ten

It was a bright sunny day in the lazy little village of Damar. The horseman on the mountain overlooking the village seemed strangely out of place with the rest of the picture. Clothed in white satin robes that matched his white horse, he could almost be mistaken for the guardian of the village as he looked down on it, paying great attention to every movement from within. The gigantic turban complemented his loose clothing, and his huge moustache completed the image of some sort of royalty. The face was, however, not royal by any means. It was the face of a warrior; swarthy, with dull, almost inebriated-looking eyes that seemed part mournful and all evil, small and slightly puckered lips, and tiny ears that bore no piercing as was usual for a warrior or a king of those lands.

As he stood still, another horseman came up behind him and stood to his right. The second horseman, like the first, was attired in loose satin robes, but his turban was much smaller than his companion’s, indicating a lower rank. He was lighter skinned than the former and wore studs on his ears, though, in every other sense, he was a very nondescript individual. The first horseman hadn’t seemed aware of the new presence behind him until after a few minutes, when he suddenly said, ‘Well Nanjiraj, what do you think?’

The second horseman looked at the head of the first without responding. He had always found it disconcerting, his companion’s ability to know what was around him at all times, almost as if he was always ready to be attacked. Nanjiraj had, many times in the recent past, contemplated just such an attack. His companion had grown much too powerful for his liking.

‘It seems as though we could finish them off easily, my lord. It looks too peaceful a village to mount any resistance.’

‘You would be surprised at how many times they’ve resisted me in the past. The last time I attacked this place was many years ago, after I had defeated Smith in Bangalore. That was soon after you had told me about this wheel of yours. At that time I sent in a squad to get whatever information I could and this peaceful little village managed to defeat them.’

‘It will be different this time, my lord. We have been extremely discreet in our approach.’

‘My intelligence is very clear. Ever since the old woman who used to head the village died, her son, the new headman, cut back on the village’s defence costs. If there is any resistance, it won’t be much more than a token effort, depend upon that. But I hope that Brahmin you killed gave you the right information. This village looks too small to hold such a large secret.’

‘The legend of the Sri chakra is well known, my lord, and Kanchipuram was very dear to Adi Shankara. Besides, the size of the village makes it even more likely that it is true. A bigger place would have too many people talking about it, until eventually it would be a secret no longer.’

‘Yes, well, just remember that Haider Ali allows no one to make a fool of him. I have already had to take on partners in this scheme of yours, and I don’t trust the white men.’

‘You can always get rid of your partners once you have the chakra, my lord.’ Nanjiraj smirked as he said this. ‘We need the British now, for they control these lands.’

Haider Ali snorted as he replied, ‘I don’t need anybody. I could wade right in if I wanted and raze this village to the ground, and there isn’t anything that anyone could do to stop me.’

Nanjiraj said nothing. He was used to these impotent ravings. He used to wonder why Haider Ali bothered to leave the Raja of Mysore alive when he was, in truth, already the emperor. He eventually came to realize that Haider Ali suffered from a massive inferiority complex, the same inferiority complex that made him wear a massive turban and grow a huge moustache. When it came to the Raja, it was this weakness that made him feel that it was the presence of the Raja on the throne that made him acceptable to the people.

‘We need to leave the rest of the village alive so that they can tell the priest’s son what happened, my lord. Hastings told us …’

‘Hastings can say what he wants, Nanjiraj. I’m not comfortable with the idea of doing all this in broad daylight and leaving people alive to tell the tale.’

‘My lord, for now let’s stick with the plan. Hastings has the son within his reach, and the Brahmin clearly told me that each generation was told about his duty as soon as he reached puberty. We would definitely have a better chance if we sent the son a clear message that would frighten him.’

‘From what I have heard of this son, he is a real firebrand. What if he takes it on himself to avenge his parents? No, Nanjiraj, I am going to do my utmost to glean the information from the parents and the panchayat members too. Let’s see if we can still avoid collaborating with the British.’

Nanjiraj bowed his head in compliance. ‘Very good, my lord.’

