The Astral Alibi (30 page)

The dim lights in the sitting room, Raujibua’s favourite room, bestowed the space with a cozy glow. Evening had fallen on the Dharkar residence but the whole house looked like an illuminated lantern at the foot of the Sinhagad hill. But inside, the atmosphere was tense. When Sonia and Jatin had arrived, Mrs. Dharkar had brought them straight to the group gathered in Raujibua’s sitting room, where Bishan had insisted that everyone be present. He had something to tell them all.

“Please forgive me Guruji, because I know I can never forgive myself!” Bishan continued in between sobs.

“But Raujibua had a heart attack,” Sonia suggested gently. “What is there to forgive?”

“Yes, a heart attack—because of me! I was unruly, I misbehaved, I did everything he told me not to do! I never did riyaz, I thought I was so talented! I dated and…slept with women, something he disapproved of. I went against everything he believed sacred! And I didn’t stop at that! I argued with him and fought with him on stupid issues and I hurt him so badly that he had a heart attack!”

His whole body trembled with guilt and grief, but no one moved to console him. Kirit stared at him, his face a mix of sympathy and anger, and Sumeet stared at the floor expressionlessly. Vandana was observing Kirit and Sumeet. Only Mrs. Dharkar’s face expressed compassion. She glanced at Sonia questioningly.

“You’re right, Bishan. You did contribute to Raujibua’s early death,” Sonia said finally. “He would’ve probably lived for a couple of years more, but your behaviour hastened his early demise.”

“I don’t want his money. I cannot touch it now! I killed my Guruji and I will never forgive myself for it!”

“You are justified in blaming yourself, but you are not the only one, are you?”

The others turned to Sonia in astonishment. Bishan raised a tearstained face. Sonia angled towards Kirit, facing him with a glint in her brown eyes.

“You contributed to Raujibua’s death, too, Kirit, didn’t you?”

Kirit flushed. “What…what do you mean?”

“I mean the roaring argument you had the day
after
Bishan had his discussion with Raujibua.”

The room was suddenly filled with curious anticipation, as all eyes were trained on Sonia and Kirit.

“Kirit, would you like to tell us why you had a showdown with your Guruji?” Sonia prompted.

Kirit maintained his silence. Sonia sighed.

“All right!” She faced the others, her eyes travelling from face to face, to finally rest on Vandana. “Ever since I arrived here and began questioning the inmates of this household, I was under the impression that the main cause behind this whole story was jealousy. Among Raujibua’s three disciples, or to put it more clearly, jealousy towards Sumeet. Both Bishan and Kirit were envious that Sumeet had been chosen by Raujibua as his chief disciple. But I was wrong. I realised soon enough that the underlying emotion in this whole issue was not jealousy, but love! Kirit’s love for Vandana!”

Mrs. Dharkar gasped, flashing a glance at her daughter. Vandana averted her gaze, blushing deeply. Bishan and Sumeet looked amazed. Kirit refused to utter a single word.

“Kirit and Vandana have been seeing each other and meeting clandestinely for a couple of years now. But when Raujibua got the wind of it, he was furious! He regarded this as outrageous, as a betrayal worse than Bishan’s immoral behaviour, in fact. Almost a sin, since love between his disciple and his daughter was for him like incest. He not only forbade Kirit to ever meet Vandana again, but he threatened to cut Kirit out of his will. Kirit was horrified. This was something he hadn’t expected. He knew he couldn’t live without Vandana, he loved her too much. But he desperately needed the money Raujibua had promised him. He had to do something before his Guruji attempted to change the will. And he did it, most beautifully.”

Kirit stared at Sonia, stricken. But he still did not speak. Tears glistened in Vandana’s eyes as she edged towards the young man.

“The whole episode with Kirit and Bishan really drove Raujibua out of his mind, making him weak and defenceless. So Kirit took advantage of it. The three students had planned to record Raag Hameer in their voices and present it to their Guruji as a parting gift. Bishan was made to sing the
Kadak Bijlee ki Taan
within the raag, which Bishan did—totally unaware that he had fallen prey to a fascinating scheme and taken the first major step towards killing Raujibua!”

“How’s that?” Bishan demanded, looking stunned.

Sonia held up the Hindi book on classical singers.

