Season 1: The Shadow of the Banyan Tree
This story is written entirely in Bengali.
Krishnanagar village in the district of Paschim Medinipur.
During the day, the village looks completely ordinary — green paddy fields, muddy roads, white kash flowers by the pond, boys playing cricket in the afternoon. Evening gatherings at the tea stall. Everything feels normal. Peaceful.
But once night falls, the village seems to change its face.
A strange silence spreads everywhere. The city lights never reach here. The deeper the night grows, the fewer the sounds remain. Only the monotonous chirping of crickets and the distant howling of dogs.
Abhijit has arrived here with a new job. His first posting as a school teacher in the village. For accommodation, he has been given an old mud house at the very edge of the village.
In front of the house stands a massive banyan tree.
Its hanging roots look like someone's tangled hair in the darkness.
On the very first day, an old man warned him—
"Don't open the door after midnight."
Abhijit laughed and replied,
"I don't believe in superstitions in this age, uncle."
The old man only smiled faintly and said—
"Not everything is written in books, son…"
🌑 That Night
It was exactly 12 AM.
Suddenly, Abhijit woke up.
Knock…
Knock…
Knock…
It sounded like someone walking in the mud courtyard.
At first, he thought — maybe a cat.
But the sound was heavy. Slow. Like human footsteps.
Knock… knock…
His heartbeat began to race.
Slowly, he got up and stood near the door. He waited for a few seconds.
The sound stopped.
He gently opened the door. A cold mist rushed inside.
There was no one outside.
Only fog.
And that enormous banyan tree.
But then his eyes fell on the ground.
On the wet mud — clear footprints.
Bare feet.
And those footprints led straight to the banyan tree… and ended there.
Abhijit stood frozen.
Just then, from within the mist, a faint whisper floated toward him—
"You… have come?"
A cold wave ran through his body.
Under the banyan tree stood a white figure.
Head lowered.
Hair covering the face.
In an instant, the wind stopped.
An unnatural silence surrounded everything.
Abhijit could not move.
And then—
Suddenly, all the lights of the house went out.
In the darkness, only one sound remained—
Knock… knock… knock…
This time, the sound was right behind him.
To be continued…
Episode 2: The One Who Was Standing Beneath the Banyan Tree