Nightmare...

It was just an ordinary weekend... my aunt and cousins just dropped over for no reason at all, though I faintly suspect it was to show of the  trophies thier dog had won in the dog show last week. We laughed, talked and on the whole horsed around while my mum was busily trying to convince everyone to stay for tea. 1

While just chatting about school my brother started,2

"Hey geeko, couldn't open the attachment you sent..." 3

We all teased our cousin sister calling her that due to her newly acquired braces. She usually rolled along with it showing mock anger and we'll all have a delightful romp about the house but today the room went suddenly silent. My brother acutely embarrassed started apologising in a slightly defiant way. And then the nightmare story began... it had nothing to do with him... it was only the memory his words brought back... slowly my favourite aunt began...4

"That visit to the dentist was horrid... we didn't get her braces fixed... there was such a commotion going on...we went early hopefully wanting to Finnish off before the crowds arrived. The Doctor was to come at 6:30 so we went at 6:00 and waited. Slowly a few more patients started filtering and on the whole we all sat around leafing through magazines with nothing to do...  then I saw this girl being brought in by this couple... I naturally assumed that they were her parents. The nurses called her in so that they could Finnish off the prelim nary stuff before the doctor arrived... I watched disinterestedly as the girl asked for the restroom... it was normal in dental clinics for patients to brush before they meet the doctor... the restroom was adjoining to another room and I just had a partial view into it. For another 15 min. all was silent... then the couple started banging on the door...5

"Janani come out...NOW!"6

In the beginning I thought she was only a mischievous girl playing truant or maybe a girl just really scared of the dentist... just mildly rebuking her behaviour in my head I just continued to go through the 'femina' magazine in my hand... as the screaming and banging got louder I began to have my doubts... there must be something more behind this... the threats were also becoming scarier and the language filthier... what was that girl up to...? By then even the dental staff were standing by the door asking the girl to come to out promising not to hurt her... Then the Doctor arrived..."7

Already small shivers were running down my spine the expression on my cousin's face confirmed my fears that the worse was yet to come... my aunt continued talking faster now getting over her initial awkwardness,8

"The doctor joined the little band by the door and spoke to her. Her was a middle-aged serious man who was not willing to take any nonsense from anyone.His temper was also rising9

"JANANI COME OUT... NO ONE IS GOING TO HURT YOU! DO NOT ACT SO CHILDISH!"10

But the girl in the washroom steadfastly refused to open the door. By now the attention of everyone in the waiting room was on the girl and the group near the door. Slowly it came out that the couple were not the girl's parents but actually the teachers of her school- a school well known for it rigorous academic standards. Janani had been put in the hostel because her parents had felt she would study better there because she would be away from all distractions. 11

Somehow the  staff managed to force open the door and the couple dragged the girl out. They asked the doctor to speak some sense into her but he refused... after all it was none of his business... the girl was not his daughter... his temper at a peak he angrily asked the couple to remove the child from the clinic. While we all watched scared and amazed the girl screamed for help... asking some one to save her... she kept repeating,12

"Don't let them take me there... I don't know them... Someone please help me..." but we were all frozen to our seats... watching but not wanting to understand... 13

Slowly and agonisingly the 'teachers' dragged the girl out of the room and the door closed and the hysterical cries of the girl died behind us. As she left a slow sigh of relief filled the room. But that was not the end... she re-entered the room running wildly. The male teacher caught hold of the skirt and right in front of our schocked eyes it tore and the girl continued to run in her underwear... right on to the road. She ran up the stairs of the nearby flats and screamed for help from the lady there... she shut the door on her face... by now a crowd had gathered and watched with curiosity and growing anger at the happenings...14

As she ran back into the clinic where we were waiting the doctor decided things were going a little out of hand and called her authoritatively. He shut the door on the teachers' faces and handed her a hot cup of coffee. After she had calmed down suitably he came out of his consultation room and told the teachers that he was going to call the kids' parents and let them decide what needs to be done. After that we decided that there was no way we were going to meet the doc. that day and so we left. My daughter felt that it would have been better if we waited till the parents came but I felt the mob would take care of that... after all they had got hold of the male teacher and were cross -questioning him." 15

And here her narration ended. I wondered what would have driven the kid only a year younger than me to such extremes when my cousin brother pitched in,16

"One of my friends is studying there... he told me that if you go against the rules there they lock you up in a dark room overnight. And they threaten the students not to tell their parents."17

My brother added,18

"One of the boys there hung himself with shoelaces"19

The conversation left me disgusted...  I remembered one of my classmates wanted to go there cause all the students scored so high. So all this was done in the name of education. A childhood destroyed for a sake of a unreal future...20