KOZHIKODE: A seemingly ordinary day unfolded into an extraordinary tale, one that would surpass even the best films, at Trikkalangode near Malappuram’s Manjeri recently.
Three years after a crow flew away with her gold bangle weighing 1.5 sovereigns, Rukmini, a native of Vediyamkunnu, got the ornament back, in an incident that has left both the family and people astounded.
Rukmini had taken off the bangle while working in her yard when a crow swooped down and flew away with it. Extensive searches failed to yield results. As the days passed, she moved on; she had to. However, Rukmini never fully got over the grief of losing her precious ornament.
The turning point came recently, in the form of an advertisement that appeared at the Trikkalangode Public Library seeking the owner of a lost gold item. The notice was placed by Anwar Sadath Cherupalakkal, a resident who had found an ornament under a mango tree three months ago and entrusted it with the library authorities for safekeeping.
No sooner did she hear the news than Rukmini rushed to the library with her husband Suresh on Monday. That was when the incredible story of the bangle’s recovery unfolded. It was found inside a crow’s nest that fell off a mango tree near Rukmini’s home.
Fathima Huda, Anwar’s daughter, made the discovery while helping her father gather mangoes. As they sifted through the remains of the fallen nest, Fathima spotted a gleaming metal object. Curious, she tried to identify it, but the fragile ornament broke into pieces in the process. Anwar then handed the fragments over to the library.
Rukmini said she had taken off the gold bangle and placed it beside her just for a moment. “I just took it off for a second and placed it right next to me,” recalled Rukmini, still surprised by the turn of events.
“Suddenly, a crow swooped down out of nowhere and flew off with it. Before I could even process what had occurred, it had flown away. I chased after it, but the bird was long gone,” she said. For days, the family meticulously searched the surrounding areas, but the bangle had disappeared, seemingly forever.
As soon as they saw the gold on Monday, Rukmini and Suresh recognised it as the one they had purchased from Perinthalmanna years ago. Their wish was to receive the pieces directly from Anwar, a coconut tree climber. So, in the presence of library officials, Anwar handed over the broken but cherished bangle to a tearful and overjoyed Rukmini.
Her reunion with her long-lost bangle, albeit in pieces, has become the talk of Trikkalangode. “It’s unbelievable,” Rukmini exclaimed, clutching the reassembled pieces of her bangle. “I never thought I’d see it again. It’s like something out of a movie.”
However, reality, as they say, is really stranger than fiction.