Born Behind Bars

In the morning, Kabir misses everyone in prison and wonders what they’re doing, but he’s glad he doesn’t have to wait for guards to unlock doors or give him permission to go places. Kabir asks why Rani is alone, but she says she’s not alone because she has Jay. She uses a slingshot to kill a crow for breakfast, but Kabir won’t eat that either, so she shows him tamarind and guava trees.

Rani and Kabir wash at the public restroom again. They then go “to work,” which for Rani means telling fortunes on a busy street corner. She sets up some cards and explains to Kabir that other people assume that Roma people have magic powers, which is why people are willing to pay her for fortunes.

A man stops and asks for his fortune. Rani knows he’s a teacher of Hindi and says he’ll be getting money soon but another man will try to take it. The man says this must be his son, who has no job and always asks for money. He asks Rani whether his son will get a job. Rani says that the less money the dad gives the son, the faster the son will get his own job, adding that if he’s nice to those outside his family, that will help. The man then pays her 15 rupees instead of 10 for the fortune. Jay occasionally butts in to repeat things Rani is saying, which seems to add to the customers’ entertainment.

Kabir asks how Rani knew the man was a Hindi teacher; she says it’s because she has seen him before and overheard him speaking. Kabir questions whether Rani’s fortunes are “lying,” but she says it’s storytelling and she’s only giving people advice that will make them feel hopeful. Kabir decides that storytelling is okay because Amma does it too.

Rani tells Kabir to sit under a tree and sing. She promises to watch over him from her spot. He sings for a while, and people toss coins at him; after a while, he’s so excited about the money that he sings about that.

Hearing Kabir sing about his money, a stranger appears and demands that Kabir hand it over. Rani and Jay are hiding. Rani throws a rock at the stranger and Jay tells him to go away, which he does. Kabir says she’s a hero, but she says she’s not because she wasn’t able to save her parents. The Roma people traveled around, and they camped close to a village that was experiencing a drought. The people blamed Rani’s family and tried to kill them. Her dad died, and she and her mom fled to live with her uncle’s family. However, her uncle wanted to marry her off as a child, so she ran away with her mom’s help. Her mom is still back there.

Rani leads Kabir to a food cart that’s run by a man who doesn’t chase low-caste people away. Kabir is overwhelmed by the number of choices and asks Rani to pick something. He says it’s the best thing he has ever eaten. Rani reveals that she can touch Jay in different ways to make him say yes or no.

Kabir wants to save his money to buy a plane so that he can fly to his grandparents or Appa. Rani explains that this would be impossible and that it’s much cheaper to purchase bus tickets than a plane. Even bus tickets are still expensive and they’d have to save for a while, but she’s willing to accompany him on the trip and help him find his family.

To make money, Rani and Jay tell fortunes while Kabir sings. Rani reveals how she met Grandfather and Jay. Grandfather was the first person she met in Chennai; he offered to tell her fortune for free. She said she didn’t care to know her fortune because she already knew her future would be bad. He proved her wrong by essentially adopting her until he died, and Jay stayed with her. Rani doesn’t like being indoors and feels claustrophobic with roofs or walls. This is why she prefers living in a tree.

Kabir doesn’t like Jay’s cage because it reminds him of a prison. Rani says it makes him feel safe, like how some people put bars on their windows to keep people out, not to trap anyone inside. Kabir thinks it’s funny how rich people, who are free, build fancy prisons for themselves. He thinks it’s probably because they’re afraid of poor people coming into their houses. He thinks rich peoples’ fear is also the reason Amma is incarcerated, and that this isn’t fair.

Kabir complains about how long it’s taking to raise enough money for bus tickets to Bengaluru. Rani says to stop complaining and keep singing, so Kabir sings the lullaby about the moon that Amma sang on his last night in prison. Rani points out that the moon never gives up: it gets shrunken down every month but always builds itself back up. Kabir should do the same: Keep trying and never give up.

The water gets cut off at the public restroom that Kabir and Rani have been washing at. They wash at a different pump nearby and then set up to sing and tell fortunes for the day. A rich-looking woman loses an earring, and Kabir grabs it and tries to give it back to her. She ignores him until she notices the earring and then thanks him profusely and apologizes for ignoring him. The woman wants to give the kids something as a reward. At first they say no, but finally Kabir suggests enough money for two bus or train tickets to Bengaluru. The woman seems relieved he didn’t ask for more, and gives them the money like it’s nothing.

Kabir and Rani go to the train station, but the man at the ticket counter says they don’t allow their “kind” on the trains. Another man interrupts and demands that the ticket man sell tickets to the kids. He’s Mr. Subramaniam, a retired police officer, and he threatens to call the current police if Ticket Man won’t comply. The man sells the kids tickets after all. Mr. Subramaniam shows the kids to the train and warns them to be careful about speaking Tamil in Bengaluru because of unusually high tensions over water shortages.

Because Rani doesn’t like being in enclosed spaces, she wants to ride on the train’s roof instead of in the compartment. However, the conductor won’t allow this, so she rides near an open window. A woman chats to the kids and asks Kabir’s name. When he says it, a man sitting nearby asks if he’s Muslim or Hindu. Kabir replies that all religions are legitimate, and God thinks caste is a cruel, human invention. Everyone in the compartment likes this except the man who questioned Kabir’s religion, who still claims he has a “right” to know Kabir’s religion and caste. The man starts arguing with everyone about water but eventually gives up because no one else is on his side. Kabir reflects that adults are even worse at sharing than child bullies in the prison school. The woman next to Kabir, whom he has nicknamed Aunty Silver, promises to watch over him while he rests.