The Whispering Tree of Bengaluru

Book excerpt: On a summer afternoon in 2015, I was driving alone by car along the west coast from Mangalore to Goa. As I revelled at the scenery, I suddenly felt something odd. The next minute, the landscape changed tremendously. A massive wave of emotion took over forcing me to stop. The street was silent. The tree in front of me was ablaze with something I had never seen before. It beckoned. Every leaf, branch, and the trunk lit up with an unimaginable radiance. I was stunned. It was a transformative moment for me. Trees speak. And this Neem tree, growing up along the Margosa Road in the mid-1950s in Malleshwaram, has a story of her own. She develops a special affection for Balu, a child next door. A wonderful relationship develops between them. Till one day, young Balu leaves the city. She misses the little boy. Decades later, she narrates her life, their daily battles for survival, an incredible ‘social web’ that keeps the planet alive. And life in old Bengaluru. What happened to Balu? And to the tree? Did they meet again? What was her life like? What message does she share for humanity? Hear from the whispering tree.