Brother Siring and Yetis

Durga nd Shiva were fighting up in the heaven as a result, it started raining cats and dogs. As a result, Kolkata started flooding. There was water and muddy patches all around, even though rainy season had ended quite a while ago, amid all these my friend suggested that we go on a vacation. It was a good idea but where to? And how should we go? And how much money is going to be spent? Then I don’t know what happened but I woke up and saw our train with people breakfast at New Jalpaiguri Station.

We had to get down; in front of us we saw a Mahindra Marshal car. The car was probably the first to run out of the company. The front fender was a bit broken. The cover of the bonnet was tied with rope. The mattress was torn here and there. The driver was standing there fashionably. We greeted him. His name was Subbada. He was probably fifty-two years old. Seeing that we were hesitating, he asked us to get inside the car. I found out that not all the vehicles go through the route that we had decided. I realised a bit later if it weren’t for that car, we wouldn’t be there. It actually proved to be a very strong car with a robust driver. After hitting way too many bumps, we reached the bank of Rishi River at noon. The car stopped on the road. According to the locals, we would have to walk a mile from here. The car won’t go. We did not have too many luggages with us but it was quite heavy all the same, adding to that we were starving. Subbadar said, “Huh, how come cars won’t go! Let’s see how bad the road is! ” He lowered the car into the river valley. There are big boulders scattered around. There was no such thing as a road. He drove the car through the rocky terrain. He drove the car so well that even James Bond would get ashamed.

Eventually, Subbada had to stop the car at the bank of the river. We could not go any farther. Home-stays were just across the river. Of course, I could not be happier looking at the house from the outside. The houses are just like Sukumar Roy’s ‘old woman’s house’. The river was not very wide and it had a bridge to cross it. There was a rugged bamboo bridge to cross the river. I heard that this river floods the whole area during rainy season. Building permanent bridges was quite possible. I crossed the bridge and entered the house. The home-stay is made up of a few cottages across a large area. The owner’s name was ‘St. Sebastian’. Actually it was me who gave the gentleman the sainthood. He was a very good character. The main thing was that the locals have a lot of respect and love for him. He was not there at that very moment. His daughter looks after the place. Our Luggages were being brought from the entire car. Then, as usual, there was a little fight between us over the possession of rooms of the house. When all that was done, I went to the verandah and saw that our bags were all pressed together on each other. There are two slender legs protruding under the bags. When I approached, I saw that there were not only legs but also two hands and a head with a peculiar smile. His name was Siring. He was a jolly good fellow. He did everything as he was told to. We planned on climbing a lot farther as a result brought way too many clothes. It had all winter clothes. Overall, the total weight was quite heavy. It was difficult for me to bear the weight of all our bags. Mobile was out of charge. We are talking among ourselves. Siring got our mobile charged from a shop which was 2 miles away.

After lunch I was taking a nap, but what is the point in taking naps when you are on a vacation. I woke up and from the window I could see Siring fishing in the river with a very big net. I got up, crossed the bridge and went to Siring. If I fell it would be disaster as it was very slippery and the camera would also be wrecked but I was quite surprised to see Siring balancing just fine. Siring caught some fishes in no time. It was mostly trout. We were going to have them in the evening. While eating and chatting after dinner I also found out that Siring could also tell good stories. He told his stories with very detailed description. Siring said that he saw the mythical creature Yeti. I doubted him and thought that he was joking. I asked him sportingly that had he seen them with his own eye or in his dream. Siring was infuriated and pointed his fingers and said that the Yetis are found in the river very often. Then he talked about a few more things and bid us goodbye. He lived in a nearby village. It was about eleven o’clock and we went to sleep.

As I was lying down on bed, I couldn’t fall asleep. The moonlight was coming through the widow. If closed the window, it was feeling very hot and stuffy inside. I got up and thought it would be better if I went outside and sat by the river. There was forty feet courtyard in front. The time was half past twelve. The soothing sound of water was coming to my ears. I saw my friend already sitting by the river. When I came, he asked me to sit there quietly. The moon in the sky was full. The atmosphere looked very magical in the moonlight. The river water was running like silver sheet. There was silence all around except for the occasional rustling of insects and gurgling of water. Sometimes the call of a nightingale could also be heard. The ambience could not be expressed in words, it was magical. The moon was sometimes getting covered by the clouds. The jungle starts from the other side of the river. The big pine tree looked as if they had been there since prehistoric age. I don’t exactly remember how long we sat there together. It was as if we had lost perception of time. We were not talking to each other. The feelings of calmness and swept us off.

Suddenly I noticed something. I patted on my friend’s back and asked him if he noticed too. My friend was startled. There was a faint shadow behind the big pine tree. The creature looked like a huge man; it was about twenty feet long. We both realised it was a Yeti. The mythical creature was holding on a tree and occasionally shaking. I remember Siring saying that they could be seen properly under moon light if luck favoured. But I could not say for sure that I was feeling lucky or happy. We were rather scared.
I realised that we were in very close proximity with the creature and it woiuld only take three or four jumps for him to get hold of us. Random thoughts were passing through my mind. Maybe he would make a sheek kebab out of us I thought t myself. During my childhood I heard people say that If one ever see ghosts, one must chant God’s name. But no God’s name was coming to my mind as I was very scared. Suddenly I could not see Yeti anymore. I asked my friend where was yeti? He started laughing.
When I looked again, Yeti was back. I realised that it was just an illusion. It was actually another small pine tree was standing in such a way that it looked exactly like a human being under the moonlight. To put it bluntly, we were actually hallucinating. In this magical light the form of ordinary objects changes and becomes extraordinary. The local people can’t be blamed for this. They accept these in simple faith. But we discovered the secret but it ruined the thrill of it all. Then I looked at it many times but I could not see Yeti at all.

The next day we did not meet Siring. He was still angry with us as we refused to believe in Yeti and made fun of him. He gain helped us to load our luggage on the back of the car. I called him to give him some money as a token of appreciation, but he did not pay any heed. The owner of the home stay told us not to give him any money as he spends the money on buying drinks and becomes unproductive. I asked how’s that possible as he really helped us a lot. Then the lady said that as soon as she gets money, he spends all of it on buying drinks for him and his friends. So no money was given to Siring. The sun was scorching. I looked at the trees for one last time and bid them farewell. Farewell Yeti. Farewell Rishikhola.

This was about seven years ago. Since then I have been to the hills many times. The condition of the roads has improved a lot. Home-stay has become much more professional. Their management has been good. I don’t know if Yeti can be seen on a moonlit night again or not. Sebastian came to Kolkata a few days ago. While chatting, I found out that Siring has passed away, the pour soul died of alcohol poisoning.

– Shubhankar Banerjee –