OS: ANJAAN RAASTE!!
[Story - Seema di
Writer - Sudha]
"Bhaiya, please. I want to study." Madhubala pleaded her only brother, Mukkund. Madhubala was a small girl when her parents died in an accident & since then her brother was taking care of her. They were rich, influential landlords, living in Motihari village.
"Madhu, your bhabhi & I are planning to get you married." Mukkund said to his sister & looked at his wife Trishna to make
Madhu understand. Trishna looked down helplessly. She was just 3 years older to Madhu & she was more a friend to Madhu than her bhabhi, so she understood Madhu's feelings to go & study but in their village, (Motihari Village, Bihar) they usually do not send girl child to outer places for higher education. Hell, doing schooling itself a big question in that undeveloped place, then doing college was of no question.
"No! I'm just 18 years old. I want to go to the city & do my college studies there." Madhu said in a stubborn tone.
"Madhu, don't take that tone to me. I'm your brother & I know what's best for you. All your friends are getting married; no one is making any stupid demands like you."
"Stupid? This is not stupid. I want to study. Just three years! Please let me go to Mumbai."
"Ji, just three years nah?, Once she comes home completing her studies, we will get her married to a nice guy." Trishna, Mukkund's wife tried to convince her cantankerous husband.
"Trishna! You don't side her." Mukkund chides his wife. Trishna shut her mouth & lowered her head.
After a row of arguments, finally Madhu succeeded in getting permission from her Bhaiya for going to another city in order to pursue her higher studies & a month later she left to Mumbai & settled in the college hostel a week before her college started.
~~0~~
(2 years later)
"Madhu, it's been two years... how long will you hide your feelings for him?" Madhu's friends, Roma asked her. Roma was the first person she met in this college. She is also Madhu's roommate in the hostel. Only she knew about Madhu's love life.
"I know Roma... but I am scared. You know my family. You have seen them." Madhu had taken her best friend to her village during her last summer vacation. "They are so conservative... so typical... my bhaiya will kill me if he comes to know about my love."
"Then what are you gonna do now? Keep on loving him but never confess to him because your family won't approve him?"
"I don't know!"
"Madhu, if you take time then see someone else will propose our professor & you will regret later for not letting him know your feelings for him."
"No, Roma. He knows I love him"
"Really? Did you tell him or he told you?"
"We didn't tell anything expressly but our eyes speak volumes. I know our feelings are mutual"
"Still you should tell him... May be he will help you in taking to you family."
"God! I'm so scared. My bhaiya sent me here to study..."
"You should have thought that before..."
"I know... But what to do? I fell in love"
"Then be strong & try to convinve him & before that confess you love to your man." Roma strictly told her friend.
"Okay, I will tell him about my love once our exams get over..."
"But before you go back to your village for vacation. If he rejects your love then you will need time to recover nah?" Roma teased her friend.
"Okay! But I will tell my family only when the right time comes... Because I don't want my brother to lock me at home & not let me complete my studies. We have one more year to go right?"
"Yeah. May be you could at least hint your Trishna bhabhi. She might help you talk about this to your brother."
"Hmm... I guess you are right."
--0--
"Hello, professor." Madhu said nervously. She had come to her professor's house to meet him & tell about her feelings for him.
"Hello, Madhubala. What a pleasant surprise. Come in." He welcomed her.
"Um... Today I am leaving home to spend my vacation with my family..." She hesitantly started.
"Oh that's nice. Coffee or tea?" He asked.
"Um... No thanks Professor. I am fine."
"Sit!" He said to her & they both sat opposite to each other on the sofa.
"How you wrote your exams?" He asked.
"I wrote well. All thanks to you for helping me." Madhu smiled at him. Madhu was weak in Enlish & her professor trained her to develop her language & he also personally helped Madhu in her academic right from the time she joined college. Slowly his affection & concern towards her made her fall in love with him. Even she was sure that he loved her too.
"Good! And don't thank me. You are a quick learner." He said appreciatively.
"So?" He asked when Madhu remind silent.
"I want to tell you something."
"Tell me?"
"Um... I... I ... I..."
"What Madhubala?"
"I love you, Professor." She blurted out & closed her eyes. He waited for her to open her eyes.
"Madhubala... I want to be honest with you. I am your professor & I thought I should not grow any romantic feelings for you... But it was hard... I couldn't help myself falking for you... You are so beautiful... You simple & sweet... I love you too..." He said taking Madhu's hand in his. Madhu didn't knew she was holding her breathe once he confessed his love too she felt so ecstatic. She took his hand & kissed the back of it.
