~~~~Part 22: Love Conquers All~~~~
Less than 2 weeks to go before the wedding. Everyone is busy with last minute preparations. Nupur is in college…living in her own share of hell as she goes through preparations starting from shopping to decorations to halls bookings. Shilpa has been out of India for quite some time so she has lost touch with the way things work now a days in her home town. Things have developed a lot…modernisation has kicked in big time but the authenticity and the traditional values of the people remain intact. As Nupur participates in all activities alongside with Diya, deep inside she still remains hurt and burdened with questions that have been triggered ever since Tanmay left. What was he trying to say …she thinks to herself? He has never talked to her that way despite of the fact that he knew all along, right from beginning about what has happened between her and Mayank. He rather remained oblivious of these and maintained a happy soul all along with a constant effort to keep her happy and make her smile. What happened then? Why those words? and why did he sound so…so much hurt? Is "hurt" the right word? she asks herself again. What was he trying to explain…? Why is it not making sense? While she was walking through the corridor lost in her dilemma, Benji comes running to her…
B: yaar poora college chaan maara kahan ghumti rehti ho? kabhi to yaar kisi ek jagah mil jaya karo
N: kya hua kuch bataoge?
B: tumhare liye Diya ka phone (as he passes his mobile)
N: hamare liye?
B: nahi..princi k liye…main to bas awaien tumhe phone de raha hoon. waise yaar ek mobile phone to le hi sakti ho na! emergency me kaam aata hai
N: Benji pata hai na tumhe..technology se chirh hai humain
B: haan meri amma…lijiye aap. Diya ka number hai…call karlo usse intezar kar rahi hai. jab khatam hojaye phone deti jaana..main yahin per hoonNupur calls Diya…and there starts the outburst..
D: arre tu kahan thee yaar. poora din tujhe dhoondh rahi hoon…uff kitna kaam hai aur koi cooperate hi nahi ker raha. yeh shaadi kahin flop na hojaye. main kya karoon..God..
N: Diya..pehle saans le…lambiii si…better?
D: phewww….yeah..much better
N: ab bol..kya hogaya aisa k toofan aagaya teri zindagi me
D: yaar shaadi k liye jo hall book kiya tha ..unn gadhon ne usse double booking kar liya! Imagine!!!! kuch hi din baaqi hai aur hall hi nahi hai. ab maine kuch aur halls and hotels se baat ki hai. unhone kuch quotations aur gallery pictures bhaije hai email karke. woh mujhe Shilpa Aunty ko dikhana hai taaki woh select kar sake. ab dekh..poore din se kaushish kar rahi hoon per meri net connection down hai. pata nahi yaar yeh saari mushkilay ek saath kyun aati hai? ab tu hi madad kar meri…
N: issme hum kya madad kare?
D: dekh maine unn logon ko keh diya tha k woh saare quotations tere email acct me forward kar de. ab tu to college me hai, ho sake to unn quotations aur pics ka printout leti aana. aaj hi Aunty ko dikhana hai aur hall book karna hai. plz jaldi kar…woh manager chala gaya to aajka din bhi gayah
N: (sighs) thik hai baba…tu Khuda k vaaste araam kar and let me handle this. email kar diya unn logon ne?
D: arre 2 ghante pehle email kiya hai aur tab se to dhoondh rahi hoon tujhe. plz jaa ab tu lab me aur printouts nikaal ke foran hum se ghar pe mil. saath me chalenge Aunty k yahan. tab tak main catering ki dekh leti hoon. aur sunn..Benji ka phone apne paas hi rakh filhaal. agar zaroorat hui to call kar lena mujhe
N: thik hai…
As instructed, she goes to the lab and after a very long time, opens her email account. She recalls the last time she was in front of this computer when Mayank proposed online. With trembling fingers and pain she continues wondering what more she will need to go through during the upcoming days! As she opens her account, she sees quite a few unread emails. Most of them, not surprisingly, from Mayank written since after the day when they last met online. She selects them all to delete but something stops her. She wants to delete these…in fact she wants to wipe off every single memory of Mayank but the more she tries to forget the more she remembers him and more she feels hurt. She keeps on hovering her mouse around those emails which stopped coming through after their last telephone conversation. She says to herself.."yeh sab kyun horaha hai hamare saath, kya kare hum?" and then she recalls what Tanmay said.."apne aankhein bandh karo aur phir se apne dil ki awaaz suno jo duniya ki shor me kahi dabb gayi hai". So she closes her eyes…shuts herself from this world and all its noises and she recalls all those feelings she has for Mayank…those sweet memories that brings a smile on her face has today, somehow superceded the sorrow that it brought lately. All on a sudden, her heart took control over her and she did what her heart told her to do….she clicked on the 1st email Mayank wrote straight after their online convi..same date..but couple of hours later perhaps.
