Posted:
Part 2:
Thus it was, that two very different people, from different perspectives of life, bonded over a tiny baby. (Background: do dil mil rahe hain, magar chupke chupke). Before they knew it, they were looking out for each other in the corridors, trying to coordinate their schedules to ensure maximum talk time during breaks and sharing lunches and snippets of their daily lives.
Ragini came to know that Neilw as actually Nachiket. "That's it, you shall be Nachiket from today. I refuse to call you Neil- why this anglicized name when you have such a beautiful one from the Upanishads?"
"Whoa! Upanishads? You gotta be kidding me, Ragini. Do you know of such stuff?"
"Come on, didn't you ever get told the story of Nachiket and his dad who "gifted him to Yama" and who waited patiently for the God of Death to turn up for 3 full days.."
"Nope. Never heard the tale of my name. So proceed please- would love to hear it from your lips."
She nudged him playfully and continued the story of the young brahmin boy who was gifted away in a fit of anger by his own father because he dared question him about the quality of gifts that the father was giving in the name of "token" donations (daan). Nachiket asks Yama for the secret of Life as only Death would know it and Yama first tempts him with material wealth, but on seeing the steadfast nature of the child, decides to impart the deepest secrets of life and death and blesses him to return to his father and his life on earth.
"So tell me Nachiket, how did you come about this name and not the story that goes with it?"
"Well, my grandma, dadi, kept my name but we never lived with her back in Punjab. We lived here, in Mumbai and mom was busy with her social (more like socialite) work and dad being the businessman that he was, Pam and I just grew up like orphans in our big home. The servants didn't dare tell us anything least of all a story!"
"Poor little rich boy!"
"Nah, that's where you are wrong. I never felt I missed anything to feel bad about me- that was my life and I had no complaints. But now, I do have one major one- you!"
"Me? What complaint?"
"When do I get to meet your family? I want to officially ask your parents for your hand in marriage."
"Wait now- I have a long way to go towards my graduation and you are yet to be done with your MD- don't you think we should wait for a few more years, settle down in life and then get married?"
"If my experience as a doctor has taught me one thing, it is that life is very fragile, dear Ragini. I am alive today and so are you. We love each other and cannot imagine not being together. So, why wait? We will settle down and continue with our study and work."
"Well, it will certainly be a big shock to my family. They are pretty orthodox."
"Nothing surprising there, if they told you the story of my name!" he winked.
"Well. Then how about this weekend? It will give me time to tell them to expect you."
"Yeah, tell them that this Nachiket waited a whole 6 months!"
Anupamaa
