Congrats all for India winning the world cup....here's an update which had been promised since like days and days....hope you like it...though i fear...aahh! well..it's my story so complication to hongey hi....You know the drill right..read...press 'like'...leave long comments...warna no updates even though i have time hi time to kill till tomorrow.😈 😆
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Ch10: A Good Girl
Kalawati ran her fingers through the thick mane of dark hair lovingly as he closed his eyes in bliss with his head resting on her lap on the couch- "Dutta,chann baar maaza!(My good child) Sunn, tujhe kal jo tasveerey dikhyi usme koi pasand ayi kya?" Dutta bit a smile with his eyes still closed- nai,tai. Koi pasand nahi ayi. Kala clenched her teeth in frustration and breathed deeply to control her annoyance- Tu mujhe bata Dutta. Tujhe kaisi ladki chahiye. Tabhi main dund paungi na! Abhi bol de agar tujhe koi vedeshi chahiye to phir roopatai se kah kar kuch biodata maangatey hai. Dutta- arey nahi tai. Mujhe to aapki jaisi ladki chahiye. Pann kai karnaar.. konhi disat nahi!(But what to do as I can't find a girl like you!) Kalawati tugged his hair making him wince a little. Dutta flashed a roguish grin with one eye open and picked up a slice of the apple from the plate balanced on his stomach and bit into it.
Kishore walked in and smiled at his wife-arey wah saale saab, meri jagah cheen li. Ab main kahan laitunga? Aap apni personal biwi kyun nahi dhund lete..yeh waali legally meri property hai.. "trespassers to be prosecuted". Kalawati frowned at him-Kishore..aap bhi kaise bacchkani baatein kartey hai..chee! Dutta chewed on and echoed her mischeiviously-Haan, jamaidada….Chee!
Kishore-accha..humari value khatam bhau ke aatey hi..chalo koi baat nahi..ye lo Dinky ka gift necklace le aaya hoon sunaar se, dekh lo. Kalawati excitedly pushed Dutta off her lap and smiled- ohh…sahi time pe mill gaya..main to pareshaan thi ki itni harbaardi mein nahi millega. Itni jaldi shaadi fix huyi thi. Dutta uth to..dekhne de. She looked at the delicately crafted jewel and fingered the earrings- nakku ke shaddi ke liye bhi issi sunaar se banaugi..rani haar.. hmm..accha kaam hai iska. Kangan ke design to bahut acchey hai uske pass. Dutta swallowed the bite of apple and wiped his lips with back of his hand, raising his eyebrow-nakku kab shaddi kar rahi hai? Kalawati- tch..abhi nahi. Par jab karegi tab. Soney ka bhav bard raha hai…abhi banwa lena theek hai. She looked up at her husband-Kishore, mere haar ka hook theek karane diya tha. Wo kahan hai?
Kishore- wo nahi bana ab tak. Yahi bana paya wo itne kum time mein. Kala pressed her hand to her mouth- Oh no! anb kal main shaadi mein kya pehanungi? Mera favorite diamond set tha. Kishore winked at Dutta who was looking amused and still chewing on the apple slice- arey to kya hua begum? Hum hai na! aap humein apni gale se latka lena..aapki gale ka haar baney latke rahenge iss duniya ke samne. Kalawati-Aap? Huh…aap jaise antique ko kya gale parne doon main! Mera bhi koi standard hai! Dutta choked on his apple and burst out laughing. Nakkusha entered with a stack of clothes in her hand at that point. Kishore-aa gayi..meri kadar karne waali. Bol nakku, main kya antique hoon..buddha hoon? Nakku was startled by the question and looked up from the clothes with huge surprised eyes-k..k..kya? kaun antique? Kishore- main.. main antique hoon? Nakku looked at dutta for help but he kept laughing- aa..wo…phir se hair dye lagana hai kya jiju? Aaj laga doon? kal to shaadi mein jaana hai! Kalawati and dutta low fived eachother and burst out laughing while Kishore gnashed his teeth in frustration. Nakku looked at the trio confused wondering what she had said to get such varied reactions.
