Manchurian Memories
"I can drive" he told his Dad
"Good, we can talk" Ranjan smiled at II
R&B held her hand and dragged her out of the way when she wandered in the basement parking lot towards an oncoming car
"II" he warned
And held her hand until they got to the car
"Main bhi peechhe baithoon?" she asked Ranjan
"Usne dukhi ho jaana hai" Ranjan teased
"Huh" R&B grunted
"He never talks so I doubt he has to say anything" II took a pot shot
He didnt respond to that either
WHY ON EARTH DID I MARRY A MAN THAT DOESNT TALK?
WORDS ARE LIKE OXYGEN TO ME
Ranjan and her talked the whole way
She showed him pictures of Nivi he hadnt seen before
The backseat of the Ferrari had a CAR SEAT
"Usko peechhe dekhne ka koi shauq nahi, she will be excited when she gets the toddler car seat" Ranjan sighed
"She is like ME" II ack, smugly
R&B half smiled
They arrived at a tiny "boutique" Chinese restaurant near Sikanderpur
R&B must not have texted, because there were atleast 20 people waiting outside, he leaned on the wall nonchalantly
He was not the "calling ahead" types or the "using his hooks" type
"Mainnu keh deta?" Ranjan offered as II stood by him in the balmy January sunshine
"Wont be too long I am told" R&B promised
Ranjan began talking abt what caused the Hungarian company to get delisted
R&B reminded him of the couple other occasions when Maruti did that to a few suppliers
"Are you returning the pallets in phases?" R&B enquired
"Payment to poori de di Trehaan ne" Ranjan tried not to sound angry
R&B looked on grimly
II wandered chatting animatedly with Amma about packing something at DII
She ran into people, jumped off the sidewalk not paying attention to anything
R&B had an eye on her though... it was easy... she was the tallest customer waiting
At almost 5 9
She turned at the end of the block and found him looking at her
As Ranjan spoke to him
Amma asked her where she was she told her Ranjan and her were out at lunch and R&B insinuated himself
"Is Nivi at home?" Amma asked cautiously
"Sofia is not answering her phone, which means she took Nivi to Sam's and is playing with Lasya or something" II said
"U have to understand, when u have a SIL things will be up and down... look at Vandu... her husband's brother doesnt care to take care of his parents" Amma sighed
"I wish Sam was like that" II sighed
"NO u dont... indifference will definitely bother you. Be mature" Amma warned
"I already dont stay home all day, and to find my child not clinging to me in the evenings is painful" II said choking
"Aduvum ONN ishtam" (Ur choice)
"How can u talk like that being a working woman your self?" How can u say I CHOOSE to work?" II was offended
"I didnt have irrational fears like you, about someone stealing my kid" Amma said bluntly
II was hurt...
"Her mother has passed away, anda kozhandaya patha enna tonrado paavam (who knows what Sam feels when she sees
Amma was thoughtful and compassionate... too much so, to the point II felt juvenile and silly
She cudnt shake her feeling of being unwanted... Amma came from a position of security
She didnt marry a man that lived with a woman for 5 years
She didnt marry a man that was a "player"
She was able to look at things differently
R&B's reputation with women was inescapable in every situation
Some of it had definitely cascaded to II's insecurity about Nivi
"I KNOW its hard for them without Mom, Amma I BEG him to help his Dad out... he behaves like an ASS" II was furious
"Tchhh" Amma sighed
"He is COLD & INDIFFERENT and MEAN" Ii said sadly
"Umm... uh... umm" Amma instinctively wanted to support R&B she realized how much he must hurt to have a father do what Ranjan did
"Not sure WHAT he did but looks like he pissed Chachu off, Dad is still SO NICE TO HIM, so happy to see him" II wiped quick tears
"Adu daan paasam" (thats a parent's love) Amma cleared her throat
"Dad just keeps looking at r&b's face longingly. I cant even imagine how shamelessly Chachu flaunts his relationship with his sons in front of Dad" "Paavam" II sighed
R&B had come looking for her
She wanted to cry but couldnt
She had too much pride
"Naa vekaren" (let me hang up) she said swallowing hard
"Hungry?" he asked
She nodded
He saw her big red eyes, pooling tears at the bottom
She walked quietly towards the restaurant
It was a delicious buffet
Every Asian noodles II could ever dream of, gobi manchurian, chow mein, spring rolls... paradise
She went for her third and 4th helping
Ranjan talked about how Gurgaon had transformed from the time he scouted for locations for the showroom and workshops
"Yeh hua hai tab khola hai pehla Gurgaon showroom" Ranjan said proudly
R&B half smiled
"Did he cut the ribbon
"Naa jee puttarjee, isko godee se neeche utarke bhaagna tha... ek ke baad ek saari showroom ki saare gaadiyon mein baitha" Ranjan spoke fondly
R&B gently flirted, reached and felt her fingers, and held her hand securely
"When did he learn to drive?" II asked, trying to free her hand under the table
"I can answer that" R&B mocked, raising his right hand, as if he were in class... as II ignored him
Ranjan laughed out loud... "achha tu hi bata" he smiled
"12? 14?" R&B asked
"Who taught you?" II asked loosening up for a second
"Umm.. Dad" R&B nodded.. unwittingly adressing Ranjan that way
This day will go down as one of the most memorable in Ranjan's life... post scandal that is
His son had stood up for the company, he had displayed values that were dear to Ranjan
His son had given him an opportunity to dance with pride in front of Harish
AND... he said "Dad"Manchurian Memories
"I can drive" he told his Dad
"Good, we can talk" Ranjan smiled at II
R&B held her hand and dragged her out of the way when she wandered in the basement parking lot towards an oncoming car
"II" he warned
And held her hand until they got to the car
"Main bhi peechhe baithoon?" she asked Ranjan
"Usne dukhi ho jaana hai" Ranjan teased
"Huh" R&B grunted
"He never talks so I doubt he has to say anything" II took a pot shot
He didnt respond to that either
WHY ON EARTH DID I MARRY A MAN THAT DOESNT TALK?
