CHAPTER 1
Mumbai
November 2019
Thirty years.
That was how long Mihir and Tulsi had been married.
Thirty years of arguments over the smallest things, thirty years of celebrations, responsibilities, disappointments, laughter and countless moments when one of them had silently stood beside the other without needing to say anything.
And somehow, after all those years, their mornings still looked almost exactly the same.
The sun had barely entered through the large windows of the Virani house when Tulsi walked into the bedroom carrying a cup of tea.
She placed it on the bedside table.
Tulsi - "Mihir, wake up."
There was no response.
Tulsi folded her arms.
Tulsi - "Mihir."
Still nothing.
She pulled the curtains open.
The sunlight fell directly onto Mihir's face.
Mihir immediately covered his face with the pillow.
Mihir - "Tulsi!"
Tulsi smiled.
Tulsi - "Good morning."
Mihir - "Is this how you wish someone good morning after thirty years of marriage?"
Tulsi - "Yes. Especially when that someone refuses to wake up."
Mihir slowly sat up.
Mihir - "I was awake."
Tulsi - "You were snoring."
Mihir - "I wasn't."
Tulsi - "You were."
Mihir - "Proof?"
Tulsi pointed toward the sleeping pillow.
Tulsi - "Your pillow knows."
Mihir stared at her.
Mihir - "You've become very argumentative with age."
Tulsi - "And you've become very stubborn."
Mihir smiled.
Mihir - "Yet you stayed."
Tulsi paused for a moment.
Her expression softened.
Tulsi - "Unfortunately."
Mihir laughed.
Tulsi picked up his medicine box.
Tulsi - "Now take your medicine."
Mihir's smile disappeared.
Mihir - "Already?"
Tulsi - "Yes."
Mihir - "Can't I have tea first?"
Tulsi - "Medicine first."
Mihir - "Breakfast?"
Tulsi - "Medicine."
Mihir - "At least let me brush my teeth."
Tulsi - "Mihir!"
He laughed and took the tablet.
Mihir - "Fine. Happy?"
Tulsi - "Very."
Mihir looked at her affectionately.
Mihir - "You know, after thirty years, you still give me orders."
Tulsi sat beside him.
Tulsi - "And after thirty years, you still pretend you don't listen."
Mihir smiled.
Because she was right.
He always listened.
He simply enjoyed pretending otherwise.
***
Their children had inherited very different parts of their personalities.
Their eldest, Angad, had inherited Tulsi's warmth and Mihir's stubbornness, but somehow turned both into mischief.
Even as a child, Angad had been incapable of sitting quietly.
One old family photograph showed eight-year-old Angad standing on the dining table with a spoon in his hand.
Tulsi had been trying to get him down.
Young Angad - "I'm giving a speech!"
Tulsi - "Get down!"
Young Angad - "Everyone deserves freedom of speech!"
Mihir had stood nearby, pretending to be angry.
Mihir - "Angad!"
Young Angad immediately jumped down.
Tulsi smiled.
Tulsi - "See? He listens to you."
Mihir proudly folded his arms.
Mihir - "Of course."
Young Angad immediately ran away.
Mihir - "Angad!"
Young Angad shouted from another room.
"Love you, Papa!"
Tulsi laughed.
Mihir couldn't help smiling.
Their second child, Rithik, was completely different.
Where Angad found ways to create trouble, Rithik found ways to avoid it.
Books were his best friends.
As a child, he would sit quietly in a corner reading while Angad and Paridhi argued over toys.
Mihir often joked that Rithik had been born forty years old.
And then there was Paridhi.
Their youngest.
Their dramatic daughter.
If Angad made a small mistake, Paridhi would laugh.
If Rithik scored ninety-nine instead of a hundred, Paridhi would react as though the family had suffered a national tragedy.
And if someone hurt her feelings?
The entire household knew about it.
Mihir often joked:
Mihir - "We have three children. One makes trouble, one studies trouble and one creates drama about trouble."
Tulsi would laugh.
Tulsi - "And all three are yours."
Mihir - "No. Angad is definitely yours."
Tulsi - "Why?"
Mihir - "Because he never listens."
Tulsi would simply look at him.
Tulsi - "Exactly like you."
***
The same house had been filled with laughter.
Nobody knew that one evening would change everything.
Angad had been standing outside the family home, his face unusually serious.
He wasn't alone.
Beside him stood a young woman dressed in a traditional bridal outfit.
Her face was completely covered by a long red veil.
Her hands trembled slightly.
Angad looked at her.
Angad - "Don't be scared."
Vrinda quietly nodded.
Angad - "Whatever happens, I'm with you."
Vrinda looked at him through the veil.
Vrinda - "Your family..."
Angad gently interrupted.
Angad - "I'll handle them."
He took a breath.
For perhaps the first time in his life, Angad wasn't joking.
He knew exactly what he was about to do.
He opened the door.
Tulsi was the first person to see him.
Her eyes widened.
Tulsi - "Angad?"
She looked at the woman beside him.
Then at the wedding garland around his neck.
Then at the vermillion visible beneath the edge of the veil.
Tulsi's expression changed.
Tulsi - "Angad... what have you done?"
