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Here we go...
PART 7
"A work of art rests its merits in
traditional qualities.
It may constitute a remarkable feat in craftsmanship;
it may be a searching study of psychological states;
it may be a nostalgic glance backward;
it may be any one of an infinite number of concepts, none of which may have any possible bearing upon its degree of newness."
- Ben Shahn
Anuradha Khurana was on a roll. She ran all around the house shouting instructions at the servants and calling to the Khurana haweli at Samaypur now and then. She wanted everything to be perfect this time as it was not just the Shankar pooja but also the possibility of a suitable alliance for her son.
"Nakul make sure you get all the things in that list,alright? I don't want anyone to feel short of anything at Samaypur."
Dadi was selecting a few sarees from the designer and traditional ones that were sent by various merchandises according to her requirements. It was customary to shower the daughter-in-law with jewels and clothes once the proposal was finalised. Dadi had already accepted Geet and somehow she had a feeling that Dev and Geet would enjoy each others company.
"Oh, I can't believe Dev is getting married", an excited Anuradha beamed in front of her saas.
"Just wait Anu. There is still time. They didn't even meet each other.", she said with a smile.
"And you are already selecting presents for her maaji", Anu complained innocently.
"I am preparing in advance just in case", Dadi defended herself.
"Well, maaji you know what I am thinking. If both say yes then, we should get them engaged in this trip itself. Nothing fancy, just a small ritual. Both families will be there."
"Hmm..not a bad idea. Did you talk to the Handas?"
"Yash told Rana. He agreed. They seem to get along well. Rana is too matured for his age it seems."
Dadi picked an olive green saree and compared it with the turquoise one in her hand,"Rana is what Yash wants from Maan, you mean?"
Anu sighed. The father and son topic always had her torn. Whom should she blame? A father who owned a huge empire and wanted his eldest son to take over or a son who wanted to succeed on his own terms?
"Maan is a responsible son maa ji. He just doesn't express that much"
Dadi decided she didn't like both the sarees and then moved on to the chilly red saree admiring its pallu work. "What did he say about all this?"
Anu shook her head, "Don't ask me maa ji. He doesn't like Geet at all. I don't know why!"
Dadi was surprised, "Is he still holding that hospital incident against her? I told him it was not her fault."
Anu frowned,"Don't know, he said something about white pepper?"
It was then dadi looked at Anu's face, "White pepper?Does Geet cook?"
"Well I tried asking Anika twice.She just smiled. The girl is the youngest and a doctor. I will be surprised if she knows where her kitchen is!"
Both Anu andDadi laughed, "Well good for us we are not pairing her up with Maan. You know how particular he is about his food. The woman who is going to make his food must inspire his pallet! Can you believe he told me that?", said dadi fondly.
"I know. At first I thought he was saying it as an excuse to avoid marriage. But he really meant that. Maan always wanted a wife who inspires his cooking" Anu smiled remembering the time when his son was playful and talked about things like that to her. Her smile disappeared as she heard dadi ask, "Is he coming to the pooja?"
"You know na maa ji he stopped ever since... that year. Five years and still he wont attend! I hinted about the engagement and he was even more mad about rushing things with Geet."
Now dadi looked furious, "Nonsense, he cannot avoid his brother's engagement. I will talk to him!"
"That is if it comes to that", Anu reminded her.
"At any case, I will ask him to keep himself free for next week and see how it comes out."
Anu was happy now. "I don't know what I would have done with him if not for you. It's easier with Dev."
"What did our dulha say about Geet?", dadi asked lovingly.
Anu had a big smile as she replied, "Whatever the elders think is suitable. How is he so perfect maa ji?"
Dadi tried not to burst into laughter as she remembered Maan's comments on Dev. Not that she had any favorites among her grandsons, but Maan was the apple of her eye. She sighed wishing if only he had said yes to marriage, Geet was her choice for him initially but Maan was so aloof. Now is not the right time. Perhaps another girl, another time!
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Time felt stagnant to Geet as she observed the magnanimous structure that was the Khurana haweli. The vast courtyard, the tenderly looked after garden were just the beginning. The Haweli was a magnificent building made of standstone. The ceilings had a millions of tales to tell adorned with art and craft that spoke of it's history. There were somewhat twenty rooms in total amidst which was the open courtyard. Yet, what shocked Geet was when dadi told her that these were just a restoration of the original structure which was considerably damaged due to successive wars.
