When Lightning Struck!

Soumya recounts a real-life incident of about a beautiful girl that stunned an entire city. He draws parallels in reel and real life. An exclusive for Different Truths.

I saw this new film on Netflix called Chaman Bahar. This was from the point of view of a young panwala from a small town in the Hindi heartland. It is about the impact on the town and especially on the young men when a pretty city girl comes to live there as her dad, a government officer is posted to the town.

I saw this new film on Netflix called Chaman Bahar…. It is about the impact on the town and especially on the young men when a pretty city girl comes to live there as her dad, a government officer is posted to the town.

She drives a two-wheeler, wears modern clothes, speaks English, is occasionally seen in shorts, walks her dog, and ignores all the local youth. Her presence causes an upheaval in the quiet town.

Finally, tired of the constant attention, she complains of harassment when she receives unsolicited Valentine’s cards and the local police disciplines and humiliates the young men smitten by her, while she and her family move on to another town where her father is transferred.

This story reminded me of a similar real-life episode that starred my cousin more than half a century ago, in a small town in Bengal called Malda.

This story reminded me of a similar real-life episode that starred my cousin more than half a century ago, in a small town in Bengal called Malda.

I came to know about this quite strangely during my student days at Delhi University. A professor mentioned that he was from Malda in my home state and I mentioned that I had heard about it from my cousin who had lived there when my uncle was posted there long ago.

On hearing my uncle’s name he exclaimed, “Oh your cousin is Anuradha Chatterjee! She’s a legend in Malda. She shook up the sleepy town and is still remembered and talked about. I was a little boy then but remember the upheaval she had caused.”

Intrigued, I wanted to hear more.

My cousin was a strikingly good looking lady, who was then a glamorous society diva ruling over the Calcutta smart set as the wife of a dashing police officer and is a great company but in Malda, she was just a school kid.

My cousin was a strikingly good looking lady, who was then a glamorous society diva ruling over the Calcutta smart set as the wife of a dashing police officer and is a great company but in Malda, she was just a school kid.

This was the story.

Just as in the film, my uncle the executive engineer for irrigation had just moved to Malda. Accompany him was his family, which included his very pretty daughter. Moreover, she was a sophisticated city girl from the modern metropolis of Calcutta. Unlike the other girls of the town, she did not wear a sari but dressed in skirts and salwars. She could speak English and rode a bicycle

This created a sensation. The other kids were in total awe of her. Her grandfather had been a civil servant of the British Raj Raibahadur Chatterjee from a prominent Bengal family, who long ago was the district collector and magistrate of Malda. Now her dad was the district engineer. She lived in a government bungalow with guards in the gate and came to school in a car.

Just as in the film she had said, “May I come in” when entering her classroom impressing both the teacher and the students.

She played badminton in the club and a young South Indian Civil Servant posted there was her regular partner and was much smitten by her but she was completely aloof.

Anuradha’s English was limited to may I come in and good morning, thank you please, kind of phrases.

When checking back with my cousin about those days she confessed that she was keeping away because this young man only spoke English and having studied in various government schools, where her father was posted. Anuradha’s English was limited to may I come in and good morning, thank you please, kind of phrases.

But the town was unaware and bets would be placed on who would woo this princess just as it happens in the film I saw yesterday.

She also was gathering a bit of notoriety. She would go with her friends to the town sweet and snack shops in the government car and treat her friends asking the owners to send her dad the bill. The poor shopkeepers didn’t dare refuse or go past the guarded gates to present the bill. Till one day the driver squealed and this game was prohibited.

She went cycling followed at a discreet distance by the young men of the town, none of whom could get up the nerve to approach her. Again, just as in the film, except that it was biking nowadays.

She went cycling followed at a discreet distance by the young men of the town, none of whom could get up the nerve to approach her. Again, just as in the film, except that it was biking nowadays.

She knew swimming and was reputed to have swum in a swimsuit in her Calcutta club pool and here too she went swimming in the river though fully covered in salwar suits watched by half the town hidden in the banks.

Then came the first bombshell.

Being a good athlete, Anuradha was representing her school in the district sports. When the field events came up the audience gasped in disbelief. She was sprinting in shorts!

Being a good athlete, Anuradha was representing her school in the district sports. When the field events came up the audience gasped in disbelief. She was sprinting in shorts!

Remember that this was the sixties small town in Bengal. This was completely unheard of and shocked everyone including the authorities. Sixty years later as shown in the film this is still a bold and controversial issue in the hinterland. Then it must have been a revolutionary move.

Anuradha was adamant that she couldn’t run in long pants and as she had just broken the district record and qualified to represent her state in the nationals in sprint they had to give in. It is said that as the news spread the spectators for this otherwise tame event broke all records and received top coverage in the local papers.

Anuradha was adamant that she couldn’t run in long pants and as she had just broken the district record and qualified to represent her state in the nationals in sprint they had to give in. It is said that as the news spread the spectators for this otherwise tame event broke all records and received top coverage in the local papers.

Now the consequences kicked in. The entire flower of young manhood in the district was struck by lightning. Anuradha was inundated with love letters, poems and outpourings of young hearts in terrible grammar and writing, not to speak of the spelling and sentiments.

But the young lady was made of sterling stuff. She dropped her second bombshell. Instead of hiding, feeling harassed she marched into the room of the principal of the boys’ school and then repeated the process in the government college. There she displayed the volumes of creativity and demanded action. The embarrassed principals conferred and collected all the young aspiring scholars in the parade grounds where they were made to publicly apologise and did the penance of doing sit-ups holding their ears.

But the young lady was made of sterling stuff. She dropped her second bombshell. Instead of hiding, feeling harassed she marched into the room of the principal of the boys’ school and then repeated the process in the government college. There she displayed the volumes of creativity and demanded action.

The morale of the ardent youth of the town was completely destroyed. She lost her legions of anonymous admirers.

This happens in the film as well but there the father makes a police complaint to punish the stalkers. But unlike the movie, there was no political uproar after the incident. And like the film, my uncle was transferred back to Kolkata and left with his family. She left leaving so many broken hearts in the town and a durable legend.

She was known as a girl who ran in shorts and made the whole school do situps. The legend survived two decades at least till the eighties when I heard about it.

My cousin today is a glamorous grandma, still active socially and keeps herself healthy with a rigorous physical fitness regime. Her two exceptional daughters have made a mark for themselves. But she remains the trendsetting woman of substance in the Chatterjee family.

Photo from the Internet