The Mystery of the Missing Pumpkin

Dhiraj Kumar Barman

There is no denying the fact that tea estate Burra Bungalows are self-sufficient in fruits, vegetables and milk. The Burra Memsaabs take pride in declaring the same during Club get-togethers and kitty parties. 

As a young assistant in _________ T.E., I always expected to receive some fresh fruits & vegetables from the Burra Bungalow either directly or by coaxing the Mali. Only those very close to the Burra Memsaab there used to get a share or two. Also the local fruit seller, who had direct access to the Burra Memsaab bid the highest price much before the fruit was ripe!

The Burra Bungalow pineapple (as they called it, “Singapori Anarash”) was in demand for its massive size and sweetness.  The lychees were also a big draw in any fruit & vegetable exhibition where Burra Memsaab participated, not to talk of the high demand amongst the local fruit sellers.  The lychees were as big as golf balls, very sweet  and fleshy with a tiny seed. The trees were laden with lychees during the season. The duty of the night chowkidar was to guard them with a catapult  -- not from human beings, but from bats.  

Extraordinary care used to be taken by the Burra Memsaab in supervising the "Mali" and the "Bagals" for the optimum output at work.  Being an intelligent lady, many innovative measures were applied by her. 

The following episode of solving the Mystery of the Missing Pumpkin remains fresh in my mind.

In one of her innovative ideas, Burra Memsaab decided to put serial numbers on the pumpkins in the "Malibarie" so that she could keep track of their growth and future value per piece at the vegetable market. As the pumpkins grew, it was easier to write numbers on them with lime so that they were prominent when seen from a distance. "Burra Kothi" pumpkins were famous and the bidding price was high.

To protect them from the evil eye, the Mali decided to put up hand-painted sign boards with a skull and crossbones instead of a scarecrow.  Seeing this, Burra Memsaab was very happy, appreciating the Mali for his initiative and thoughtfulness. To her regular enquires the Mali replied, "Memsaab, sab thik hai".

As the time approached, the pumpkins were ready to be disposed of.  Memsaab decided to send her trusted ‘Bawarchi’ to the Malibarie to check them.

Bawarchi frantically came running and reported, ‘Memsaab...9 number kaddu chori ho gaya! (Number 9 pumpkin has been stolen!!)’ Furious and agitated, Memsaab scolded the Mali for his gross negligence, and decided to report the matter to the Burra Saab.

I, being the only Assistant, was called by Burra Saab to do ‘bichar’ and to find the culprit. The Mali was summoned to the ‘kamjari office’. He expressed his ignorance with folded hands.  Finally I decided to visit the spot myself. 

As luck would have it, the Mali, a garden school dropout, had somehow written Serial Number 6 twice on two different pumpkins instead of 9. The pumpkins were at a distance from each other, hidden below leaves – and Memsaab had failed to notice the mistake.

Within no time the truth was revealed.  Burra Memsaab thanked me as all the pumpkins were intact... and heaved a sigh of relief, as  Burra Saab was all set to lodge an FIR at the local police station for the missing No.9 "kaddu"!!

For a job well done, I was treated to a cinema show and dinner in the Planters’ Club!

 

                        

While Welcoming the VA

As a young Assistant, I had the opportunity of witnessing certain unusual and hilarious misadventures in the Burra Bungalow at _______ T.G. My Burra Saab, though senior in age, got his billet in a small garden where there was no bungalow for the Asst. Manager.  I, being the only Asst. Manager appointed by the company, was accommodated in the Annexe of the Burra Bungalow.

It was the first time that a Visiting Agent was due to visit the garden.  My Burra Saab somehow did not like the idea of someone superior to him coming  to the garden...to bother him. However, Burra Saab's personal Ambassador car was sent to the airport, and the driver was briefed to receive him.

As the V.A. got out of the aircraft, may be due to the change of weather, he was sneezing and he gradually began feeling miserable. The road from the airport to the garden was pathetic, which aggravated his problem.

The V.A. reached the Burra bungalow and was made to sit in the ‘Jali Verandah’ for some time. Burra Saab took his time, and showed up in a fresh pajama-kurta. The meeting was brief with some exchange of words, and the V.A. decided to retire for the day as he was running a mild fever.

The guest room was decorated with fresh winter flowers. The V.A. went inside and closed the door. Somehow he was allergic to the smell of the flowers and he wanted them to be removed from the room.  The call bell by the side of the bed was pressed.

For very long there was no response to his repeated calls. Finally he decided to come out of the guest room towards the dining room. There he met Burra Memsaab and requested her to remove the flowers and also complained about no one responding to his call bell.

The V.A. was now fuming, thinking that these things were all deliberately done. He decided to have a hot water bath. The bearer was asked to put ’Ghusal pani' in the bath tab. The hot water pipeline to the Guest Room was through the "kitchen chullah".

The bathtub was filled with hot water. The V.A. lay down for some time and found it soothing. The hot water made the fresh white paint in the bathtub soft.

Soon, there were shouts from the bath of the guest room but it was closed from all sides. Somehow the bearer broke open the door  to find the guest stuck to the bath tub with the  paint. The bearer ran frantically looking for kerosene oil.

The V.A. managed to spend the night, and demanded to be dropped at the airport the next morning.