English Version - Part 2
Koi Hai?!
Leaping out before his SUV came to a complete stop, much to Mohan’s distress, Arnav ran in, slamming the door open. He was about to run upstairs when he saw everyone gathered around Khushi and Dhruv. Khushi, white-faced, eerily still, was held in an iron-grip by his Di on one side and Payal on the other, while a thoroughly shaken Dhruv was being fussed over by his Mami and Nani.
Rushing over to them, Arnav crouched in front of Khushi, and grabbing her ice-cold hands lying limp in her lap, asked urgently, “What was that, Khushi? You took a solid year off my life with your screams. Not a single phone is reachable and I had to call up Hari Prakash! And he told me you guys saw something scary in the house! Seriously?!”
Looking at him blankly for a minute, her eyes unfocussed, Khushi flinched, and with a look of immense fear, pulled back her hands from Arnav’s. Shrinking back into Di’s side, she looked at him in blind panic, leaving Arnav stunned, his very breath stopping at having Khushi moving away from him in fear, something she had never done since the very beginning of their contract marriage.
Looking at his Di and seeing her slight shake of head, he gulped, and glancing over at Dhruv, who was looking on, his eyes moving over Arnav’s face frantically, he turned back, and kneeling now, he said softly, “Khushi… it's me… look at me, sweetheart…”, gazing at his wife steadily, heartbreak evident on his face.
Jerking involuntarily as that beloved voice penetrated her fear-fogged brain, Khushi looked up, her gaze slowly focusing on her Arnavji’s face, awareness returning to them. With a cry of relief, she almost leapt at him, sending them both crashing back to the floor, Arnav leaning a hand back to keep them both steady.
Burrowing as close to him as possible, Khushi sat, half on his lap and half on the floor, sobbing out, “Arnavji… woh… in our room… it was you... no… someone like you… no... something…”
Sitting flat on the floor and cradling her now, drawing her on to his lap fully, he replied softly, “Shhh… Khushi. I’m with you … you’re safe now… please don't cry… shhh….”, even as he looked up in confusion, at Di and then at Dhruv.
Voices shaking, Dhruv and Anjali updated him on what had happened, Anjali saying first what she had been able to piece together from Khushi’s panicked version, of how she had been aware of Arnav sleeping next to her till late afternoon, and how she had been sitting with him on the poolside. Dhruv, still shaken, told him how he had seen his Bhabi sitting talking to Arnav who had been doing some gardening; and how he had thought Arnav was joking when he called and had gone upstairs to see what was what.
Hugging him even more tightly, Khushi whispered, “And when Dhruv came, I went upto that thing, and had just kept my hand on the back when it turned around…”, her voice trailed off, blanching again, eyes tighly closed.
“Whatever it was, Bhaiyya, or rather whoever it was, looked just like you from behind, but the face was fully decomposed, sort of oozing, the front of his shirt and trousers muddy and wet and stinking”, Dhruv mumbled, staring straight ahead, “I just remember that we both screamed, and I rushed forward to grab Bhabi, before that thing could hurt her, and just as that face looked towards me, it vanished. But we could still smell it, Bhaiyya!”
Half-sceptical and half-stunned, he looked at the others, only to have them nod their heads in confirmation, and Payal spoke up, her voice shaking, “Arnavji, I too had gone upstairs behind Dhruv and was in my room. I ran out on hearing the screams and got a glimpse of that thing just as it disappeared.”
“And, by the ways, Arnav bitwa, the simell ijj still prejent in your roomwa!”, Manorama too contributed.
Hugging his still-shaking wife close, Arnav whispered, “Khusi, sit with Di for a minute, let me go check our room”, only to have her clench him in terror. “Nahi Arnavji! Don't go, what if it hurts you?! Mat jaayiye!”
“Shh… I won't go alone, I’ll take the Prakashs with me, but I need to checka, Khushi. It's our house, and shouldn't we find out whoever it was, how they got in?”
Looking up at him in fear, she replied, “Arnavji, do you remember I told you that I felt as if someone was watching me at the hotel? The place felt really weird and scary, Arnavji! What if it was a ghost or spirit that came with us from there? Koi bhoot hi hai ye!”
Shaking his head, Arnav was about to give his standard reply, when he saw how fearful she was, and gritting his teeth in a sudden flare of anger at whoever or whatever had made his wife so upset, he stroked her hair, and managing to speak in a normal tone, said, “Whatever it is, let me go see.” Turning to his Nani who had been quietly praying, murmuring shlokas under her breath, he asked, “Nani, will you come with me, please?”
Looking at him in surprise, she nodded and got up, waiting till Arnav deposited Khushi near Anjali and called all three Prakashs to come upstairs. After a thorough search of his room revealed nothing, no presence, no lingering smell, he directed the Prakshs to do a check of every single room, while he turned to his Nani.
“Nani, I need your advice. Khushi is mad, but even for her to react like this, she must have seen something really scary, and Dhruv is a very practical person. What do you think happened?”
Looking around, Devyani replied, “I have seen and experienced a lot in my long life, bitwa. There are things that cannot be explained always, and I think this is something not natural.”
