JJ - Another great update❤️
And while he spoke, his eyes were locked with Pallavi’s. Krishna didn’t exist. Farhad didn’t exist. There was just his voice and his eyes. Pallavi found it difficult to breathe.
looks like this description tells me that Raghav too finds Pallavi interesting, intriguing. He has never met anyone like her.
Originally posted by: Vibrant_Ana
JJ - Another great update❤️
And while he spoke, his eyes were locked with Pallavi’s. Krishna didn’t exist. Farhad didn’t exist. There was just his voice and his eyes. Pallavi found it difficult to breathe.
looks like this description tells me that Raghav too finds Pallavi interesting, intriguing. He has never met anyone like her.
Nice choice of word, Sister---intriguing. I think he is intrigued by her. When he met her in the casino, he was struck by the way she spoke about the ring. When he met her at the Palace, he was struck by her insightful questions regarding the Palace project. And now he meets her in this setting which is yet another angle to her.
Thank you for your continued interest in -PALLAVI-.
APRIL 20, 2021
EPISODE 17
Pallavi was slipping on her sandals in the main hall, when Aayi called out from the dining table. “Don’t even try to run out of the house without breakfast, Pallavi. I’m warning you.”
Pallavi approached the table, kissed her mother-in-law’s cheek. “Me miss out on your famous kanda poha? Never!”
Nikhil, who was already at the table tucking into the dish, said, “Once I upload the video it will be one lakh times more famous.”
“You actually filmed Aayi making poha?” Pallavi laughed.
“Of course! I’m a documentary film-maker and food is essential to the human condition,” Nikhil pronounced.
Sulochana Kaku was also at the table. She said, “If you focused less on your YouTube channel and more on your studies, you wouldn’t now be repeating your final year of college.”
Yes, Sisters, Nikhil was repeating his final year of college.
But there was a reason. Mandhar’s disappearance had deeply affected Nikhil. Then when Baba had the heart attack, Nikhil simply stopped attending college. It was no shock to anyone that he failed his exams.
Pallavi parted her lips to come to Nikhil’s defence, but caught Aayi’s slight shake of the head.
Aayi was right.
To criticize Sulochana was equivalent to starting a seven-day war. With Mansi’s wedding approaching, it was best to maintain peace in the household. Of course, peace at Deshmukh Niwas required two things: (1) Always do as Baba says. (2) Always let Kaku win.
Kakus are generally not figures of interest in my tales; however, in this tale Sulochana plays a significant role. That will unfold in time but I feel it is important to provide some of her history here.
Sulochana is a beautiful woman. Stunning. Statuesque. Striking. In her youth she won a (regional) beauty competition—and some say that along with the crown, the win went to her head.
She believed her beauty ought to be put to some profitable purpose such as a contract to act in films. Unfortunately for all cinema fans, that did not happen. So she redirected her purpose—she decided she would marry a wealthy industrialist. She waited and waited—but no industrialists arrived.
One morning she woke up and discovered she had been left on the shelf. And in a panic—as it so often happens—she married the very next man who put himself forward.
This lucky man was Milind Kaka. It was a happy marriage. For him. He adored Sulochana. Nay, he worshipped and indulged her. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined he would marry a beauty queen.
But for Sulochana, the marriage was a deep disappointment.
The common remedy of unhappy marriages is children. So despite her concerns that she would never get her figure back, she had a child. She was right—her waistline was gone forever. The child was a disappointment too.
It was not a son.
Sulochana could have endured the ignomy of a girl-child had she been beautiful like herself—but Mansi was brilliant rather than beautiful.
So Sulochana spent the next two decades being unhappy and spiteful. Mandhar’s disappearance was one high point in her life. And now there was another.
The kind of marriage she had dreamt for herself had arrived for her daughter. Mansi was engaged to Rahul, whose father had ‘made it big’ in aluminum. That was almost as good as being in steel, Sulochana told everyone.
Almost overnight her attitude towards Mansi changed. Nobody was more surprised than Mansi. She had spend her life desiring her mother’s love and now just as she was getting ready to part from her mother, her mother became cloyingly attentive. Like a stage mother.
***
Anjali Sharma was in the gymnasium when her stunts instructor pulled her aside. She was wanted upstairs in the principal’s office. Most students—even students in an acting school—might have been alarmed by this.
But Anjali was not. She knew what it was about.
The Principal probably wanted to thank her in person. Her parents had promised to make a significant donation to the academy if she gained entry—and the funds must have come through.
She ran upstairs, knocked on the office door, and stepped in.
How full of people the room was. Then she saw Raghav Rao standing at one end of the room, turned away from the door, looking out the window.
The other men were the Principal, a policeman, and that ubiquitous Farhad fellow.
Any woman—particularly one with a guilty conscience—would now begin to panic; however, Anjali did not. In fact, she was too busy preening herself on having caused Raghav to fly down from Hyderabad to reprimand her in person. To a mind like Anjali’s, this was a victory.
