Chapter 24

Chapter Twenty-Four

Throughout the afternoon, Pallavi remained acutely aware of Raghav's massive following on social media, as quite a few of his admirers ventured into Deshmukh Saree Emporium for a glimpse of the woman who had set him free.

Pallavi, Krishna, Nikhil, and Mandar altogether saw a dozen teenage girls and young women who had had no interest in sarees before the tabloids insinuated that Raghav might have a fetish. "Sārī kā Dukāna!" - they giggled at Raghav's misgendered sartorial nickname for Pallavi, which would be the hashtag for their selfies in the traditional look. Posing in exquisite handwoven creations, they imagined Hyderabad's most successful jeweler carrying them off from their families to sully their reputations with his lucre.

Married women, some accompanied by their children, also visited the shop to check Pallavi from head to toe, trying to find the mystique that made her fatally irresistible to Raghav. Sundry customers, who would think twice before purchasing the simplest ring or chain from Jayati Jewels, wondered what price Pallavi had paid to live as Raghav Rao's wife. Was she really faithful to her first husband, or did she chafe at her return to the middle class?

Pallavi felt relieved when it was time to close the shop for the day, and Farhad was waiting outside to take her home with him.

Farhad had silently observed Pallavi while Raghav was delivering Jagadish to her. Bhābhī's eyes were red; she had been crying. The news reports were embarrassing, for sure, but Farhad suspected a stronger motivation for Anna's effort to erase the CCTV footage. Was Bhābhī in trouble? He couldn't help thinking about her as Bhābhī still, although he addressed her as Pallavi jī to placate Mandar. Pallavi had been holding Mandar's hand when Farhad entered. No doubt, she found comfort in Mandar, and the longer Farhad kept Mandar's secret, the harder Pallavi's loss would be whenever she faced the truth.

Farhad prayed, Yā Allāh, please sustain Pallavi Bhābhī's strength for whatever trouble can't be avoided. Please guide Mandar to be the honourable man that he wants to be. Both Bhābhī and Mandar need the Deshmukh family's love, and they both need to live respectably, so please sort it out so that no one will be hurt. You inspired Raghav Anna to change his life for Bhābhī, so please don't let his love for her go to waste.

Farhad's thoughts turned to Raghav. Anna's fury with Jagadish had subsided with a sigh, and Farhad had caught him smiling at Bhābhī. Anna had tried to change his expression to mockery, but it had been a sad smile. What had happened to the vehemence with which Raghav Rao appealed rejection and avenged betrayal? Since when did Anna let off any wrongdoer, even for Bhābhī, without arguing?

Even stranger was the way Anna had behaved with Mandar. Farhad was familiar with Raghav's short temper, and expected him to be recklessly hostile with the man who took his wife. Instead, Raghav had looked at Mandar with an expression that Farhad had never seen in Anna's eyes for any adversary before. There had been frustration on Raghav's face, but also acceptance, and even a hint of gratitude, as if Raghav somehow thought Mandar was on his side.

"Go on, Dī, I will lock up," Nikhil said. "Try to relax; you have had a rough day. Dādā, you want to go with Dī upto Farhad's place, right?"

Mandar remembered Bābā's don't-go-anywhere-alone rule. "Nikhil, tell Bābā not to worry. On my way back, if I'm on the road alone, I'll call home so that you know exactly where I am."

Mandar put his arm around Pallavi's shoulders as they walked to the car. He hadn't told her yet about Sulochana Kākū being the one who left him with Dr. Ramya, or that Farhad was about to take him to meet Dr. Janaki. He shouldn't say anything today, Mandar decided. Pallavi needed comfort and support after her ordeal, and Mandar would give it to her. She had to be his priority. He tried not to look too long at Farhad, who held open the door to the back seat for them.

"Farhad, do you mind if I video call my Dādā-Vahinī?" Pallavi asked. "I have wanted to talk to them all day, but I had to wait for work hours to be over."

"That's a good idea, Pallavi jī. It will take us some time to reach home." Farhad turned around with a smile as he pushed the ignition button.

Pallavi sent quick text messages to Siddhesh and Pavani, and as soon as they replied that they were both at home, she placed the call. Raghav had gotten her into the habit of video calling from wherever she might be, Pallavi realized. There were times when Raghav just wanted her to look at him, and he didn't care how much it cost, although on one occasion when whisky had let loose his insensitivity, he had assured her that Farhad had found the best data plan to put her middle-class mind at ease. Soon, Pallavi thought, I'll cancel my data plan and watch my spending again.

