INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN,,LXXXVIII

INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN.LXXXVIII

Dr K Prabhakar Rao

( Gandhi, Bapu and Patel are seen at Shivaji terminal in Mumbai. They are in usual dress Gandhi is seen singing Raghupathi raghava Raja ram…. And other two guys are seen clapping and nodding heads. There is great rush at the station and there are many shiv sainiks on the platform)

Gandhi. Patel.I find great rush. There is no place to even stand properly

Nehru. True Bapu.Just now a guy has stamped on my foot. It is paining. Eee..eee…aaa…aaa. baaa.. Mar gaya..

Patel. Come on Jawaharlal. You were PM of India for 16 years. Be bold and do not cry

Nehru. Saying is easy. If that guy has stamped on you then you will know

Patel. I wish he does. I am iron man of India ( sings and does fast jig)

I am the iron man strong an stout
However I lost all my clout
Yet I shall take care of erring men
My deeds will be known with a pen

( Some people on platform gather around Patel while he does jig. They clap and shout.. yah..yah… Bahut atche… Keep doing old man. A shiv sainik Tukaram Pandu approaches Patel)

Tukaram. Mere Bhai. I am tukaram Pandu, Who are you? Why are you here? You do not look like a Maharashtrian.

Patel. Well said. I am a Gujrati.

Tukaram. Why are you here? You are already old. Have you come for sight seeing?

Patel.There are two more men with me. We have come to Bombay just like that. ( sings)

Look my dear friend
All of us are on an errand
Also know we are all bald and bold
You guys on us can never have hold


Tukaram.Is that so, Strange. First say Mumbai, not Bombay, Why are you wasting money then?

Patel. It is our wish. In which way you are concerned?

Tukaram. In no way. Guys like you are crowding Mumbai. Mumbai is for Maharashtrian not for every one around

Nehru. Bhai. How can you say that?

Tukaram. This way. Mumbai belongs to us only.

Gandhi. It is Ok. It belongs to you. Does it mean that no onefrom outside should come here

Tukaram. Yes. Locals are loosing jobs. They are starving. There so many taxi drivers from outside.

Gandhi. Mere Bhai. This is a democracy. Every one has right to stay any where in India and purchase land

Nehru. Not in Arunachal Pradesh and Kashmir.

Patel. Thanks for your doing of Kashmir

Nehru. What I have done?

Patel . Look . Jawaharlal . It was you who goofed up Kashmir. Look Indians are struggling even today

Nehru. Eee…aaa… I am being blamed ( cries)

Gandhi. Look Jawaharlaal . Do not cry like a woman. Be bold.

Nehru. If you say so it is OK ( He wipes tears with hanky)

Tukaram. Bhai. Is crying over?

Pate You are calling us Bhai on one side and otherside you say we are outsiders

Tukaram. Hee…heee. Sorry by mistake it was said.

Gandhi. We will not go back. What you can do?

Tukaram. Ye baat Hai. Dikhaunga tujhe ( sings)

I am tukaram the strong
From childhood I was drinking Albosong
Look at my strong hand
I shall throw you out of this land

Gandhi. Bapre. You are very strong. If so look. I am holding this long stick at one end and pull the stick from my hand by holding other side if you are strong. If you fail you are beaten and Mumbai belongs to all.

( In the mean time al shiv sainiks gather and accept the challenge. There are other sainiks, Namdev and Bhola who are more vocal )

Bhola. Look All guys stand in a ring.. Quick. Arre Pandu.. dekh..

(All on lookers stand in a ring and start clapping)

Gandhi. Look. This is my stick (suddenly he swings the stick in circles at great speed and sings)

Oh guys. Look, I am Gandhi the great
I lost my life to Godse due to my sad fate
Yet I am strong like a country bull
Hey Tukaram come and this stick you should pull.

If you have guts challenge me and win
Or else run away like a broken tin
I am the father of this nation by pure luck
Yet I was shot dead like a swamp wood duck

(Patel and Nehru jump with joy and clap dancing)

(Tukaram in the mean time takes away his shirt and does some pushups and displays his muscular body to all. All appreciate his body. Gandhi in the mean time cools and brings down the stick and hands over the other end to Tukaram who bows to the ground pulls up his muscles and holds the stick)

Namdev. Now let us start. Ready one , two, three… here you go..

(Gandhi and tukaram start puling the stick the struggle is intense. Gandhi although looks weak and pale holds ground and Tukaram is found struggling to hold stick. All are wonder struck at the show and strength of Gandhi. Gandhi suddenly removes one hand from the stick.)

Gandhi. Here you are. Tukaram. Now I have removed one hand from stick. Try to pull away the stick from me if you can

Tukaram.aagh…aagh.. rrr..rrr..grrr.grrr (He perspires greatly)

Patel. Yeah..yeah.. Hip hip hurray


(Suddenly Tukaram looses grip and falls backwards)

Patel. Yahh.. we have won.. Hip Hip hurray. Victory to Indians

Nehru. But all are Indians

Patel. True

Nehru. Hip Hip hurray

(Tukaram gets up, bows to Gandhi and walks away dejected with Shiv Sainiks and on- lookers from outside Mumbai clap and dance)

Gandhi. Patel. Better we leave this place before another Tukaram walks in

Patel. True Bapu..run.Bhago

( The trio vanish from that place singing Ramdhun)

CURTAIN FALLS



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