But when everyone silently left the office, leaving her and Raghav alone, she did begin to feel the first twinges of fear.
She took an empty chair and said, “I’m not going to pretend I don’t know why you are here.”
“That’s wise, Miss Sharma,” Raghav said, “save your acting for the stage. You can’t afford to waste such a miniscule talent.”
Anjali flew to her feet, crossed the distance between them, and swung out her open palm. The slap never landed. He caught her wrist and flung her from him as though her proximity was distasteful to him.
Anjali fell on the principal’s desk in an unbecoming fashion.
She clutched her elbow and cried out in pain. “You b*****d! You’ve broken my arm!”
Of course, he had not.
“Look—” Raghav said, “Make this easy on yourself. I won’t involve the police if you issue a public apology.”
“F**k you!”
“If you want to be in front of the camera some day, it would be in your interest to make an apology.”
“Why?” She touched her tear-stained cheek. “Are you going to damage my face? Are you going to cut me up if I don’t apologize?”
Raghav laughed. “No, I mean I am patient. I can wait until you are on the brink of stardom and then expose you.”
Anjali’s brows drew together in thought. She had not expected such a strategy. Her intention was to damage his prospects—not her own.
“When you came to the villa that night, I should not have called your fiancé. It was not my place to punish you,” he spoke quietly.
Anjali stared at him in wonder. “Is that an apology?—Are you apologizing?”
“Call it what you want,” he shrugged.
Anjali slid off the desk. Her voice softened, “I loved Sunil. I just wanted one night of fun with a man everyone believes is unattainable. I wanted to feel my power one last time.”
“You stupid fool,” he said.
“I know,” she sighed.
***
Farhad and Raghav were in the lift of the Mumbai Raje Hotel. The corporate office was on the penthouse floor.
“I can’t believe she issued the apology,” Farhad said. “How on earth did you convince her?”
Raghav said, “I apologized to her first.”
Farhad started as if Raghav had announced he was from another planet.
Raghav said, “Don’t stare like that. I know—you told me that evening not to call her fiancé. You were right. I overreacted. You know me, Farhad—I can’t stand people who betray those they claim to love.”
Farhad shook his head. “You actually apologized?”
“It’ll never happen again.”
Farhad laughed. “No! No, this is not a one-off.”
“What are you on about?”
“This is an opening. This is a new Raghav Rao. A sensitive man. A man in touch with his feelings. And the feelings of others. Not afraid to self-examine—” Farhad went on in this comical vein.
The lift doors parted. Raghav exited but prevented Farhad from exiting. “I’ll take this meeting alone. Your dislike for Mrs Raje is written all over your face.”
As the lift doors slid shut on Farhad, Raghav gave a devious smile, and suggested, “Go to the lobby and self-examine.”
***
Mrs Tarabai Raje asked the imposing man opposite her, “Will you have some coffee? Tea?”
Raghav declined. “No, thank you.”
“I must say, Mr Rao, I was surprised when you requested this meeting. I didn’t think there was anything left for us to discuss,” she said.
“I wanted to better understand your refusal, Mrs Raje.”
This was novel, Tarabai, thought. And rather refreshing.
Raje Hotels declined overtures for corporate partnership frequently—but this was perhaps the first time someone had responded in this manner.
He continued, “You indicated that Jayati Jewellers and Raje Hotels were not a good fit. What did you mean by that?”
Had she really said that? What did that even mean?
“Well,” she said, “I understand from studying your presentation that you have consciously chosen to grow your brand in smaller centres. You have two hundred shops—is that right?—throughout our nation but none in the largest metros. Whereas, our hotels are only in the largest cities. Our markets are different.”
Raghav smiled, and said, “It is precisely because of that reason that we approached you. There will be no JJ showrooms in the cities where Raje hotels exist. Therefore, a person in that centre who wishes to purchase our products will have to enter a Raje hotel.”
Tarabai couldn’t help but smile. This man was clever. He had turned a disadvantage into an advantage—for both parties. She decided she owed him honesty. He had come all this way to meet with her even after being rather rudely turned down.
She said, leaning forward, “I am an old woman, Mr Rao—and I have to confess I’m old-fashioned. My husband’s family established Raje Hotels and in those days deals were made between families who knew each other. I know we live in a different world now—but I feel most comfortable dealing with those I know. The pastry shops at Raje properties are owned by a family my daughter knew when she was in school in Switzerland. The bars of soap in our bathrooms are milled by a family I know in Dehradun. Every corporate relationship here at Raje is a friendship first.”
Tarabai was surprised at her own volubility. But there was something about this man which made her want to let him down gently. Like a mother would.
She gave a laugh, “You must find my way of doing business very unsophisticated.”
Raghav now leaned forward and said, “It is because of the choices you have made that attracted me to align with your brand.”
“So our refusal did not send you immediately to our competition?” she asked.
“No,” he said, “I can promise you that if Jayati Jewellers is not in your hotels—it will not be in any other hotel.”
