A Spirited Trip

“Why is everyone so silent? Let’s talk something!” said Vidya, eager to start discussing anything that would break the lull of the moment. She wasn’t called GD (Group Discussion) Queen in her B-School for nothing!

This was Visakhapatnam (or Vizag) grandly described in its Wikipedia page as the Goa of the east, and a jewel beside the Bay of Bengal. The city was small but had some picturesque locations around it, and Likhita whose hometown it was, wanted everyone to have a gala time while they were here. So a cab had been booked and it was now returning from the mysterious and eerie Borra Caves. Having stalactites and stalagmites formed many eons ago in its bowels, the caves were full of bats and gave one the feeling of walking out of a live Indiana Jones movie! After a hearty lunch and a stopover at Chaparai, a scenic valley with a stream flowing through it, everyone was happy but a bit tired as well.

“I find the quiet quite comforting actually” Akruti chipped in, and went back to doze off. She could sleep given any circumstance, and even here her entry was only to say that silence was golden. Catfight on the cards? I was excited!

“Let’s play some songs, whatsay?” Kanu suggested, and looked around for her mobile phone. “Mr.Golesh Gola, you can look at your pics later! Give me the phone”

“Who knows a supernatural or horror story? I’m sure these woods would make a good setting for one, won’t they?” With the haunting Noorie track playing in the background, Vidya’s words seemed well-timed. And Likhita took the lead.

“I’ll tell – there was once an old washerwoman who died one day, and got back her life the very next day, claiming she had been to heaven, met the god of death, who realized it was a mistake and sent her back, telling her the exact date of her death. Suprisingly, the old lady passed away the very same day that she had predicted!” Likhita ended the last word with her trademark dragging-the-word style. Vidya gaped, Kanu’s eyes rolled, Hanif was non-plussed, Akruti was still in slumber, I was feeling bored, while Golesh got ready to share something he had probably experienced.

“Apparently Chaparai is a haunted place. Atleast that’s what I heard the locals say. A couple of centuries back there had been a mass murder at the site, and it’s said the souls haven’t achieved salvation as of yet” he said in a somber tone. I concurred with a nod.

“Yeah my mom said the same thing. But if we have a bath once we’re back home, the supposed evil effect is said to be washed away” Likhita added

“You know, we had once gone for this college fest and were put up in a deserted bungalow. The seniors there had an Ouija board, and going with the prevailing mood, we tried calling spirits” Hanif was ready with his supernatural story now.

“Really? Did someone actually turn up?” Kanu was all ears

“Nah, one of them tried acting like the small girl we were trying to summon, but we obviously found out” Hanif finished, just as Akruti stirred from her sleep to check if the car had reached its destination, and since it hadn’t, she went back to dreaming.

It was beginning to get dark. Almost everyone had dozed off by now, and the others had their earphones plugged in. I tried to make my presence felt by starting to narrate a suspense and horror story that I had heard from my grandmother. About a poor man who goes from rags to riches by getting to know the next day’s news a day in advance, but ends up knowing about his untimely death as well. And despite trying to cheat death, he fails miserably. I thought it would be a clincher, but sadly the effort fell flat… No one paid any attention! I went back to guessing whether the next turn would be a right one or a left.

And then all of a sudden, we heard a loud blast. The car suffered a heavy jolt and came to a gradual halt, stopping right next to a ledge overseeing the forest.

The left front tyre of the cab had been punctured. Nobody could understand how, and even the driver had a confounded expression on his face when he got down to see that the immediate halting was due to serrations all through the tyre. It looked as if the road was layered with spikes that cut through the rubber, but there weren’t any such spikes to be seen for some distance. We got down so he could get working on replacing it with the stepney and went to stand a few footsteps away. A cold wind was blowing in our direction, adding to the chill of no streetlights or any population in the vicinity with only the odd vehicle passing by. We were relaxing next to the Banyan tree when Akruti got a light but firm tap on her shoulder. She turned and gave a sharp shriek. An ash-smeared, saffron-robed pundit, bent over a small stick and looking old and craggy, seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Too taken aback to say anything, she just mumbled something loudly to gather everyone’s attention.

