What a beautiful sunny day! But it's also unpredictable when the rain starts. During the rainy season, it's a problem no one can say when it's sunny and when it rains. Though it rains how can someone be deprived himself to feel the amazing scenery? Now I am standing in front of one of the Seven Wonders of the World. My life's biggest achievement is to explore one of the lucrative architecture and artistic monuments. Talking about the world's biggest symbol of love, "TAJMAHAL". The Taj Mahal is a 17th Century riverfront mausoleum in Agra City which was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his Queen Mumtaz. To build the Taj Mahal almost 20,000 laborers worked for long 22 years. Taj Mahal is one of India's biggest tourist attractions. But I have come here to write an article on the Taj Mahal as a journalist.
Actually, I am a Freelance journalist, not a full-time Journalist. I am working as a Sales Manager at an office. The salary I get from here is inadequate, so I have to take loans to survive the rest of the month. So for extra income, I do this Journalist work at a monthly newspaper part-time. Though I don't get it regularly. The Editor delivers me the projects which other journalists don't want to do, or have secrecy to maintain. The information for this article needs to be collected secretly, that's why it's given to me. Because my Article's main topic is not the Taj Mahal, but Locked Rooms. What I have heard is that to disclose the mystery of the locked rooms any third party has offered a big amount to the editor. I don't know the third party, but I know that for this work I will also get a handsome amount for sure.
For this, I have to hide anywhere inside the Taj Mahal. Then when all the tourists are vacant I have to roam around and must find what is there in the locked rooms. Because it's banned from opening the doors. If anyone finds me doing this I have to go to jail for sure. For that, I have to spend an adventurous night here all alone. Goosebump starts when I feel this. No, not in fear. Heard that after closing time guards also leave the main door closed. I have to spend the whole night in this largest mausoleum of over 350 years old. But I get strange guts when I remember the offered amount by the editor.
I was so hypnotized by the beauty of the place that found it was almost 6 pm at my watch. The closing time is 6:30 pm. So I was searching for a suitable place to hide there. At last, I hide behind a wide pillar in the corner of the roof. When it is 6 p.m. The announcement came for the tourists to leave. Everyone was leaving group by group. Then the Guards were checking if there is anyone left and a guard also came on the roof also. But he never thought of there was someone hiding behind the pillar of the last corner. So he just came half of the way and then left. When Guards left the door, closed it was 7:30 p.m.
I was lucky as the guard did not lock the door of the roof. Without wasting more time started working. Destination underground, because many of the locked rooms are located in the underground chambers of the mausoleum. These rooms were part of a "Tahkhana" or an underground chamber for the hot summer months. There are a series of such vaulted rooms set on the waterfront. 15 rooms are arranged in a line along the riverfront and reached by a narrow corridor. The corridor opens into a large space. The corridor is beautifully painted. It is clearly the Emperor's passage. Shah Jahan would often arrive at the Taj Mahal by boat on the Yamuna river, land on a wide flight of stairs or ghats as they are known in India, and enter the mausoleum. When I reached the underground Darkness was just embedded. But I was ready to face that kind of environment. I had a high-voltage torch, water, and dry food with me in my bag. I could clearly observe my surroundings with the torch. At night it was not difficult to explore the Taj Mahal with open these doors but they got corroded. I have the master key for the locks which the editor prepared after taking the proper info. There were more than 20 locked doors. I tried many attempts but could not open a single door. What can I do now? Will my all plans be failed after coming so close?
In the corridor that ends at the large space, I was sitting there with an upset mind and eating the food I took with me and watching the dark water of the Yamuna river. Darkness was everywhere because the sky got cloudy. Maybe a storm will come. There was only the Bug crawling sound no other sound was there. Suddenly the storm started. Thunders were falling on with terrible sounds. Cold stormy winds made my eyes heavy. I can't say how long I slept when I woke up and the storm stopped. I did not understand exactly why I woke up. Just remembered that I woke up because of a sound. But now no thunders are falling as the storm stopped. So by which sound I woke up? That, that sound, what is the sound of? I found it at 12 a.m. on my watch. I started walking following the source of the sound. Oh, God! I can not believe it. The sound I got was the sound of pushing the door. And the sound of the door was one of the locked doors. Who is pushing the door from inside? But that is impossible. Because the door has been closed for years. After trying a thousand times, I could not open this door from outside. Then who is there inside the door? This cannot be a human. One by one all the doors started knocking. The door is slammed with fury as if a long-held prisoner is seeking release. They broke down the door, trying to get out. The terrible sounds of the door pushing made my ears block. It seemed like the doors would break down. I was running here and there getting confused about what to act. Running a while got collapsed with something in the yard. The seventh moon has risen in the sky, and in the light of that moon, I saw that the thing I had bumped into was a black figure like a human being. I was going to scream in fear, at that time the figure started to talk.
"Why are you frightening? I am human, not a ghost. Who are you? And what are you doing here at this midnight?"