As they moved past the centuries old rooms with antique furniture still kept intact, Geet wondered how magnificent this place would have been before it was ruined, not that it was any less now.
The Handas were staying at the Khurana haweli as their own home town, Veerpur, was around 60kms away from the place. Geet had begged NT to join them but she had this paper presentation about stem cell preservation in an International Medical conference. Geet knew how important it was for NT and had no choice but leave her back.However NT promised to join her on the forth day of their visit to see the festival and of course to approve this great Mr. Khurana who was going to marry her Geet.
It was their second day at Samaypur. Geet and Anika prayed at the shrine of the Shankar temple. The Handas and Khuranas were visitng the temple together after they reached Samaypur for the first time. Geet looked at the construction in awe. The idol of Lord Shiva was so placed that the first ray of Sun hit his forehead where the third eye is said to be. The whole temple was surrounded by a small pond which had water as clear as sky. The elaborate design on the stone pillars intrigued her. She stood watching one particular carving closely. A man was being struck by a knife from behind and his blood fell on to the womb of a woman whose eyes had tears in them. Their hands were unable to meet each other separated by inches. The next pillar was a continuation of the story, the woman was on a horse which was facing away but she kept looking at him with blood dripping from her cloak as he stood there still with a crowd of armed men charging behind him.
Geet was so lost in it that she didn't notice the gentleman watching her amused. "Interesting, isn't it?" Geet was startled by the voice and she turned to look at the intruder. She smiled nervously, "Dev?"
Dev gave his charming smile and straightened his glasses, "Thank God, at least you know my name! Given the speed of our families they would get us married before we even introduce ourselves"
Geet laughed. She felt comfortable. Dev was tall, handsome and charming. She was impressed.
"So what's this all about?", she gestured at the stone art in front of them.
Dev smiled. The art and culture particularly of his lineage was his passion. "You know what they say? That man was a Khurana warrior!"
Geet gave him a confused look, "Warrior? I heard your ancestors were traders"
Dev's eyes gleamed proudly as if he expected this question from her, "Yes we were great traders but this one," he pointed at the fallen man and looked at it as if he knew that man, "he was both. The greatest warrior in the entire Samaypur and one of the finest traders. Legend says he fell in love with a fairy, a maiden from the paradise. The enemies were so jealous of her beauty that they tried to steal her from him. But the warrior protected her and died doing so. The day he was taken down, the fairy cursed Veerpur and returned to her land. No one ever knew what happened to her or who she was."
Geet, "Why did she curse our Veerpur?"
Dev looked at her and grinned, "You don't know much about your homeland, do you?"
Geet shrugged, "I have been there for a summer or two. We never talk much about homeland or..my parents actually"
"I am sorry", Dev apologised quickly. Geet smiled, "Don't be. I barely remember them. Go on complete your story"
Dev gestured her to walk ahead and showed some other scriptures in the wall, "See these combats. These are Handas and Khuranas. Ages ago these two clans were enemies. They couldn't stand each other."
Geet "Why so?"
Dev turned back facing Geet and started walking backwards as he explained, "I have a theory for that. Handas were great warriors and weapon masters.Naturally they had a high place with the royalty. But Khuranas were the traders who brought coins to the palace. The real power rested with the men who made money obviously. Now imagine if they even have a fierce warrior too. The Handas saw the threat and found a reason to eliminate it"
Geet stopped short in her tracks, "Wait..you are telling me that my family, us, Handas, are the bad guys who killed that man?"
Dev shrugged leaning against a pillar, his face now red by the sun,"I didn't say that. That's the folklore"
Geet rolled her eyes, "You are making up stories now"
Dev, "Ohh...Geeet don't take it to heart honey, it was your ancestors, not you!"
Dev and Geet just started talking random stuff and walked back to the group only to find them all staring at them with curious eyes. Both of them felt conscious and moved away.
It took a lot of coaxing and pleading from Anika and Anuradha and the elderly advise of dadi to finally make Rana and Arjun say yes to a day out for Geet and Dev alone. After the temple visit the Handas and Khuranas left in the same car leaving behind Dev and Geet.
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PRECAP : Dev and Geet's date!! 😳
Yeah, I know! 🤔 Maanga kya aur mila kya...😕
But that was unavoidable. Let me how you feel about this one
More updates to come this weekend. Will PM it all together.
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