Extermination

Every evening, on his way home from work lately, as soon as the bus crossed Thakurpukur and made a right, fear churned and crawled in Tridib’s stomach. He felt as though, leaving the civilized Kolkata behind, he was entering a realm of primitive darkness.

His newly-purchased apartment, beyond Hashpukur, stood hushed in an endless, infinite field. The darkness all around waited furtively, ready to pounce on him at the slightest provocation. Piercing this blackness with torchlight to confound it, he took the narrow path between two stale ponds; making his way to the main gate, wading cautiously through mud and slime, saving himself from snakes and such. A small village lay just beyond this apartment building. Plastic factories reared their heads on cement beds amidst dead thickets and untamed weeds, on erstwhile agricultural lands. Stretching across the open field like leukoderma patches were a few houses, banana groves and illegal cow sheds. On moving towards Kolkata, one came upon the bustling Thakurpukur market. But this particular side was exceedingly desolate. As night set in, the light from a mobile recharge shop glimmered faintly, along with lights from a tea stall or an underwhelming shop. Sometimes a bus or a trekker passed noisily, the road trembling underneath them. No one but Samaddar could have planned a real estate project in this remote, untamed slice of land.

When Bonna saw the flat for the first time, she exclaimed to Samaddar a little disappointed, “Too far, isn’t it? We won’t even be able to call a doctor here if someone is sick.”

Smiling glibly, the promoter Samaddar said reassuringly, “Madam, let all the projects be completed. You will find a new city here. And if you insist on being in Kolkata, this too is Kolkata on pen and paper, isn’t it?”

Bonna, a lifelong resident of the centrally-located Park Circus, and Tridib from Hatibagan in North Kolkata, couldn’t shake the doubt from their minds, even though they knew they were getting the flat at a very reasonable rate. They would have had to pay thrice this amount if they wanted a flat in proper Kolkata. His fingers searching for a Classic Mild, a confident Samaddar declared, “Madam, Kolkata is spreading as fast as the cheetah’s paws. If you don’t keep up and secure a place for yourself, you will soon find that you aren’t left with anything.”

Samaddar had the gift of the gab. He could talk like a magician. Bonna and Tridib had booked the flat almost under his spell.

Bonna was happy here. Her office commute dropped her at Thakurpukur. But now, the place scared Tridib. He feared returning home. He was afraid to sleep at night. Sitting at the balcony in the morning, a cup of tea in hand, the sooty chimneys of the grey factories amidst the distant green filled him with unease. This panic had seized Tridib’s consciousness ever since he had spotted a lizard in his living room two months ago.

It was a Sunday. It had merely been three months to the possession of their flat, but they hadn’t been able to organize everything properly yet. Bonna was off to Gariahat to select curtains. Feeling a bit under the weather, Tridib didn’t accompany her. Making himself a cup of tea in the evening, as he was about to sit on the living room sofa, Tridib leapt up. A large, black lizard was lazing on the newly purchased red and black sofa covers.

Tridib had been deeply phobic of lizards since his childhood. Lizards both scared and revolted him. There were one or two lizards in his Hatibagan residence as well, but they seldom left the ventilators. And whenever one made an appearance, Tridib shooed them away with a broom or a stick. The lizards would run helter skelter, seeking an escape. But this particular lizard stared at him peculiarly, its eyes sans fear. It was a wild lizard, probably from the forest or bushes in the back. Tridib’s stomach turned in fright, bile making its way up. He stood still for some time. The strength to move had left his body. After some time, adjusting to the situation, he scolded himself, “Dhyat! This is just a lizard!”

When the lizard didn’t budge even after his vigorous clapping, Tridib threw water at it from the jug. The lizard bounced off the sofa onto the wall. It crawled on its chest to the tubelight and before disappearing, seemed to turn its neck and glance at Tridib. Perhaps it was his mind playing tricks.

Tridib took off the sofa cover and put it to wash. He was somewhat repulsed. Sitting on the sofa the entire evening, he smoked one cigarette after another. His eyes travelled time and again to the tubelight. Although the reptile couldn’t be seen, he knew that it was there lying in wait, and would come out any instant.

