Smita,😊
Here is my interpretation for Part 10.
This update is about unmasking, exposing, unveiling. Hence DENUDING.
"But.. but... he said he is an orphan, didn't he, Jiji?", Khushi's Amma asked Buaji, her whisper sounding like a loud proclamation in the pin-drop silence.
Buaji nodded, her mouth round in shock.
"If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything"
~ Mark Twain
"An orphan?", Arnav asked. "Let me introduce his family to you. Di?", he called.
Akash & NK led Anjali to stand by him. She was pale, her body cold in shock. Leaving Akash to hold her up, NK went to the back door to stand guard.
I don't know if we're looking at a serious event, but we've taken every precaution"
~ Steve Mondul
"This is Anjali Jha, Shyam Manohar Jha's legally wedded wife."
There were loud gasps from the guests and family gathered there. Shyam stood like a statue, shocked at the unexpected blow to his dreams.
"This is her Nani, Devyani Raizada.", Arnav said.
Nani stared at Shyam with astonished eyes. "Damadji! You... here..."
"I just remember being stunned. We all looked at each other and thought, 'What bad have we done in this life?'"
~ Charles J. Cooper (adapted)
"This is her Mami, Manorama Raizada."
"Hello Hi Bye Bye, so this ijj your work, Damadji? This ijj why you have no time to come home?", asked Mami bitterly.
Anjali leaned against Arnav's shoulder. "You said you were in Kanpur... ", she whispered.
"This ijj his Kanpur, Anjali Bitiyaa. You scoundrel! Badmash! Kaminey!", shouted Mami.
"No time for those who love me because I'm way too busy loving those who hate me"
"I am Arnav Singh Raizada. This is Akash Singh Raizada, & that Nand Kisore. We are his saale, aren't we, J-i-j-u?", Arnav asked.
Shyam swallowed.
"You are married? You have a wife? A family?", Buaji placed her hand on her mouth, unable to believe what she was hearing.
"Sure, everything is ending," Jules said, "but not yet"
~ Jennifer Egan A Visit from the Goon Squad
"Buaji, all this is a lie.", Shyam said. "I don't know them. They have come here to break this sagai!!!"
Buaji looked at Shyam. Then she looked at the Raizadas.
"So you don't know us?", Arnav asked softly.
"No. Who are you people? Who has paid you to disrupt this sagai?"
Anjali started weeping. Nani & Mami led her to a chair.
"Who are we?", asked Arnav. "That is a good question. We are the fools who have been meeting every extravagance of yours and feeding you for the past three years. In whose house you have been staying for the past three years. Whom you have been fooling for the past three years."
"You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time"
~ Abraham Lincoln
"Buaji, Amma, all this is a lie.", Shyam repeated.
"So you don't know them, Nandkisore?", Buaji asked.
All the ladies looked at Shyam, waiting for his reply.
"I don't know them, Buaji. I have never seen them before in my life.", Shyam said, a helpless, put upon look on his face.
"God hath given you one face, and you make yourself another."
~ William Shakespeare, Hamlet
The ladies looked at each other. Who was speaking the truth? Shyam or Arnav?
Suddenly, Khushi snatched Shyam's phone from his hand, and ran to stand behind Buaji.
"Khushiji!", Shyam called, surprised.
Khushi quickly checked his call record, & selected Rani Sahiba to call. Anjali's phone rang.
"Thy wit is as quick as the greyhound's mouth; it catches"
~ William Shakespeare
"How come you have Anjaliji's phone number and have called her numerous times if you don't know her, Shyamji?", she asked.
All gasped.
Khushi then picked the name Arnav, & called. Arnav's phone rang.
"How come you have Arnavji's number, & have called him many times?", Khushi asked.
"The tongue like a sharp knife... Kills without drawing blood"
~ Buddha
Shyam squirmed.
Buaji said, "So everything was a lie. You came here saying that you were an orphan & wanted a place to stay. A room. You pretended to be a good man... and we believed it, Nandkisore... " She hit her head with her hand.