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"Yaar! Kahan phaas gaya main? Begani shaadi mein Abdullah deewana! Yahan na main dulhe ko jaanta hoon na dulhan ko. Bekaar tai yahan kheech layi mujhe. Main ghar mein theek tha." Dutta grumbled of the tenth time.
Nakkusha looked at him smiling- ohho, aap bhi kabhi kabhi baccho jaisi baatien kartey hai. Ghar mein kya kartey? Yahan kitney log hai, sab kitne khush hai. aur aap apna sardu wala chehra bannake baithey hai. She looked down at the red rose in her hand and removed the dark edges in the petals. Each girl had been handed a red roses at the entrance by a young boy and the boys had been asked to lean down to get the scarlet tikka on the forehead. Then every entrant was sprayed with perfumed water itraa. Dutta had hated all of it as the strong smell of rose jasmine was nauseating to him but nakkusha was delighted with her rose. Dutta had asked her in amusement-kabhi gulab nahi dekha kya? Nakku made a face-dekha to hai! par mujhe koi har roz thodi phool deta hai! mujhe phool bahut pasand hai. She closed her eyes and breathed in the fragrance again as dutta rolled his eyes. He looked around the crowd. To a spectator it would look like a chaos. People were standing in groups talking loudly, at the center the ceremony was going on with bride and groom doing some yagya. Kids ran around playing with their party clothes in disarray and grimy. The buffet in the corner was being raided by many guests, there was even a line now and one of the bride's cousin was entrusted to keep eagle's eye on the guest to check for free loaders and party-crashers. Dutta's roving eyes met a pair of equally bored grey-green eyes and stopped there.
He looked at her standing at the corner with her hands folded to her chest looking disinterested in the chatter of the ladies around her. She met his eyes and he gave a faint mocking smile. She raised a brow at him and shook her pretty auburn head looking away. He waited a second till she turned back to steal another look at him, he smiled mouthing a 'hello'. She smiled faintly at him and rolled her eyes like a dead man making him smiled broadly.
Nakkusha was looking at the wedding when Dinky's father gave his hand to the groom, nakkusha smiled and turned to dutta to tell him the significance of kanyadaan to find his looking distractedly at something. She followed his gaze and looked at what had caught his attention. She was beautiful! Tall, elegantly slim wearing a transparent white saree which had clever strategic heavy embroidery at the right places to hide her assets. The spaghetti strap of her blouse peeked from her aurburn hair which were shining in the light from chandeliers in confusion as to be black or red. Her fair face held a dramatic flair of haughtiness and high cheekbones with light hint of dimple on left cheek. Her full lips were painted a daring red which on others would have looked so loud but on her looked amazingly mysterious. Her grey-green eyes were sparkling with haughty mischief as they said a million things to him. Nakkusha was caught by the sheer effervescent beauty of the girl. Dutta leaned back a little to ask nakkusha without breaking eye contact with the girl- Aye nakku, wo ladki kaun hai? Nakkusha stammered- p..p..pata nahi. Kabhi dekha nahi. Baraati hogi! Dutta-hmm! He turned back to look at nakkusha and gave a wolfish grin-Nakku, I love you. Nakkusha's eyes widened as he whisked the rose of her stilled hands and whistled debbu softly to him. She looked down at her empty hands and looked at him in shock as he handed the rose to deepu and whispered something in her brother's ears. Debbu gave a wink and mischievous lop-sided grin very much like dutta's and skipped away. Debbu had made dutta his hero and he tried to emulate him in everything. Nakkusha had noticed that debbu now struggled harder with his studies and used more English in his speech. He even walked with a slow swagger like Dutta. As she watched her little brother make his way to the girl in white, she felt her eyes water and blinked back rapidly looking away. She couldn't understand why he did things that he did. She tried so hard to stay away and unaffected by him yet he would pull her to him and give her liberties that made her feel that she mattered and then he said things like that. Without meaning his words and casual, blas actions hurt her more than anything. He had become such integral part in the small, insignificant, simple lives of the Shukla brood. Like there was debbu who wanted to be like him, then there was sonu who had her first crush on him and tried very hard to please him. Sonu felt that sun rose and set on him. Dutta with his single act of kindness to their father had thrown John Abraham and overtaken his pedestal. Then there was nakku herself who felt herself fall ever so deeply in love with him every day, every moment. But she knew the truth and kept telling her siblings and herself every day that he was just a temporary part of their lives , that he would leave one day very soon and probably never look back as his life was so far and different than theirs. But like them, her heart never ceased to love him.