"Namaskāra, Dādā-Vahinī," Mandar said, as Siddhesh and Pavani appeared on the screen, and Pallavi put aside all other thoughts to take their blessing as she and Mandar faced them together for the first time since the wedding day.

"Tumhālā bharapūra āyuṣya lābhū de, ciraṃjīva Mandar rāva!" May you enjoy the fullest extent of lifespan, long-lived Mandar rāva! Siddhesh greeted him.

"Sukha-samādhānāne saṃsāra karā!" Have a married life of comfort and contentment! Pavani added.

"Apaghātānantara malā kāhīça āṭhavata navhate, paṇa kālapāsūna malā tumacyā āṭhavaṇī yeta rāhilyā." After the accident, I couldn't remember anything, but since yesterday I have been having memories of you, Mandar shared.

"Oḷakha paṭalī nā?" You recognize us, right? Siddhesh inquired with a mock-serious face.

"Ho, Dādā," Mandar affirmed, grinning, and Siddhesh laughed with him. Pallavi smiled. Had it really been two-and-a-half years since the last time Dādā and Mandar had bantered with each other?

"Mandar rāva, tumacyāta apaghātānantara kāhīça badala disata nāhī." Mandar rāva, you don't seem changed at all since the accident, Siddhesh remarked. "Tumhī agadī dhaḍadhākaṭa disatā, āṇi tumacī smṛti lavakaraça pūrvīsārakhī hoīla, hyācī āmhālā khātrī vāṭate." You look quite able-bodied, and we feel certain that soon your memory will become as it was before. "Gelyā aḍīça varṣāṃta Pallavi-ne je kāhī bhogale āhe, tyācī kalpanā tumhālā asela-nasela, paṇa āmhī jevaḍhā tiçā chaḷa hotānā pāhilā āhe tevaḍhā bākī kuṇālāhī asahya zhālā asatā." You may or may not have an idea of all that Pallavi has endured in the past two-and-a-half years, but as much as we have seen her being tormented, that much would have been unbearable for anyone else.

Pavani nodded in agreement, and Siddhesh continued, "Tumhālā gharāta, dukānāta pūrvīpramāṇe ruḷāyalā tī sātha deta āhe, āṇi taseça tumhī paṇa tiçe mana zapāve." While you get settled in the family and the shop as before, she is at your side, and likewise, you should also be careful of her feelings.

"Ho, Dādā, mī tumhālā vacana deto." Yes, Dādā, I give you my promise, Mandar said.

"Dādā-Vahinī, mājhyākaḍūna tumhālā dona goṣṭī sāṅgāyacyā āheta." I have two things to tell you, Pallavi began. "Eka mhaṇaje mājhī maitrīṇa Devayani, jiçā āmacyā lagnāādhīcyā āṭhavaḍyāta apaghātāta mṛtyu ghaḍalyācī bātamī Bhargav Kākāṃnī sāṅgitalī hotī, tī jīvanta āhe āṇi Bhopal-madhe rahāteya!" One is that my friend Devayani, of whose death in an accident in the week before our wedding Bhargav Uncle had informed us, is alive and living in Bhopal! "Ticyāśī mī bolale suddhā." I actually spoke to her.

"Kāya sāṅgatesa?" What are you telling me? Pavani exclaimed.

"Kharaṃça sāṅgateya." I'm just telling you the truth, Pallavi replied, smiling. "Akash āhe nā, Rashmi-çā bhāū zo Hyderabad-madhe rahāto?" You know Akash, Rashmi's brother who lives in Hyderabad? "Kāla jevhāṃ mī tyālā Ammī-Abbūṃkaḍe jevāyalā ghātale, tevhāṃ tyāne malā sagaḷe samazāvūna sāṅgitale." Yesterday, when I served him dinner at Ammī-Abbū's, he explained everything to me. "Devayani-çe Rashmi-vara prema āhe, āṇi Devayani-çe samaliṅgī svatva Bhargav Kākāṃnā paṭata nāhī, mhaṇūna Kākūṃnī tyāṃnā kaḷū dile nāhī kī Yuvaraj Holkar-ne kelelyā ṭhāra māraṇyācyā prayatnātūna Devayani vāçalī āṇi Rashmi-barobara nighūna gelī." Devayani loves Rashmi, and Bhargav Uncle doesn't agree with Devayani's homosexual identity, so Aunty didn't let him find out that Devayani survived Yuvaraj Holkar's attempt to murder her, and went away with Rashmi. "Tara tumhālā Bhargav Kākā bheṭale tara tumhī suddhā tyāṃnā kāhī sāṅgū nakā." So, if you meet Bhargav Uncle, you also don't tell anything to him.