"And then you asked us for Khussi Bitiya's hand..", Amma whispered.
"Like fools, we agreed...", Buaji said.
"Khussi didn't want to marry you...", Amma said.
"But we forced her... thinking that you were a good man...", Buaji said, sorrow weighing down the words.
"There are only two forces in the world, the sword and the spirit. In the long run the sword will always be conquered by the spirit"
~ Napoleon Bonaparte
"And all the time you had a wife, a family... a house in Delhi... you liar!", said Amma, her eyes filled with tears.
"You cheat! You dhokebaaz!", shouted Buaji.
"Jiji... just imagine... If we had conducted the wedding and then found out...", Amma said, horrified.
Buaji ran for her belan.
"Buaji...", Shyam tried.
"Don't call me Buaji! I am not your Buaji. I am not the Buaji of any Kamina! ", screamed Buaji, returning, brandishing her belan.
"Never allow people who suck to suck the joy out of your day!"
"Now what will you do, Shyam Manohar Jha?", asked Arnav Singh Raizada. "You have no place in Shantivan & my family. Apparently, you have no place here too. Now what?"
Shyam looked towards the back door. NK, guarding the exit, pulled up his jacket sleeves to show his clenched fists.
"Anything worth having is worth fighting for"
~ Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Heaven, Texas
The ladies got up one by one.
"This is not a problem that affects just your family, Madhumatiji. We too have daughters.", said Vimla Maasi.
Nirmala Chachi nodded.
"Ladies, show the kamina what he will get in the future if he so much as looks at another girl!", exhorted Preeto's Nani.
The ladies fell on Shyam Manohar Jha, hitting him with their chappals, Bujai's belan, Khushi's Babuji's big umbrella... Anything and everything was their weapon.
"It doesn't matter who you are, or where you came from. The ability to triumph begins with you. Always"
~ Oprah Winfrey
The Raizadas & the Guptas watched in silence. Once the ladies were done, Jha lay curled up like a worm on the floor, his clothes tattered, his hair wild, his body bruised...
"A woman is the full circle. Within her is the power to create, nurture and transform" ~Diane Mariechil
"Rani Sahiba...", he whined.
"What you don't see with your eyes, don't invent with your mouth"
~ Yiddish Proverb
"Don't call me that. Don't ever call me that! Get out of my life, you cheat! I never want to see you again!", Anjali shouted.
"A woman is like a tea bag: you cannot tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water" ~Nancy Reagan
Arnav, NK, & Akash dragged him out of the house and threw him into the street, scattering a crowd of hungry dogs sniffing around a garbage pile.
They returned to the house.
Babuji had tears of joy in his eyes. Buaji & Amma were apologising to Nani, Mami, & Anjali.
"We didn't know, Nandkisore! We didn't know! Had we known, we would not have let him place his foot on our doorstep, Nandkisore!", said Buaji.
"Please forgive us! We didn't know. His behaviour was so dignified, so cultured, so Lucknavi that...", said Amma.
"Apologizing does not always mean you are wrong, it just means that you value your relationship more than your ego"
Nani said, "It is not your fault. We too fell for his smooth talk and practiced ways."
Mami sighed, "Atleast we found out now! Anjali Bitiyaa ijj safe. Khushi ijj safe."
"In ourselves our safety must be sought.
By our own right hand it must be wrought"
~ William Wordsworth
Buaji looked at Arnav. "But for you, our Titliyaa's life..." Tears filled her eyes.
"Khushi found out the truth about Shyam first.", Arnav said. All gaped at him.
"She came to me. We talked it over. I checked the facts, & found them true. We planned to catch him red-handed. I informed Akash & NK last night, and we got him.", Arnav explained.
"A well planned project will give results exactly as planned"
~ Lama S. Bowen
"Titliyaa!", Buaji gasped.
Khushi went to kneel by Anjali.
"Anjaliji, I am sorry he was such a bad man. I am sorry that I am the reason you had to be so hurt today..." Her eyes filled with tears.
"Don't be, Khushiji. If it were not you, it would have been someone else.", Anjali said, slowly.