Bonna returned at around nine-thirty. As soon as she entered, she stopped in her tracks. “What happened to the sofa covers?” Tridib pointed at the tubelight. The lizard was out and about yet again, stuck to the wall.

Making a face, Bonna cried out, “Ewwww! Gross! Why haven’t you got rid of it?”

“It isn’t leaving”, a frustrated Tridib shrugged. “It was right there on the sofa. How disgusting!”

“Now what’s disgusting about it? A lizard is a harmless creature. It doesn’t harm anyone, mostly minds its own business.”

“I can’t stand lizards from my very childhood. I feel revolted whenever I see one.”

“Switch off the lights in the living room, it’ll leave after some time. They come following the light. I think they’re coming from the wilderness out back. Will you please make me some tea, dear? My head feels like it’s going to burst.”

But the lizard didn’t leave. And ever since then, it peeped through quite often—sometimes on the living room wall, in the bathroom window, and in the kitchen.

Tridib lost his peace of mind.

Lying in bed at night, when all was quiet, aside from the incessant drone of the beetles floating in from the wilderness beyond, Tridib felt the untamed forest inching close. He perceived a cobra sitting underneath the neem tree beside his window, hood raised, poised to strike. Its hissing merged with the drone of the beetles. A wild, black lizard was stuck to the wall right above his head, waiting to pounce on him any minute. Numerous bugs wanted to swarm into his room attracted by the light. They would not let Tridib sleep. He got up, had a sip of water, glanced up at the ceiling of his dark room and spotted the lizard sitting still, measuring time.

Tridib got a mosquito net. Surprised, Bonna asked him, “Why this, suddenly? I have never seen you use one!”

“I’m scared, Bonna! What if the lizard falls onto me?”

“Will you tell me what’s wrong with you? You’re not sleeping well. You’re awake at night. You’ve lost your appetite. Do you want to go see a doctor?”

“No, no, this is not a problem for a doctor.” Restless, Tridib wanted to swat away Bonna’s concern. “I feel strangely uneasy, you know. Because of that lizard!”

“Lizard? This is a psychological problem then! They don’t harm anyone. They keep to themselves. This place is theirs too, isn’t it? Rather, it’s we who are in their space.”

“Still, I get sick as soon as I see one. Feel like vomiting. As if it has entered our own space, yours and mine, forcefully. And they look so vile! They’re filthy! Their tiny feet leave black spots whichever wall they pass through. They breed copiously. If we don’t get rid of them now, mark my words, our entire household will be teeming with them in no time and we won’t have a place to stay.”

Bonna fetched a towel and placed it in Tridib’s hands, “Go, take a good shower. You are angry. Is there a problem at work? With your project? If there’s not too much work pressure, let’s go visit Ma-Baba today, shall we?”

But there was no problem with the project. Work at the office was smooth. Tridib had been asked to go on-site to America for six months. But he didn’t want to leave. He liked spending relaxed, lazy evenings with Bonna, sitting in a corner of their room. The dim glow of the tube-light, the songs saved in his laptop, the comfort of his coffeemaker and the caress of the soft sofa made him forget the goings-on of the world outside. They had been married for five years and didn’t have children yet. He didn’t want a child either. He preferred it this way. They had moved away from their Hatibagan house, leaving behind his Ma, Baba and two sisters for this very reason. For this relaxation—for a space that was entirely their own.

But this issue had soiled their peaceful life. Bonna said, “You have developed a phobia.” Tridib didn’t agree wholeheartedly. It wasn’t a phobia but a real perturbance. He even called Samaddar one day.

“Lizard?”, exclaimed Samaddar in surprise, “But those are there in all apartments!”

“No, the problem is not just with the lizard. This flat is located in this godforsaken place, there’s even a small village and wilderness out back. There are dirty bogs all around. How long till insects and snakes make their way inside?”