Got faith in the man's word. I gave my false identity. If I told him the truth, I might go to jail. I said, Guards locked me mistakenly after the closing time. I was so intrigued by the Taj Mahal that I did not notice it at all. I got his name was Bahadur Singh and he was only one as Night Guard. All night long he sat alone in the front door and patrolled the yard one and a half times. But don't go into the monument of Taj.
"It seemed you ran because of fear. Have you seen something''?
I did not find it wise to tell the man what I have seen. "Oh no. I came running after seeing you. Why be afraid? Is there any reason to be afraid here"?
"That said, I guard outside but never get inside. When I got a job as a night guard, I made it a condition that I should never do DUTY at night."
"But why? That is what I want to know. " I asked the guy if there was any ghostly notoriety in the place to make sure that my experience a while ago was real or that the whole tie was the imagination of my fertile brain.
The man abruptly answered, "No, in fact, people talk a lot".
"Ok Bhadur sing, ignore what people say, tell me have you seen anything here haunted or paranormal? I mean as you are working for a long here, have you ever experienced any haunted incident"? I asked him.
"No, I never feared of. If I got fear how could I do my duty here"? A strange smile spread on his face.
"If I ask you a question, will you answer me correctly?"
"If I know, I will tell you. Ask what you want to know."
"The rooms underground are opened every few years during the maintenance time. Do you know what is there in the rooms? Have you seen ever?"
"Yes, I see what is there inside."
All this time my mind was filled with joy. Although I could not solve the mystery of the closed-door myself, what Bahadur Singh knows is also very important information. I will sell that information to the editor. Of course, some evidence will be needed with the information. Let's see what Bahadur says first. I thought to myself.
"Start telling what you have seen. And yes, you must have proof to justify what you say. Don't tell me anything lie or fairy, it will not work."
What is he saying? The locked doors that I tried to open after so many attempts but failed and Bahadur Singh will open them? But How? Maybe there is any small hiding space or hole from where it can be seen what is there inside. Thinking this I agreed. "Absolutely I will trust upon you."
"Then come with me", Saying this Bahadur Singh started walking fast leaving me behind. At last, he reached before the locked doors, walking a while. "If you see", As soon as he said this, all the doors opened in unison. All the lights were on in the room. And what I saw in that light I could not believe my eyes. Thousands of people have been made to stand with manure. Their appearance shows that they are coolies - laborers or working-class people. Hundreds of soldiers dressed like men came and started cutting off the hands of the workers. The air around became heavy with the shouts and cries of the people. Some tried to run away, but they were also surrounded. The floors of the rooms were covered with blood. Many died instantly due to excessive bleeding. Survivors were locked in those rooms with their hands cut off and the doors locked. They kept knocking on the door to survive. Once there was no sound from the side of the door, it was understood that everyone was dead. Then he opened the door, dragged the bodies out, and threw them into the river. I stood like a rock where I stood and watched everything. I did not utter a word. I even forgot to turn my head to see what Bahadur Singh is doing behind me. I was understanding that I was witnessing a historical incident hundreds of years old. I was spine chilled when I heard the laughing of Bahadur Sing. Looking back, I see where my acquaintance Bahadur is, instead there is a blackened old skeleton of many years. Which is covered with a layer of dark green algae. The skeleton gritted its teeth and said, "What? You saw, how we threw into the water. The bodies were not given to the family. They knew we were missing. They thought we would return one day or the other. Our mothers, fathers, wives, and children also died one day and some even committed suicide. Even our hard-earned money was not given to our family. You just saw it, you didn't understand the pain. Now come inside this house, you will understand our pain."
Hearing this I was shaking in fear. "What I have done? I did not do anything wrong to you?"
"Obviously you did. Everyone praises Emperor Sha Jahan, and Queen Mumtaz when seeing the beauty of Tajmahal, but no one remembers and admires the sacrifice of the laborers who worked for the monument. But they are the actual moderators and creators of this."
Hearing this, I realized that Bahadur's anger was not in vain. "Forgive me" I applauded him. But my application may be not noticed and granted by him. Because he jumped over me to catch. And I just moved away and started running without wasting any time. I have to escape out from here in any way. But the main door was closed, so how can I escape from the skeleton? I heard the sound of the feet of Bahadur, he was coming behind me to catch. This enclosure is surrounded on three sides, and on one side by the river Yamuna. I started running towards the river thinking it was my only way to survive. When I reached the river bank, I saw that the skeleton had also reached there to catch me. Finally, without thinking about anything, I jumped into the river.
Then I could not remember anything. When I opened my eyes, I found myself in the bed of a hospital. A nurse informed me that one week ago in Yamuna ghat near the Tajmahal I was found senseless. Local people admitted me here. Due to shrinking into the river water went into my lungs and last one week I was in a Coma. Hearing the name of Tajmahal everything about that ferocious night came to my mind. After release from the hospital, first of all, I went back to the newspaper office and resigned from my part-time job. Because in future If I am offered million I will definitely not do this kind of jobs. And in another newspaper, I published an article praising the craftsmen and workers of the Taj Mahal.
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