RiKara FF: Musings of the Heart |Pt 2- Pg 7| 29-12-17 - Page 2

"Gauri, it's her first day at kindergarten. KINDERGARTEN! She's not going to the border for a battle!" Annika rolled her eyes and said in exasperation, while Chhaya chuckled at that, and suppressed her amusement by putting on a straight face within a second as Gauri glared at her in the middle of checking the little girl's uniform to be prim and proper. "Annika, please! I'm tensed enough already, and I don't need to be told anything right now" Gauri muttered, as she picked up the little pink bag and placed the tiffin box in it. "Chhaya, Mamma is going to be very upset if you don't finish eating your food. I don't want you to bring the tiffin box back, as it is." Chhaya nodded and continued chomping on her aloo-poha.

Gauri sighed, placed the bag on the table and leaned to sit back into the bean bag, almost disappearing into it. It seemed like it was just yesterday when she held her little newborn baby wrapped in a pink woollen blanket in her arms at the government nursing home at Bareilly, and today she was already stepping into one of Mumbai's prestigious schools. Back then, she had been so delighted to look into her little baby's big hazel eyes, and she could already see herself in those newly opened eyes. And so, very rightfully, she was named Chhaya. And Gauri was so thankful that her Chhaya looked nothing like her biological father- the man who ruined her life. She cursed the day, the minute, the second she had crossed paths with the man. Over the years, she had dreamt of times when she wanted to rewind time and change the entire course of her past. But over time, she had also realised that only one good thing had come out of it all- her Chhaya. Had it not been for that man, she would've never had the fortune of going through this beautiful phase of being a mother. Difficulties and challenges were there, without any doubt. But the only thing that kept Gauri going forward in life, was that hope and trust she saw in her little one's eyes. And Gauri knew she had the will to fight against any odds just for that glimmer of Chhaya's smile.

"Oh bete ki" Annika murmured as she leaned against the bean bag, breaking Gauri's train of thoughts, "You've become Nirupa Roy over Chhaya going to school?" It was then Gauri realised that her eyes had turned misty. Shaking her head, she looked at Annika, "Chhaya will be okay, right? I mean, I know it seems too much and that I may be overreacting, but this is the first time that Chhaya is going to be away for me for a whole four hours! What if she is bullied in class? What if she doesn't like her school? What if she isn't able to make friends? She's going to get depressed and then..." "Gauri!" Annika sushed her, "What is the matter with you? She's a wonderful child! Why would she be bullied?" Getting up from where she was seated next to Gauri, Annika shifted next to Chhaya and in her very Annika-ish way she said in her super-fast hindi, "Dekh Chhaya, agar tere class mein koi pareshaan kare, ya phir kisi bhi tarah ka raita phailade na, toh aage peeche mat dekh. Then sparing a glance at Gauri, she continued, "Usko ek jhaap mein deewar pe sataa dena. Bass. Phir kya? Uss chantt mein itni himmat bhi nahi hogi ke meri Chhaya ko aank uthake bhi dekhe. Arrey bhai, Annika Maasi ki laadli raajkumaari ho. Aise kaise koi iske saath tadibaaz hoga..."

Gauri laughed at Chhaya's confused expression, knowing well enough that everything just spoken by Annika went well above the little girl's head. Gauri was thankful for this one more ray of hope in her life named Annika. Apart from Chhaya, the small village of Barreilly had made her cross paths with Annika, years ago. They had met in school in class three, and were best friends from the word go. They were alike in so many ways that everyone around had initially assumed they were sisters. And when Annika's mother had passed away in an accident, Gauri's mother never let Annika feel the loss. Time had truly strengthened the bond between Gauri and Annika, over the years. It was only around college that Annika had to move to the city, and Gauri had continued to study at Bareilly to take care of her ailing mother. Annika had offered to stay back and look after Gauri's mother, as well. It was only after constant insistence by Gauri and her mother, Annika had reluctantly agreed to move to the city, and had thus come to Mumbai for further studies. But even if they had not seen each other ever since she had moved away, they made it a point to stay in touch by talking to each other every single day.

