Nagas, he genuinely believed he had fought a righteous war on the right side. Only seeing the
defeated face of the evil king of the Chandravanshis would complete the victory.
Dilipa walked in. Shiva straightened up in surprise. Dilipa was nothing like what he expected.
He had the appearance of an old man, a sight rare in Meluha due to the Somras. Despite his
age, Dilipa had a rakishly handsome bearing. He was of medium height, had dark skin and a
slightly muscular build. His clothes were radically different from the sober Meluhan fare. A
bright pink dhoti, gleaming violet angvastram and a profusion of gold jewellery adorning most
parts of his body, combined to give him the look of a dandy. His face had the crowfeet of a life
lived well. A trimmed salt and pepper beard, accompanied by thick white hair under his
extravagandy coloured crown, completed the effete look while adding an intellectual air.
‘Where’s the Crown Prince Bhagirath?’ asked Daksha.
‘I have asked him to wait outside since he can be a little hotheaded,’ said Dilipa. He looked
only at Daksha, refusing to acknowledge the presence of the others in the room. ‘Don’t you
Meluhans have any custom of offering a seat to your guests?’
‘You are not a guest, Emperor Dilipa,’ said Daksha. ‘You are a prisoner.’
‘Yes. Yes. I know. Can’t you get a joke?’ asked Dilipa superciliously. ‘So what is it that you
people want this time?’
Daksha stared at Dilipa quizzically.
‘You have already stolen the Yamuna waters a hundred years back,’ continued Dilipa. ‘What
else do you want?’
Shiva turned in surprise towards Daksha.
‘We did not steal the Yamuna waters,’ yelled Daksha angrily.
‘They were ours and we took them back!’
‘Yes whatever,’ dismissed Dilipa with a wave of his hand.
‘What are your demands this time?’
Shiva was astonished at how the conversation was going. They had just defeated this evil
man. He should be repentant. But here he was, being condescending and self-righteous.
Daksha looked at Dilipa with wide eyes and a kindly smile. ‘I don’t want to take anything.
Instead, I want to give you something.’
Dilipa raised his eyebrows warily. ‘Give us something?’
‘Yes, I intend to give you the benefit of our way of life.’
Dilipa continued to stare at Daksha with suspicion.
‘We are going to bring you up to our superior way of life,’ continued Daksha, his eyes
marvelling at his own generosity. ‘We are going to reform you.’
Dilipa said with half a snigger, ‘Reform us?’
‘Yes. My general, Parvateshwar, will run your empire from now on as Viceroy of
Swadweep. You will continue to be the titular head. Parvateshwar will ensure that your corrupt
people are brought in line with the Meluhan way of life. We will live together as brothers now.’
Parvateshwar turned towards Daksha, stunned. He did not expect to be despatched to
Swadweep.
Dilipa appeared to have difficulty in controlling his laughter. ‘You actually think your straight-
laced men can run Swadweep? My people are mercurial. They are not going to listen to your
moralising!’
‘Oh, they will,’ sneered Daksha. ‘They will listen to everything we say. Because you don’t
know where the actual voice comes from.’
singke
(singke)
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