“Matlab, you really think something supernatural is going on?” Arnav asked, his logical side at war with what people around him had experienced.
“What else can I say, bitwa? What is this, if not supernatural?”, she asked, showing fear for the first time. “Bitwa, let me call the panditji here tomorrow itself. We will do a Pooja.”
Holding her close, Arnav replied, “Ji Nani.”
It took all his efforts to get Khushi calm and settle down to sleep, which came to no one at Shantivan that night. Dozing and spending the whole night in semi-wakefulness, Khushi held Arnav in an iron-grip, his efforts at soothing her to sleep going futile. Breakfast being a subdued affair, everyone waited for the Panditji to come and do the necessary poojas to remove the evil spirit, heaving a sigh of relief as the poojas got over before nightfall.
Exhausted, everyone headed off to bed, Khushi almost asleep on her feet. Getting her settled, Arnav stayed with her until she fell asleep, before going to the study where Akash had been waiting to discuss a few urgent office matters, seeing how they both hadn’t gone to work that day. It was in the middle of their discussion that a loud scream rang out, “Arnavji!!!!!”
Bolting upstairs, Arnav came to a sliding halt at their room, to see Khushi sitting curled up against the headboard, white with fear. Frantically looking around, he saw nothing, but noticed a musty smell, as he ran to her. With great gulping sobs, Khushi told him how she had felt a hand slipping into hers, and assuming it was Arnav, she had squeezed it, only for that hand to dissolve into pulp, along with the air permeating with the musty smell that she had now come to recognize as what signaled the presence of the supernatural.
Thus proceeded another sleepless night for the Raizada family, everyone having woken up at Khushi’s scream.
***************************
The pattern followed, with the Presence making an appearance whenever Arnav was not around Khushi, leading to Dhruv making a half-hearted joke, even in the tense atmosphere that permeated the house, "What a weird man! Not only human beings, even ghosts and spirits are scared of Arnav Singh Raizada?!”
While said in a lighter vein, that got Arnav thinking, as he sat next to his wife, who was trying to remain as cheerful as possible, going about her daily routine, while the underlying uneasiness drained away her energy day-by-day. Watching his Khushi going through the motions daily, his helplessness eating away at him, Arnav was ready to try any means to get rid of whatever was haunting Khushi.
The seed planted by Dhruv growing stronger every passing day, as he noticed that the Presence, as they had started referring to it, would appear only in front of Khushi, but wouldn’t go away of someone walked in after it appeared. But never, ever, was not felt in the house if Arnav was present. As the frequency of incidences started increasing, with Khushi living in perpetual fear, he went to talk to the Panditji who had done the initial poojas with his Nani and Mamaji.
Examining Arnav’s Janam Kundli and talking to him in detail, and still not able to make a connection with Arnav being able to ward of the presence, the Panditji said, “I feel that this is a spirit that has attached itself to Khushi bitiya, attracted by her purity and innocence. It appears only around her, and doesn't care if it is seen by anyone, except you, Arnav bitwa. Nothing is clear from your Kunbdli, but there is some protection or blessing on you because of which bad spirits never come in your presence.”
Drawing a deep breath, the Panditji thought a while and continued, We can try something. A detailed pooja where both you and your wife will sit in and we will summon the spirit. In its presence, I will bind you and your wife in a holy, unbreakable bond, which will transfer to her too whatever protection it is that you possess, because of which bad spirits do not come in your presence. Are you ready for this?”
“Whatever you say, Panditji. Whatever it takes! I just want Khushi back to normal. I can't stand the state she is in”, Arnav replied, his voice husky from his distress on behalf of his wife, and then lapsing into his usual silence, while his Mamaji and Naniji talked to the Panditji in detail to arrange everything for the Pooja that was to take place in the evening.
**************************
Walking in to the house, he found Khushi waiting for him anxiously, as she was wont to these days, unable to be away from him in peace for even a minute. Flanked by Dhruv and Akash, she was sitting in the family lounge, with Anjali and Payal keeping watchful gazes on her from the Kitchen. Mami was sitting close by, her head swiveling in every direction, keep close watch, with NK walking around the room continuously.
His heart constricting at the look of fear on his wife’s face, and filling to the brim at the same time as he watched how the entire family was standing guard around her, he smiled, bracing himself to catch her as she got up and ran to him. Catching her up in a tight hug, he said, “Everything will be fine, don'tworry. Mamaji, Nani and I just met the Panditji to arrange for a detailed Pooja.”
Feeling Khushi going still in his arms, he leaned back, trying to see her face, only to stop in confusion at the stunned expression she sported, her mouth open in an ‘O’. He was about to ask her what had happened, when he noticed that the whole room had gone silent as well. Looking up, he saw the entire family at a stand still, their expressions exact copies of that his wife had. Gently keeping her down, he looped an arm around her waist as he asked, “What? Why is everyone staring?”
“What nahi Nannav, What the!” NK said, “You met Panditji? Voluntarily? Without Di forcing you to? And fixed a pooja? Who are you and where is my Nannav?!”
“That’s enough, NK!” Arnav muttered, his expression a copy of the old ASR, but his tone much milder, a slight sheepish tone having entered into it.