Angad swallowed.
Angad - "Maa..."
Mihir entered the room.
Mihir - "What's happening?"
He stopped.
His eyes moved from Angad to the veiled woman.
Then back to Angad.
Mihir - "Who is she?"
Angad took Vrinda's hand.
Angad - "My wife."
Silence.
The entire room seemed to freeze.
Tulsi stared at her son.
Mihir's face hardened.
Mihir - "What did you say?"
Angad - "She's my wife."
Mihir - "You got married?"
Angad nodded.
Mihir's voice became dangerously calm.
Mihir - "Without telling us?"
Angad - "Papa, please listen to me."
Mihir - "You expect me to listen?"
Tulsi stepped forward.
Tulsi - "Mihir, let him explain."
Mihir raised his hand.
Mihir - "No, Tulsi."
He looked at Angad.
Mihir - "You have brought a woman into this house, married her without informing your family and now expect me to accept everything without asking a single question?"
Angad remained calm.
Angad - "I knew you wouldn't understand."
Mihir - "Because you never gave me a chance!"
Angad - "I did."
Mihir - "When?"
Angad - "Every time I tried to tell you."
Mihir laughed bitterly.
Mihir - "You didn't tell me anything."
Angad looked at Vrinda.
For a moment, his expression softened.
Angad - "Because this wasn't about what I wanted."
Mihir stared at him.
Angad - "Vrinda needed someone to stand beside her. I couldn't walk away."
Mihir - "So you married her?"
Angad - "Yes."
Mihir - "And you think that's enough?"
Angad - "No."
His voice became quieter.
Angad - "I think doing the right thing matters more than making everyone happy."
Mihir was stunned.
Tulsi looked at her son with mixed emotions.
She knew Angad.
He could joke about almost anything.
He could turn a serious family discussion into comedy.
But when Angad spoke like this, he meant every word.
Mihir walked toward Vrinda.
She instinctively lowered her head.
Mihir looked at the veil covering her face.
Mihir - "At least let me see the woman for whom my son has destroyed everything."
Angad immediately stepped between them.
Angad - "Don't speak about her like that."
Mihir - "Why? Are you afraid I'll say something?"
Angad - "I'm afraid you'll judge her without knowing her."
Mihir - "And how am I supposed to know her? You haven't even introduced her properly!"
Angad - "Because you haven't given her a chance."
Tulsi stepped toward Vrinda.
Tulsi - "Beta..."
Vrinda's hands trembled.
Tulsi gently held her hand.
Tulsi - "Don't be afraid."
Mihir saw the gesture but remained angry.
Mihir - "Tulsi, don't."
Tulsi looked at him.
Tulsi - "She's already our daughter-in-law, whether you accept it or not."
Mihir - "Not in my house."
The words hit everyone.
Angad looked at his father.
Angad - "Papa..."
Mihir pointed toward the door.
Mihir - "If you have chosen this life, then live it."
Tulsi's eyes widened.
Tulsi - "Mihir!"
Mihir continued.
Mihir - "You want to be responsible for her? Fine."
He looked at Angad.
Mihir - "Then take responsibility."
Angad stared at him.
Mihir - "Leave."
Tulsi stepped between them.
Tulsi - "Mihir, he's our son."
Mihir - "And he has made his choice."
Tulsi - "He's still your son!"
Mihir's expression flickered.
For one second, the anger disappeared.
There was only pain.
But he buried it immediately.
Mihir - "Then perhaps he should have remembered that before doing this."
Angad looked at his father for a long moment.
He wanted to argue.
He wanted to plead.
He wanted his father to understand.
But beside him stood Vrinda.
She was already carrying enough fear.
He wasn't going to make her stand there and listen to them fight endlessly.
He gently took her hand.
Angad - "Come."
Vrinda hesitated.
Vrinda - "Angad..."
Angad squeezed her hand.
Angad - "I'm with you."
They started walking toward the door.
Tulsi's eyes filled with tears.
Tulsi - "Angad..."
He stopped.
For a moment, he looked back.
Tulsi walked toward him.
She touched his face.
Tulsi - "Take care of yourself."
Angad's eyes became moist.
Angad - "I will."
Tulsi looked toward Vrinda.
Tulsi - "And take care of her."
Angad nodded.
Angad - "Always."
Mihir remained standing behind them.
Silent.
Angad looked at his father one final time.
There was pain in his eyes.
But there was no anger.
Angad - "One day you'll understand why I chose her."
Mihir said nothing.
Angad turned around.
He walked out with Vrinda.
Tulsi followed them to the doorway.
She watched as her eldest son walked away from the house he had grown up in.
The door slowly closed.
Tulsi remained there.
Her tears finally fell.
Behind her, Mihir stood motionless.
He had wanted to appear strong.
He had wanted Angad to believe that his decision didn't affect him.
But his eyes remained fixed on the closed door.
Tulsi turned toward him.
Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Tulsi - "You sent your son away. But did you really stop being his father?"
Mihir didn't answer.
He simply looked toward the door.
And for the first time that evening, his anger looked less like anger...
and more like heartbreak.
To be continued...
Cricket
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Anupamaa
Current Affairs
59