"Svataḥcyā janmadātyā pityāpāsūna lapūna rahāve ase vāṭaṇe, he kāhī barobara nāhī." Wanting to hide from one's own life-giving father is not right at all, Siddhesh objected. "Devayani-cyā bābāṃsāṭhī tiçe samaliṅgī prema pāhaṇyāpekṣā ticyā khoṭyā maraṇāçe kamī duḥkha āhe kāya?" Is Devayani's father's grief for her fake death less than he would feel seeing her homosexual love?

Yes, Dādā, Mandar thought. If I insisted on living the way I dreamed last night, it would be worse for Bābā than the heart attack he had when he thought I had died.

"Dādā, Devayani-cyā gharātalī nātī āpalyāitakī saraḷa nāhīta." Relations in Devayani's family aren't as straightforward as in ours, Pallavi argued. "Zara ticyā bābāṃnā kaḷale kī tī Rashmi-barobara rahāteya, tara te tilā mānasika roga zhālā āhe ase samazūna saktīne ticyāvara upacāra karatīla." If her father finds out that she's living with Rashmi, then he'll assume that she has a mental illness and force her into therapy.

"Āpaṇa tyāñcyā madhe paḍū naye, paṇa hī paristhiti avaghaḍaça āhe." We shouldn't interfere between them, but this situation is really difficult, Pavani said, placing her hand on Siddhesh's shoulder.

Pallavi took Mandar's hand and he turned to smile at her. She took a deep breath and moved from her good news to her bad news.

"Malā dusarī goṣṭa sāṅgāyacī āhe, tī mhaṇaje, āza mājhyā āṇi Raghav-cyā lagnānantaracyā saṃbhāṣaṇāçā dṛśya purāvā bātamyāṃmadhe carceçā viṣaya zhālā āhe." The second thing I have to tell is that today, a video of a conversation between Raghav and me after marriage is being discussed in the news. "Dvivivāhācyā kāyadyāpramāṇe Mandar-āṃśī māzhe pahile lagna zhālyābaddala mī Raghav-lā dusaryā lagnāādhī sāṅgāyalā have hote, āṇi āza akkhyā Hyderabad śaharālā māhīta zhāle āhe kī mī tase nāhī kele." According to the bigamy law, I should have told Raghav about my first marriage to Mandar before the remarriage, and today the entire city of Hyderabad has learned that I didn't do that. "Mājhyā vakīla-bāī Subhadra yāṃçe mata āhe kī mī svataḥ Raghav-barobaraçe lagna radda karaṇyāsāṭhī nyāyālayāta arza kelā tara bahudhā mājhyāvara dvivivāhāçā āropa hoṇāra nāhī." My lady lawyer Subhadra's opinion is that if I myself petition the court to annul my remarriage to Raghav, then probably I won't be accused of bigamy. "Āza mājhyāvara anekāñcyā nazarā hotyā, tyāçā zarā trāsa zhālā, paṇa tumhī mājhī cintā karū naye." Today there were many people looking at me, which bothered me somewhat, but you don't have to worry about me.

Siddhesh and Pavani nodded sympathetically. "Pallavi, tū nirdoṣa āhesa, āṇi yāpuḍhe tujhyāvara koṇatāhī anyāya hoū naye hī āmhā sarvāñcī zabābadārī āhe." You are blameless, and making sure that no injustice is done to you hereafter is the responsibility of all of us, Siddhesh declared.

Mandar smiled in agreement. "Viśeṣataḥ mājhī." Especially mine. He looked at Pallavi resolutely. She had been loyal to his family, and he would be loyal to her.

"Lavakaraça Śrāvaṇa mahinā surū hoīla, tyāta tujhī Maṅgaḷā-Gaura sāzarī karaṇyāçā māzhā vicāra āhe, Pallavi." The month of Śrāvaṇa will begin soon, and then I intend to celebrate your Maṅgaḷā-Gaura, Pallavi, Pavani said. "Mandar rāva, tumhī Pallavi-lā gheūna yāla nā?" Mandar rāva, you'll bring Pallavi to us, won't you? "Gharacyā sarvāṃnā āmantraṇa āhe." Everyone in your family is invited.