“This isn’t a problem. There are many other families in the building. I am sending a pest-control team soon. They will clean up the area. Don’t worry. Snakes and such are scared of humans. They won’t harm you if they are left alone.”

“Wow! What rubbish are you saying?”, Tridib raised his voice angrily inside his workplace. “Then I should stay with them, is that your advice? I shouldn’t disturb them at all, is that what you’re saying?”

“Sir, I belong to the mofussil as well. I have grown up with these creatures in the vicinity. That’s why I can say with certainty that they’re harmless. Why are you getting so agitated? I will send some people to clean up. Till then, please try to adjust. Will getting angry solve anything? The other flats have lizards too. No one else has a problem!”

Tridib cut the call midway and gnashed his teeth. “Adjust, he says! Bloody fucker!”

He was irritated the entire day. He postponed his client presentation because of his disturbed mental state. Once home, he had a malicious argument with Bonna for some petty reason. At one point, Bonna helplessly blurted out, “Tridib, you are showing signs of mental illness. Either go to a doctor, or give me a break from your tantrums.”

“To hell with your doctor!”, Tridib banged the tea cup on the glass table. Some of the tea spilled out. “When arguing a specific point, it is insulting to say that the person on the other side has a mental problem. Haven’t you learnt even this much in school or college?”

“No, I haven’t.” said Bonna, her voice rising. “Both of us know the reason for your temper these days. You are making a mountain out of a molehill. Getting so flustered over something so small is never good. So what if there’s a lizard here? Have you just landed from abroad, from America, that you can’t stand the sight of a lizard? And if this fear is making you so uneasy, I have been telling you repeatedly, you should seek counselling! I live here too. Do you see me having a problem?”

“Well, you don’t have a problem Bonna, because you have blindfolds on your eyes. I am almost penniless after purchasing this flat. I pay a hefty EMI every month. This small shelter of ours is the realization of a dream and in this precious space, I don’t like seeing that horrifying sight wandering around me all the time. Perhaps you don’t see it. Had you seen it, you would definitely have tried to be rid of it.”

Bonna met his gaze squarely. “You have tried. Did you succeed?”

Tridib was silent. No, he hadn’t. He had hung egg shells all over the place. He had stuffed raw garlic between the window gaps, even sprayed kerosene in nooks and crannies. He still couldn’t prevent the lizard from stepping inside. It had conveniently made its home here. And, as if that wasn’t enough, another lizard had been peeping inside from the balcony quite frequently of late. But it wasn’t as large as the first one. He realized they would come in hordes now. The other day in the bathroom, when he was about to use the commode, he jumped out of his skin. The reptile crawled from behind the commode and made its way to the ventilator, where it came to a stop. Tridib had found it difficult to breathe. Since that day, he exercised more caution in the bathroom. On entering, he looked up, checked the ceiling, and clapped his hands. He turned the mug upside down very carefully to inspect if any lizards lay hidden inside. While shaving, he suddenly turned around to check for the creature. The bathroom remained mostly unoccupied, yet he sensed that the lizard was hidden in some niche, singularly staring at him.

These days, he couldn’t even imagine sleeping without a mosquito net. The creature might leap onto his body anytime in the dark room. He could be sleeping with his mouth wide open! What if the lizard fell directly into his mouth? He would wake up with a start and grit his teeth and that would crush the soft, moist, black body of the lizard. White fluid and stale blood would intermingle inside his mouth—Tridib was jolted awake that instant. He took deep breaths. He felt intensely suffocated. He cowered inside lest his feet touched the mosquito net. The lizard might be waiting anywhere, for all he knew! He didn’t want his feet to touch the net and sense dark, coarse, scaly reptilian skin.

Tridib became more and more paranoid with each passing day. During mealtimes, he would carefully inspect the ceiling so that the lizard wouldn’t jump into his bowl of dal. He would walk softly from one room to another, terrified, lest it fall on his head. And their numbers increased each day. They stared from the vents, roamed the walls of the kitchen, hid behind the small shrine, and when chased, scampered away and hid, only to emerge again when no one was looking. Tridib felt helpless against this kind of guerilla attack.

