Disclaimer: This is neither a story nor a folklore. This is based on an incident that changed the way I looked at things, something that happened to someone very close to me.
Aman was a very nice guy. He was more like family to us. He was blessed with a very beautiful wife, a good job and a happy life. The kind of life many of us can only dream of.
They lived on the outskirts of Mumbai. I don't remember the exact address. Mumbai is one of the busiest cities in India, people hardly have enough time to stop and take a break. Maybe that's why things like this go unnoticed for years, alienated and ignored. Aman's job required his presence in the office late at night. Every night he had to drive his way back on a highway surrounded by dense forests on both sides with few houses on the way.
27th September 2009
Aman was riding his bike back home, it was around 1 AM, suddenly his cell phone rang.... He stopped his bike, took off his helmet. It was then that he felt the heavy wind's pressure.It was a call from Anisha(his wife). The phone's battery was running on empty. He received the call to tell her, he's on the way and will be there(home) in about an hour, but the phone died before he could even say a word. He got worried, " why would she be calling at this hour of the night", " she's not in some kind of problem! right?" he muttered as he started his bike hurriedly. He was desperately trying to look for a person or telephone booth so that he could call Anisha. After about 20 minutes, he found a public pay-phone booth near a bus stop.
There was a beggar in tattered rags sitting just outside the phone booth. He stopped his bike and entered the booth, he took out his wallet and a 1 rupee coin from it. He tried calling Anisha, later realizing to his disappointment the line was dead i.e. the phone was not working. Just as he hung the receiver back, the phone rang. Surprised by the situation, he thought
Maybe I misjudged it and Anisha might've heard a ring and she called back!
He took the call and before he could've said anything, from the other side of the phone, a strange voice said
"Aman Bansal, Age 27 years. Wife's name Aniiissssha. Date of Birth-22 January 1982 bank balance- 30,48,296 date of marriage 14th February 2007" followed by a creepy laugh.
All Aman could do was cry out...
"Hello! Hello! Hello! Who's this? Hello! Hello!"
But the heinous cackling continued.. Scared by the scenario unfolding in front of him, Aman thrashed the receiver back and turned towards his bike, only to notice the beggar was gone, nowhere to be seen for miles. All that remained were his rags and his begging bowl. Aman was worried about Anisha now. All he could think was Anisha, so he started his bike and drove as fast as he could. After a few miles, he found another Payphone. Aman thought "Let's try calling her one more time". He stopped and called Anisha. She picked it up in just a single ring. He asked
"What happened? Are you okay? Why did you call?"
"Arey! why are you worried so much... I just called to ask when you'll be coming home?" Anisha replied
"I'll be there in a few minutes" Aman replied with a sigh of relaxation.
The heinous cackle resounded his brain everytime he tried to close his eyes. He couldn't get a sound sleep that night. Next day, he asked his fellow colleague about the first payphone on the way back. His friend mocked him telling him that the phone's been dead for years. But, Aman was confident about what transpired that night. Today again, on his way back, he stopped by the first pay-phone and tried calling a number. The phone was dead. Just as he hung up the receiver, the phone rang once again. He picked up the phone, on the other side of the phone, the same heinous cackle continued...
He thrashed the receiver a number of times and yet.. the laugh won't stop. At this point in time, Aman had only two questions in his mind, while he stood there starting his bike. First, How could someone know so much about him? and Why was this happening to him?
