In the 1990s, when women were often treated as objects for men's desires, Adhiraj Mansingh, the 30-year-old Thakur and sarpanch of Tarapur, stood apart. Strict, cold, and calculating, he commanded respect with his power, sharp leadership, and imposing presence. Tall, handsome, and muscular with a thin beard, he was unmarried despite his past with women, never having found someone worthy of settling down with.
One summer Sunday evening, as Adhiraj lounged on his haveli's veranda, a group of men dragged in a breathtakingly beautiful young woman of about 20. Clad only in a simple white silk saree, her tear-filled eyes betrayed her pain. Throwing her before him, a man demanded she be punished for refusing intimacy before marriage, claiming she had disrespected her future husband. For the first time in years, Adhiraj was momentarily unsettled by someone's beauty.
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The Thakur of Tarapur Comments