“Are you planning to spend your whole life like this? Like a thief in your own house?”

“Own house? Do you think we are in our own space? Listen to them, there are so many of them here now. Can’t even get rid of them and they vex me all the time. The house is getting dirty. They will breed in hordes, I’m telling you. The snakes are next. If you notice carefully, there are plenty of insects here as well. There’s no space for us. Tell me, how can one live this way?”

Bonna took his hands in hers. “Insects are always more in number during Kali Puja, isn’t it? Haven’t you noticed before? And having a lizard around is actually helpful. They’ll eat the insects.”

Tridib restlessly clawed at his hair with both his hands. No one understood how intolerable life had become recently. They had to keep the windows shut all the time, otherwise innumerable bugs entered the rooms. There were many lizards inside the flat. Neither did he know when another would be born, nor when one would attack. How could he survive in such a primitive space?

Tridib started skipping office. It was a natural outcome of his unslept nights. His health deteriorated. He suffered from a bad bout of an upset stomach, accompanied by terrible headaches and vomiting. Bonna took leave for two days and stayed home. She took him to a doctor and explained everything. But the doctor appeared nonchalant. He said, “Have O2 tablets for five days. And why don’t the two of you take a vacation? These thoughts will leave your head, you’ll see.”

It had been almost a month. Samaddar hadn’t sent his pest control personnel yet. He wasn’t answering calls either. Bonna fed Tridib a thin tilapia fish curry with rice. Then she sat beside him, and stroking his head, said, “Listen, if staying here is this difficult for you, why don’t we stay at Hatibagan for a few days?

Tridib groaned. “No, Bonna. This is our house. I won’t leave this place simply in fear of an outsider.”

“But what will you do? It’s you who is scared! They’re not like us. They’re different. They don’t leave even after being chased; you’ve seen that! This place originally belongs to them, doesn’t it?”

“We’ll see.”

Bonna rested her head on Tridib’s shoulder. “Please don’t be scared. This will pass. Get back to your normal self. I don’t like seeing you this way.”

Tridib didn’t join office even after his recovery. Bonna agreed that he should rest for a few days. She cooked, put the mosquito net in place and left for office, instructing him to open the door for the maid. Sitting inside the mosquito net, Tridib opened his laptop. He had been studying a specific page for a few days.

It would be Sunday in a couple of days. Bonna was supposed to meet her parents. But Tridib said that he didn’t feel up to it. He asked her to go alone.

“Sure? You’ll be able to manage all by yourself?”

“What do you mean? I was alone at home the last two days when you were at office. I didn’t have a problem then!”

“I don’t feel like leaving you on a holiday”, said Bonna amorously.

Tridib held her hands in his. “I’m getting better, Bonna. Don’t you see I’m not falling sick anymore? If I want to stay alone today, let me be!”

“You won’t be scared?”

“I wasn’t scared the last two days. Besides, you haven’t been to Park Circus for quite some time. Your parents must be expecting you. You should go.”

Bonna was not entirely convinced. Kissing her forehead, Tridib said, “Am I a child, Bonna? It’ll do me good to be by myself for a while.”

Once the house was empty, Tridib went outside after some time. Taking an auto, he reached Thakurpukur market from where he took a cab to Behala. He had learnt of a store on the internet. On his way back, he purchased cake, chocolates and nakuldana. Once home, he moved back inside the mosquito net.

Evening set in. Desolation slowly swallowed the environs. Rows of neem, pomelo and pakur trees spread their tentacular branches against the inky skies. Beetles droned louder with time. A thin shroud of mist hung loosely over the field to the back. The tall chimney of the plastic factory, tearing through this misty veil, looked unnatural in this setting. The strains of a bhajan floated in from the ground floor room of the Bihari caretaker. In the flat next door, the television channel changed suddenly to Star Jalsha. In the half-lit tea stall on the Bakrahat Road out front, a small group, bundled in shawls, would soon huddle for their evening adda.

