Aakash waited anxiously knitting his fingers together. Very soon, he was going to meet Advay Singh Raizada, The ASR!
The name was revered in his circle, material suppliers for UK missiles……ASR was treated like God! Never seen; but his authoritative presence was felt everywhere. People feared him for good reason. ASR had powerful friends and powerful enemies, and it was doubtful that even they knew what category they fell in.
Aakash had met him only in one incident, needing his help desperately. There had been some mishaps in his supplies and only ASR could have saved him from litigation. After a lot of trials and connect through various top notch people, he had been able to reach ASR. Then also, his task hadn’t been easy. ASR had ensured that mishaps would never ever again happen in any of the supplies. Something about Aakash ASR had perhaps liked, that he had put in his own word to save Aakash with a warning issuance. After that, there had not been any connect for many years; but suddenly, few days back, he had received a call.
He had realised then that once ASR did someone a favour, it went into the invisible ledger he carried in his shrewd brain, and it was only a matter of time until he demanded repayment with interest. Though the task assigned to Aakash was complex and very difficult; but ASR had promised rewards, too. Aakash would be given necessary reference to expand his business by export. For Aakash, it was a lifetime opportunity and he had no objection to taking the easy way to progress…..this offer was a godsend…….perhaps in a literal sense!
Immediately, after ASR’s call, Aakash had looked up about his current news and had known that ASR had adopted his birth village in India and there was a gigantic redevelopment plan in progress. The only stain being the suicide of some goldsmith in that village at the same time which was being linked with ASR; but the whole issue had been short-lived as the goldsmith’s wife herself had vouched ASR to be absolutely clean.
Akash was simply awed by the man. He had never known anyone like Advay Singh Raizada—eccentric, driven, manipulative, demanding. ASR had a shrewder understanding of human nature than anyone Aakash had ever met. Within a few minutes of meeting someone, he sized them up with complete accuracy. He knew how to make people do what he wanted, and he nearly always got his way. He could talk a fish out of its skin. No wonder, he was the one and only who could conceive a plan like the current one.
The moment he saw Advay walking towards him in the corridor, Aakash reverently walked up to him.
“Thanks for making your time, Aakash! It’s a pleasure meeting you!”
Advay had a warm smile on his face as he extended his hand to Aakash. He was the only person who could maintain a demeanour sanguine to optimum in face of the challenge awaiting them.
“It’s an honour for me, sir!” Aakash shook his hand, his manner hugely deferential.
How was it possible that ASR called and he would not comply? Yet, it was the greatness of the man to thank him. Everything about this man was great. It was hard to think of him doing ordinary things such as shaving, or having his hair trimmed, or staying in bed with a head cold.
“Have all assembled?”
“Yes sir, they are in the conference room. Here are all the printouts of our collected files till date, for your easy reference, sir. I updated all the relevant suppliers exactly as per your instructions yesterday. They are somewhat in a shock with suddenly the kind of proposal you have given; but you can make them come around. I mailed you the individual reactions, did you get a chance to check it as it was very late in the night.”
“Yes, I saw it!” Advay took the papers from Aakash. They would be good prop in the meeting, though all the data was already fixed in his brain.
Advay riffled through the reports made by Aakash. “As per your perception of the reactions, who is likely to prove most difficult to handle?” he asked without looking up.
“Chhaddha!" the reply was immediate, " He’s been close associate of Jimmy for a long time! He may not acquiesce easily.”
Advay rose his brows. “The guy with that illegal business in background, right?”
“Yes Sir, the same one and the most difficult one.”
The cruise did not lack in anything to give complete comfort and full entertainment. In spite of that, there was a gloom in the family as they missed Advay and Darsh.
Veer stood observing his Bhabhi standing against the deck railing; her hair tussled up by wind and her face by a gloom. Bhai shouldn’t have left, he thought, but now that he had, Bhabhi’s happy mood was Veer’s responsibility. Shikha had been giving him a cold shoulder though he had tried connecting with her. In a moment, he thought up a plan.
