Part II
Back to the present
She turned to look at her husband as he uttered his vows so passionately in a booming voice that used to initially scare her but had over the years assumed a reassuring quality for her. She was glad that they decided to dispense with the traditional sehera and the ghunghat in this new age marriage vows renewal ceremony. Her eyes ran over his handsome face, lingering over his well trimmed pepper and salt beard. She still remembered her serious reservations as a child to mingling with men who had facial hair. Her clean shaven father had at one point of time decided to sport a beard and a moustache. She refused to kiss or be kissed by him till he got rid of them. So when she first saw her prospective husband's photograph, that was the first thing her father teased her about. She had at the time assured him that she will get her husband to shave off the offensive facial coating if he wanted to get close to her. But in all these twenty five years, if there was one thing she never allowed her husband to do, it was to go clean shaven even for a single day.
Just then her husband turned towards her and flashed his most charming smile making her heart skip a beat and her face flame up in shyness. No matter how many years have gone by he still could throw her off balance with that one smile. It was not all smiles in the initial period of their marriage though. Her thoughts rewound to the day of their marriage.
Twenty five years ago (Prachi's flashback)
At the wedding mandap, clad in a heavily brocaded wine red lehenga choli and bedecked in ornate jewellery from head to foot, Prachi waited for the ceremony to be over with so that she could change into something more comfortable. She stole a look at the man to whom she would soon belong. She could not see his face through the sehera, although she knew what lay beneath it. His tall masculine frame practically dwarfed her small one, making her conscious of her height. If there was one thing she had wished for, it was that she was atleast three to four inches taller than her modest 5 feet 2 inches height. As that was not possible, she had hoped that the man she weds would be of comparable height so that she does not have to crane her neck up every time she had to interact with him. Alas that wish also remained unfulfilled as here she was, marrying a six footer. But she did not fret too much over it. After all she never did have any great expectations in life. Her father and sister always complained that she lacked drive as they themselves were highly driven and ambitious.
She was more like her mother, Premlatha - docile, home loving and generous. She took pleasure in small things like flying kites with the neighbours' kids; listening to music, especially old classics; spending time with the aged in the nearby old age home; giving music tuitions to children in the locality; trying out new recipes for her family and friends and listening to long conversations. She did her graduation in home science, a diploma in catering technology and a few courses in baking and cookery. She used to pay occasional visits to her father's hotels and give tips to the head chefs and housekeepers there. However, when her father suggested that she take up the reins of atleast one of the vast chain of hotels he owned, she politely declined. She made it clear that she was not cut out for a career and preferred to be a home maker instead. Although her father was not too happy with her limited ambition he did not force her to do something she was not inclined for and started hunting high and low for a man worthy of his precious daughter. None seemed to match up to his expectations till he finally met the dashing Milind Mishra in an hotelier's conference a couple of months back.
Prachi gathered from her father later that he took a strong liking to the self-assured and confident young man from the very first moment. He was suitably impressed by the man's success at a relatively young age. The fact that he had achieved all that on his own merit in a short span of less than 10 years only served to raise him in his eyes. His post-conference interactions with him strengthened his belief that he had finally found the right match for his daughter. He had done a background check on him and found out that he was the only son of an accountant, hailing from a well respected but lower-middle class family. His mother expired when he was barely three years old and his father had died of heart attack three years ago. Milind did not let his economic status constrain him. He was a brilliant student and after his masters in business management which he had finished at a relatively young age of 21, he had gone to Turkey to seek his fortunes. His intelligence and intuition impressed the Sheikh under whom he was working and he quickly rose to head his group of hotels all across the Middle East. He was paid quite handsomely too. Soon he started his own group of hotels, both in India and abroad and was quite a successful businessman in his own right.
As his parents had a love marriage against the wishes of their respective families, they were virtually ostracised by them. Hence, after the death of his parents, Milind was pretty much on his own. So Inder himself approached Milind soon after their first meeting and offered his daughter's hand in marriage. He also suggested the merger of the two groups of hotels after the marriage. Milind was a bit reticent of the merger proposal, citing the need to get the approval of his board as a reason for his hesitancy but he seemed more than keen about the marriage proposal. Inder decided to tackle one thing at a time and decided to first get him as his son-in-law before coaxing the business deal.
Prachi was in the U.S. when all of this was happening. She was sent the bridegroom's photograph by e-mail. Except for the facial hair, she did not have any other complaint against the groom. She trusted her father's judgement and gave her assent. The wedding was finalised within weeks and as soon as she returned to India, the ceremony itself was conducted. Her father had wanted to have all the pre-marital ceremonies such as the engagement, mehendi, haldi. Milind, however, was extremely busy with a new project and couldn't spare the time. He was also impatient to get on with the wedding. So all the ceremonies were dispensed with although Inder got him to agree for the reception after the wedding.
Sitting beside her would-be husband, Prachi wished they had these ceremonies before she took the final step to becoming Mrs. Milind Mishra.
Members Lounge
