The Fancy Dress: Me as Nehru

I'm Rishabh, in 2007 near about the month of July, I used to live in Ratlam, Madhya Pradesh, where it was the beginning of the rainy season. When I was in second class; I studied in the school which is about one and a half kilometers away from my home. My mom used to come to pick up me from school, whereas there was an uncle, his daughter Anjali study in the same school but one class lower to me, used to drop me in the morning.

My school had cultural activities' hours on every Saturday. Usually, on Wednesday we got the information about the event that will happen on Saturday. Miss Megha Jain was my class teacher; there was a tradition in my school the first period was always of our class teacher. On the second Monday of the month after assembly, Miss Megha Jain came to class. We all the students of class together had started singing 'Good morning' as we usually do because we were asked to say good morning together so we had a phase that everyone could match, but it seems like music more. She said to us to sit down 'baccho'. She took attendance. She wrote something on the board and asked us to open the homework dairy and note it down. We all opened the dairy and note all written text from the blackboard into our dairies.

'So baccho, on upcoming Saturday We have a Fancy Dress competition. And it wouldn't be similar to the other competitions that held on Saturday, as we are informing you 5 days before because it is inter-class competition you will going to compete with students of your class as well as student from the first and third class. So best of luck baccho.' Miss Megha Jain informed to Us.

'Thank you, ma'am.' We said together in the same melody as we did for a good morning.

On Saturday there was a zero period after lunch that had been created after deducting 15 minutes from Four periods after lunch. The name to the period is zero only because our principal had a philosophy that cultural activities are something which is before everything, so he had given it the name zero that something before the beginning.

'One more thing zero period will not be held after lunch; it will be before the first period just after assembly.' Miss Megha Jain added.

'Ok, Ma'am.' We said together.

After the explanation, she came to each and everyone's place to check the dairy and signature it.

***

After School Mom came to pick up me with Anjali's mom. Anjali and I were running toward the main gate of school as we usually do after school. We went to the gate and handover our bags to our mothers. Through the way from school to home, we had to pass one colony and the one end of my colony too. At the end of the first colony, there was my classmate Bhavna's house. She usually used to join us through the way towards her home.

'What will you wear?' Bhavna asked to me.

'Oh Mom! I forgot to tell you about our Fancy-dress competition.' I said abruptly.

'Fancy-dress Competition, means What?' My mother asked.

'Oh mom, you don't know about fancy dress. It means we have to wear clothes that resemble some we known person.' I explained annoyingly.

I was angry to my mother because it was shameful for me, but at that position, I was unable to understand her efforts were more than her capability towards my studies. As she was studied from Hindi medium school, she didn't understand English but for me, she tried a lot.

'Ok beta.' She replied and rubbed her hand over my head.

'Bhavna, I have not decided. What about you, what you will wear?' I replied and asked to Bhavna.

'Yar, I am also in confusion about what should I have to wear.' She replied.

We reached to Bhavna's house. We stopped for a while to discuss want would be the homework to be submitted.

'Bye Bhavna.' I said. 'Bye di.' Anjali added.

'Bye.' Bhavna replied.

***

At that time my sister was in 9th class and she used to check my homework dairy. She read the notice about the Fancy-dress competition.

'One more activity to waste money.' My sister said to mom.

'Yes beta, Private school will not change.' Mom said to di.

'I want a spiderman's dress.' I said.

'Beta, we don't have enough money recently we had paid your school first installment.' Mom said.

'You never have money for me.' I said angrily.

It was about 6.00 pm that was time for my father to come back from office. I went outside. My father was coming. I ran up to the middle of the way. I hugged him up, he put his left hand on my back. As he was paralyzed, he could not move his right hand and leg. He used to up-down hundred kilometers daily from our city to a town fifty kilometers away, from where we were migrated for studies of me and my sister. Our economic condition was not so good as only 3 years were passed after my father paralysis attack where we had invested a lot. Usually, when ran up to my father I asked him for chocolate, and he knows it very while, so without asking he brought it for me.

We went inside to home and he sat on the bed. I asked him for water. He drunk water. He asked me with his facial expression how was the day.

'It was great Papa.' I said

'Do you know we have a fancy-dress competition.' I added.

'Oh Good, when?' My father asked.

'On Saturday.' I replied.

'Want to wear spiderman's dress. Please buy it for me.' I said.

'Beta, I will buy it for you, but not now after a few months.' He explained to me with his hand on my hand.

'So, what can I wear.' I asked. 'And If I don't get a dress I will not go to class' I said.

'Beta, you have kurta and pajama.' He said.

He added, 'you will look like our first prime minster after wearing Kurta and pajama. Do you know? he loves children a lot.'

'Jawahar Lal Nehru.' I said.

'Yes, dear.' He said.

'But what about Topi? He used to wear Topi.' I asked.

'I will ask Sharma ji. He must have Topi.' He replied.

I had remembered he never ask people for things, but at that time he did it for me.

***

On Saturday I was ready with white kurta and pajama, a Topi on the which my father made for me as Sharma Ji's topi didn't fit me, and a rose attached to my kurta over my left chest. I went to Anjali's house.

'Oh my god, Nehru Ji.' Anjali's father said, as he saw me.

I passed a smile to him. Anjali had dressed as Saniya Mirza. She had a cap over her head with the attached goggle on it. We went to school. I saw many students dressed like spiderman, ironman, some as cartoon characters and many more. But no one dressed as I did. Somewhere I was feeling hesitated but I was happy because dressed like me. In that competition, we had to say something about the character who's the dress we were wearing. My mom taught me some lines in Hindi that were ' Aao bachacho Tumhe dikhye zaki Hindustan ki, is mitti se tilak karo ye darti h balidan ki', I said this lines on the stage. Most of the students had given their introduction in English but I was one of them who did it in Hindi. I was feeling shame until I won Second Prize in the competition.