He went near Shikha and she turned away. He immediately held her hand and sang, though his voice was not good.
Khuli palak mein jhootha gussa, band palak mein pyaar
Jeena bhi mushkil, haaye, marana bhi mushkil
(Feigned anger with open eyes but love in closed eyelids, how do I live; how can I die)
Everybody’s attention turned to him and they laughed.
“Miku, please spare us from your singing.” Pooja teased laughingly.
Miku’s eyes twinkled as he glanced at his Di. A moment of silent communication, pointing out to Bhabhi lost in her own reverie, passed between them before he murmured softly, “If she misses Bhai, let’s bring Bhai alive for her.”
“Chandni Bhabhi” Called out Pooja,“Come and sit with us."
Chandni complied immediately; but her gloomy silence continued.
“Bhaiyya left suddenly, didn’t he?”Pooja continued nonchalantly, “He has always been like that!”
A tiny frown pleated the space between Chandni’s slim brows, “Always?” She sounded unconvinced.
Pooja spoke gravely, “Bhaiyya liked to keep track of everyone else, but never ever allow anyone to do the same to him. He took most of his meals in private, and came and went as he pleased, sometimes with no indication of when he would return…… always like that, right Naani?”
A reminiscent smile touched Naani’s lips. “Very much! At least now, he’s changed a lot….” She turned to Chandni wanting to console her, “and it’s all because of you! Earlier, maybe even you couldn’t have handled him.”
Shilpa, getting bored till then, joined the group happily, “So True, Chandni Didi!......... In haveli, when I wouldn’t answer his phone; he entered directly inside, unhindered, in spite of all our guards…........He doesn’t seem changed, when we went to bring Aadi back, hardly few minutes and he was tracking Pooja di!”
“It’s his love, Shilpa!” Pooja immediately corrected Shilpa’s thought process.
“Yes, at the core, this boy is pure love! You saw his reaction when I hurt my knee. How he ran and agreed every demand of mine.”Naani reminded Chandni.
“He’s Advay- Union of soul and god! I wanted him to be like his father; but in spite of my repeated urging, he turned out angry and destructive.”Naani sighed to herself.
“But Naani, Krishna himself also created destruction. Isn’t destruction part of life?” Chandni remembered what Dev had told her about his work once. “And then his hatred was very justified.”
“True! His drive and determination are incomparable. He can do almost anything once he sets his mind to.” Naani spoke indulgently, her eyes on far horizon.
Chandni understood this so well. Her Dev was a force to be reckoned with, such was his energy and confidence.
“Do me a favour, please! I shall make a call or two. Till then, go inside and keep them engaged.”
Advay spoke very smoothly to Aakash. But he knew himself that behind his polished accent and polite demeanour, he enjoyed chaos. He had a suicide in his Allahabad account to prove it.
Aakash had been his choice for this particular game because of Aaksh's material supplier connect and influence which would smooth out the game without much coercion.
Advay always followed attrition warfare…. He liked the elegance of it, the precision that required both physical and mental discipline. One had to plan several moves in advance, something that came naturally to Advay.
That’s why he had been easily able to coerce the landlord in Allahabad to pressurise Indrani and then played his game shrewdly to gain official stay in Chandni’s room. Those days seemed so long back; but they held some pretty good memories of his romance with Chandu. Advay had a private smile on his face as he made those crucial calls.
Chandni’s gloom had vanished and smile had returned with the lively chat of her Dev, her hair however remained the same wind tussled.
She turned to Murli with a smile when he spoke, “Bhaiyya has always been like that. His brain never shuts off, not even for the necessary act of sleeping. In London earlier and then later in Allahabad, he was constantly active. I have seen him work out some problem in his head; while simultaneously writing a mail and carrying on a fully coherent conversation in person or on phone.”