She looked again telling herself to stay unaffected as she saw debbu give the rose to the girl. He tugged her aanchal and stood tall with a hand behind his back and extended the rose towards her in a courteous manner, inclining his head slightly as if bowing. She broke into a smile and took the flower and elegantly dipped her head to say thank you and ruffled his hair affectionately. She must have asked him who the rose was from while smelling it because debbu turned and pointed at thumb at Dutta. Her eyes stilled over the rose as dutta inclined his head to the side as if accepting a crime and she smiled back at debbu and whispered something in his ears.
Dutta- Pata hai nakku us ladki mein aur us gulab mein kya similarity hai? Nakkusha bit her lips and said softly- dono bahut sundar hai? Dutta shook her head- umhuu..Sudar to koi bhi phool hota hai..sundar to koi bhi ladki ho sakti hai. par gulab unique hota hai..is ladki ki tarah. Janti hai wo uniqueness kya hai? He broke the eye contact with the girl to turn back to nakkusha. Nakkusha looked staright ahead at the mandap where Dinky was taking her pheras with her half husband, swallowing a lump she shook her head in answer to him. Dutta dipped his head closer to hers sideways and muttered- Layers! The difference is in layers. She whipped her head to look at him surprised. Dutta continued- Gulab mein bhi layers hotey hai..jo ussey unique banata hai. tujhe band gulab ka kali milla tha..jissey tune bade pyaar se khilya..pankhuriyon ko khola. Tabhi to wo itna sundar lag raha tha..us mein bhi yahi baat hai…she has layers and that intrigues me. I would love stripping those layers away to know the secrets hidden inside. He forgot about nakkusha's presence as he said that like he was almost talking to himself. Nakkusha got up and said- aap apney botany class chalo rakho par mere bhai ko issey dur rakho mujhe kaam hai. Dutta paid least attention as she went away towards the buffet table.
Dutta watched as his Tai made her way towards the girl and her companions and greeted them. He bit a smile and got up to walk towards his beloved sister, picking up two glasses of cold drinks on his way. As he approached them he heard her tai mention him- arey mera bhau bhi aisey social functions se kosso durr bhagta hai..par is baar main pakad ke layi hoon..yahi kahi hai…She looked around and spotted him-arey ye raha. Dutta walked to her and gave the drink to her-tai,aapke liye. She took it and smiled tenderly- yeh hai mera bhau, Dr.Dutta Patil. Mumbai mein surgeon hai. Dutta, inse mill. Yeh tere jamaidada ke collegue the Keshav Pinjarkar, ab Pune mein rahtey hai..yeh, tomar bhaisaab aur tere jamaidad ek saath college mein the..tere jamaidada inke junior the..hai na bhai saab? The man wearing a off white silk kurta with grey residing hair smiled at kalawati-Jee, tabhi to aap jaisi beautiful lady ko humare aankhon ke samne udaa le gaya. Kalawati blushed beautifully while his wife elbowed him-aap bhi..baccho ke samne to dekh ke baat kijiye. Dutta stole a glance at the girl as she bit a smile at her father's clich joke. Her mother looked at dutta with a predator's sparkle in her eyes and said,"accha hua! Meri beti ko koi company mill gaya. She was getti g so bored in the party. She doesn't know anyone here..Dutta. this is our daughter- Meghna. Beta meghna?" The girl joined her hands to Kalawati and said a small 'Hello!' to him. Dutta inclined his head. A moment of quiet fell around the group as Kalawati and the woman looked from dutta to meghna nad back. Dutta looked at them without giving any expressions and meghna looked uninterested. Taking the hint that just introductions would not make these two talking Kalawati said laughing- Hum ab in youngsters ko kab tak bore karenge…Mrs. Pinjarkar. Aayeye na..Main aapko mere dosto se millati hoon. Bhaisaab wo Kishore wahan hai..aapne dosto ke saath. She threw a glance at Dutta and took the brood away.