Tridib stepped outside the mosquito net. He switched on the lights in the entire flat. Fetching scissors, he cut the cellophane paper kept in a packet on the table. He kept cellotape handy. And then, coming to the bedroom, he opened all the windows. Within minutes, bugs swarmed inside. Tridib scattered cake and chocolate crumbs as well as bits of sugary nakuldana on the floor. Drawing a chair, he sat quietly in a corner of the room. Nothing happened for quite some time. Insects roamed freely inside the room. Tridib glanced at the watch. It was almost seven-thirty.

At first, the large, black wild lizard entered the room from the bathroom. It looked here and there and stood still. And then with lightning speed, it slid past the wall to the top of the almirah where a host of insects frolicked.

The insects took flight instantly. The lizard swallowed the one that couldn’t escape and went still again.

Gradually, other lizards entered the scene, from the living room, the window, the ventilator, from the back of the bedside table. A few of them made for the insects, while the others moved to the sugary spread on the floor. Tridib had read on the internet that anything sweet attracted lizards.

Giving them almost two hours to settle in, Tridib slowly got up from his chair. There were lizards everywhere in the room. He carefully tiptoed his way to the window. A few lizards scurried away at the sound of his feet and hid, while others observed his movements from a distance. Tridib shut the windows. Then, putting the chair on the bed, he climbed and reached out to the only ventilator in the room, covered it with cellophane paper, and secured it with cello tape. After that, he stepped off the chair and stood quietly again in a corner of the room.

Perceiving no immediate danger, the lizards ventured out again and without a care, pounced on the food on the floor. Tridib padded softly to the living room. He wore the mask purchased from Behala market and fished out the spray bottle bought from the same place. It contained a poisonous gas usually used as an insecticide. But the bottle cautioned against overuse, clearly stating that using more than the advised dosage would ruin the soil. He had read on the internet that all countries of the first world had stopped using this product because not only did it kill insects and snakes, but it also endangered the ecology and that regular usage rendered the soil arid. It could even cause cancer, mixing with the crops grown in such soil. However, the product was still quite in demand in third world countries. The internet had even directed him where to source the product in Behala market.

Armed with the spray bottle, a masked Tridib stepped inside the room and shut the door. The lizards came in droves. How could he not have known there were so many of them? Where did the lot of them stay? The floor teemed with lizards, the walls had quite a few as well, even the ceiling! He gingerly went to the bathroom and locked the door.

The lizards were too busy to notice what he was up to. They had no fear anymore. Tridib came and stood by the door. Then, filling his lungs with a deep breath, he started spraying aggressively. He kept at it. For long. Without looking anywhere else. He didn’t even look at how the victims of the gas reacted to his attack. He kept at it like one possessed. The fumes turned the room dark. Did one of them leap onto his feet? Tridib kicked it away. It could go anywhere it wanted. He didn’t care what happened anymore.

The gas in the spray bottle finally ran out with a hiss after some time. He couldn’t make out anything. Everything was blurry. Tridib stepped outside and locked the room.

It was a quarter to ten. Quiet all around. Sitting in the living room, Tridib smoked four cigarettes. He felt light-headed, numb, as if he had lost all sensation.

When it was almost eleven, Tridib wore the mask again. He treaded lightly to the bedroom door and opened it, as well as the door to the balcony and windows, to let the gas escape.

The smog inside lifted after sometime. Little by little, Tridib saw clearly. He saw corpses of lizards and insects, lying en masse on the floor and bed. Two carcasses lay splat on the glass window, blood and guts spilling out. It seemed like they wanted to break open the glass in a desperate attempt at survival. Their bodies lay in pieces from the torture of trying to escape. Tridib gave up counting after the twenty-seventh dead body. He had never known that so many terrifying lizards dwelled in the same place as him, surrounding him, noiselessly in wait.

The calling bell sounded in that moment. Bonna was back.

The bell rang and rang. But Tridib couldn’t move. His eyes were glued to the corpses.