Of course, Chandni knew this……All his mathematical complex formulae calculations in his brain all the time.
Murli continued, “Be it the rains he artificially brought in on Mahapooja day or all the pigeons he brought in during roka ceremony….. Every move planned carefully and executed efficiently. His appetite for information is voracious, and he possesses a singular gift for recall. Once he sees or reads or hears something, it remains in his brain forever.”
“Yes! That’s why he remembered about my fear of heights during the jhoola rasam.” Chandni reminisced with a private smile. “You have been his constant confidante, haven’t you? You could take risks, do any act or even give life for Dev, won’t you?”
“Of course, Bhabhi! Bhaiyya is that kind of person! He picked me up from the roads and kept in his family as one of them. Working for him means welfare and progress for all of us. He makes us all work hard;but loves us equally and treats us so fair. Once, it was I who wrongly procured poisonous spiders instead of non-poisonous ones, he rushed and put his own life in risk to save you. And he never said a word to me.”
“What spiders? When was this?” Pooja asked immediately.
“Nothing Didi! He was playing some prank with me because I kept defying him. Nothing happened.” Chandni brushed away Pooja’s concern with her light tone.
Pooja knew that Chandni was hiding some act of Bhaiyya. Everybody safeguarded Bhaiyya’s secrets zealously. Bhaiyya always managed to secure loyalty of his family, friends, sub-ordinates all alike. He would make his sub-ordinates work hard but always give fair treatment and generous remunerations.He was acquainted with a great many people, but these friendships were rarely discussed. And he was highly selective about whom he admitted into his inner circle.
Before entering the room, Advay took a deep breath in to pull all his mental resources together, his self-control being one which he always wore like an impenetrable armour. He would have to conduct this meeting with the discipline and will of an army commander.
Men’s voices tangled in the air, some agitated, at least one of them angry, and there was the sound of foreign accents as he opened the door. But, as expected, with his entry, suddenly there spread a tense silence.
“Hello gentlemen, it’s a pleasure and honour for me to receive all of you here.”
He moved and conversed with the same charismatic ease that he did everything else. He explained his strategy and their available options.
“You are not leaving us any choice.” The spice supplier barked in frustration.
Levelling a hard stare at him, Advay said evenly, “Who says so? You always have a choice!...... To stand by the righteous and gain or to be on wrong side and lose.”
Weren't these the same choices which Krishna had given before Mahabharat began?
Everybody was awed by his unshakeable arrogance. His dark hazel eyes were cool but his voice was steel. They knew nobody could ever lie to him or cheat. And if they were foolish enough to try, he would surely decimate them. He was so self-contained and invulnerable. They were simply not in a position or have any resources to thwart him.
“He and Darsh are so close. Today,the moment Darsh felt sick, he stayed back.” Chandni wanted to divert Pooja’s attention from the topic of spiders.
“Like hands and gloves and Loyal to a fault! Anything that either of them needs, the other would do it without a single thought. ” Pooja sighed, “I suppose, even if they were required to commit a murder for each other, they would!”
The statement was made in a light vein but Chandni’s eyes were alert. Because no one, not even Chandni, was entirely certain what Advay Singh Raizada was capable of, or how far could he make anybody’s allegiance go; be it Murli, Miku, Darsh or even Chandni herself!
“Thank heavens! Nothing of that sort is likely to happen” Pooja continued, and paused to add with a flash of humour, “yet.”
Miku, Murli, Pooja and Chandni- the whole group’s mind was on recent Allahabad incidents, the suicide of Gangaram.
Were Darsh and Advay involved with something again?
Darsh’s ease had evaporated as he entered the place for customer meeting. He was very well versed with various business tactics but annihilating someone from business, he was doing for the first time and only for AD.
The path AD had chosen would surely lead to a deadly gorilla war; but Darsh was committed to action and work, to take on and tackle every challenge as it came.....at least in business life if not personal!
