Tambarin Talaka Part 1 Complete Hausa Novel

A House Marked by Poverty
It was a mud house, partly collapsed in some areas and patched up with sacks. The roof was old and completely rusted. At a single glance, you could tell that poverty lived there deeply.
I stepped inside to give you a clearer picture. The house had three rooms, two small living areas, and one tiny room. None of the rooms were spacious.
Hearing the sound of sobbing from the small room, I peeped inside. I saw a young girl, not more than seventeen years old, crying bitterly. She was fair-skinned, but hardship had hidden her natural glow. She held her stomach as she cried — she was hungry, so hungry it felt like she might die.
Suddenly, a woman entered the room and shouted, “So you’re crying as if someone beat you? Useless child!”
She stormed in, grabbed the girl by the neck, and said, “Let me beat you properly so you’ll have a real reason to cry!” She beat her mercilessly.
The girl pleaded, “Please, Inna Tani, forgive me.”
But Tani was unmoved. In fact, the more the girl begged, the angrier she became. She beat her until she was satisfied, then left her and said, “You shameless girl, crying inside the room! Get up and go buy flour for tuwo. And if you delay, you’ll regret it!”
With great difficulty, weak and exhausted, the girl stood up, took the money, and left. She returned shortly after.
Tani glared at her and said, “Go and prepare the tuwo quickly before people start saying I don’t feed you.”
The girl answered softly, “Okay,” and went to the cooking place.
Another woman came out from one of the rooms and said, “Tani, fear Allah. The girl hasn’t done anything to you, yet you beat her every day. Don’t you remember death?”
Tani snapped back angrily, “Mind your business! I’m stronger than you. And don’t forget you live under my authority — this is my house!”
The woman replied, “Your house or an orphan’s house?”
They began exchanging heated words, while the girl cooked the tuwo, feeling as though their shouting was happening inside her head.
Who is this girl? Who is Indo?
Who Is Indo?
Malam Aminu was Indo’s father. He lived in Taraba State, in Karim Lamido Local Government. He was a Fulani man with one wife, Maryam. Malam Aminu was poor and made a living repairing shoes. Their house was made of mud, but despite their poverty, they were content.
He used to say, “The mark of a poor man is his stomach.” Even if there was no tuwo, they would drink fura or eat simple flour happily.
They lived with his younger brother, Musa, who had a wife named Tani. Tani had two daughters, one of whom was married.
Tani was a harsh woman — whatever she said, Musa obeyed. Maryam, on the other hand, was very patient, which made her husband love her deeply.
Malam Aminu had two children: Yusuf, and later, after five years, Aisha — whom they lovingly called Indo.
Indo was beautiful from birth, very fair and radiant. But when she was only seven years old, her father died. From that moment, their lives changed.
Musa took control of the house, even though it wasn’t his inheritance — Yusuf had even built a fence around it. This caused Musa to resent Maryam and her children, especially Yusuf.
Maryam became seriously ill after her husband’s death. One day, as she sat weakly in the room with Yusuf and Indo, she called Yusuf, who was almost finishing secondary school.
“Yusuf,” she said, “after I am gone, please take care of Indo. Don’t let her suffer. She has no one but you.”
Yusuf was speechless, tears rolling down his face. Even young Indo, though still innocent, sensed the sadness and cried quietly.
Maryam continued, “No matter the hardship, protect her. Be her mother and father. I know this illness will not leave me. I wished to live long with you, but I don’t think that will happen. And please, let Indo go to school so she can one day be proud of herself. A woman’s life is short.”
Holding both their hands and smiling faintly, she whispered, “This is where I leave you.” Then she passed away.
Yusuf and Indo cried bitterly. Even Tani felt a little pity for them.
A Life of Suffering
After Maryam’s death, their care fell completely into the hands of Musa and Tani. Musa seized the house and claimed it as his own.
He accused Yusuf of wanting to take his sister away. The village head eventually expelled Yusuf from the town, warning that if he returned, he would be killed. That was how Yusuf left the village.
Musa and Tani fully took over the house and rented part of it to a woman named Jamila, who pitied Indo but could do nothing to help her.
Tani continued to maltreat Indo. She didn’t allow her to attend Islamic school or formal school. Instead, Indo was forced to sell Tani’s goods — today one product, tomorrow another. If she failed to sell them, she would be beaten severely and denied food.
Whenever Musa returned home, he would also beat her.
And that became the life of Indo — a life of hardship, loneliness, and endless suffering.