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Mr Sridhar was annoyed. Once again, despite his numerous warnings, Dhanvi had brought something expensive to school. She was always doing that, although the teacher had repeatedly told her not to do so. The only child of affluent parents, who showered her with extravagant presents, Dhanvi enjoyed exhibiting those gifts to ardent admirers.
She had a faithful fan following, especially among her juniors. Mistakenly equating grandeur with greatness, they fawned on Dhanvi and followed her around, eager to see her possessions. The latter included foreign chocolates, which Dhanvi shared freely. She would make an elaborate display of generosity, dispensing them during the lunch-break (when people were sure to notice), in the manner of a munificent monarch.
Dhanvi was already the talk of the staffroom, but, this time, she had surpassed herself. The wealthy girl had arrived, flaunting a bejewelled watch with a splendid gold bracelet-strap. Mr Sridhar was astounded. He had rarely seen anything resembling it, and certainly not one owned by a youngster. The teacher was worried that Dhanvi might misplace the watch or that it could disappear. He had frequently urged her to be considerate by not bringing items that might tempt her fellow students (many of whom were not from well-to-do backgrounds) to be dishonest.
Dhanvi, however, relished her role as the object of envy. “I like superior stuff,” she said, adding, “and my folks can afford it. I’m rich.” She said proudly, “That’s why I’m called Dhanvi.”
Mr Sridhar bit back a rude retort, frustrated at his helplessness. Complaints to Dhanvi’s parents had yielded no results; they seemed unable to stop their daughter from showing off at school. The teacher could not confiscate Dhanvi’s pens, paints and pencil boxes since they were all things that Dhanvi needed and used every day. They were also exceptionally unusual, attractive and highly priced. So was the magnificent watch that gleamed on her wrist. Set with sparkling gems, it might have come straight out of Ali Baba’s fabled treasure cave. Dhanvi kept raising her hand to look at it, aware of the covert glances that came her way.
When it was time for PE, Dhanvi, who was good at games, unfastened her watch and put it inside her desk. Usually careful to secure her valuables, she was in a hurry to get to the playing field, and forgot to lock her desk. Returning an hour later, she went straight to her seat. Realising, with mounting anxiety, that she had been remiss, she raised the lid of her desk. To her shock and dismay, her watch was missing.
Dhanvi completely lost control. She began to hurl insults at her classmates, certain that one of them had taken advantage of her negligence and stolen her watch. As Dhanvi alternately pleaded and demanded that it be returned to her immediately, forty-nine boys and girls noisily protested their innocence. So loud was the commotion in the classroom that Mr Sridhar, who had stepped out to speak to a colleague in the corridor, rushed back inside. Grasping the situation immediately, he swiftly restored order.
“Let us hunt for Dhanvi’s watch. Please open your bags for inspection,” he said. As the children quietly obeyed, Mr Sridhar called to the distraught girl, who sat huddled in a corner, apparently on the verge of collapse. “Come here, Dhanvi,” he said. “I want you to do the checking.”
Dhanvi proceeded to conduct a thorough search, turning bags upside down, so that books and stationery tumbled out, and lay strewn across the floor. “Any luck?” enquired Mr Sridhar.
Dhanvi shook her head miserably. “Make them confess, Sir,” she begged. “My parents will be furious. They bought the watch just yesterday, and told me to wait until it was insured before I wore it. I put it on today without their knowledge.”
Mr Sridhar went to his table. Pulling out a drawer, he took out Dhanvi’s watch. He had discovered it in her desk while she was away, and kept it safely with him. Red-faced at the thought of the dreadful accusations she had made, Dhanvi started to sob. Mr Sridhar gently advised her to set things right.
Dhanvi apologised tearfully to her friends who had been shaken by the unpleasant episode. She promised Mr Sridhar and the others that she would be a much better person in future, and never bring anything out of the ordinary to school.