“I don’t know how many of you have read this book. There’s a true story in this, a story which supplied Kirit with the seed of his plan. About a famous singer of Gwalior Gharana named Hassu Khan, a singer whose voice was known to be a miracle. His popularity rose because of his divine singing but it also angered the already established court singer, an older man named Mohamad Khan. As the competition between the two singers increased, the envious Mohamad Khan decided to get rid of Hassu Khan, in the most clever fashion possible. One day, in a
Sangeet Mehfil—
a singing gathering—Mohamad Khan praised Hassu Khan and asked him to sing
Raag Malhaar.
Unaware that this request held a cunning reasoning on the part of the older singer, Hassu Khan began. This raag contained the
Kadak Bijlee ki Taan,
a
taan
which required great effort on the part of the singer. Hassu Khan sang it. Mohamad Khan praised him highly and said ‘
Shabbash Bete!
Once more!’ Encouraged, Hassu Khan sang the
taan
again and burst a vein. Soon after this incident, Hassu Khan died!”

Silence breathed in the room. Sonia’s gaze travelled from one face to the other.

“Kadak Bijlee ki Taan.
A very poignant
taan,
one which requires every ounce of energy to sing and which can kill the person who is singing it and can startle and create an uneasiness amongst the listeners. Not only that. It can also
kill
a listener with a weak heart and a body that is frail and dying. Such is the impact of the powerful
taan,
which flashes like a lightning
—bijlee—
just like its name. And Kirit knew it. He was aware that if Raujibua, who had forbidden his disciples to sing this
taan,
heard it, he would be so shocked that anything could happen.
Anything—
that he could even die! And he was correct. When Raujibua, who was ailing and already emotionally rattled and upset by his disciples, heard the CD, the electric
taan
sung by Bishan stunned him with its forceful effect and brought on his heart attack. A very natural death, but also a cunning murder. No knife, no poison, no stains, no telltale proofs. Clean and bloodless. Right, Kirit?”

Kirit was white, his lips pinched. He rose unsteadily and wordlessly walked out of the room. Vandana’s horrified expression spoke volumes. She flew after him, her face pale with consternation. Bishan looked astounded. Sumeet’s face expressed incredulity. Only Mrs. Dharkar appeared composed.

“Rimaji, can we have some
chai
?” Sonia suggested. She suddenly felt drained.

“Right away, in the dining room,” Mrs. Dharkar said crisply. “Come along, everyone.”

The tambora rested on the divan, a lone instrument sharing the melancholy peace of the shadowy sitting room. A figure slipped into the room and paused. Then, slowly, it moved to the armchair and kneeled before it, clasping the arms of the chair, as if trying to soak in the presence of Raujibua. Tears fell on the worn, polished wood. At last, with sudden resolve, the figure rose and headed straight towards the CD player. As a hand extended to the volume button, the room was abruptly illuminated.

“Sumeet, I accuse you of mercy-killing your Guruji, Pandit Raujibua Dharkar!” Sonia’s voice rang out coldly.

Startled, Sumeet straightened. He stared into the determined faces of Sonia, Jatin, and Mrs. Dharkar. From the other side of the room, Vandana, Kirit, and Bishan emerged, their faces hard and unsympathetic.

“You did it, didn’t you? You were the one who suggested the
taan
!” Bishan exclaimed angrily. “You made me sing it!”

“Sumeet?” Kirit spoke in a quiet voice.

Sumeet’s shoulders slumped and he sighed. His face was tearstained, but his voice was steady when he answered. “Yes, I did it.”

“But why?” Kirit asked, bewildered. “You loved him!”

“That is precisely why he did it!” Sonia said. “As I said before, the base of this whole episode is love. Sumeet’s all-eclipsing love for his Guruji. Sumeet was the perfect student, but more than that, he was the perfect son. He nursed his Guruji, met his smallest need, followed every word of his strictly and religiously and saw that his teacher was completely comfortable and satisfied in whatever he required. But then the end of the training neared and the thought terrified him. How would his Guruji cope without him? The older man was suffering too much. I think it was then that the idea entered Sumeet’s head that he had to end his Guruji’s suffering, and as per his Guruji’s wish, ensure that he died listening to music. That, according to Sumeet, was his last duty to Raujibua. He planned the CD as a gift, making Bishan sing the special
taan,
and also squealing on Bishan and Kirit, by informing Raujibua about the other students’ secrets, making the sick man emotionally weak. And as a last coup, he turned on the volume over the normal range, just before the
taan,
to ensure the effect he desired. Raujibua suffered a massive heart attack before his eyes. Sumeet succeeded in his mercy-killing. That’s the way it happened, didn’t it, Sumeet?”