And when Gauri's life took a different turn, Annika was the first one to know. It was only a year back that Gauri too moved from Bareilly to Mumbai, after her mother succumbed to her illness. When Gauri had first told her about moving to Mumbai, Annika had told her strictly, "Tu tere rehne ka itna tension kyun le rahi hai? Chup chap mere saath rehle" And so, she and her little Chhaya had moved into the 1-BHK that Annika was staying at as a paying guest. Fortunately for them, the landlady Mrs Kirloskar was an extremely kind woman, who had melted at the sight of chubby-cheeked Chhaya. And even though Annika did not admit it, Gauri knew that she was the one who had put in a word for her to get a job as an intern in management at The Oberoi's. After all, Annika was in love with Mr. Shivaay Singh Oberoi- the Managing Director of The Oberoi Management. The pictures of SSO, or Billu ji as Annika called him, had portrayed him as a stone hearted ruthless business shark, but in reality, he was an absolute sweetheart, as Annika described him often, oh so dreamily. There were times when Gauri would feel slight pangs of envy when she saw Annika-Shivaay together. She was, without any doubt, extremely happy for Annika. But she wondered if she would ever have anybody in her life, who would make her feel the way Shivaay Singh Oberoi made Annika feel.

"Oye, Madam ji, let's go?" Annika called out. Gauri looked at the watch, and realised it was almost time for them to leave. She picked up the bag and hung the water bottle round Chhaya's neck. After making sure that the house is locked well, she went downstairs, only to find Mrs. Kirloskar waiting outside. "Arey, meri chulbul si Chhaya..." she opened her arms and Chhaya went running into her arms. "Aaj school mein iska first day hai na? she asked Gauri while carrying Chhaya in her arms, to which Gauri nodded. "First day pe kuch meetha banta hi hai" she said placing Chhaya back on the ground and left the two young ladies and the little girl outside as she went into the house, returning with a bowl. "Dahi-shakkar" she said and fed a spoon to Chhaya. Gauri and Annika smiled as Chhaya placed a sloppy kiss on Mrs. Kirloskar's cheek. They bid farewell for the day and the three of them went to the school in a rickshaw.

***

"But Oberoi Sahab, tell me something," Gokhle Sir spoke while adjusting his spectacles, "When you can very easily be at The Oberoi Industries which is run by your own family, why are you still working here at a primary school and wasting your time away?" All the other teachers in the classroom giggled; some, at the question; some, at Oberoi Saheb's "Lack of ambition to do some serious work". Omkara Singh Oberoi smiled at the question that had been thrown across him more than a million times. Yes, it was true that he could be one of the Managing Directors at The Oberoi's. Shivaay had asked him a hundred times to join him at their own company, and it was solely Omkara's decision to say the word. However, Omkara chose the road less taken- and shocked his entire family when he announced that he was interested in teaching art at Mount Carmel School. He even converted his bedroom into a studio, and the family thought that he had lost his marbles when his dressing table was racked with various bottles of paints. Of course, they were very proud of Omkara because he excelled in anything that he took up. While Shivaay was exceptionally good in business, Omkara excelled in every aspect of art and colours; be it, painting, sculpting or sketching. His art exhibition at Delhi had been a huge success, and what unexpectedly made news was the fact made public by the media that he had donated all the amount to a local school run by the government and helped renovate the building and bring in additional facilities for the kids studying there. Of course, he had expressed his displeasure when the news was made public. He believed in helping someone, without making a headline out of it.

Presently, as he doodled on a paper, he spoke without looking at Gokhle Sir, "Because Art is my passion, Sir. I find joy in taking beauty and the meaning that I find in things around me, from my own personal view, and putting it down on a paper, a canvas or even a stone. It is the way that I express what matters to me the most. Without art, nothing is captured or created or remembered. I feel that we all need to give something to the world to be our legacy, whether it's a book, a place, a song or even a child! Otherwise, our existence is meaningless." Agnihotri Sir sniggered, "So Omkara Sir, you mean to say that subjects like Math and Science are meaningless, while art gives meaning to life?" Omkara put his black marker aside and looked up at Agnihotri Sir, "No Sir, I did not say that. While Math and Science are extremely important, art cannot be considered as a waste of time either. Good art has many purposes: to capture great moments, to bring pleasant thoughts to the viewer, to provide a means of escape from reality. After all, a world without art is a world without personality, feelings, creativity, amazement and accomplishment." Sinha Sir rolled his eyes, "Omkara sir, accomplishment you say? Everything that has made a society civilised is because of science and engineering. This is what is worth focusing our education on, not some art class! It may be required to pass some time when the students have nothing else to do, but art classes do not provide intellectual stimulation to children, and it is these very same art classes that give them the idea that they do not have to think critically."

