Vandiya Devan
chased the girl through the thick forest. Nimble and quick, she skirted through
trees, pits and mounds and would vanish from his line of sight for a while and
just when he was ready to give up she would appear again. Vandiya Devan was
reminded of the magical deer that Lord Rama had to chase in Pachavati. My god!
This girl is not a magical deer but she has all the swiftness and the grace of
a deer. And just as he was thinking about her, he also wondered why he was
chasing her in the first place. To justify his actions, he also imagined a
reason for it. Even as he neared Kodi Karai he was reminded of Senthan
Amuthan’s description about Poonguzhali. This must be Poonguzhali, his uncle’s
daughter. It might be beneficial to make friends with her and he also needed a
guide to take him to the lighthouse.
Though the
lighthouse was visible at a distance, he had found it difficult to approach the
place once they got into the forest. Confused and disoriented, he and the
physician’s son were roaming aimlessly when they came upon Poonguzhali at the
temple. He had wanted to ask her for directions to go to the lighthouse but
before he could open his mouth, she had started running.
What to do now?
Shall we leave her and go back? But he didn’t want to acknowledge to himself
that a girl had bested him in running either!
Even while he
thought thus, they came out of the woods and he could see the beach ahead and
the calm sea. What a glorious sight! The lighthouse was also visible and
lighted with fire. Shall I leave this girl and go towards the lighthouse?
No. It will be
easier to catch her in this beach and moreover she was running towards the
beach. How long can she run there, he reasoned? What if she was a sea nymph?
Will she disappear when she reaches the water? He regretted not bringing his
horse here. Astride on the horse, he would have caught her within no time!
Running wildly
after her, he saw that she had stopped running abruptly ahead of him and had
turned left and was running towards the woods again. With his legs protesting
loudly and breath rasping, he gave chase after her. What would she say if he
caught hold of her and said, “Girl, Stop running! I have got a message from
your lover in Thanjavur.” How surprised will she be? While it was true that
Senthan Amuthan did not send any message to her but what of it? He just needed
to give his imagination a free rein!
Thinking thus,
he sprang after her hoping to catch her before she disappeared again. He didn’t
know what happened exactly but found himself shouting, “Ayyo!” It took him a
moment to realize what had happened. He found himself drowning in mud and he
was going down on the quick sand.
My God! How did
this happen? How did I end up here? The place looked dry enough when he had
stepped on it but looks are deceptive. Vandiya Devan had heard of quicksand
near beaches and marshy areas that have swallowed even elephants! To his
horror, he realized that he was fast sinking and had nothing to hold himself
and hoist up. What will happen now? What will happen to my dreams? He realized
that only Poonguzhali could save him now. He shouted loudly, “Ayyo! I am dying.
I am drowning in this muddy quicksand. Please save me!”
Poonguzhali
stopped running and turned around. She noted his dangerous situation and
decided to help him. There was a half sunken boat on the quicksand pool. She
got on it nimbly and came to the other side of the pool. Bracing her legs on
the hard floor, she reached out and held her hand to Vandiya Devan. Her
seemingly lean arms had an iron grip that belied her slight figure. Vandiya
Devan was astonished by her strength and compared it with that of Chinna
Pazhuvetrayar’s iron grip.
 |
| Poonguzhali |
After he came
out of the quicksand, he laughed out aloud though his legs were trembling.
“Do you really
think that you saved me from that quicksand? Did you perhaps think that I
wouldn’t have come out of it without your help?” he asked her cheekily.
“Then why were
screaming, ‘ayyo’ ‘ayyo’? asked Poonguzhali looking peeved.
“To
stop you from running.”
“Really! Then
let me push you back in that quicksand. This time around, you can rescue
yourself,” saying this she tried to push him back
“Ayyayo!”
shouted Vandiya Devan and moved away from her warily.
“What are you
scared of now?”
“I am not
scared for my life but I don’t want to get muddy again. As such, I am half
drowned in mud.”
Poonguzhali
smiled at him and said, “There is the sea, go and wash yourself there.
“Only if you
can come with me as a guide.” Said Vandiya Devan and they both started walking
towards the beach.
“Why did you
run so wildly after looking at me? Did you perchance think that I was some
demon or a vicious ghost?”
“No. I didn’t
think you were a demon. I thought you looked like an owl.” She said and
laughed.
Vandiya Devan
who was vain enough to acknowledge himself to be very handsome found this to be
an unpardonable slight from a woman. He got very angry and muttered, “My
owl-like face is a perfect match for your monkey-face.”
“What did you
say?”
“Nothing. I just asked why you ran away.”
“Why did you
chase after me?”
“I wanted to
ask you for directions to go towards the lighthouse.”
“There is the
lighthouse. Can’t you see? Why ask me?”
“I couldn’t
find the way after entering the woods. That’s why? Why did you run away?”
“Men are
vicious beasts. I don’t like them.”
“Even Senthan
Amuthan?”
“Who?”
“Thanjavur
Senthan Amuthan.”
“What do you
know about him?”
“I know that he
is your lover.”
“What? What?”
“Your name is
Poonguzhali isn’t it?”
“Yes. I am Poonguzhali.
What did you just now say about Senthan Amuthan? He is my….”
“I said, ‘He is
your lover.’”
Poonguzhali
laughed out loud and said, “Who told you this?”
“Who else?
Senthan Amuthan told me. “
“Thanjavur is
very far away from here, that’s why he must have told you this lie.”
“Otherwise…”
“If he had told
this in front of me, I would have buried him in that quicksand.”
“So what? Here
is a big beach to wash all that mud off.”
“That quicksand
has buried cows, horses and even elephants.”
Vandiya Devan
found himself getting goose pimples. He couldn’t forget the sinking sensation
he had felt as he found himself drowning within its muddy mouth inch by inch.
What if Poonguzhali had not rescued him? By now, he might have been buried
there up till his neck! He found himself trembling even as he thought about it.
“What else did
Senthan Amuthan say about me?”
“He said that
you were his uncle’s daughter and that there is no one to compare your beauty
even in Devendran’s court.”
“Looks like
your friend has gone all the way to Devendran’s court. What else?”
“He said that
you sing very well. He said that when you sing, even the sea listens to your
song. Is that true?”
“You will find
out soon. Go wash yourself at the beach.”
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