Dutta watched them go and breathed a sigh of relief- so would you like something to drink. Meghna pointed at the glass already in her hand and dutta smiled and sipped his drink. Dutta saw her looking around and said- Quaint,ain't it? Everything is very bollywood style? Meghna- I love bollywood films..and I love weddings but this one was somehow boring me…She paused and looked sideways at him-till now. Dutta- so Ms.Meghna..what do you do in pune? Meghna-it's Dr.Meghna actually. I am physiotherapist at Sasoon hospital in pune. Have you heard of it? Dutta nodded- yup, did a few surgery there last year on request. Mm…Dr.Sinha heads the orthopedicsdepartment, right? Meghna- yes, he used to now he has moved to another hospital. I have worked very closely with him. Dutta nodded- well, how long will you be here? Meghna-a week or two was the plan. Now I am thinking of running away tomorrow. Dutta- hmm..compared to pune the night scene here is quiet dull. Meghna- true. Plus nothing has inspired me to stay till now. Dutta- till now? Meghna looked at the rose in her hand and smiled-maybe something will..Dutta- let's keep that here tucked with a pin. He made a made an action of tucking a pin on something in air between them. Meghna looked at the air in the spot- yes, let's! we'll get back to that topic of my staying by the end of our…getting to know you sessions. She lifted the rose and caressed her chin with it looking at him.
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Nakkusha stood near the buffet table a minute before regaining her balance. She remembered she had to give babuji his medicines. Picking up a plate she began to make up a portion for him. Babuji was hopeless at serving himself. He ate whatever was put in his plate without fuss, even if the food was barely edible he would eat everything but when asked to pick out things he would like to eat from a selection, he would come up with empty plate. She had learned that soon after Maa died. In some ways Nishikant babu was as hopeless and helpless as a 5 years old. Taking the plate she walked to her babuji who was sitting quietly in a corner looking at the wedding.
Nakkusha-Babuji, lo. Aap khana kha lo. Davai ka waqt ho gaya hai. Nishikant babu wore his spectacles and pushed the bridge of it on his nose inspecting the plate- itna saara! Nakkusha- kha lo. Nahi khatam huas to chod dena. Nishikant babu looked at nakkusha a little annoyed- khana bharpur hone ka matlab ye nahi..befijul barbaad kare..sikhaya nahi maine tujhe Annapurna ka aapmaan nahi kartey. Nakkusha looked down a little ashamed-mera matlab aap chod dena..main khatam kar dungi..bas yahi kaha tha. She turned away to walk back when her father held her hand. He indicated her to seat beside him. When she sat down quietly looking down at her fingers her father said softly,"maine pahele hi kaha tha, nakku. Mehmaan bhagwan ho saktey hai par jaroori nahi hai ki bhagwaan hamesha insaan ke ghar baas jaye…Dutta babu tujhe aapna dost mane par yeh dosti bas dosti hi rahey to theek hoga." Nakkusha shook her head and denied that anything was wrong,"bas aisey hi jara maa ki yaad aa rahi hai. ye aap ki davai hai, babuji. Le lijiyega. Main jara dekhti hoon damini bua ko koi madat chahiye kya."