From: Mayank
To: Nupur
5th May 2011Nupur,
andaaza nahi aapko aaj aap ne kitni badi khushi di hai mujhe. abhi tak apna convi parh raha hoon…yaqeen nahi hota k pal bhar me duniya itni khubsoorat kaise hogayi? All thanks to you! aaj agar main Khuda se kuch aur bhi maang leta to shayed woh bhi mil jaata per main maangoon bhi to kya maangoon..jis khushi se meri har khushi juri hai woh to aap ho. aur iss khushi ko paane k baad aaj humain aur koi khushi ki tamanna bhi nahi.
pata nahi ab aap khud kaisa mehsoos kar rahe honge? main jaanta hoon…yeh sab itna achanak hogaya… thoda sa darr..thodi si nervousness to horahi hogi na? sach kahe to humain bhi :) per bharosa hai mujhe…khud per utna nahi jitna hamari iss anokhi rishte per hai jisse itne saalon ki faasle bhi mita na saki. dekha na…hum mil hi gaye. ab bas aapko hamare iss duniya me laana baaqi hai. kitni saare baatein aap se karni hai humain. kya aap jaanti hai k bachpan se lekar aaj tak hum kabhi bhi aapko bhool nahi paaye. hamesha…school me..college me koi naya dost milta to hum aap hi ka sochte. kisise hamari dosti sahi tarha se nahi nibhta tha kyunki humain hamesha lagta tha k woh aapki jagah lene ki kaushish kar raha hai. pata nahi kab aur kaise waqt ke saath saath hamare beech itne dooriyan aagayi per yaqeen maane hamara... ek lamha bhi jo maine aapko apne dil se door kiya ho. waqt k saath saath haalat bhi badalte gaye…humain lagah aap humain bhool gayi hongi..aakhir 9 saal ki ek bacchi ko kahan tak aur kitna yaad rehta. humain lagah k bachpan ki woh masoom jazbaat woh choti choti khwahishe jawani k saath mohabbat me agar tabadla hui hai to woh sirf hamare liye hi hui hongi. aap bhi ussi manzar se guzar rahi ho iss baat ka pata to humain bohat dair k baad chala. shuker hai Khuda ka k Diya aagayi London warna shayed hamari kahani aadhuri hi reh jaati. hum apne ankahee jazbon ka izhaar aap se kabhi na kar paate aur na hi aapke iqraar se waaqif hote. zindagi ke yeh 10 saal jis kaifiyet se hum guzre usska to andaaza bhi nahi hoga aapko per aaj humain Khuda se ..iss poori qayenaat se koi shikwa ya shikayet nahi. aakhir sab ne milke hamare sacche mohabbat ko anjaam de hi diya. bas ab yeh dooriyan foran khatam hojaaye…aur Mayank aur Nupur ko ek doosre ki deedar naseeb hojaaye…
aap ki hamari duniya me qadam rakhne ki muntazir..
-Mayank
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
With a sigh…Nupur continues to read the next email which was written the very next day.
From: Mayank
To: Nupur
6th May 2011
kaisi ho? kal ki email dekhi? ya abhi tak parhna baaqi hai? kal main itna khush tha k aankhon se neend hi jaise urr gaya ho. bas subhe ka intezar tha…k bhaag k ma-papa k paas jaaoon aur hamari shaadi ki baat keroon. Nupur…aaj mujhe aapse kuch kehna hai…ek confession karni hai. khauff sa horaha hai na jaane iss baat ko kaise lengi aap per isse pehle main apne ghar per baat karoon, yeh sacchai aap ke saamne rakhna laazmi hogaya hai ab. hum nahi chahte hamari rishte ki buniyaad kisi bhi jhoot se ya phir aisi kisi baat pe khara ho jo saamne aane per aapko taqleef ho ya hamare pyar per aap ko shakk ho.