AD had given his security guys with Darsh in spite of all his resistance to accept. AD was quite fanatic about security; but Darsh had known after his mother’s untimely demise, that there were no securities in life ever!
“Stay here!” He ordered the security sternly just outside the room.
“But sir…” The men urged. They were instructed not to leave Darsh’s side for even a minute and stay absolutely alert.
“I said, STAY!” Darsh spoke in a ‘no argument allowed’ voice and entered removing his sunglasses in a casual stroke as he faced the rough masculine voices and bursts of angry discussions from the group inside. Darsh stared into each of the three men’s eyes, his face still, his mind busy with schemes.
As he explained what was expected out of them, he was hugely smug about it. His condescending inflection affected them like a dentist's drill hitting a nerve…..you just have to tolerate it, if you dare to shift, you’ll be hugely injured.
At the end of Darsh’s speech, an elderly customer spoke,“Your father is a valued name in business world. Is he aware of this plan of yours?” Disapproval frosted the older man’s voice.
Darsh tensed immediately at the mention of his father’s name the muscles of his shoulders drawing upward. He forced them back down and resisted the temptation to reach up and ease a cramp of tension at the back of his neck. “Go on,” he invited softly, “You can call him, right away!”
Darsh’s confidence made the man falter.
“Why must we give up on our fixed supplier since so long?”Another questioned.
Darsh answered sounding relaxed even though his dark gaze was intent, “Always remember, ‘the tree without sunlight will bear no fruit.’ You don’t have much choice.”
Pooja was looking far away towards the banks, lost in her own reverie. Naani came after her and put a loving hand softly on her shoulder,“What happened, Pooja beta?”
Pooja smiled wide immediately turning to Naani, “Naani, truly, tell us, how do you come to know everything though you can’t see?”
“Now, don’t avoid my query with your forever stupid question. Share with me, child! You know, any of your secret will always be safe with me.”
“Yes Naani. I know that so well. But really, it’s nothing.”
“Now, you’ll get a flying thappad.”Naani warned, “Give me the truth!”
Pooja sighed wistfully, “Naani, why does it happen sometimes in life, that you know you can’t want something, you don’t want yourself to want it; yet you can’t stop your heart from wanting it” She laughed ruefully, “I am not making any sense, am I?”
“To me? Yes, you’re making complete sense. Your heart’s desires are never a crime, Pooja. Cherish them, strive for them and you will find happiness always.”
“But Naani, in life we don’t get every desire of ours, do we?” Pooja spoke plaintively.
“In your life, at least, I’ll stand by you and pray for all your desires to come true, trust me!” There was a serene confident smile on Naani’s face.
At a little distance far, Miku stood chatting with Bhabhi. “That spider thing Murli spoke about, did Bhai really do it to you?” His voice was full of concern.
Chandni sighed. Miku was as smart as his brother and nothing could ever be hidden from him; but neither could she give him the complete truth. “He’s my wicked angel, Miku! He may do anything; but the bottom line is that he loves me.”
Frowning contemplatively, Miku answered “It’s good that Bhai realized the truth about the whole past and brought you back with love. If he were to make you go away, I would not be able to forgive him.
He’s my Bhai, yes, and I’ll do anything and everything for him. But if the choice ever comes between you and him, all my loyalties will lie with you. You know that, right?”
“Yes Miku! I know it and I will always remember it, mere bhai! Now don’t waste time with me; go and woo your own girl!” Chandni pointed at Shikha laughingly.
Angry questions were being bombarded at Advay but he managed to keep his voice quiet, with his practised patience though now forced.
Chhadha glowered at Advay, “Jimmy is our close friend from olden times. Why should we support you against him, whatever rewards you may promise us?”
Advay looked at him dead in the eyes, “Why don’t you consult the home minister about your decision. He may have a thing or two to tell you regarding that small venture you run in the background.” Chhadha had created enough trouble already instigating the other team members. It was time to pull his strings tight.