As she walked away her father chewed the morsel swoly and thought about what Tomar bhaisaab had told him earlier. Tomar had introduced him to a man from the groom's side, who lived in Bilaspur. The man had heavily hinted about his son being unmarried and looking for a match. Maybe it was time afterall, nishikant thought to himself and looked at his daughter offering cold drinks to the baraatis with her eyes downcast and a shy, forced smile on her face.
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Vijay, the groom's mother, Rohini elbowed her cousin Meena. When she had her full attention, Rohini raised her chin signaling at the girl holding the drinks tray and offering it to everyone. She was looking nice today. Almost pretty in her light blue kurta churidaar and open long hair just pined loosely at the back. Rihini hissed softly-Didi, dekho yahi hai wo ladki jiske baarey mein kaha tha..Bahut acchi ladki hai. Sushil hai, aur samdhan kah rahi thi badi seedhi-saadhi, shareef hai..aapne bittu ke liye bilkul teek rahegi. Meena looked around trying to see with her weak eyesight. Her spectacles were in her purse but she didn't want to wear the thick glasses and ruin the effect of her beautiful saree and makeup which the palour girl had painstakingly achieved. She grumbled,"Kachu nahi dikh raha hai humko! Jara paas bulwa do to dekh hi le hum bhi. Yahan to sab dhuan aur kohra sa dhundla sa hai." Rohini got excited,"abhi bulwa deti hoon, didi. Arey, beti.." She signaled nakkusha to come them. When she came with her tray Rohini picked up a glass and offered it to Meena. Meena looked pointedly at nakkusha and ignoring the glass lifted nakkusha's chin towards the light. After a long look that made nakkusha uneasy she let go. Meena- humko thanda nahi bhata..kachu garam milega yahan? Nakkusha hesitated- jee! Wo aap chai piyengi to main banwa dungi. Rohini- wahi theek hoga. kyun didi? Meena made a face- banwa dungi kahe…tumko banana nahi aata kya? Nakkusha smiled nervously- jee, auntiji..main bana lati hoon. Aap..cheeni kitni lengi? Meena told her her specifications and nakkusha nodded and walked towards the kitchen where the food for the feast was being prepared wondering if the caterers would allow her to make a cup of tea in all their busy schedule.
Meena- kya naam bataya tha? Rohini- amm.haan..na..Nakkusha. Meena made a irritated sound-Ladki ka nahi..uska kya karna hai…khandaan ka kya naam bataya tha. Rohini-Shukla..Humare biradri ke hai didi. Chinta na karo. Main kya aisi hi kisi ka rishta laungi aapne bittu ke liye. Meena nodded- Theek hi hai…raang thoda maila hai par nain-naksh to barabar hi lag rahe hai. Humra bittu to dikhne mein accha hai..par koi hoor-pari laungi to uska maatha bhi satve aasmaan par hoga.
A shadow fell on her face and meena looked up and smiled- arey bittu to aa gaya. Bait. Yahan bait tujhe hum kuch dikhana chahtey hai. As the man sat down a soft lilting sound reverberated in his ears. "Jee auntiji, aapki chai."
Meena took the cup from nakkusha's hand. Nakkusha waited to till she took a sip and sighed in relish, she then smiled at the old lady and turned back. A man's deep voice stopped her,"jee, aapne bas meri maa ke liye ye takleef ki itne logo mein?" Nakkusha turned back and smiled,"jee..koi baat nahi. Isme kaisi takleef? Aap to humare mehmaan hai." She tried to walk away when the man said again,"Phir bhi, sab aisa nahi kartey. Mehmaan ke liye bhi nahi. Thanks." Nakkusha smiled at him and dipped her head respectfully at the old lady and walked away.
Meena turned to her son,"bol bittu kaisi lagi? Baat chalaun kya?" The smiled at his mother and turned to look at the residing figure following her till she disappeared in the crowd and nodded.
.......To be continued.
Kumkum Bhagya
Tu Dhadkan Main Dil