Starting to laugh, even in the middle of the tense atmosphere that held firm over the house, Akash said, “NK bhai… your Nannav will do anything for his Khushiji. Panditji is small fry for someone who danced in front of scores of people for Khushiji!”
The family dissolving into laughter at the memories, Arnav looked down at his laughing wife, and smiled, his heart lightening at seeing the old Khushi-sparkle back in her eyes.
While Nani updated everyone about the Pooja over tea, it was Dhruv’s turn to pull his Bhaiyya’s leg. Smirking at Khushi after giving a slight nod to his brother, he said, “Waise toh Bhabi, I think there's a conspiracy here. What do you think, Bahi?”
Playing along, Akash replied, taking care to avoid his wife’s suspicious look, “I agree. How else can we justify that everything is happening in favour of Bhai?”
“Wohi! Exactly!”, Dhruv exclaimed, keeping an eye on his Bhaiyya’s reactions, “I mean, the spirit never comes in Bhaiyya's presence. And now, all this has led to Bhabi being tied in a holy, unbreakable bond to Bhaiyya. I mean, it is going to be some sort of linking of souls ritual! I smell an ASR touch in this whole thing!”
“Dhruv! Akash! Chup! Don't joke about such things!” Anjali said, worried now that her Chotte, already stressed beyond all limts, would explode at this leg-pulling, only to do a double take as she looked over at him. Instead of responding, he was gazing steadily at his wife, who was looking back at him, teary-eyed and smiling.
At Arnav’s nod, whatever silent communication had been happening apparently over, Khushi replied, “Our bond is already unbreakable, Dhruv... whether a Pooja happens or not, mine and your Bhaiyya's bond has been and will always be unbreakable…”
This, delivered in utmost seriousness, unlike Khushi’s usual jovial tones, was enough to silence everyone, with Nani, Anjali and Payal finding themselves teary-eyed, as the couple’s past trials flashed before their eyes. Dhruv, while aware of their bond, but having never seen all that they had been through, was about to reply, when he found his hand pressed slightly by Akash, whose subtle nod of head tuned him into the mood that everyone had descented into. Looking at his Bhaiyya, Dhruv was once again reminded of his utter devotion to his Khushi, by the tender expression he saw there. Dhruv was the only one who saw the silent “Always…” that Arnav whispered to his wife, making her face light up in a tremulous smile.
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By evening, the Pooja was happening as per Panditji’s instructions, and by the time the aavahan of the aatma started, a somber mood prevailed, everyone jittery and on the edge, expecting something super natural to happen. However, in spite of many tries, the aatma;s presence wasn’t being granted, until suddenly Naniji said, from the corner that the rest of the family excluding Khushi and Arnav were sitting, “Maybe it is because of Chotte's presence?”
Seeing him about to oppose vehemently the idea that he leave her alone, Khushi took his hand in hers and said softly, “Arnavji, what if it works? Let us just try. I'll be fine, everyone is here, and the Panditji is also here. I'm not scared.”
Pressing tightly on her hand, he replied urgently, “But who knows what will happen today, Khushi? What if it tries to harm you because I am not here….”
“Shhh… don;t worry so much, Arnavji. I'll be fine. Please go outside for a little while.”
Leaving reluctantly, Arnav paced along the driveway, waiting for someone to come and call him back, while the Panditji tried the ritual again. Everyone seated at a distance felt that nothing had changed, and Akash was about to ask when he saw Khushi stiffen, and the Panditji, his eyes still closed, raised a warning hand, sensing the Presence. Looking at the corner doorway towards which Khushi was staring, no one could make out anything, but slowly became aware of the musty smell.
Trembling, but sitting steady, Khushi prayed with all her might, until the Panditji finished the imbibing ritual where the aatma was enmeshed in a gold-leaf figurine. At his nod, Akash went to call Arnav in and the rest of the ritual went on flawlessly, with the binding ceremony too carried out. At the completion of that, when Arnav and Khushi clasped their hands over the ritual fire, there was a flare in all the lamps and fires lit, and then the flares dimmed into a soft steady glow, making the Panditji smile in pleasure, and bestowed his heartfelt blessings on the couple.
Heaving a sigh of relief and satisfaction, he said, “Everything is fine now. I'll finish the rest of the rites in the temple so that this spirit attains salvation. This house and its occupants are all safe and nothing of this sort will affect anyone anymore. Arnav's protection is strong over this house.”
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It was a happy dinner that everyone finished late into the night. The atmosphere of the house itself feeling lighter and brighter, one by one everyone wandered off to bed. Waiting by the poolside for Arnavji to some after his bath, Khushi looked up at her stars, marvelling at the experience they all had had, unbelievable though it seemed now. She was thinking of the rituals that had bound their souls and spirit together, smiling softly at the continuous loops in which life wound them together, when a hand slipped around her. Almost jumping out of her skin, she was about to turn when a voice as familiar as her own heartbeat said, his smile evident in the voice, “Shh… its me, Khushi… there's no one else….”
Author’s Note:
And phinis!!!!
Hope I did justice to this story!!!
Cricket
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
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