WORDS ARE LIKE OXYGEN TO ME
Ranjan and her talked the whole way
She showed him pictures of Nivi he hadnt seen before
The backseat of the Ferrari had a CAR SEAT
"Usko peechhe dekhne ka koi shauq nahi, she will be excited when she gets the toddler car seat" Ranjan sighed
"She is like ME" II ack, smugly
R&B half smiled
They arrived at a tiny "boutique" Chinese restaurant near Sikanderpur
R&B must not have texted, because there were atleast 20 people waiting outside, he leaned on the wall nonchalantly
He was not the "calling ahead" types or the "using his hooks" type
"Mainnu keh deta?" Ranjan offered as II stood by him in the balmy January sunshine
"Wont be too long I am told" R&B promised
Ranjan began talking abt what caused the Hungarian company to get delisted
R&B reminded him of the couple other occasions when Maruti did that to a few suppliers
"Are you returning the pallets in phases?" R&B enquired
"Payment to poori de di Trehaan ne" Ranjan tried not to sound angry
R&B looked on grimly
II wandered chatting animatedly with Amma about packing something at DII
She ran into people, jumped off the sidewalk not paying attention to anything
R&B had an eye on her though... it was easy... she was the tallest customer waiting
At almost 5 9
She turned at the end of the block and found him looking at her
As Ranjan spoke to him
Amma asked her where she was she told her Ranjan and her were out at lunch and R&B insinuated himself
"Is Nivi at home?" Amma asked cautiously
"Sofia is not answering her phone, which means she took Nivi to Sam's and is playing with Lasya or something" II said
"U have to understand, when u have a SIL things will be up and down... look at Vandu... her husband's brother doesnt care to take care of his parents" Amma sighed
"I wish Sam was like that" II sighed
"NO u dont... indifference will definitely bother you. Be mature" Amma warned
"I already dont stay home all day, and to find my child not clinging to me in the evenings is painful" II said choking
"Aduvum ONN ishtam" (Ur choice)
"How can u talk like that being a working woman your self?" How can u say I CHOOSE to work?" II was offended
"I didnt have irrational fears like you, about someone stealing my kid" Amma said bluntly
II was hurt...
"Her mother has passed away, anda kozhandaya patha enna tonrado paavam (who knows what Sam feels when she sees
Amma was thoughtful and compassionate... too much so, to the point II felt juvenile and silly
She cudnt shake her feeling of being unwanted... Amma came from a position of security
She didnt marry a man that lived with a woman for 5 years
She didnt marry a man that was a "player"
She was able to look at things differently
R&B's reputation with women was inescapable in every situation
Some of it had definitely cascaded to II's insecurity about Nivi
"I KNOW its hard for them without Mom, Amma I BEG him to help his Dad out... he behaves like an ASS" II was furious
"Tchhh" Amma sighed
"He is COLD & INDIFFERENT and MEAN" Ii said sadly
"Umm... uh... umm" Amma instinctively wanted to support R&B she realized how much he must hurt to have a father do what Ranjan did
"Not sure WHAT he did but looks like he pissed Chachu off, Dad is still SO NICE TO HIM, so happy to see him" II wiped quick tears
"Adu daan paasam" (thats a parent's love) Amma cleared her throat
"Dad just keeps looking at r&b's face longingly. I cant even imagine how shamelessly Chachu flaunts his relationship with his sons in front of Dad" "Paavam" II sighed
R&B had come looking for her
She wanted to cry but couldnt
She had too much pride
"Naa vekaren" (let me hang up) she said swallowing hard
"Hungry?" he asked
She nodded
He saw her big red eyes, pooling tears at the bottom
She walked quietly towards the restaurant
It was a delicious buffet
Every Asian noodles II could ever dream of, gobi manchurian, chow mein, spring rolls... paradise
She went for her third and 4th helping
Ranjan talked about how Gurgaon had transformed from the time he scouted for locations for the showroom and workshops
"Yeh hua hai tab khola hai pehla Gurgaon showroom" Ranjan said proudly
R&B half smiled
"Did he cut the ribbon
"Naa jee puttarjee, isko godee se neeche utarke bhaagna tha... ek ke baad ek saari showroom ki saare gaadiyon mein baitha" Ranjan spoke fondly
R&B gently flirted, reached and felt her fingers, and held her hand securely
"When did he learn to drive?" II asked, trying to free her hand under the table
"I can answer that" R&B mocked, raising his right hand, as if he were in class... as II ignored him
Ranjan laughed out loud... "achha tu hi bata" he smiled
"12? 14?" R&B asked
"Who taught you?" II asked loosening up for a second
"Umm.. Dad" R&B nodded.. unwittingly adressing Ranjan that way
This day will go down as one of the most memorable in Ranjan's life... post scandal that is
His son had stood up for the company, he had displayed values that were dear to Ranjan
His son had given him an opportunity to dance with pride in front of Harish
AND... he said "Dad"