"Ho, tumhī koṇatā Maṅgaḷavāra nivaḍatāya te kaḷavā, āṇi āmhī yeū." Yes, let us know which Tuesday you're choosing, and we'll come, Mandar agreed. "Ithe suddhā Pallavi-cī pahilī Maṅgaḷā-Gaura sāzarī karāyalā havī." Here too, we have to celebrate Pallavi's first Maṅgaḷā-Gaura.

"Dārāpāśī kuṇītarī āle āhe." There's someone at the door, Pavani said, hearing the doorbell. "Mandar rāva, tumhālā pāhūna āmhālā khūpa bare vāṭale." We were very happy to see you, Mandar rāva.

Pallavi and Mandar folded their hands to take their leave, and Pavani stood up.

"Udyā-paravā kadhītarī āpalī aśīça bheṭa hoīla, tevhāṃ āpaṇa nivāntapaṇe bolū." Tomorrow or the next day, we'll meet again like this, and then we can talk at leisure, Siddhesh said, folding his hands and ending the call.

"I hope you are feeling better now, Pallavi jī," Farhad remarked.

"Yes, I am," Pallavi assured him. "Farhad, I hope you didn't let Raghav be too rough with Jagadish Anna and his son."

Farhad blinked. "Pallavi jī, you know that when Anna is angry, he doesn't listen to anyone. He gave them a few punches. Can you blame him? When your Sulochana Kākū took photos of Kirti changing her saree and uploaded them to Photogram, she had Jagadish's son print them and deliver them to Jaya Amma, and he also went to the police to report Kirti and Jaya Amma for prostitution. And now, Jagadish and his son have stolen a video from Anna's CCTV and embarrassed you. I understand why Anna wants to punish them. I don't understand why you feel sorry."

"I feel sorry because Raghav, who created this situation, is punishing those who exposed what he did to me," Pallavi replied. "Jagadish Anna was decent to me. When I failed to pay rent for five months, he didn't evict me or tell Bābā. He told me I had forty-eight hours, and when I got the money just as my time ran out, he agreed to wait overnight. Then I spent the money and asked him for more time, and he allowed me another three days. How can I not defend him?"

"Bhābhī, I mean Pallavi jī, that Jagadish and his son did whatever dirty work your Sulochana Kākū paid them to do!" Farhad protested.

"Look at it this way, Farhad. I have had two landlords in Hyderabad. One of them sent a bulldozer, stole my wares, made a baseless complaint against my business, sent me an illegal eviction notice, padlocked my shop, occupied the rented space himself, and publicly announced that I was his conquest. Jagadish Anna was the other one. I am not going to waste my life wishing harm upon either of them."

Mandar quietly applauded Pallavi's point, and Farhad drove in silence until they reached his flat. Whatever Anna might do next, now that he was Jagadish's landlord, Farhad was sure that Bhābhī wouldn't like it.

"Pallavi jī, you go on in. I have to go somewhere, and I'll take Mandar home," Farhad said, as he pulled up to the apartment building.

"Farhad, you can leave now if you must, but Mandar, won't you come in for some tea?" Pallavi asked, getting out of the car.

Mandar did not know how he could refuse without telling Pallavi about Dr. Janaki. He was about to tell her when Jaya's voice interrupted them.

"Pallavi, beṭā! Could I talk to you? Please?"

"Amma, what are you doing here?" Pallavi asked. Farhad wondered the same.

"I brought you some phiranī ... and an apology. May I talk to Pallavi alone, Farhad? Please?" Jaya sounded desperate.

"Kāhī harakata nāhī." There's no issue, Mandar assured Pallavi. "Mī nighato ātā, āṇi āpaṇa rātrī phone-vara bolū." I'll leave now, and we'll talk by phone tonight.

"Of course, Amma. My Ammī and Abbū are not home yet, I expect. Pallavi jī, you have your key, right?" Farhad inwardly thanked Allāh for sending Jaya Amma so that Mandar could leave with him.

Meanwhile, at Pooswami Old Age Home, Raghav's mood had improved, as it always did in the company of people who accepted him as Ramaswami. The doctor had told him to rest after his panic attack, but Raghav hadn't listened for long; he had jumped into his car as soon as Farhad had located Jagadish. After dealing with that issue, Raghav had gone home again, but feeling restless, he had decided to visit the place that brought him peace of mind, where he could forget who he was and only think of others. Here, no one knew about Raghav Rao's infamy of the day. Everyone was genuinely happy to see Ramaswami, and blessed him sincerely.

When it was time to go home, Raghav got up, ready to pick up Damayanti from the exercise ground, where she had the attention of a group of elderly people. He was about to go into the front office where Maria sat, to inform her that he was leaving, when he froze.