This too surprised her. It was closing quite a large door.
“What I am hearing from you, Mrs Raje, is that because we are not friends you will not enter into a business partnership with me—and I respect that.” With this he came to his feet, and extended his hand.
She began to lift from her chair but he said, “No, please. Remain comfortable. I’ll show myself out.”
He turned and moved towards the door. He had just opened the door, when she had an idea and acted on it—rather impulsively.
“Mr Rao?”
He stopped and turned to face her.
“My family is determined to embarrass me by throwing a party for my seventieth birthday. Many of these friends whom I mentioned will be there—will you come if I send you an invitation?”
I loved Raghav in this chapter.. How he dealt with Anjali and Mrs.Raje. Perfect. Wonder wat brought on the change..
I cant help wonder/ fear wat role sulochana kaku is gonna play in future..
So sulochana kaku makes an entry here too .. I wonder what she’s going to do here. Hopefully she isn’t as unbearable as the one in the show. She’s already different, as the one in the show loved manasi more. As to Mrs. Raje, I thought I was going to hate her but now you’ve made me question that too. I guess I can never know what to expect with your story. While the last chapter had me look forward to seeing more of Pallavi, this chapter pulled me back to Raghav. The way he dealt with Mrs Raje was brilliant as expected. But the highlight was his conversation with Anjali. Originally posted by: JalebiJane “When you came to the villa that night, I should not have called your fiancé. It was not my place to punish you,” he spoke quietly. Anjali stared at him in wonder. “Is that an apology?—Are you apologizing?” “Call it what you want,” he shrugged. Anjali slid off the desk. Her voice softened, “I loved Sunil. I just wanted one night of fun with a man everyone believes is unattainable. I wanted to feel my power one last time.” “You stupid fool,” he said. “I know,” she sighed.
This part was hands down my favorite. It was unexpected and much better than the threatening Raghav that I imagined. This man never fails to surprise me and neither do you. I can’t wait to see you unravel the enigma that is Raghav Rao. Do update soon.
Wow I admire Mrs Raje ..my grandpa did business on credit on same line ..else it was rokda aka cash.
I admire this business man
Poor Nik I know a couple of classmate who had a break for similar reasons . One needed 2 years due to loss of sibling due to sucide. He underwent extensive counseling and I was the only one who knew due to old fam ties .
It was really tough to see a drastic change , after 2 years he restarted high school but there was a big personality change. It took years for me to see bits of Sam I knew as a child
I loved Raghav in this chapter.. How he dealt with Anjali and Mrs.Raje. Perfect. Wonder wat brought on the change..
I cant help wonder/ fear wat role sulochana kaku is gonna play in future..
Thank you for your comment, Sister. I'm really excited about injecting my own character---Mrs Raje---to this tale.
In the show, what Raghav did to Anjali (calling her fiancé) because she made a fool of herself at her bachelorette party was a bit too harsh. I hoped he would recognize that eventually.
Sulochana---well, she is something else. I love watching her on the show. The actress who plays the role is excellent and I'm fascinated by her brand of evil.
So sulochana kaku makes an entry here too .. I wonder what she’s going to do here. Hopefully she isn’t as unbearable as the one in the show. She’s already different, as the one in the show loved manasi more. As to Mrs. Raje, I thought I was going to hate her but now you’ve made me question that too. I guess I can never know what to expect with your story. While the last chapter had me look forward to seeing more of Pallavi, this chapter pulled me back to Raghav. The way he dealt with Mrs Raje was brilliant as expected. But the highlight was his conversation with Anjali.
This part was hands down my favorite. It was unexpected and much better than the threatening Raghav that I imagined. This man never fails to surprise me and neither do you. I can’t wait to see you unravel the enigma that is Raghav Rao. Do update soon.
Sister, so pleased you enjoyed the Anjali-Raghav bit. I don't want Raghav to be one of those ITV heroes who is dogmatically unapologetic. I always felt what he did to Anjali was too harsh and I hoped he was man enough to say so.
Mrs Raje, though not in MHRW, will play a significant role in Raghav's future.
Thanks again for your generous comments.
Originally posted by: AnjuRish
Wow I admire Mrs Raje ..my grandpa did business on credit on same line ..else it was rokda aka cash.
I admire this business man
Poor Nik I know a couple of classmate who had a break for similar reasons . One needed 2 years due to loss of sibling due to sucide. He underwent extensive counseling and I was the only one who knew due to old fam ties .
It was really tough to see a drastic change , after 2 years he restarted high school but there was a big personality change. It took years for me to see bits of Sam I knew as a child
Yes, Sister---Raghav is a clever man. I realized after writing this episode that until now I had not shown him in a business setting outside Farhad and the team. It was good to see how he handled himself. He's not always shouting out instructions and making demands. hehe
And regarding Nikhil---yes, though the focus is the hero-heroine, I wanted to show how Mandhar's sibling was impacted by his disappearance. As you write, these are deep scars.
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