Epilogue
Three and a half years later
‘It’s easily one of the best schools I have seen,’ I said.
‘It was not like this seven years ago,’ Madhav said.
I finished the tour of the Dumraon Royal School. Madhav had
invited me as the chief guest for their annual day function.
I passed a music class, from where high-pitched notes could be
heard. Madhav knocked on the door.
‘Riya, Chetan sir,’ Madhav whispered.
‘Please don’t call me sir,’ I said.
‘Sorry,’ Madhav said.
Riya stepped out. Madhav had not lied about her looks. She had
classic features and an elegant demeanour.
‘Chetan sir, finally. Madhav has talked so much about you,’ Riya
said.
‘No sir. And, trust me, Madhav has told me a lot about you too.’
She laughed. Madhav told her to finish the class and meet us
outside.
‘It’s lovely here,’ I said. We walked out of the main building into
the school garden. Students had decorated the new basketball court
with flowers. A function to inaugurate the court was scheduled for
later in the evening.
‘We wanted to call you earlier, but thought it better to invite you
here when we had a basketball court,’ Madhav said.
‘The court is beautiful.’
‘All the equipment is from the US,’ Madhav said. ‘Riya and I spend
three months there every year. She does a few music gigs. I help out at
the UN and also do some marketing of my rural tours.’
Madhav explained how they had started rural school tours, which
included a stay in the haveli. People came from all over the world,
allowing the school to earn revenue in dollars.