"Thank you, professor" Madhu said making hin chuckle.
"You complete your studies... Then I will come & talk to your family. Is that okay?"
"Yes." Madhu nodded her, beaming at him.
~~0~~
(In Motihari village)
"Madhu, careful." Trishna said to her, when Madhu started jumping & dancing in the water falls. She missed her favorite hideout in the two years. It was one beautiful waterfalls in Motihari & It was her sanctuary ever since her parents left her. She come to that place whenever she was to happy or too sad.
"Bhabhi, let me enjoy. I was carving to take a bath in this fall for long." Madhu said & she swirled with her hands wide open.
"Bhabhi... You too join me."
"Nah! My saree will get wet & it will cling to my body..."
"So? No one is here nah?"
"But then we have to go back home nah?"
"When you stood under this falls lastly?" Madhu asked.
"When I was 12 years"
"Aww..."
"You have become so bold after joining college, Madhu."
"Yeah! Bhabhi... There people are different... Their culture is different... They know to live their lives di... Unlike us... We have so much of restrictions & rules."
"I clearly told your bhaiya to look a groom for you from city. I dont want you to settle in this village. After marriage you can work too." Trishna said getting excited for Madhu. Suddenly Madhu stopped her dancing & went white as sheet. Oh no!
"What's wrong, Madhu?" Trishna asked noticing Madhu's sudden change. Gone was her carefree dancing & enthusiasm.
"Nothing, bhabhi." She faked a smile. "Shall we go home."
"Yeah sure. Cover your wet body with this towel."
Madhu nodded her head & took the towel from her hand & drapped it around her body.
Neither Madhu nor her bhabhi Trishna realized they were closely being scrutinized by a pair of eyes. He gazed Madhu with lust & smirked at her. He decided to make her his!
~~0~~
"Put your sign on these papers" a man ordered his wife.
"What... What is this?" She asked her husband scared.
"I am divorcing you."
"Divorce?" She looked at her husband with wide eyed shock.
"But..."
"Shut up. I am bored of living with you. I m gonna marry, Madhubala!"
"Madhubala?" His wife asked as she thought who was the girl. There was one Madhubala she knew in the village was Mukkund Dixit's sister Madhubala.
"Mukkund's..."
"Yeah, the very same girl, I want her. I want to marry her. So I am divorcing you."
"No!" She shouted.
"Don't take that tone at me. You know it won't be good for you."
"Please don't do this to me." His wife pleaded, softly. "And don't do this to that innocent girl. She is too young for you."
"Do as I say or I won't hesitate to kill you." He threatened his wife.
Fearing for her life she signed on the papers with tears following down her cheeks. She wasn't crying for her life because finally she will be out of this hell but feeling bad for that innocent girl.
~~0~~
"Balraj, welcome" Mukkund warmly greeted the richest & powerful man of their village.
"Mukkund, I am here to talk to you about an important matter."
"Yes, tell me" Mukund sat on the chair opposite to him.
"I want to marry your sister."
"What the f**k!" Mukkund shouted as he rose up from the chair & glared at Balraj angrily. "How dare you even dream of marrying my sister, you sick bas***d?"
"Mukkund!" Balraj shouted his name in rage. "Don't dare you mess with me. I will knock you over & make you a pauper in a blink" He threatened him.
"Get out of my house. Now" Mukkund screamed at him angrily.
~~0~~
Balraj couldn't take the insult. He divorced his wife Padmini just to marry Madhubala, the girl on whom he set his eyes ever since the moment he saw her dancing under the falls. He wanted her by hook or by crook & he will get her. He vowed to himself. His threat to Mukkund wasn't an empty one. Balraj indeed carried away with his threat & created huge lose to Mukkund's Argo-business. Once again, Balraj appeared at Mukkund's place & placed an offer which he couldn't deny by promising to make good the loss & also convert half of his property in Mukkund's name & make him the richest landlord in their village. In the state Mukkund was in made him to give in to Balraj's demand & he agreed to marry his own sister for money.
Madhu was shocked when she heard about her brother's decision. She cried & pleaded not to get her married for a man who was double or even triple her age.
She even told that she loved someone in her college but Mukkund wasn't ready to hear anything of what she said. He locked her in her room & started speeding up with the marriage.
"Bhabhi, I don't want this marriage. I love someone in my college." Madhu cried hugging her bhabhi Trishna.
