My Conversation with Lalu- By Author Goutam Dutta
I was engrossed in staring into the screen of my mobile phone while walking and had failed to realise where I was heading. Suddenly a voice broke into my concentration and forced me to come back from the virtual world to the real one.
“Watch where you are going, you human! Do you know where you are headed?”
I realized I had come very close to the edge, the shoulder of the lane here sloped gradually down to the canal flowing alongside the lane. Another step and I might have slid down the slope and fallen! I looked around in bewilderment for the owner of the voice who had stopped me in the nick of time but there was no-one else around so early in the morning. This was one of the narrow lanes that criss-crossed through a maze of residential houses before running along a canal and ending into the main thoroughfare. Houses of all sizes, shapes and colour bordered the lane, the lane serving as the dwelling places not only for people of different economic strata but also a number of street dogs. These street dogs thrived in these lanes because one, they were less busy than the main thoroughfares and secondly, also was a source of scraps of food that helped them in their sustenance. They live in complete harmony with the humans in this locality, the bonding that they share is a source of pure joy to watch. These lanes are also the ones that I frequented for my daily morning walk. I used to look forward to this ritual as it helped me spend some joyful moments with these four-legged furry creatures that the world called dogs but I believed them to be “Gods” of happy tidings.
Each morning, I would begin my walk with few packets of biscuits in my pocket, intended as a morning snack for the dogs. Walking leisurely along these lanes that remained tranquil and in a state of dreamy stupor so early in the morning I would stop to pat or fondle, enjoying the love and adulation that seemed to sparkle in the eyes of these furry friends of mine.
This morning was no different and I was well on my walk when I heard this strange voice out of nowhere, alerting me in the nick of time! The lane was still shrouded in its morning laziness and there were no one else visible.
“Hi! I am hungry,” came the voice again.
This time, I followed the direction from which the sound had come and saw Lalu, the brown-coloured doggy sitting on the other side, staring at me.
“Why are you staring at me like that,” he seemed to question me when my eyes met his.
“Lalu, how is it that you can speak like a human today,” I countered, the shock raising the decibel level of my voice beyond normal. How is this possible? Am I dreaming, I wondered! Lalu, the brown and white stray who was the gentlest of soul amongst his entire breed living in the lane and whom I always compared to a saint; had he really been blessed by the saints all of a sudden? Was that the reason why he is able to talk like a human?
“I am still the same! Rather it is you who has come under the spell of a spirit; Kalu’s spirit! Remember my friend, the jet-black Kalu? Well, he died in his sleep two days back. The owner of the house in whose backyard we used to live buried him on the very spot where you are standing now. His spirit has entered your body and that is why you can understand me.
“What!”, I managed to blurt, not sure which had caused me greater shock; Kalu’s death or me being possessed by his spirit! Kalu,that boisterous, trifle eccentric creature whose antics never failed to bring a smile on my face, was dead! Unlike the gentle Lalu, each time Kalu saw me, he would come galloping towards me and then, when near me, would dance a weird dance where he would jiggle his whole body and run round in circles before standing up on his hind legs, his front paws resting on my thighs and his tongue hanging out like a piece of pink ribbon. To think that he was no more was a bigger jolt!
“He was so young, loving and energetic! How did he die”, I asked Lalu, who had now got up and came ambling towards me.
“Well, we who live on the streets lead a hard life,” said Lalu. “You know how boisterous and energetic he was. Always believed that the world was full of laughter and fun. Now while I did not witness the incident, I presume this is what must have happened. Two days back it was a warm night and Kalu was restless. He came out from the backyard of the building, where we usually rest and must have been lying down in the middle of the road. Owing to the canal, there is a little breeze on this side and hence it is cooler compared to the backyard. Late in the night, I was woken by the sound of screeching tyres and a piercing wail that barely lasted for thirty seconds. Then there was the sound of a car speeding away. I ran out barking and saw Kalu lying on the road, in a pool of blood. He, being dark, must have been difficult to spot on the dark stretch of road and the car must have been over-speeding, thus crushing him under the wheels. Poor Kalu! Whatever remained of him, was buried by the kind-hearted owner of this house at the very spot where you now stand.”
“This is so sad,” I said barely able to hold back my tears. To think that no-one would now come galloping towards me brought a lump into my throat.
“The poor guy had to die due to no fault of his. We humans have made this world so unsafe for everyone,” I said by way of lament.
“Life for us strays who live on the streets is of no value to anyone. Our life is one of endless struggle; struggle to find some food or clean water to drink, struggle to find a place to rest, struggle to save us from the rain, heat and cold and struggle to keep ourselves safe from the marauding humans.”
“I realise how tough it must be for you all,” I said, with the idea of showing some empathy.
“Not all humans are bad though”, continued Lalu, changing track. Some, like you or the owner of the house in whose backyard I live, do understand our pain and try to provide us with some comforts. Many of us on this lane are lucky in that respect. However, not everyone of my tribe living in other places are. Many centuries ago, we changed our food habits and our mental mindset with the intention of becoming friends with humans. Our forefathers had believed that humans and we would forge a wonderful bond of togetherness and live together in harmony. Since then we have been conditioned by our genes to be loving and caring and give our all for the sake of humans. Humans, on the contrary, have changed; becoming self-centered and egocentric with passage of time. They have stopped believing in our usefulness and considering us as their best friend. They have used us for their own benefits, breeding us at will to suit their purpose and then leaving us on the roads without bothering about our needs and wants. Not that our requirements are very complex. All we want is to live with dignity, to be cared and loved by humans. It is not our choice that we choose to live on the streets, without a home and be labelled a stray! Do you realise how much pain it causes when someone calls us a stray? Even we belong to specific breeds that are native to the Indian subcontinent. So just like you all, we too are Indians. We belong to this land, this country! As for our present plight It is humans who are responsible. Rather than buy expensive breed as pets if humans adopted some of us or even took care of providing us shelter, we would not be roaming on the streets. Then those like Kalu would not have to lose their lives to such accidents!”
Lalu’s long monologue ended but left me teary and many thoughts running through my mind.
This country of ours has many problems. Some like poverty, unemployment, increasing pollution levels may be big and require prompt action. However, we need to realise that the social fabric of urban India is slowly getting damaged. Along with the trees, the plight of the urban birds and animals also need to be given some thought by all of us. If only we become sensitive to the plight of the living who are also residents of our city’s streets and the sky some solutions can definitely be found. Then many such Kalus will not have to perish at a young age.
