It was nearly 45 years ago, five of the child of my family, Four of my elder sisters and I grew up in a small town in Assam and were very close to each other. Being the youngest, I was the most pampered, and even though I was growing up, no one took me seriously or allowed any work to be done by me alone. If I am doing something, some of my sisters or parents will keep someone with me so that I am always under someone’s care. They never allowed me to go alone, especially after the evening. Some of my relatives also reside nearby, and society then was different from what it is today, a closely bonded group. Everyone knows almost everyone, and people are more relaxed than today. There was no mobile, no TV, and only some well-to-do families had radios. Some local programme on the radio were very popular, and the News was very important, we all, our parents are waiting for the news during the scheduled time. The radio was also not for 24 hrs, and people become used to radio timing for their various work without looking at the big pendulum clock generally kept hanging on the living room wall. Presenting news on the radio is a great art, and both male and female news readers have a very attractive voice with clear pronunciation. At those time the news readers were known by everybody by their voice over radio. News presentation was also strictly limited to the news only and not the personal views of the news readers as in today’s world when News reader gives more importance to views than news on TV. The use of Radio is climbing down after TV gradually replacing them. Our nearby ladies normally visit our place on Sunday at 13-30 hrs when a very popular Assamese play was broadcasted in the programme “Aidew r Bulini “which means ladies’ forum. Those were the day’s people were more oriented towards family and society. Everyone respected the seniors, and they also cared for us like their own family. Unfortunately, now, we all are becoming too busy doing our work and working like mad people earning a lot of money, but the human touch is gradually waning slowly, and they do not even know what the mad race is for.
“Durga Puja” is one of the main festivals in Assam, and in Golaghat, my native place, a small township having two major Puja pandals during those days within a distance of half a kilometre between them. Both sides of the road had temporary stalls selling a lot of items: games, balloons, decoration items, Imitation jewellery (not Gold or Silver), Toy guns, etcetera and also some fairs where the Ferries wheels were very popular.
There were a lot of food stalls temporarily placed for these four days. In Golaghat, all the people move within this half km area of the road several times, after praying to Ma Durga and then having special food on the roadside stalls, going to the fair and enjoying a lot. People from the nearby villages also gathered there, and practically there was a huge rush, and you needed to move on the road clasping each other hand with whom you are going, to avoid being lost in these human gatherings in such large numbers. we were all together 8-9 people, my sisters, their friends and a few of us boys junior to them. The girls were waiting wherever they found a jewellery stall or some hot pokora type of food, and we were interested in toy guns and the fair nearby. My sisters were not allowing me to go to the wheels and they themselves are scared to use it. suddenly all of a sudden, my sisters and their friends were missing. must have waited in some shop and by the time we cross the place. I and they also realised these after some time only as in the chaotic crowd moving in those confined areas with all enjoying food, the fair and shopping and finding out someone is very difficult if we are not clasping each other’s hand. I could not find my sisters, and during the process, my other two friends took me to the fair to go for a round in the wheels . During the process of pushing and pulling off the crowd as we came down the wheel, unfortunately , I lost contact with my friends also, and I become alone in the crowd. I was moving from one side to the other but could not locate my friends or sisters. I was sure, they must be also looking for me but we could not get to each other. It was quite late already, and I thought they must have gone back home and later I came to know that after searching for us for a long time and not finding me, they had also decided to go back and were scared when they found I did not return till then.
After searching for my sisters and not finding them and also losing my two friends, tears came to my eyes, and I started to go back home alone which is about a Km and a half. I may be around 8 years of age, then.
From the place of worship and mela, there are people on the road, but after coming nearly half a km we have to take a turn from the main road. This road was totally empty, and most of the street lights were not working. I was very scared, but since there was no alternative, I was moved with great fear in my heart as I had never moved alone this late. Every noise coming creates my heart pump faster. Suddenly, I looked back and saw a man ( I am not sure) with a completely white dress from top to bottom with a monkey cap. I got shivering to see that and started moving faster, almost running. Sweat comes out. Suddenly, I heard the man in white shouting my name. I was terrified, and some stories of ghosts who took human shapes and behaved with their victim like a known persons came to my head . As must as I think, I was more and more terrified, and my legs were trembling. I suddenly look back to find the ghost I thought to be is also running behind me. There was a big peepal tree in the road, and we were scared to cross this area even in the day time . just ahead of the peepal tree, there is a culvert, and I heard many people have seen a couple always sitting in white dresses in the culvert at night. All these thoughts make me totally incapable of moving any further, and I was assuming the ghost in white will catch me now and kill me . I do not know when I Got fainted, and after maybe a few hours I find myself in my bed running with high fever and still shivering . My mother was beside me, and I found some pairs of eyes gazing at me from outside the glass window . I jumped out of my bed, and my mother , hugged me and told me that everything was alright and there was nothing to be scared of . My sisters and father came inside , and all sighed in relief , seeing me alright. I was given some medicine, and my temperature was gradually coming down. I asked everyone what had happened to me.
My sisters , after a lot of searching, could not locate me and thought I must be returned home not finding me and they also came back home . But I did not reach home till then . My father was very angry with my sisters, and my father was almost going out for search me . Then one of my neighbours came to our house , with me in his back in a totally unconscious state and placed me in a bed . after some time and putting water etc in my eyes I gradually came back in a sense and asked where I was and again went unconscious . My father called a nearby doctor , he pushed an injection, and I was going fully asleep to come back to sense after several hours.
My neighbour who was behind me in a white dress saw me coming alone, and he called me to stop so that we could go together because he thought I will be in frighten going alone on this dark road. But as he was calling only to help me, I became more and more frightened and finally
Collapsed . but for me , my sisters got good banging from my father . A few days after, when I was fully fit , my father called me, and he explained to me that there is nothing like a ghost and it is only our fear that brought those thoughts to our mind .Then that evening after having our dinner , my father took me with him to the place where I got collapsed, and with the high-powered torch, he showed me the area , and told me to see everything with my eyes . He told me to go to the peepal tree alone , but fear again came to my mind – maybe a ghost came this time in my father’s shape, and I ran back to my home leaving my father there . I heard my father laughing . But he did not leave without removing my fear , and took all my sisters with me the next night and told my sisters to go to the peepal tree , and she obeyed, and after touching the tree, she came back safely. All of us were told to go one by one , touch the tree and come back . I also did that . Then my father , show us the culvert , with his torch and told us to see . Nothing was there . Though originally , I was very scared , my fear gradually evaporated when our father showed up and got done those exercises .
I came on that road later even late hrs and fear is not coming to my mind.
Rajat 17/06/23
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