In the summer of 2010, my
wife and I decided to celebrate the fifteen years of our life together by going
on a trip. We chose Gangtok and
Darjeeling as our destination. “So
mutually opposed places,” my wife would say later, “one is like a cheerful sunrise
and the other like a gloomy sunset.”
Maggie with the tigers in Darjeeling museum |
Her metaphor for
Darjeeling could not have been more apt.
Whoever we met there looked quite sullen though a few of them pretended
to smile. The Gorkhaland movement had
eaten into their hearts like a corrosive cancer. I imagine the place must be in much worse
condition today in spite of the change in government. It will be still worse in a few years from
now when the BJP will take charge in Bengal and impose its dictatorship on the
agitating Gorkhas.
We reached Darjeeling in
a gloomy evening after an unforgettable journey from Gangtok and checked into a
hotel which was eager to sell us the next morning’s sunrise. The people of Darjeeling were eager to sell
whatever they could to the tourists since their economy had been thrown into a
shambles by the decades-long agitation.
We bought the sunrise immediately because we were only used to sunsets in
tourist places earlier. A sunrise in the
mountains would be a change. Moreover,
we didn’t miss to wish any of the charms of Darjeeling.
We were woken up at 3.30
in the next morning. It had started
drizzling much before that. I was torn
between the desire to lie down and listen to the music of the drizzle enjoying
the cosiness beneath the blanket and the urge to make it to the Tiger Hill
where a sunrise awaited us in the gentle shower. “How can there be a sunrise in this weather?” I asked the reception using the intercom.
“Your car will be ready
at 4” was the answer. We had paid the
advance for the car and would lose that amount if we didn’t use the
service. That’s what the answer
meant. Most answers in Darjeeling were similarly
terse and pregnant with meanings.
We decided to have a look
at the drizzle-washed Tiger Hill. As I gratefully accepted a huge umbrella offered
by the hotel’s reception I thought Maggie (my wife) and I would be the only
fools going to watch sunrise in such a sombre weather. We were consoled soon. There were at least thirty cars waiting
outside for tourists from different hotels.
All the cars moved in a line through the narrow streets towards the
Tiger Hill soon.
The hills stood drenched
in the gentle showers that came through a misty sky. There was no sunrise. Not even a ray of sunlight.
Darjeeling didn’t give us
joyful memories. Its sunrise in the
shower was quite symbolic of what the state had to offer in spite of the
natural beauty that longed to emerge above the discontent within its people’s
hearts.
Maggie and I would love
to visit Gangtok again but not Darjeeling.
We don’t admire sunrises in showers.
And there is no hope of the Gorkhas getting any better deal in the near
future. India is moving towards harsher
times.
My 2010 posts on these visits:
Beautifully written. The sunrise in the shower is quite metaphoric in itself. Again, we are facing the same issues with Bodoland.
ReplyDeleteI have nothing to say regarding what is wrong and right in such cases. I have not suffered their sufferings to make a judgment on division of lands and creation of borders. Arundhati has given me a different perspective this time.
Glad to know that Ms Roy is affecting your perspective. Assam has suffered much because of problems similar to what has been happening in Darjeeling. Since I lived in the Northeast for 15 years I'm very much aware of what happened there and I won't be able to blame those who raised the banners of divisiveness. I'm afraid the way things are going on in India today, there will be more such demands coming in the imminent future.
DeleteThe current scenario of Darjeeling makes me so sad. I don't know what will happen if BJP takes charge in Bengal. Even the thought of it scares me :\
ReplyDeleteI know your new novel is set in the 'Gorkhaland'. You will naturally be concerned about the place and the people. BJP will suppress the agitation brutally.
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