Banomali can be fearless. He really can be fearless,when he is drunk. As the alcohol flows inside,it washes away all the grief,sadness and fear. Banomali ponda, at his level has nothing to loose but he fears death and he fears humiliation. He can remember vividly how he lost his entire family-his son,daughters and his wife Kamala, in that devastating Cyclone on the coast of Orissa. Even now whenever he closes his eyes, he can see scores of bodies lying all around and smell that overpowering stench of death. Only alcohol can erase such memory and the stench temporarily.

The life was never the same again. It had been real hard to rebuild the life. And it is a lonely life altogether. Though some of his living relatives insisted  on his remarriage,he could not do it as he could not forget his wife and loving children. He survived in life becuase of alcohol and because of a menial job of Mali offered by Samantrai Babu,a  village landlord.The life would have been better but there are people who never think twice while making a fun and poking at others,whenever they can. His village has a lot of such people and they knew that Banomali is afraid of death.So they never leave a chance to play jokes on him. They will purposely give all death news to him.They will also force him somehow to go to the village Crematorium,when ever anybody expires in the village.Sometimes, they will just try to scare him at night by dressing up as ghost or a dead body lying  in front of his house.

One of the main culprit was Madan,the son of the Samantrai Babu and his cronis.These good for nothing fellows always teases him and he being the servant of his father, has to tolerate everything. Samantrai Babu is over indulgent to his son. Not only that, he also takes part in teasing Banomali sometimes.

It is only when he is drunk he does not care and can use choicest abuses for his tormentors. That  time he also tries to be friendly with Lucky and Mangala,the pet dog and the cow of Samantbabu,whom he does not like normally. He avoids mangala, as once she had knocked him hard with her  horns. Lucky also had bitten him once,when he tried to pat him in a friendly way, as he was in his alcoholic mood.that day. He he was sobered at once.

Today, in the late evening,Babu told him to get some burnt woods from the village Crematorium,for some Puja. There was mischief in his voice and  a patronising smile in his face. Banomali knew that this was  nothing but to have a joke in Babu's daily Adda with his friends and cronies.Though he was extremely afraid of the Crematorium at night, he had to come here.Afterall , a servant has no choice.It was  only this beautiful bottle, that  only  can save him.

TO BE CONTINUED...