“Why Did Ishika Scream?” by Shristi Biswas, a class 4 student of Epic Public School, is a gripping tale of curiosity, mystery, and a chilling encounter in an old Shimla hotel. Discover what left Ishika trembling in fear!
Suddenly, she screamed! The piercing sound sent shivers down our spines, and we all rushed to the place from where the cry had come. What we saw left us utterly speechless.
You must be wondering, who is ‘she’? Well, let me introduce you to my cousin, Ishika. And why was she screaming? Ah, now that is a story worth telling.
It was in the year 2020, a year most people remember for the pandemic, but for our family, it was memorable for an entirely different reason. That year, we had decided to visit Shimla for our annual family vacation. The trip was even more special because my uncle, aunt, and their daughter, Ishika, were joining us for the first time.
Ishika and I share an exceptional bond, probably because we are close in age. She is a lively, spirited girl with an insatiable curiosity. If there is one thing you should know about Ishika, it’s that she is always full of questions and has an innate desire to uncover the unknown.
When we finally reached Shimla after a long and tiring journey, my father and uncle were busy at the hotel reception, sorting out the check-in formalities. Once everything was settled, we all headed to our respective rooms to rest. But not Ishika. True to her nature, she decided to venture out on her own and explore the hotel.
It was an old, grand hotel, its sprawling corridors reminiscent of a bygone era. While the rest of us were busy unpacking and freshening up, Ishika’s curiosity got the better of her. She wandered off and came across a room that was locked from the outside. The waiter who was attending to us happened to pass by and noticed Ishika fiddling with the door.
“Please don’t touch that door, Miss,” he warned her with a grave expression.
But Ishika being Ishika, the warning only fueled her curiosity further. She waited until the waiter walked away and then, with a quick glance over her shoulder, she turned the knob and slipped inside.
Back in our rooms, we had just placed our lunch order and were getting ready to eat when the sound of a blood-curdling scream shattered the calm. Confused and alarmed, we looked around and realised that Ishika was missing. Panic set in as we followed the direction of the scream.
We found her sitting on the cold floor of the dimly lit corridor, trembling and crying uncontrollably. Her face was pale, her hands shaking, and she was unable to speak a word. It took several minutes and a glass of water to calm her down. When she finally managed to speak, what she told us sent chills down our spines.
According to Ishika, the moment she stepped into the room, a strange, damp smell greeted her. It was so dark inside that she fumbled along the wall to find a switch. When she finally managed to turn on the light, she wished she hadn’t. The room was filled with thick spider webs, hanging from every corner like eerie drapes. The air felt heavy, as if carrying the weight of secrets long buried.
She noticed the lights flickering uncontrollably, casting shadows that danced on the walls. Her curiosity was quickly replaced by a growing sense of unease. Then, she heard faint, deliberate footsteps. Whipping around, she found no one there.
“It’s just my imagination,” she tried to reassure herself. But the feeling of being watched persisted. A cold chill ran down her spine as she turned again and saw something that froze her in place—a man dressed in black, slowly approaching her.
The man’s face was obscured, but his presence was menacing. Then she noticed something horrifying: he had no legs. He hovered closer, all the while chanting in a deep, guttural voice, “Halum hulum haa haa… halum hulum haa haa.”
Her scream echoed through the walls as everything went black.
By the time we found her, she was a trembling wreck, too petrified to return to that part of the hotel again. The staff assured us there was no one in that locked room and dismissed her story as a figment of her imagination. But even today, when Ishika recalls that experience, she breaks into a cold sweat.
Was it a prank? A ghostly encounter? Or simply her overactive imagination? We’ll never know. But one thing is certain—none of us will ever forget that terrifying day in Shimla.
