The Annual Arts festival was in progress in Mamallapuram. The Emperor was not participating that year. Some people attributed his absence to an unexplained sorrow. Some others said he had entrusted the empire to his son, who had returned from Lanka, and had gone on a pilgrimage in disguise. In any case, the residents of Mamallapuram were celebrating the festival enthusiastically, as prince Mahendran and princess Kundavi were participating.
The gem merchant was relishing the sights of the arts festival. He wandered around, admiring the wondrous sculptures and enjoying the music, drama and dance in the festival. He looked excited, surveying all that was on offer with wide, eager eyes. The more he saw and heard, the more he seemed to want. Was it joy in his eyes when he experienced the sculpture, the painting and the music? Was it envy? Or a mixture of the two?
With the diamond merchant was a dwarf. He was carrying bags with merchandise on his shoulders and on his head. He must have been deaf, as the merchant was communicating with him in sign language. In addition to being deaf, he seemed to be mute as well. Perhaps the merchant picked him as a helper for confidentiality.
The merchant’s activities would have aroused suspicions in the mind of a keen observer. He admired the paintings and sculptures. In addition, he would pat the artist on the shoulder and take him aside. His charm and handsome looks encouraged the artists to follow him away from the hustle and bustle. He would tell them all about his nation and its prosperity. He would tell them that the residents were migrants from the Tamil land from Karikal Valavan’s days, and that the only thing that they lacked were temples, sculpture and sculptors. He would finish the talk with an offer, ‘Do you want to work there? You can return home very rich. There is no poverty there. You can see precious gems strewn on the streets.’
He would show them a handful of precious gems from the bag. The artist would have fallen for the talk. He would be entirely sold on the scheme on seeing the handful of gems. When the artist expressed his interest, the merchant would give him a hand-picked gem and say, ‘On the day of the new moon, a ship with a tiger flag will dock at the harbor. If you show them this gem, they will let you board the ship.’
The merchant spent all three days of the arts festival in this vein. The third day was Vijayadashami. He was walking on the street when he saw an unexpected sight. Or was it an expected sight? The woman of his dreams was traveling in a palanquin, just as he remembered. Her face seemed to have changed. Three years ago, her face resembled the golden moon rising out of the blue sea. That day, he felt her face resembled the setting moon that has a paler glow. The face that had once displayed unbridled joy now seemed a bit tired. The naughtiness was replaced by sadness. These changes did not seem to diminish the beauty of the face though.
As the merchant was walking along the street, he heard some activity behind him. He turned around and saw a palanquin surrounded by guards. He instantly recognized the young woman traveling on the palanquin as the one that had been in his thoughts all these days. His heart fluttered. His eyes watered. He forgot all that he had planned to do if he ever met her. He moved aside and looked away. When the palanquin passed him, he had the sensation of a pair of large eyes on him. He wanted to turn and look but forced himself to look away. He turned to look after the palanquin went a distance, and then realized that the young woman’s eyes were fixed on him. He looked down again.
But the palanquin had stopped as well. One of the soldiers guarding the palanquin approached him and said, “My lady wants to have a word. Can you follow me?”
The merchant followed him, his mind a whirl of thoughts. ‘Who might this woman be? Why is she calling me? Did she recognize me? Is it possible that she remembered me after all these years? She certainly seems to be of a noble birth. Could she be the Emperor’s daughter? If she happened to be the princess…’
He approached the palanquin and looked up at her face. Her eyes were piercing. She was looking at him as if she wanted to read his mind by tunneling through his eyes. After looking at him quietly, she asked, ‘Sir, may I know who you are? You don’t seem to be from around here!”
“Yes, my lady! I am indeed from a faraway place, Senbaga Island. I came here to trade gems. My name is Devasenan”, he said rapidly, as if reciting a memorized script.
She must have been surprised by his agitation. After gazing at him a little longer, she asked, “What island did you say? Senbaga Island? The name rings a bell. Who rules the island?”
“The royal family line died out. Vikraman, the Chozha prince is now our king.”
He noticed that her face lit up on hearing this. ‘She still remembers a banished man! Considering her radiant beauty, is it possible that she is …’ He was afraid to even think of the possibility.
Kundavi asked, “Did you say you trade in gems?”
“Yes, my lady. The package that this dwarf is carrying has several precious gems. Can I show you?”
“Not now. I don’t want to attract a crowd here. Can you come to the palace in the evening?”
Why did the merchant’s face fall when he heard her say ‘the palace’?
It was not clear if she noticed the change. She resumed as if she thought of something, “Yes, be sure to be at the palace this evening. Kundavi, the Emperor’s daughter is fond of precious gems. She will certainly buy some. In fact, she may buy the whole lot”.
The gem merchant heaved a sigh of relief. “I am not so greedy as to want to sell everything in one place. I have many places to see in this country. Let her just buy what she needs.”
“For that you need to come to the palace. Will you?”
“Yes, but whom should I ask for?”
“Ask for Madhavi, Princess Kundavi’s friend.”
“Will it be hard to gain entry?”
“No one will stop you. Changing topics, why are you roaming with bags of such precious gems? Are you not worried about being robbed?”
“Robbed? Should anyone fear robbers in Emperor Narasimha’s rule?”
Kundavi smiled, “So, our Emperor’s fame has spread overseas? Very good to hear! So, you will come to the palace this evening?”
“I certainly will”, said the merchant.
The palanquin resumed the journey on Kundavi’s orders. The merchant stood rooted to the spot and followed the palanquin with his eyes until it disappeared in the crowds.
“How long are you going to stare in the same direction? Your eyes may pop out of their sockets”, said a harsh voice. Startled, the merchant jumped and turned around. Marappa Bhupathi, seated on a black horse, was looking down upon him with a mocking smile.
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Parthban Kanavu: The Tamil version of the novel is in the public domain. Copyright for the translation is reserved by the translator..
Art by Sujatha, unless otherwise credited.
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