Hi All,
I'm new to the forum and really liking the show (more so in the last two weeks where it looks like the writing might be finally finding its feet). This has been something that's been on my mind to write for a while. The timeline is perhaps about eight months post their wedding. I’ve ignored the elopement track and the annulment track and just assumed that the other couple got married and is in Bollyland happily ever after. Also, assumption is that the step-family is not evil, just indifferent i.e. ignores the current track. This is a bit over the place, but I vaguely think it suits the chaos of the two characters and what they truly yearn for…(a sly excuse for not getting my act together).
ould love your feedback! Now without much ado, here goes…
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It was a routine Thursday, nothing out of the ordinary. Priya was back home after a mundane day at the college and bakery and was sifting through her books to figure out what she should read next. The family was out at the Sangeet of one of their many ‘family friends’. This new world seemed to be stuck in the loop of endless weddings and associated customs. Attending these was almost like a full-time job. She had excused herself from the occasion and her Mother-in-law was more than happy with her absence. She was almost a stranger to the remaining occupants of this house, but that didn’t bother her much. She had learned early in life that expectations were the mother of all problems. If she was being true to herself, it was almost refreshing not to have any expectations nor have anyone impose their expectations on her.
There was however one individual, the one she had married and shared the room with, who she was slowly becoming less of a stranger to, a prospect that she wasn’t entirely averse to. Over the last eight months of their strange compromise of a wedding, they had settled into an ease in their relationship. They had never tried to label their relationship beyond what it was. They both recognised they were each other’s spouse and there was never a hesitation in admitting that. Priya had no time for pretences of being something to the world vs themselves and she was glad Ram believed in the same transparency. To outsiders, their relationship and what they were was the same as what it was to them. The two of them were family, an unlikely unit but that’s what they were.
She picked up her book and made her way to the reading couch in their room but found herself unable to concentrate on the words on the pages. Normally Ram was in the room also reading or working on his laptop. Most days passed in silence, which she treasured, as it was a comfortable silence. Today Priya felt the absence of that shared silence.
Almost as if on cue, her phone chimed, and she glanced at it to see an image from her husband. Ram was at the Sangeet today as well, it wasn’t something he was able to get out. While she was a bit accustomed to being alone when he went on business trips, she had a vague feeling of emptiness knowing he was in the city at an event which she wasn’t at.
She opened the messaging app to see the image he had sent, and it was a picture of her mother-in-law, Shubham, Shivina and the new couple. The image had everyone in smiles and looking splendid as it was with the Kapoors, however more than the image, it was the caption he had attached that sucker punched her….two words attached which said “Missed you”.
Priya’s hand hovered a bit over the words, trying to take in the depth of his message. Ram wore his emotions on his sleeve, and he had absolutely no qualms saying what he felt at all times. Sometimes she thought he felt too much, and him admitting things were a natural outlet for him feeling so much. While she had experienced many moments of him owning up to being pleased she was part of his life (even if it was mostly followed by his declaration of love for his Meera ma), this was the first time he had sent such a direct message. She was trying to understand the reason for the message and what he meant by it, and she glanced back at the picture with the ever-smiling Kapoors, willing for it to speak but knowing very well that it had, she just had to understand it better.
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Ram sat with his index finger running over the rim of his whisky glass, lost in thought. He was surrounded by a cacophony of music, sounds and voices but his mind was far beyond all of this. He was thinking about the message he had sent Priya about an hour ago. It was not new for him that the family had gone on about their lives and not waited for him to take that picture with the to-be-weds, despite him texting them that he was just at the entrance. He hadn’t felt bad when the “Kapoors” had taken the picture without him, or not urged him to join even when he had appeared and taken one with his phone. He knew he was the hanger-on in their family equation, for them he was their husband/father’s son and nothing more…there was no malice underneath, it just wasn’t for them to think of it in any other way. Very early in life, Ram had reconciled to the fact that no matter how much he wanted it and willed it, he would never be a part of this family. He had no family. He had great friends, but no family. Until…Priya.
Priya’s entry in his life had been most unexpected. He had never thought he’d marry, after the Vedika debacle, he was happy with being single forever. Marriage let alone to someone like Priya was not on his cards. She was his stark opposite; they were night and day. He was emotional, cried at the drop of a hat and sang songs in public. She was severe, buried every human emotion deep within her as a defence mechanism and never let on how much she cared. However, what he realised was somewhere, they fit.
In Priya, he had somehow finally found family. Not just her family who showered him with love. Her…the two of them…that family. It was inexplicable how over 8 months, this person who was initially a stranger, had made such a big impact on his life. Their time together was characterised by the most mundane things -> reading, eating, drinking tea, standing on his terrace listening to the crashing waves, some words in between and also silence...all of which were equally cherished and comfortable. When he sent her that picture, it was not because he was side-lined by his family and needed her, it was because he was missing his family...her presence around him. He knew such loud functions were just not her cup of tea and he would never force her to attend but he hadn’t given that thought when he sent her the message.
His mind was currently swirling like the contents of his glass, where small ripples were created due to the repeated motion of his fingers. Two blue ticks were causing havoc. She had read the message but had not responded and he was agonising on how he could recover from this. He had probably scared her with his ridiculous declaration, and he was wondering which lame joke should he send to get over the awkwardness of the situation OR should he send her a follow-up explaining his message and why he sent it? Sigh…choices, choices, each one equally terrifying. Maybe it was best he did it in person, that way he could gauge her reaction and accordingly play it.
Downing the contents of his glass, he wore his blazer as the liquid burned down his throat. He was making his way to congratulate the couple so he could then exit when he felt an arm on his shoulder. He spun around and for the first time, was speechless. There, looking splendid in a pastel pink saree was Priya. He blinked thrice wondering if knocking down his glass was causing him to hallucinate, but no. She was there, looking at him and smiling.
“Priya…tum idhar, matlab…kaise?” he stammered, not quite knowing what to make of her sudden appearance. Guilt filled him quickly squashing the initial joy he felt, as he wondered if she had come because his message made her feel obligated to him and he had coerced her into doing something she wasn’t comfortable with.
She paused…her smile faltering slightly and she fidgeted with the ends of her saree.
“Woh….maine socha ki…socha ki, aapko aapke family ke saath Ahujas ko wish karna chahiye. Toh…toh main aagayi. Aakhir, main aapki family hoon. Hain na?”
As she uttered these words, Priya saw her husband’s face light up with the brightness of a thousand bulbs. He stared at her for a few seconds, turned his face around for a second which she knew was a tell-tale sign of him wiping a tear before holding out his arm to her and then they proceeded, ignorant of their surroundings, eyes just locked into one another…feeling that sense of belonging.
Fin.
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Geet - Hui Sabse Parayee
Cricket
