Uttara

I

It all starts off on 8 am August 21st 2024, Uttara Iyengar, the famous dancer is officially reported missing. When she hadn’t returned from the venue, nor made any phone calls, her parents panic and called their close friend, Dilip Shah. Private investigator, Dilip Shah arrives at the dancer’s house, where he starts by questioning the family members. He learns that her family last saw her around 2 pm on the 20th August, when she was leaving for her Special performance at the Ranga Shankara auditorium.

Around 2 pm…I need a more specific time frame…

“Can you recall for me the exact time when she left the house?”, asked Dilip. Ashutosh, Uttara’s father thinks critically, trying to recall any speck of information to indicate a more specific time, but is cutoff when their house maid speaks up. “Avaru 2:20pm ge hodru sir.”, she spoke with surety. Dilip thanked her and left after collecting the contact details of all those related to Uttara. He goes to Ranga Shankara, the venue she would have performed at.

He enquires with the staff at Ranga Shankara, and receives the information that Uttara did in fact perform there the previous evening at around 7:30 pm.

Ranga Shankara is only 30 minutes away from her house. Why leave so early?

Dilip, now asks the staff for the CCTV footage, in which we can see Uttara entering the venue only at around 5:45 pm.

Where was Uttara during those three lapsed hours?...

Dilip then goes back to the Iyengar’s place, where now, we see Bimal, Uttara’s boyfriend, has arrived. He seems agitated and goes immediately to Dilip, to enquire on any clues as to where his loved one was.

After a short exchange Dilip asks him where he was on the 20th August from 2:20 to 5:45 pm. Bimal replies with no hesitation that he was at work. Dilip asks whether Uttara had any friends or family she said she would meet that day, before leaving at 2:20 pm, to which Bimal and Ritika, Uttara’s mom, replied with a definitive no. Dilip found it odd. Ritika then recalls that Uttara had planned on meeting someone regarding her upcoming engagement, but also the fact that she didn’t specify who she was set to meet.

She was set to be engaged to Bimal this weekend, on the 24th of August 2024, so maybe she was going to meet an event planner, or it is possible that she met an old friend.

With this thought, Dilip leaves with Uttara’s car number.

II

I woke up from my slumber, feeling more tired than ever. As I trudged to the kitchen to boil some milk for my morning coffee, living alone felt more desolate than usual. I missed my mother’s comforting morning coffee terribly. It was 7 a.m. on August 21st, and I needed to get ready for work.

I gulped down my coffee, had an average homemade dosa, and got dressed. By 8:30 a.m., I was in the car, heading to work. The Bangalore traffic can be a real headache, so to make the drive more bearable, I played some good music on the radio. The tunes made the time fly by, and before I knew it, I arrived at work by 9:30 a.m.

Working as a Forensic Pathologist in this city was not the best choice, I tell myself as I cut open my first body for the day, to survey my field and report on the cause of death and time of death. My air pods blasting music into my ear drown out my surroundings and for now, it is only me and the cadaver. This person who was breathing and alive at some time period, which I should determine, was now giving me company while I listened to the most romantic duet.

Cutting it open, feels almost therapeutic.

As this thought struck me, I immediately came back to my senses, wondering just how that thought even entered my mind. Now, thoroughly uncomfortable under my own skin, I continued to examine the body for other clues of cause for demise.

Strangulation?... The rope marks do suggest that, but this stab wound… that tells a different story… Maybe, he was stabbed to death and then strangled just to make sure he was dead… Anyway, the lab results will tell me exactly what I want to know…

With this, I finished up my examination of one Mr. Shenoy’s body and cleaned up for lunch.

Lunch, was interesting today. Everyone was talking about this missing person, “The famous dancer Uttara Iyengar was reported missing! , Meera? Are you even listening to me?”, spoke Sharvari, while munching on a spoonful of what I assumed was some non-veg biryani. As I quietly ate my aloo paratha, I took in all this information, wondering to myself…

I just saw her yesterday at Levels, we met after so long, my dear friend Uttara. She told me she had a performance that evening at 7:30. With her engagement coming up, her disappearance is a disaster…

After lunch, I resumed my routine, with my second autopsy for the day. This one was quite a simple case, 76-year-old female, reason for death, poisoning. Mercury to be specific. Motive, most probable one being money, some will she had drafted earlier coming to take her life.

Who doesn’t kill their own family members for money these days? People are really losing it, mercury, something so basic and detectable? It’s like they’re asking to be convicted of murder… But then again, who am I to judge… At the least I get to finish work early today and head back to my den of solitude…

I awaited the officials’ arrival who had requested the autopsy results for the murdered Mr. Shenoy. I continued listening to the same duet from that morning as I did so and sipped on one more delicious cup of coffee.

Strangulation after death by blood loss through the stab wound! … Just what I had anticipated…

I knew it was strange, but I derived a certain joy from such trivial discoveries that my job allowed me to make every day, as it was one of the only things that kept me from quitting this darn job.

Inspector Kamal steps in with the case file and I usher him to take a seat in front of me. I present the details of the report and much to his delight, he had all that he needed to convict the criminal of murder. He thanked me and left with a brisk stride of one who has just triumphed in a war.

It was around 7:30 pm when I left work, exhausted now more than ever, I drove myself back home on my Thar. After making myself something simple for dinner, a smoothie and sat to assess some case files that were sent to me late this afternoon.

Uhuh…hmm…alright… Oh no he didn’t!... Kettle?!...

It had slipped completely out of my mind, that I had kept the tea kettle on the stove. It whistled loudly for someone to turn it off.As I ran to turn the stove off, I heard something fall in my room.

Uttara loves to drink tea.

Completely startled, both by the thought and by the sound I walked slowly into my room and turned on the light. Nothing. An empty room…

I should really just retire for the night…

With that thought I finished writing my daily diary entry and went to bed.