"Madhu, I am really helpless. I don't know what got into your bhaiya's head... I don't know why he got so blinded with money... I never thought he will do this to you. I feel ashamed to say I am his wife." Trishna lowered her eyes.
Then they heard a knock at the door. Trishna went & opened the door to see Padmini, Balraj's ex-wife waiting outside; she had covered her head with a shawl.
"I want to talk to Madhubala." Padmini sid to Trishna.
"Um..." Trishna hesitated for a second then let her in. "Madhu..."
Madhu looked up at Trishna & then turned her gaze to Padmini.
"Madhubala, you don't have to marry Balraj. He is not a nice man. He will ruin your life."
"I know all this but I don't have any other way..." Madhu shouted at her as tears streamed down her cheeks.
"There is a way." Padmini said. Madhu & Trishna looked at her hopefully.
"You get away from this place..."
"But how?" Madhu asked curiously.
~~0~~
"You okay?" the man asked Madhu.
"I can't run. I am tired. Please stop."
"But we need to leave from here as soon as possible. Those men will catch us any minute."
"I know." Madhu took a deep breath & again continued running holding his saviors hand. She didn't know him but still she strangely trust him enough to run with him. May be that was because she wanted to get out of the hell. If she had stayed a day longer then she would have got married to that old man.
"If we get into the jungle, we can hide safe there. Then early morning from there we can move to the neighboring village & board some bus or truck & move out from her to the next city. From there I will take you to Mumbai."
"We will stay in the jungle?" Madhu asked as panic sets in her.
"Yeah, why?"
"I'm scared of dark and I also heard wild animals roam around in the jungle at night times."
"Don't worry. I'm with you." He assured her. She nodded her head, trusting him to protect her.
"Btw, where you will stay in Mumbai? You know anyone there?"
"Yes."
"Who?"
"My Professor"
"You will stay with your professor?"
"Yes, its summer holidays nah so I can't stay in college hostel & my bestie Roma has also gone to her native... If she was there then we both will stay safely in some hotels... alone I don't think I can stay... so I will be staying with my professor... whom I love... & I hope he won't mind me staying at his place." Madhu told the man hesitantly.
The man halted on his track & looked back at her for a minute.
"What?" she asked him.
"You love your professor?"
"Yes, why?" She asked him with a frown.
"Is he at least a young man or an oldie like my brother in law?"
"What? Balraj is your brother in law?"
"Was! He was my brother in law but that bas***d divorced my sister Padmini."
"Oh" Madhu looked at him stunned for a minute.
"Why are you helping me?" Madhu asked him as they proceeded to walk in a speedy pace.
"My sister called me two days & when I came here she told me to take you with me & go back to Mumbai as she won't let that bas***d spoil another girl's life."
"Oh. Are you angry with Balraj?"
"I'm bloody angry with him. If my sister hadn't stopped me I would killed him the moment he threw those f**king divorce papers at my sister's face." He said gritting his teeth. "But then my sister stopped me. She was infact happy that she got freedom from him."
"Your sister is really sweet. I will be always indebt to you & your sister for saving me. Thanks, Mr.?"
"Rishab Kundra. You can call me Rk."
"Rk" Madhu smiled at him. He smiled back at her.
"What you do in Mumbai?" Rk asked her.
"I'm studying B.sc (Maths)"
"Oh. I heard Math students are geniuses"
"What you do there?" Madhu asked him.
"I'm a pilot in Indian Airlines"
"Oh! That's great."
Then they hear Rk's phone ring. "I'm surprise we could find signal in this jungle." Rk said with a chuckle.
"Hey, baby" Rk answered the call. "Sorry darling... I got held up in an important work... No, no, sweetie... okay, I will surely take you to dinner out this weekend... okay... see ya... love you." He said & hung up the phone.
"My girlfriend" He said to Madhu with a smile.
"Oh! What's her name?"
"Dipali. She is an airhostess. You know she is too hot & sexy" He winked at her.
"You love her?" Madhu asked him
"Well, I guess I do." He said though not sure.
"If you do then you sure not address her hot & sexy to third person. You can say she is sweet & beautiful. That sounds good right?"
"But then I never felt she was sweet... she is attractive... I agree... but beautiful?" he thought for a moment. "Beautiful word suits you more. My girl is a total babe!" he said grinning widely. Madhu shook her head to hide her blush.
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
Hope you all liked the first part.
Please hit the like button & share your views!
Thanks!
Seema & Sudha
Book Talk