aaj se 3 saal pehle jab hum apni graduation karne London aaye to hum Raheja uncle k ghar thehre the. ma-papa tab tak US se shift nahi hue the aur UK hamare liye naya tha aur ghar se hum pehli baar door the. Raheja uncle aur aunty ne hamara bohat khayal rakkha…apne bete jaisa pyaar diya. unnki ek beti hai Simran…hum dono ki bhi acchi dosti hogayi. aap k baad agar humain koi accha aur saccha dost mila to woh Simran hi thee. hum dono ek hi university me bhi jaate the halankein subjects alag the. kher…hum dono ki dosti jitna gehra hota gaya Simran ki expectations bhi barhte gaye jisska mujhe ilm bhi nahi tha. jab ussne apne jazbon ka iqraar kiya to shadeed taqleef hui mujhe..maine usse mana to kar diya per meri mana karne per usski zindagi ka rukh hi badal gaya. main usse apne inkaar ki wajah nahi bata paaya..kaise batataa usse k main jis ladki ko bachpan se dil-o-jaan se mohabbat karta hoon ussne 10 saal me meri shakal nahi dekhi aur shayed mujhe bhool bhi gayi hogi. meri bewajah ki inkaar ne usse torr diya aur maine na hi ek dost khoya per ek ma-baap apni ek lauti beti ko bhi khonay lage the. apne nakaam mohabbat ko maine apne dil me daffan kar diya aur Simran se shaadi karne k liye tayyar bhi hogaya. In fact kuch mahine pehle hamari engagement bhi ho chuki per mera yaqeen maano Nupur…maine siwaye aapke kisiko nahi chaha aur na hi kisi aur ka khayal bhi laaya apne zehen me. humain lagah k humain to apna mohabbat milne se raha…kam se kam Simran ko apni mohabbat mil jaaye. aur shayed ussi ki dua se aap ko apni mohabbat haasil hojaaye. taqdeer ka khel dekhiye..shaadi me kuch mahine baaqi hai aur aapko apni mohabbat haasil hogayi :) isse kehte hai Khuda k ghar dair hai andher nahi.
pata nahi yeh sab parhke aapko kaisa lag raha hoga. aap shayed khaffa hojaaye humse…ruth bhi jaaye. per hum aapko manaa lenge bas aap hum per se apna aetbaar na khoyyega. wohi to ek ehsaas hai jo humain itno doori me bhi itne kareeb rakhta hai hamesha. agar phir bhi aapko lage humse khata hui hai koi…to aapko unn saare lamhon ka vaasta jo hum dono ne ek doosre se door hote hue bhi ek saath guzaare..humain muaaf kar dijiyega. per Khuda k liye khud ko humse alag na kijiyega…hum jee nahi paayenge ab aap ke baghair.
-Mayank
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Nupur's eyes are now full with tears…and she cannot seem to read anything any further. She says to herself.." ya Khuda…yeh humnain kya kar diya.." she wipes her tears with her hands and reads the next email which was written 3 days later…
From: Mayank
To: Nupur
9th May 2011 aap hamare emails ka jawab kyun nahi de rahi ho? kya aapko sach jaanke bura laga? kya hamari emails nahi mil rahe aapko? aisa to kabhi nahi hua? kahi aap Simran ki baat ko lekar naraaz to nahi na humse. agar ho bhi to please bataa dijiye, hum hal dhoondh lenge koi. aur aap yeh na samjhe k hum aapko dhokha de rahe hai. ma-papa se baat hogayi hai..papa thode se naraaz hai kyunki Raheja uncle unnki bohat acche dost hai aur shaadi ki cards bhi batt chuke hai ab. per aap fiker mat karna hum unhe mana lenge. hamari shaadi sirf aur sirf aap hi se hogi warna kisi se bhi nahi. aap ko hamari qasam hum per bharosa rakhiye…sab theek hojayega. email ki milte hi hum se raabta kijiye..
-Mayank
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Nupur notices another few back to back short emails requesting her to write back as soon as possible until the day when they spoke on the phone. There has been no contact since then. That's when she remembers what she said to him..
agar aap ne humse milne ki ya humse baat karne ki ya koi bhi raabta rakhne ki kaushish bhi ki..to humain unn saare yaadon ki qasam jinke sahare hum abhi tak zinda hai…hum aap hi ke saamne khud ko khatam kar denge.No wonder why Mayank never contacted her since then. He loves her so much that after that kind of a statement, there is no way he would have taken a chance on contacting her. Everything now becomes clearer to Nupur and the more fact finding her heart does the more she realises the mistakes she has made over the past few days. After the unbearable guilt feel, Nupur has no other option but to hide herself in a corner and repent. She forgets everything including taking the printouts for the wedding quotations and runs home and locks herself in her bedroom where she lets herself out. She fails to control her tears any further and starts weeping…
"yeh hum se kya hogaya? itna bara gunah kaise kar diya humnain…apni mohabbat per shakk kiya…" she breaks down on her knees and hides her face with her hands as if she was ashamed of her own self. No one knows how long she has been like that but as soon as she gets a grip on herself again managing to clear off her tears, suddenly she notices her entire room full with shopping bags and packs. As she looks deeper into them she notices the shopping is that of Mayank's wedding. Everything that she chose herself…the bridalwear, the jewellery, the sarees..the accessories and on the table, there are few of the same cards. She opens one of them that contains yet again another set of golden words:
"We would like to cordially invite you to the wedding ceremony of our one and only son "Mr. Mayank Sharma" with "Miss. Nupur Bhushan" daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Anand Bhushan…" (on the very same day Mayank was to marry Simran).
-Neela-
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
35