The attack on the village was swift and decisive. Smothered by the sheer number of Haider Ali’s troops, Damar feebly capitulated.

Haider’s first move on assuming control of the village was to summon the panchayat members. After he had identified and tied up Dikshitar, he came straight to the point. ‘Where is the Sri chakra? I know you have it hidden somewhere in this town.’

Every man kept silent.

Haider Ali turned his soldiers and, pointing to Dikshitar, ordered, ‘Find this man’s wife and bring her to me.’

Rangamma was hiding in the crowd but when she heard the order, she broke down and began weeping hysterically. The soldiers grabbed her and dragged her to Haider Ali’s feet. He asked Dikshitar in a chillingly conversational tone, ‘How would you feel if I told my soldiers that they can have their way with your wife?’

Dikshitar’s voice was hoarse with rage and panic. ‘For god’s sake, leave her out of this.’

‘Then tell me what I need to know.’

‘We don’t know anything! What are you talking about?’

Doraisami, one of the weavers, came forward and shouted, ‘Have you no decency? I promise you we know nothing about any chakra. Please, for god’s sake, leave her alone.’

At this, Haider Ali let go of her and stalked forward towards him until they were standing a foot apart, noses almost touching. Haider Ali was slightly shorter than Doraisami, and he didn’t seem to like that for, a second later, he pulled his sword out and slashed Doraisami’s right arm, just above his elbow, almost severing the whole arm in one blow, before screaming at him, ‘Who is this god you speak of? Yours or mine? My god says all of you are sinners who should die.’

He wiped his sword clean on the veshti of the writhing form of Doraisami, and with that, he walked back towards Rangamma, sheathing his sword in its scabbard. He called out, ‘Anyone who knows anything, tell me now, or your chief’s wife is going to become an army whore.’

But nobody responded. Dikshithar called out in agony, ‘Please, she knows nothing about what you are asking. Please leave her alone.’

‘All right. Men, you know what to do!’

Sivaraman, the village schoolmaster, came forward and fell to his knees.

‘I swear to you. It was taken away after you attacked us the last time, and none of us knows where.’

‘I am inclined to believe you, but I’m also certain that at least one of you knows where it is now. And unless you tell me, your headman’s wife is forfeit. Men, proceed!’

Two soldiers dragged Rangamma into a house. As her screams echoed around the village square, a deathly silence fell, punctured only by Dikshitar’s desperate weeping.

Haider Ali was quiet for a while, and then addressed the villagers, ‘If you don’t tell me where the Sri chakra is, this is what will happen to your wives as well.’

Everyone was silent; no one knew anything. Dikshitar strained futilely at the ropes that bound him, but not a word escaped his lips. The chakra was a cruel master: it demanded sacrifice and he was devoted enough to make it without question.

Haider Ali’s men came out of the house, looking smugly satisfied. Other than an occasional whimper, the village heard nothing.

‘Resisting me will get you nothing, Dikshitar. Tell me the location of the Sri chakra and I will spare your lives, else I will burn your wife.’

‘I don’t know,’ Dikshitar shouted. ‘I promise you I don’t. Please leave my wife alone. You’ve hurt her enough.’

‘No, I haven’t,’ Haider Ali replied.

Two soldiers ran into the room where Rangamma was and dragged her out. She was naked, bruised, bloody and barely conscious. A collective gasp went up when the crowd saw her. Dikshitar lunged at his restraints, howling with rage and grief.

Haider Ali raised his voice. ‘It is your stubbornness that has brought this upon your wife, Appayya Dikshitar. This is your last chance …’

Dikshitar sobbed helplessly. ‘Please, I really don’t know anything about the Sri chakra.’

Haider Ali walked up to Rangamma and plunged his sword in her chest as Dikshitar stared in horror.

Haider Ali then signalled to Naniraj. ‘I don’t want to waste my time here anymore. Finish off the priest, then raze their house to the ground. Look everywhere. Find the chakra and bring it to me.’

And mounting his horse, he left.