Sumeet’s breathing was shallow. “I loved him a lot. Who would look after him after I left? Some undeserving student would replace me, undedicated like Bishan, trying to take my place. How could anyone ever take my place? How could Guruji live without me? And his illness—so often he would writhe in pain as I held his hand, trying to offer him comfort. How often he said to me that even death would be better than that! It was heartrending! I couldn’t bear the thought of him in some hospital, fighting for his life, away from his music. I had to take destiny into my hands. I had to end his suffering, make his last wish come true. It was the only way I could repay my debt to him. The only way he would ever truly understand my love for him. And so I planned it right. I had read that story about Hassu Khan, so I knew that it wasn’t difficult. And I was successful. I increased the volume, so as not to take any chances. That moment when Guruji passed away, I was filled with sadness and yet with triumph, too. It was an incredible feeling. I was with him and I helped him pass from one state of being to another, from one world to another….”

The widowed woman stared with revulsion at Sumeet, who seemed not to notice any of their reactions. Bishan’s face was contorted with rage, as he rushed towards Sumeet and caught him by the scruff of the neck.

“You monster!” he shouted. “You murdered our Guruji! Don’t you see, you brute! I’ll kill you for it! I’ll—”

“Stop it, Bishan!” Sonia exclaimed, as Kirit and Jatin rushed forward to unscruff the motionless Sumeet.

“I hate him! I will avenge Guruji’s death! Sumeet allowed me to think that I was the one responsible for his death and I—”

“The police will take care of Sumeet, not you.”

“Stop it, all of you!” Mrs. Dharkar interrupted fiercely. “Go away! Bishan and Kirit, go and pack. Just go away, all of you!” She burst out in tears.

Vandana swiftly moved forward. Taking her mother by the shoulders, she led her out of the room. Sonia stared at Sumeet as he sat, apparently unaffected by their response. An expression of resigned sadness crossed her face.

“It was the horoscopes, of course,” Sonia remarked. “They told me a remarkable story.”

Mohnish grinned. “Of course!”

Sonia returned his smile. “Do I sound clichéd?”

“Almost!”

“But it’s the truth!” Jatin protested.

Sonia nodded. “I am really grateful to my horoscopes for giving me precious nuggets of information on which I can base my deductions. Though I admit that I began this process of discovery with a sandwiched mind—sandwiched between Mrs. Dharkar’s sixth sense of trouble and my own caution. It felt like setting off into a dark tunnel in the middle of the night, with no light to guide me. Except Mrs. Dharkar’s instincts. Which I knew that I wouldn’t ignore until she was proved wrong. It was a precarious situation. So I approached the issue with an emotionless, unbiased mind. When I spoke to each one of the disciples, I realised that they were so different—in their approach to life, to music, and to one another. Bishan was rude and hostile, Kirit was keen to tarnish Bishan’s image, and Sumeet seemed totally self-absorbed. And that is what interested me most about Sumeet. The other two, despite their faults, appeared human. But Sumeet’s detachment and the cocoon he was living in distinguished him, proving him to be of far tougher material than the others. But Mrs. Dharkar’s suspicions really began to seem real to me once I read the horoscopes. The difference in each individual was very clear, and the moment I saw Vandana’s and Kirit’s horoscopes, I read the attraction between them, too strong to hide. And I think it had become obvious to Raujibua, too. His comment to his wife that people are not always what they seem and that the best of people can give you pain was intended for Kirit and not Bishan, as I’d thought earlier. The frame in Kirit’s room clearly betrayed that a photo had been removed from the other side of the frame. The first time we visited his room, there were several photos on his table, and many of them were of Vandana—solo and in groups. And a particular solo photo was crumpled round the corners. Although I didn’t make the connection till I read the horoscopes and realized that a very strong emotion was binding the two of them. But since there were no outward signs of affection between them, I decided to tackle that issue by asking Vandana directly and she came out in the open about it, revealing all.

“It was when I was studying Sumeet’s horoscope, however, that I discovered a most peculiar trait. In fact, I found his entire horoscope fascinating. Libra was his zodiac sign and Aries was in the ascendant. Venus in the second house in its own sign, Taurus, with Neptune in the opposition, showed him to be a great singer. At the same time Rahu and Saturn in the fifth house—the house of education—clearly warned that his learning would not be useful to him. Which I thought was very strange. After putting in years of such hard work, why would his training be futile? But worse, Saturn aspecting the second house, as well as the Sun, in its tenth position, suggested that Sumeet’s knowledge of music—in his case, singing—would cause him great humiliation. And then I saw the Moon—the planet of the mind—in conjunction with Harshal in the seventh house, with Mars aspecting directly, as well as Saturn aspecting in its third position—a combination of stars specifying an unbalanced moment of decision which could be dangerous and murderous! But Jupiter in Cancer revealed Sumeet to be a good man at heart, with tremendous respect for his teacher. The Lord of his zodiac sign Libra—Venus—was in its own star sign, which meant that Sumeet was not a veteran bad man!