“Alak Niranjan!” was all that was comprehendible, for he then started speaking in Telugu that Likhita translated for the group. Taking his place in the centre of the circle, he said “See there, on the pathway a little up the hill, there is a temple of Kali Mata” Everyone turned their attention to the small set of lights about 200m up the hill. It looked eerie. “I am the pujari there. Come and pray to Maa Kali while your car is getting ready. It is said that the hills bear many spirits. Maa Kali will protect you!”

“Let’s go, the place looks exciting. We might be able to get a few pics taken” Golesh was all gung-ho

“But how can we trust this person? I’m not too sure I like the look of the place. And what about the tyre burst and this guy just appearing suddenly? I don’t like the feel of things. Moreover, we have no signal reception on our phones, and in case something happens, we won’t be able to contact anyone as well” Vidya looked visibly concerned

“Oh come on, there are so many of us and he’s just one guy, I’m sure this can be handled” Hanif countered. Some agreed, some didn’t. The pujari spoke up again, saying it was time for Aarti and it wouldn’t be right to be standing at Maa Kali’s doorstep but refuse to come up there. Finally after a bit of deliberation, Likhita decided that the group would go, but stay only for the Aarti and rush back immediately to the car. The baba started chanting as he lead the path, which everyone navigated using the lights of their mobile phones. On reaching the temple, we realized that the statue of the goddess was actually placed in a cave no more than 5 feet tall at its entrance. It had a bell hung outside alongwith with the 2 lamps that shone from the road where the car stood, and the pujari beckoned everyone to come inside the cramped area. Someone commented that the Goddess looked quite scary from up close, as she had many slaughtered heads in her hands. The pujari lit the prayer lamp and started the Aarti. Once, twice, thrice he moved the ceremonial plate around the statue of the Goddess, and started chanting his mantras that were mostly in Telugu and not familiar to most of the group.

I was standing just next to Golesh when all of a sudden, he started making weird noises. Kanu noticed this first and was startled, and her otherwise unruly and stubborn hair actually stood on end. The sound could be something between a grunt and a roar, but I guess soon everyone realized it wasn’t natural. The pujari stopped the Aarti, and stared at him. His eyes had became blood-red. It was as if he just wasn’t himself. Something had come over him.

“WHY ARE WE HERE? WE SHOULD BE IN THE FOREST” he seemed to say in a loud and guttural voice, while moving his hand to grab Hanif.

“I told you this wasn’t a good idea” Vidya clutched Likhita s hand, while Akruti caught hold of Kanu. Everyone was petrified and had no clue as to what was happening.

“TAKE ME TO THE FOREST, I WANT TO BE ALONE THERE”. Hanif was trying to free himself from Golesh’s grip but was failing miserably in his attempt to do so. The pujari brought out a broom and started hitting him, chanting out verses saying that probably he had been possessed by some spirit. Golesh would not budge, now leaving Hanif but grabbing hold of the pujari’s head. “WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, BEHAVE YOURSELF” he thundered

And then as unexpectedly as it had started, the show seemed to end. Golesh freed his grip on the pujari and slumped to the floor for a minute, before regaining his senses. He got up and looked around to see what was happening, but till then everyone had already rushed down the pathway and to the car. When he reached no one spoke, but Golesh didn’t seem to have any recollection of the event. He tried convincing them that it must have been some freak occurrence and he was alright now, but everyone remained visibly scared. The car made its way downhill back to Vizag, with him sitting in the front seat and everyone wide awake, expecting the unexpected to happen any moment…

Huh, these human city-dwellers I tell you, should’ve known when I boarded their car at Chaparai! Talking of horror stories and all that, but I possess one of them for a while and they get scared so easily. I thought they’ll take it in the right spirit! I’ve anyway erased their memories now and made it appear like the whole incident never happened. Yeah, I have a big heart, thank you. But just let me pass the Special Powers of Omnipresence Knockout (SPOOK) test next year and be eligible for taking various forms out of thin air, that’ll be fun! You thought the shadow of exams and tests ended in your world? Nah, they creep into ours' as well. And if I wasn’t getting late for my coaching class, I would’ve continued the drama for a while longer. And Shhh! No stupid jokes of me already being LATE!