Fiction & Nonfiction

Ananth

character building

Ananth


Ananth stands tall at five feet eight inches. It is his bearing that attracts people, both male and female, like fireflies to fire. He has a strong face with well defined features. Some would say his straight nose with perfect line with the rest of the face is the most attractive of his features. Each feature is beautifully expressive. His black and well formed eyes with the right space between the twain, below a wide fair forehead could work magic especially on ladies. High cheek bones make the face noticeably alive if he smiles or for that matter any expression comes through with transparence. Square of head and firm of jaw Ananth is what he looks, a steady, balanced and a refined person. A strong body, well muscled thanks to the strict yoga regime he keeps, moves with the grace of a panther. His arms are of just the right length with strong big hands. Interestingly, he has just one line for both the heart and mind on his palms. That, according to the palmists, indicates a man with perfectly balanced emotions and thoughts, a round character. With a wide chest and shoulders spanning a hand each, narrow down to a trim middle and slim hips and a tight bottom to which his cords clung without a crease, he makes his presence felt. There is slight bent to his left leg; something he inherited from his mother is hardly noticeable. It has posed no problem to his job on a ship as the Chief Engineer. He has to climb up and down the ladders most of the time for maintenance and running of the engines aboard.

Ananth has always been a sensible and intelligent man. He was just twenty when he passed out of the Marine Engineering College at Calcutta. Though he didn’t much like a sea job, he had to choose it in view of a large family he had to help to live comfortably. The sea jobs always paid well. Later on he quite liked it for the kind of freedom it provided in his job and the chance of going places all over the world. It further helped him nurture a broad outlook on life.
He is a much loved brother and a son. After his father’s sudden death, Ananth took things into his stride with characteristic strength and courage. One thing admirable was that he persuaded his sisters to continue with their college education and supported them through their degree. His perspective is that girls need to have the education necessary to be economically independent. If a situation arises, they shouldn’t be left helpless and dependent on someone.

His life aboard is not an easy one. He never drank or smoked. This posed a problem. Shippies indulged in both generally. Not to drink alienates a guy. Not to hurt and not to get hurt; it was test to his integrity and social sense. Fortunately for him, his colleagues and the captain didn’t pressurize him to indulge in anything he didn’t want. He tackled challenges in his work or juniors with similar cool attitude.

The only fault if fault it was, his anger and frustration at injustice. This landed him in trouble a number time with the captain or the shore people when the supplies were not of good quality or when a job is done half hazard. 

Now that he was doing well in his life, his mother started pressing him to get married and settle down. He tried to delay by getting two of his sisters married first. Then there was no stopping the relatives who had eligible daughters and pressed his mother to persuade him to marry. This was very much the way it happened with Mr.Bingley of Pride and Prejudice.

Two things had deep effect on Ananth.

The first happened when his ship was around the Indonesian sea. Knowing that it was an area frequented by pirates, precautions were taken. The staff took turns at night to guard the decks and the hatches full of engineering tools and machines to be unloaded in Los Angeles.

Around 12 at midnight, Ananth who had a round in the engine room came awake from a deep sleep at the loud noise in the captain’s cabin which was on the same deck as his was. He pulled on the sneakers and threw a flannel shirt on his pajamas and went out to inspect the reasons for the noise. As he neared the captain’s suite he realized the door was ajar and the skipper was tied to a chair with his hands bound. A tall dark guy was trying to price open an iron shelf in which cash and documents were kept. Ananth noticed that the captain, a fat guy whose weakness for drink was well known was panting and perspiring in the chair.

He silently walked the alleyway and slipped to the deck below. The scene looked calm. But he noticed two country boats alongside the cargo ship. Some half a dozen strangers were on the deck. He felt the slowing of the ship but not stopping. Obviously the pirate guys wanted silent loot. He went to the bridge and the second mate who was on duty saw him coming up. They talked and made a plan quickly. There was no tine to panic. The cadet on duty was sent to both engine and deck crew. When the six strong men of the crew came up carrying the things Ananth wanted, he led them to the captain’s cabin and before the intruder could turn his gun on them, they threw the rope ladder they carried on him, successfully befuddling him. They overpowered him within no time and bound him with chains. The rest was easy. The nearest Indonesian port was called on VHF and within an hour, two speed boats full of coast guard were seen approaching. A few of the culprits escaped. But the kingpin was caught. The event made big news.

For Ananth, it was unforgettable and made him realize that unless they had the ability to work as a team, that night would have been a tragic one for all.

The second was his marriage. When the rich family invited him and his family to meet their daughter, Ananth was full of anticipation. When the girl’s parents introduce him to her, he liked her manner of greeting him and her sweet voice. After a while, when she on her parents’ suggestion took him out into the garden, he realized appearances were different from disposition.

“Mr. Ananth, let me come to the point directly. After the marriage are we going to live with your mother and sisters or separately?”
“Of course with them only; we never lived apart. That shouldn’t make a difference really.”

So the argument went on and Sheela simply could not imagine living with his folks. Ananth thanked his stars for letting him off this match. It would have been disastrous.

After couple of such fiascos, he met the girl of his dreams at friend’s wedding and the feelings she aroused were different. It was as if he knew her and that it was natural for them to meet and marry. Renu was the kind of wife who would suit Ananth’s mentality. She was equally fearless and was able to make voyages with him and enjoyed living in a joint family as well.

Such marriages are truly made in Heaven.