While riding his bike, a few miles along the road, suddenly he felt someone or something knocking at his helmet....
knock knock knock
Aman thought that maybe he was delusional and just at that moment....knock knock knocks it happened again. He looked into the rearview mirror of the bike, in which he could vaguely see as if someone was riding beside him on the bike. Scared, he turned to look back to find out that there was no one there. At the exact same moment, a truck passed beside him. He somehow managed to get out of the trauma and rode his way back home. Anisha was fast asleep on the dining table, waiting for Aman to arrive. They had dinner during which Anisha kept asking Aman "How was his day?", but all Aman could think of was what had happened. He decided not to tell Anisha what had happened or what was going on. Just like every day, Aman was in the bed reading a book with just the reading light ON. He heard a sound, something was playing with coins, jingling them, it was coming from the left. Just as he turned left, the jingling started coming from the right, as soon as he turned right, the sound started from his front. He woke up so that Anisha doesn't wake up. Listening closely, the sound was coming from the kitchen. He stood up, walking silently towards the kitchen, as he went closer and closer the sound became clearer. He took a peek inside the kitchen, under the dim light, he saw a shadow standing there. As soon as he turned ON the light of the kitchen, the shadow vanished. As he turned back to turn the light off, he noticed a bowl kept next to the gas stove. He was trying hard to remember, where he had seen that bowl before because it was not theirs. Suddenly, there was a loud shriek from the bedroom. It was Anisha. He was unable to understand what was happening and why!. He ran to the bedroom and saw, Anisha was scared to death and was crying. Her whole body was shaking, Aman somehow held her but she was crying and looking at one corner of the room. After a lot of asking, Anisha calmed down, and told him that She saw someone in that part of the room where she was looking. Aman understood, it was the same person he saw in the kitchen, but how did he reach Aman's bedroom without crossing paths with Aman? He asked Anisha if she saw his face!
"Nothing was clear, the whole room was dark" Anisha replied.
This time Aman turned ON all the lights of the room, at that moment, the whole house went dark with a few sounds of sparks. He took his toolbox and rushed to the meter room. After a few steps, he noticed that he was being followed. He turned instantly to find out, it was Anisha. Scared, she said "I won't stay alone in the room". He took her to the meter room, changing the fuse took about 15 minutes. He started walking back to his room. Anisha also followed gazing at her surroundings, scaredly. As he opened the door to his room, Aman was shocked at what he saw, his breath stopped for an instant!
Anisha was lying on the bed, sleeping as sound as a baby
As he turned back, there was no one following him. The Anisha that was following him had disappeared. This time he decided to tell Anisha everything. He woke her up and started telling her everything that had happened.
He had just finished when Anisha said in a distorted voice
"SO! Give me something, in the name of the almighty" (A phrase commonly used in India by beggars)
"A Coffin does not have pockets to carry the money around.... Hahahahahahaha"
After finishing the sentence, Anisha took the flower vase kept beside the bed and hit Aman so hard, that he fell unconscious. Next day when he woke up, he couldn't find Anisha anywhere. He tried calling her cellphone, but it was kept beside the pillow. He looked for her all day, and finally losing all hope he went to the police station. Filed an FIR and started returning home, hoping that maybe Anisha had returned home. It was the same route, the same road, Everything started coming back to his mind. Driving his bike, he was wondering, where could Anisha go? Suddenly there was knock on his helmet knock knock. This time around he was sure what it was but he didn't look back. It happened again, but Aman ignored it. Now there was a slow murmur in his ear
"Give me something, in the name of the almighty"
"Give me something, Give! Give! Give! Give!"
Distracted by the sounds, he didn't notice the truck coming from the front and crashed into it.
Six Months later, When he was discharged from the hospital, Aman had metal rods in his arms and legs, his vision was distorted and he could only see things close to him. There was always a chance of internal bleeding and he had lost all memory of before the incident. All he could recall was that Anisha was missing and what transpired the two nights of his life. Due to these conditions, he couldn't get a job and all his savings were spent on the hospital bills. Up until a year ago, Aman could be seen sitting in the spot of the beggar, beside the payphone booth, regretting just one thing.
A year before any of this happened, driving late at night, Aman accidentally ran over a beggar, sitting by the side of road and left him to suffer and die.
This incident changed the way I looked at things. I realized Karma, it hits you back, and it hits you hard.
Anisha was never found. Aman is now living a new life after we found him. He still regrets they day and is on a journey to find Anisha. To tell her He's sorry, it was all his fault for which she had to suffer.