Chapter 19
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OS 1 : Knowing Khushi
Part 10
"But... but... he said he is an orphan, didn't he, Jiji?", Khushi's Amma asked Buaji, her whisper sounding like a loud proclamation in the pin-drop silence.
Buaji nodded, her mouth round in shock.
"An orphan?", Arnav asked. "Let me introduce his family to you. Di?", he called.
Akash & NK led Anjali to stand by him. She was pale, her body cold in shock. Leaving Akash to hold her up, NK went to the back door to stand guard.
"This is Anjali Jha, Shyam Manohar Jha's legally wedded wife."
There were loud gasps from the guests and family gathered there. Shyam stood like a statue, shocked at the unexpected blow to his dreams.
"This is her Nani, Devyani Raizada.", Arnav said.
Nani stared at Shyam with astonished eyes. "Damadji! You... here..."
"This is her Mami, Manorama Raizada."
"Hello Hi Bye Bye, so this ijj your work, Damadji? This ijj why you have no time to come home?", asked Mami bitterly.
Anjali leaned against Arnav's shoulder. "You said you were in Kanpur...", she whispered.
"This ijj his Kanpur, Anjali Bitiyaa. You scoundrel! Badmash! Kaminey!", shouted Mami.
"I am Arnav Singh Raizada. This is Akash Singh Raizada, & that Nand Kisore. We are his saale, aren't we, J-i-j-u?", Arnav asked.
Shyam swallowed.
"You are married? You have a wife? A family?", Buaji placed her hand on her mouth, unable to believe what she was hearing.
"Buaji, all this is a lie.", Shyam said. "I don't know them. They have come here to break this sagai!!!"
Buaji looked at Shyam. Then she looked at the Raizadas.
"So you don't know us?", Arnav asked softly.
"No. Who are you people? Who has paid you to disrupt this sagai?"
Anjali started weeping. Nani & Mami led her to a chair.
"Who are we?", asked Arnav. "That is a good question. We are the fools who have been meeting every extravagance of yours and feeding you for the past three years. In whose house you have been staying for the past three years. Whom you have been fooling for the past three years."
"Buaji, Amma, all this is a lie.", Shyam repeated.
"So you don't know them, Nandkisore?", Buaji asked.
All the ladies looked at Shyam, waiting for his reply.
"I don't know them, Buaji. I have never seen them before in my life.", Shyam said, a helpless, put upon look on his face.
The ladies looked at each other. Who was speaking the truth? Shyam or Arnav?
Suddenly, Khushi snatched Shyam's phone from his hand, and ran to stand behind Buaji.
"Khushiji!", Shyam called, surprised.
Khushi quickly checked his call record, & selected Rani Sahiba to call. Anjali's phone rang.
"How come you have Anjaliji's phone number and have called her numerous times if you don't know her, Shyamji?", she asked.
All gasped.
Khushi then picked the name Arnav, & called. Arnav's phone rang.
"How come you have Arnavji's number, & have called him many times?", Khushi asked.
Shyam squirmed.
Buaji said, "So everything was a lie. You came here saying that you were an orphan & wanted a place to stay. A room. You pretended to be a good man... and we believed it, Nandkisore..." She hit her head with her hand.
"And then you asked us for Khussi Bitiya's hand...", Amma whispered.
"Like fools, we agreed...", Buaji said.
"Khussi didn't want to marry you...", Amma said.
"But we forced her... thinking that you were a good man...", Buaji said, sorrow weighing down the words.
"And all the time you had a wife, a family... a house in Delhi...you liar!", said Amma, her eyes filled with tears.
"You cheat! You dhokebaaz!", shouted Buaji.
"Jiji... just imagine... If we had conducted the wedding and then found out...", Amma said, horrified.
Buaji ran for her belan.
"Buaji...", Shyam tried.
"Don't call me Buaji! I am not your Buaji. I am not the Buaji of any Kamina! ", screamed Buaji, returning, brandishing her belan.
"Now what will you do, Shyam Manohar Jha?", asked Arnav Singh Raizada. "You have no place in Shantivan & my family. Apparently, you have no place here too. Now what?"
Shyam looked towards the back door. NK, guarding the exit, pulled up his jacket sleeves to show his clenched fists.
The ladies got up one by one.
"This is not a problem that affects just your family, Madhumatiji. We too have daughters.", said Vimla Maasi.
Nirmala Chachi nodded.
"Ladies, show the kamina what he will get in the future if he so much as looks at another girl!", exhorted Preeto's Nani.
The ladies fell on Shyam Manohar Jha, hitting him with their chappals, Bujai's belan, Khushi's Babuji's big umbrella...Anything and everything was their weapon.
The Raizadas & the Guptas watched in silence. Once the ladies were done, Jha lay curled up like a worm on the floor, his clothes tattered, his hair wild, his body bruised...
"Rani Sahiba...", he whined.
"Don't call me that. Don't ever call me that! Get out of my life, you cheat! I never want to see you again!", Anjali shouted.
Arnav, NK, & Akash dragged him out of the house and threw him into the street, scattering a crowd of hungry dogs sniffing around a garbage pile.
They returned to the house.
Babuji had tears of joy in his eyes. Buaji & Amma were apologising to Nani, Mami, & Anjali.
"We didn't know, Nandkisore! We didn't know! Had we known, we would not have let him place his foot on our doorstep, Nandkisore!", said Buaji.
"Please forgive us! We didn't know. His behaviour was so dignified, so cultured, so Lucknavi that...", said Amma.
Nani said, "It is not your fault. We too fell for his smooth talk and practiced ways."
Mami sighed, "Atleast we found out now! Anjali Bitiyaa ijj safe. Khushi ijj safe."
Buaji looked at Arnav. "But for you, our Titliyaa's life..." Tears filled her eyes.
"Khushi found out the truth about Shyam first.", Arnav said. All gaped at him.
"She came to me. We talked it over. I checked the facts, & found them true. We planned to catch him red-handed. I informed Akash & NK last night, and we got him.", Arnav explained.
"Titliyaa!", Buaji gasped.
Khushi went to kneel by Anjali.
"Anjaliji, I am sorry he was such a bad man. I am sorry that I am the reason you had to be so hurt today..." Her eyes filled with tears.
"Don't be, Khushiji. If it were not you, it would have been someone else.", Anjali said, slowly.
Nani & Mami nodded.
"Shall we leave?", asked Arnav. The Raizadas nodded.
He turned to Khushi, "I will call you."
She nodded.
Arnav Singh Raizada led his family out, helping his sister walk to the car and take her seat. NK had his arm around Nani, & Akash was supporting his mother.
The Guptas watched them go.
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