Krishna was sitting with her back to him, across from Maria. What was she doing here? Had Pallavi sent her? Yesterday morning at the pūjā, when he had mentioned Ramaswami, Pallavi hadn't reacted. Did she really not know that Raghav Rao used the name Ramaswami for philanthropy? Raghav stood by the open door, hidden by a wall, and listened.

"All of these men's clothes are in very good condition. They will certainly be useful. Thank you for the donation," Maria was saying. "This one saree, though ... even the oldest widows here don't wear borderless white sarees, and with this red splotch ... I am sorry, but I don't think anyone will want to wear this."

"Actually, the reason Amma decided to donate Nānna's old clothes today was to get rid of this saree too," Krishna admitted. "She thinks it's bad luck because she made a woman wear it while her husband was still alive."

"Excuse me?" Maria was incredulous.

"You see, one night in February, my friend Pallavi Dīdī and I got drenched in the rain, and Amma gave us dry clothes. At the time, everyone believed that Pallavi Dīdī was a widow because Mandar Dādā had been in an accident and a dead body was identified as him. So, Amma made Dīdī wear this white saree. Then, as Dīdī was walking home, someone tossed a jar of sindūra into the air, and the saree got stained red."

Raghav's breathing quickened. He knew very well that he was the one who had tossed that sindūra on Pallavi. When Pallavi had catered the dinner for Pooswami Old Age Home, Raghav had recognized her as the same woman whose reflective green eyes he had liked that morning at the Jayati Jewels showroom, when they had been trapped in the security cage together. He had been speechless for once, marvelling that the woman whom he blamed for his smuggling difficulties, for standing between him and Kirti, for challenging him in front of all of Hyderabad, for provoking Amma to wish him and herself dead, was the woman in whose eyes he trusted. In that moment, seeing the sindūra covering Ramaswami's face and not recognizing him as Raghav, Pallavi had remarked that on a rainy night a few days before, someone had thrown colour on her too. The memory of that night had been fresh for Raghav, and he had guessed right away: the marital symbol that he had carelessly discarded, thinking that he would never find a woman who deserved it, had landed on this woman who was thanking him for the chance to earn money after spurning his show of largesse. At the time, Raghav had hidden himself in Ramaswami's office, watching Pallavi and admiring her kindness, but refusing her request to serve Ramaswami his dinner so as not to spoil his benevolent mood with another confrontation. He had sent Pallavi a thank-you note along with a gift, a keychain that had the initial R for Ramaswami. The next morning, he had accepted her repayment for Manasi's keḷavaṇa gifts without any argument, smiling in anticipation of friendship and how she would respond when she realized that he was Ramaswami. They had never reached that point due to his stupid revenge schemes following a misunderstanding, and now, Raghav realized that he had never told Pallavi about the sindūra incident either.

"Whoever that litterer was that threw sindūra, he also splattered Dīdī with mud from his car," Krishna was saying. "When Sharada Aunty - Mandar Dādā's mother - returned the saree to Amma the next day, she was so angry! She said that her daughter came home looking like a destitute person, and she wouldn't forgive Amma for that. Pallavi Dīdī had tried her best to get the stains out of the saree, but this red splotch remained, so Aunty told Amma to take it as a lesson and never advertise anyone's misfortune again." Krishna was venting after a stressful day because Anuradha had once again reopened a wound by describing Raghav's humiliation of Pallavi to reporters.

Raghav pulled out his phone and sent Maria a text: "I want the white saree." He was thinking about yesterday morning, when he had found out that the kalāvā on his wrist came from Pallavi. Jaya had called it a sign that Satya-Nārāyaṇa was paying attention to Raghav's faith in his marriage to Pallavi. This saree was another sign that Raghav was meant to marry Pallavi, even before they had met.

When Krishna had finished explaining to Maria how they had found Mandar Dādā four days ago, she departed, and Raghav strolled into Maria's office to pick up the saree. It was an ugly garment, unworthy of Pallavi, but she had accepted it for a short time when she had had no alternative, just as she had accepted Raghav and his ugly treatment of her. Soon, Pallavi's own clothes that she had left behind with Raghav would go to the Deshmukh house to wait for her return to Mandar, but Raghav could always keep this saree in which she could have been his.

Raghav unfolded the saree and examined the red splotch. It was an oddly symmetrical shape: two long legs, two widespread wings, and two heads. He imagined a man holding a bird that was trying to fly away.