Jerry died and
been with you and Preet. Now it is too late. Or is it?
Preet will be happy with Chetana.
It began to drizzle lightly and a raven sat on
another gravestone and began to caw loudly. Tears
were streaming down Vijus eyes. He looked up and
saw the raven. He felt death was near. Yes, I should
83

die now.
Preet heard the raven and got very upset with its
loud cawing. He picked up a stone and aimed it at
the raven, but the stone hit Viju.
*****
The keeper came with his torch for a final round.
He was wondering why the old man and the young
man did not come back to the gate.
He found Preet sitting on the ground next to Vijus
body. The keeper called up a doctor and police.
Viju was declared dead due to a heart attack. In the
backpack they found some addresses of Georgia
Tech. Ashas colleagues came and recognized Preet.
In Vijus pocket they found his instructions in case
of sudden death to bury him as soon as possible
and as near as possible to his place of death. So they
buried him next to Asha and Jerry with Ashas
grave in the middle.
Ashas friends took Preet home and later sent him
to Chetana.
October 22, 2015

84

About the Author

T. Vijayendra (1943- ) was born in Mysore, grew
up in Indore and went to IIT Kharagpur to get a B.
Tech. in Electronics (1966). After a years stint at the
Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata, he got
drawn into the whirlwind of the late 60s. Since then,
he has always been some kind of political-social
activist. Vijayendra has immense mobility linguistic,
regional, social classes and across disciplines. He
covers politics, culture, socio-linguistics, health,
education, environment and technology with equal
ease. His brief for himself is the education of leftwing cadres and so he almost exclusively publishes
in the left-wing journal Frontier, published from
Kolkata. For the last seven years, he has been active
in the field of Peak Oil and is a founder member of
Peak Oil India. He divides his time between
Hyderabad and an organic farm at the foothills of
the Western Ghats, watching birds and writing fiction.
He has published a non-fiction book, three books of
essays and two collections of short stories. This is his
first novella.
85

Preet has studied at the Waldorf School of Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and
has been brought up in a non-competitive, nature-loving atmosphere.
This and other circumstances in his life have not prepared him to cope
in a competitive society. Just before her death, Preets mother, based in
the USA, sends him to Viju in Hyderabad, India, to help Preet settle in
life. Viju and Preet travel together to an Arboreal Homestay, at Kesla in
Central India, to a bike-share programme and Roma gypsies in Paphos,
Cyprus, and finally to a ranch in Montana in the USA.
This is a story about Preet learning hands-on about modern political
and ecological consciousness and preparing for a world of tomorrow
where ecological restoration is the main agenda of the world. It would
also be a world where no one would be a failure. It is also about Lorry,
Chunni, Karnika, Sankalp, Soujanya, Konstantinos and Chetana, mentors
of Preet, who are actually leading an alternative life style and careers. In
the background is Vijus long life of activism and personal tragedy.