"Amar, make sure that you've packed everything, don't leave anything till later, okay?" A very concerned woman was nervously twiddling her fingers as she watched her son gather his clothes. Naturally she was worried for him, as he was going to India, for the first time since they moved to London, that too on his own. She fretted over the millions of things that could happen to him, he could lose his entire luggage, his passport, or the plane might crash, or...or...or he might get kidnapped!! 'Hey Bhagwan' she thought to herself, 'please make sure that Amar reaches India safely, agar aapne aisa kiya, toh main har hafte vrat rakungi' ('if you do this, then I'll keep a fast every week')
Amar smiled at his mother's behaviour, first she had a concerned look on her face, obviously worrying for Amar, and then the concerned expression changed to one of pleading, meaning that she was attempting to strike a deal with God. He walked up to his mother and softly hugged her.
"Maa, I'm going to India, not to the moon" he smiled
"Main maa hoon teri, fikr toh hogi na?" ("I'm your mother, so I will be worried")
"Amar?" A middle aged man walked into the room, glanced at Amar's mother and sighed. "Sriti, tum phir se shuru hogayi? Amar baccha nahin hain." ("Sriti, you started again? Amar is not a kid.")
"That's what I've been trying to explain to her, but she doesn't listen. Maa, look, it's only a matter of two months, then you guys are coming, so what's the worry?" Amar and his father spent the rest of the time trying to persuade Sriti.
-----x-----
It was 4 in the morning. Amar had never woken up this early in all his 24 years. But he had to today, to reach the airport in time for his flight. He showered, got dressed and did a final check. Two suitcases, sidebag, his passport and tickets, 'yup, everything's there' he thought to himself. He felt excited but nervous at the same time; the last time he was in India was when he was 7. 17 years on, what was everything going to be like? How was everyone going to behave towards him? Will they recognize him? Will he be able to recognize them?
-----x-----
"This flight is ready for take-off. Please fasten your seat belts"
Amar fastened his belt and settled back to get some sleep. It was a long flight and he planned on using the time wisely.
2 hours later, the air hostesses brought round the food. Amar hated aeroplane food, it was so...so...it was so 'aeroplanish'. But then again, being served by a pretty air hostess had its plus points. Amar smiled at her, making sure that she would not miss his cute dimples. As soon as her eyes fell on Amar, the air hostess nearly lost her balance and almost dropped the tray in her hand. 'Jeez, I know girls find me irresistible, as a matter of fact, some guys do too, but I didn't know that I had this much of an effect on people' Amar grinned.
"Umm...are you alright?" He asked politely
"Yes, I...uh...umm...excuse me" She gave Amar his tray and literally sprinted to back to her cabin. Amar chuckled. 'Raaste mein itni khuoobsurat ladki mil gayi, toh jab main apni manzil pohchunga, na jaane kitne khoobsurat ladkiyan milegi' ('I came across such a pretty girl on the way, so who knows how many pretty girls I'll meet when I reach my destination') he thought.
-----x-----
Amar stepped out of the car and grabbed his bags. "Amar Pratap Singh, welcome back home" he said to himself. Amar looked up at the house, Singh Nivas, and pushed open the gate. As he walked towards the house, he spotted the Tulsi plant in the courtyard. He smiled as a distant memory of a woman, his Dadima, watering the Tulsi plant flooded back to him.
Amar curled his hands into a fist to knock on the door, as soon as he was about to knock, the door flew wide open. A man stood there, around Amar's father's age, but doing considerably well at looking not more than in his 30s. If Amar already didn't have an idea of who the man was, he would have said that the man was a cousin. Before Amar could utter a single word, he was engulfed in a huge hug. "Amar!" The man said as he let go of Amar. "By God, your father was right. What am I on about, Sameer is always right, you do look like your grandfather. The same eyes, the same nose, the same dimpled smile, if I hadn't known better, I would have said you were his twin. Anyway, tum mujhe bhool toh nahin gaye na? ("You haven't forgotten me have you?") I hope you still remember me?"
"Uh...Bharat Chachu?" Amar asked tentatively.
The man looked crestfallen, "Oh damn, I was going to try and tease you if you hadn't remembered correctly. Yeah, I'm your Bharat Chachu" Amar grinned as he hugged his uncle once again, while Bharat shouted "Aditi, Nivaan, come look who's here!"
-----x-----
An hour later, they were gathered in the living room eating through some delicious snacks that Aditi, Bharat's wife, had prepared. Amar had already grown fond of her; she took care of Amar in such a way that he hadn't even missed his own mother yet. And Nivaan, Bharat and Aditi's son, had welcomed Amar as if they weren't cousins but brothers.
"Chalo Amar, main tumhe tumhari Dadi se milata hoon ("Come Amar, I'll take you to meet your grandmother ") Mami should be awake by now" Bharat said. They both headed in the direction of the stairs when they saw an old woman walk down them. "Arre Mami, why did you bother coming downstairs? We were coming" said Bharat.
"Agar tum log upar aasakte ho, toh hum neeche kyun nahin aasakte? ("If you can come upstairs, then why can't I come downstairs?") Anyway, I may be old, but I can still walk. Now, can I please meet my grandson?"
Amar walked to his Dadima and took her blessings. She kissed him on the forehead and held his face in her hands. "You look just like him" She said softly.
"I've been told" Amar whispered back.
-----x-----
A few days later, Amar was sitting in the garden, relaxing and thinking. His father had always told him that Amar's Dadima was a symbol of everything good in this world and beyond. She was the epitome of beauty, grace and love. She loved Sameer even though he was adopted, for which Sameer was grateful. So technically, she wasn't Amar's biological grandmother, yet Amar felt a strange sense of bonding between the two of them. It felt special, pure...magical...the more Amar thought about her, the more curious he became, he wanted to know what made his grandmother, Vidya Sagar Pratap Singh, the wonderful woman that she was.
Okies...that was the first part....hope I didn't bore you guys much and that I didn't confuse you either....please do comment and criticize too....don't just be nice...hehe...
Index
Indian Idol 16