Omkara shook his head and picked up the marker to resume doodling while saying with a smile, "The ability to think critically and to create new ideas come from art, Sir. Art is the playground of the imagination and the facilitator of invention. So many advances in science have come from directly from experimentation in art. These very same artistic pursuits have been the backbone of so many scientific discoveries and inventions of Da Vinci, Nikola Tesla and Benjamin Franklin. Life itself is an art, Sir, and to forget this truth is to be trapped forever. Pausing for a few seconds and cracking his neck, he continued, "I know many who have a misconception about art. And I agree that art cannot save lives like science and engineering, but it can help to develop creative thinking and problem solving. I know that most of you feel that art shouldn't be brought into classrooms because they divert attention from serious' subjects. But we also need to understand that every child has their own speciality, their own potential, and their own likings. And you never know, there may be one or two artists sitting in a classroom amidst those doctors and engineers, who may be silly like me to hope and pursue a career in art." Just then, the bell rang and Omkara leaned back in his chair with a satisfying smile on his lips. He stood up, picked up a few sheets of blank paper, and proceeded to walk out of the staff room to head towards his classroom. Before he exited, he turned around with a broad smile saying, "Have a nice day, everyone. I hope your first day of this year is as wonderful as mine. And i hope the kids enjoy your classes as much as they enjoy mine."

***

"Chhaya Sharma... class room number 112" Annika read out as she spotted Chhaya's name on the notice board, and the three of them proceeded to walk towards the classroom. "Chhaya, don't worry, Mamma will be right outside the school to pick you up, okay?" Gauri said to Chhaya while climbing the stairs to the class. "Annika..." a voice called out and they turned around to see a lady call out to her, "You're Shivaay Singh Oberoi's to-be fiance, right?" Annika smiled and nodded in affirmation. The lady turned out to be a family friend of the Oberoi's. Annika looked at Gauri, who told her to speak to the lady. "I'll drop Chhaya to the class and I'll meet you at the school entrance." Annika nodded and proceeded to talk to the lady.

Gauri reached the classroom with Chhaya; her tiny hand held firmly in hers. Standing at the entrance of the class, she peeked inside to see a few kids already seated at their seats. "Good morning, Ma'am" she heard a deep voice behind her, that startled her. "May I help you?" he spoke as she turned around. For a moment, she forgot everything. All that she focused on was the sharp features of the long-haired man in front of her, who stood with a small smile on his lips. "Yes" she said in a meek voice, when she felt Chhaya tug at her hand, "My daughter- Chhaya" she said, not knowing what else to say. "Hi Chhaya" the man knelt down in front of the little girl, and looking into her eyes he said, "You have a beautiful name. Your name is as pretty as you are!" Chhaya couldn't help by smile shyly and hide behind her mother. Standing up, he said, "I'm Omkara, and I'm the class guide for KG-1"

"Omkara Singh Oberoi?" he heard a familiar voice and turned around to see his brother's to-be fianc. "Annika Bhabi?" he said in surprise. "Bhabhi?" Gauri muttered, wondering how Annika knew him. Was he related to... "Ermm, Gauri, this is Omkara... Shivaay's younger brother." Annika spoke, "And Omkara, this is my best friend, Gauri Sharma, and her daughter- Chhaya Sharma" Omkara nodded in acknowledgement and Annika continued, "But what are you doing here, Omkara?" Omkara sighed, "I teach here, Annika. Shivaay has told you so many times!" Annika bit her tongue and smacked her head, "Ahh I forgot"

"Mammaa..." they heard a meek voice from behind Gauri, and Omkara peeked to see Chhaya looking at him while trying hard to hide herself. "Okay Chhaya, let's get you comfortable in class" he spoke and asked for her hand. "Jaa meri sherni, koi tension na le." Annika said, "He isn't a baagad billa like his brother," she said referring to Shivaay. Omkara only nodded his head, hiding his amusement, and Chhaya went inside the classroom holding Omkara's hand. Gauri peeped inside to see Chhaya being settled into a seat, while Omkara took her bag and water bottle and placed it on the rack. He turned around to find a pair of hazel eyes staring at him from the entrance of the classroom in concern and worry. Walking up to Gauri, he said, "Don't worry. I know it is equally difficult for parents and kids to leave their little ones away at school on their first day. But Chhaya is doing really well for a child at her first day away from home." Gauri looked at Chhaya who already seemed to be making friends with a group of kids sitting around her. "Trust me" he said looking at Gauri, drawing her attention to himself, and his deep charcoal-black eyes. "Okay" she whispered back.

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