"Isn't that Mrs. Divya Deshmukh, our society chairman's wife?"
"Yes, and there she takes off again! Lately I've seen her going out quite a lot with that young man. I wonder who he is."
The female group of the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society were up to gossip once more. Meera Acharya was standing with these ladies and eyeing Divya enviously. She was a reporter in the local newspaper, and resided in A wing, on the second floor, bang opposite the Deshmukh's apartment. Just for fun, she loved spreading juicy rumours, without giving a second thought to its consequences.
Meera instantly became a drama queen and flaunting the know it all attitude, whispered in a conspiratorial hushed voice,
"That man is Mahesh, he works in Divya's office. Mark my words, I'm damn sure she's having an affair with him."
The other women were no less. Their reactions were equally over the top. All gasped in unison,
"Ah! Oh my God! What are you saying? Is it really true? I pity Mr. Dinesh Deshmukh. How sad!"
People usually believed almost everything that Meera said, simply because she was a reporter, and Meera took full advantage of it. She was getting ample undue importance and was thoroughly using it to her benefit. Mushrooming false buzz was her way of becoming the centre of attraction, which also helped in getting the latest news for her paper. Moreover, that kept her editor happy. So all in all it was a win-win situation for her, at the cost of other's reputation.
Dinesh and Divya Deshmukh; a simple, down to earth couple. They were both selfless and completely focused on their social work. Being a like minded pair, their entire youth went into making their careers. Dinesh and Divya got married in their late thirties and didn't have children. Both husband and wife worked in two different NGOs.
The baseless rumours created by Meera, got carried away by the wind and spread like wildfire, not only in their society, but in the neighbouring buildings as well. Just like Chinese whispers, a fresh piece of assumption was added to the already false story, before it was passed on. People started giving Divya dirty looks and avoided talking to her, whenever she approached them for something.
For a few weeks Divya disregarded the response of the society members and didn't give it much heed. But soon it became unbearable and one evening she poured out her heart in front of her hubby. She sniffed and sobbed in between lamenting,
"I fail to understand! What's gone into the ladies of our society. Each time they see me, they eye me top to bottom and turn away, as if I were untouchable. Dinesh, I can't take it any more, but I don't know what to do!"
Dinesh kept her in his arms and tried to pacify her. "Don't worry. I'll talk to the secretary, maybe he can help."
Next morning, Dinesh was at Mr. Kulkarni's doorstep. They went and sat inside. Dinesh was in no mood to exchange pleasantries and got straight to the point. After hearing his grievances, Mrs Kulkarni blurted out.
"We are all decent people. Who would want to be friends with an unfaithful woman like Divya?"
Dinesh was dumbfounded.
"Bhabhiji! What are you talking about? Divya is the most humble and sincere person I've ever met in my life."
Mrs. Kulkarni went on to explain the root cause of the whole issue. Dinesh was gritting his teeth and his balls of fists had become painful, as he sat there, trying to control his thunderous anger. He was served water and given time to calm down.
Dinesh took the initiative and clarified, giving them the true picture.
"Mahesh's wife recently met with an accident. She is a difficult patient and the couple is not very well off either. Divya and her NGO are helping them with her medical treatment and physiotherapy. That's all!"
Both the chairman and the secretary then came up with a plan to teach a lesson to Meera Acharya. Before she could leave for the press, Dinesh and Mr. Kulkarni were in front of Meera's flat. They entered the house, and marched past her as soon as she opened the door. She was flabbergasted. Nonetheless, prior to she could recover from her shock or react, Meera was briefly told about what she had done. Her features twisted in embarrassment and guilt was written all over her face. She was further notified with plenty of do's and don'ts. Mr. Kulkarni began,
"A general meeting will be called and you will apologize to Mrs. Divya Deshmukh in front of everyone. You will also give a written apology to the committee, which will be preserved for future reference."
He turned to Dinesh and asked,
"Anything else Mr. Chairman?"
Dinesh shook his head and smirked. Looking bitterly at Meera, he remarked,
"How strange! A woman is an enemy of another woman. You are a reporter, and people trust you to unfurl the truth. But see what have you done? It is completely your fault, that today, because of you my wife is humiliated and has earned a bad name in the entire society. Sadly, you are our neighbour also."
Meera lowered her head and murmured remorsefully, "I'm really very sorry Mr. Deshmukh."
After a deep sigh, Dinesh said,
"I'm giving you a chance to clear the air with Divya and me. I want you to write a nice article on our NGOs and publish it in your newspaper, spreading a good word about the noble cause we are striving to achieve."
Meera agreed to everything and broke down in tears. However, she joined her hands and thanked them profusely for not kicking her out of the society.
Shamim Merchant, Mumbai_________________________________
Shades of Simplicity
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