“Are you threatening me?” Chhadha barked angrily.
A quiet, scoffing breath escaped Advay, “It’s not a threat. It’s a promise.”
“This will not be easy for you in long run!”
“What’s the enjoyment if life were to be easy. You will be most welcome to do anything you wish.”
Advay’s tone was as crisp as the strike of a chisel through granite.
In the evening, when the family stepped down at the pier, Advay was there standing happily with a smile to receive them.
Before Chandni could turn to see him, she felt his warm hands engulf her shoulders and a pair of lips press against her shoulder blade. She turned and held him away immediately, embarrassed that others were following soon.
He laughed at her sudden discomfiture, ”Katto, hope you had a good day!”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When exactly had Advay started his attrition warfare with call to Aakash, check the back episode, you'll like it.
When Advay explained his work to Chandni, though destructive but righteous
As Advay had discussed with Darsh on the very first day in paris, he's attacking Jimmy's pillars of power. What will happen to Papad king?
God! I have reached 60th chapter finally!
And a long episode with Advay's revenge drama once again.
The story as I had expected it to flow when the show first started.
How do you gals find it, do tell!
Hints to further tracks given in this episode, so do read carefully and relate later in further episodes. 
Loving2Missing22019-11-03 16:49:32
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Neha @Loving2Missing2
+ 2
4 years ago
Gul Khan And Gorky M...... a great creative couple! Both talented in their own realms.Tanhaiyaan has felt magical for us..... and concept story was penned by Gul herself!...... Our iconic serial's hugely famous song Rabba Ve is penned by her!And her talent is not limited there.... rather she's the MASTER OF THE GAME!MaanGeet, Arnav-Khushi, Asad Zoya, Haider- Meera, Shivay-Anika, Advay Chandni..... she has created unforgettable iconic romantic pairs..... she has touched actors and they turn to gold, coming up with best performances of their lives!And Gorky, his captivating direction and camera work..... I mean did Barun ever look better than when clicked through Gorky's camera.Gorky does some amazing stuff and creates magic..... like keeping empty photo frames during shootYet, he's the one who can perfectly capture Barun's superb portrayal of pain.Barun is a diamond by himself, you give him script and he brings it alive in front of us. Yet, I can never forget that this diamond was shown to us as Arnav by this couple. He had done roles before; but it was Arnav that made him worldwide popular.In spite of his having left the serial and then having faced a hiatus from screens, this couple had the faith in Barun to re-launch him in Tanhaiyaan!My chapter below is a tribute to Gul and Gorky! It uses the verse from IPK3 episode when Chandni recognises Dev. it's a beautiful meaning verse though it didn't gain the kind of popularity that the earlier shows verses received; but that doesn't hinder the beauty of the verseNjoy!Loving2Missing22019-09-13 19:05:14
Neha @Loving2Missing2
+ 2
4 years ago
A sincere Appeal!While you girls wait for next update, why don't you take some time from your busy schedules and read entire through the long journey of 60 chapters. Enjoy the updated chapters experience, your like hit might have been missed, update that as read receipt.....Links are all available on first page for ease of scrolling.Do pen your thoughts on this Advay developing after the show end. Just anything!Let us discuss the show!Loving2Missing22019-09-13 03:57:01
AnnDan @AnnDan
4 years ago
Yes, Advay is a very complex character. Barun loves just such roles. And I love him for it)))
Neha @Loving2Missing2
+ 2
4 years ago
A fantabulous VM I found on youtube. ...... A saga is created.....how Barun's various show frames are mixed..... captured my heart and humbled me !Do enjoy friends..... as such our minds are parched with no release of Barun and no news of any TV show...... so this is like a sudden oasis!
AnnDan @AnnDan
4 years ago
Thanks Neha) Advay is very cool in this update. And it was so sweet: ”Hi Love, hope you had a good day!” Love it)