Nani & Mami nodded.
"A journey of a single mile begins with a single step" ~ Confucious
"Shall we leave?", asked Arnav. The Raizadas nodded.
He turned to Khushi, "I will call you."
She nodded.
Arnav Singh Raizada led his family out, helping his sister walk to the car and take her seat. NK had his arm around Nani, & Akash was supporting his mother.
The Guptas watched them go.
When Arnav Singh Raizada announces that all those who entered the Gupta residence along with him as Shyam Manohar Jha's family, Khushi's Amma whispered to Buaji in a stunned voice, "But... but... he said he is an orphan, didn't he, Jiji?" It resonated in the room that had gone suddenly silent! Buaji managed to just nod with her entire rotund being gone into a state of shock!
"If you don't want to slip up tomorrow, speak the truth"
~ Bruce Lee
Arnav asked them, "An orphan?" and said, "Let me introduce his family to you?" He called out to his sister. Akash and NK led Anjali to the front who had gone wan with the jolt she had received. Leaving Akash to support her, NK went to guard the back door.
"To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering"
~ Aldo Leopold
When Anjali's introduction as Anjali Jha, Shyam Manohar Jha's legally wedded wife elicited loud gasps from both the family and the guests, Shyam stood like a statue. The wide ear to ear smile that he was beaming while trying to place the ring on Khushi's finger had frozen and it was just teeth that was visible.
"You can only hold a smile for so long, after that it's just teeth ~ Chuck Palahniuk, Invisible Monsters
The smooth talking libertine had never expected his dream boat to be rocked. He had never thought that there would come a time when he had to explain his actions. The clever lawyer had thought he would be able to savour the joys of life with both Anjali and Khushi all the while living off Arnav's money!
"Those who have one foot in the canoe, and one foot in the boat, are going to fall into the river"
~ Native American Saying
He had not heard of the Native American wise men talk I guess. Next, Arnav introduced Devyani Raizada, Anjali's Nani. Nani, admonished Shyam, "Damadji! You... here..."
"The trumpet does no more stun you by its loudness, than a whisper teases you by its provoking inaudibility"
~ Charles Lamb
After that when Mami was introduced as Manorama Raizada, she who is known for straight forward talk, and always headed for the jugular, said in an acerbic tone,"Hello Hi Bye Bye, so this ijj your work, Damadji? This ijj why you have no time to come home?" Anjali who was witnessing this standing beside Arnav leaned against him and whispered at Shyam, "You said you were in Kanpur..."
"The sad part is I always make time for you, when you barely make time for me"
"This ijj his Kanpur, Anjali Bitiyaa. You scoundrel! Badmash! Kaminey!", was Mami's snappish rejoinder! Continuing the introduction Arnav said, "I am Arnav Singh Raizada. This is Akash Singh Raizada, & that is Nand Kisore. We are his saale, aren't we, J-i-j-u?" Shyam a lawyer by profession had no rebuttal for once. His throat had gone dry! Buaji who had adored Shyam and had treated him like a son she never had, asked him whether he was married and had a wife and family. She was unable to believe what she was being told by a stranger.
"Time was passing like a hand waving from a train that I wanted to be on."
~ Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Regaining his lost ground and poise, now getting just the opening he needed, Shyam told Buaji that it was all a lie. He didn't know who these people were. They had come with the sole purpose to break his engagement. Buaji who had seen only the good side of Shyam like the rest of the Guptas' kept shifting her gaze from, Shyam to Raizadas' unable to comprehend. Breaking the silence, Arnav in a soft voice hiding the threat it carried asked Shyam, "So you don't know us?" Shyam's reply, "No. Who are you people? Who has paid you to disrupt this sagai?" had Anjali weeping copiously. Nani and Mami made her take a seat nearby. Shyam's question was the breaking point of Anjali's faith in him. She who had adored him and given up all her thoughts and deeds just for his happiness was now being questioned as to who she was? Who was she in his life anyway. She was just a bed warmer at times but was mainly his perennial ATM. Now that his lustful roving eyes had settled on Khushi he pretended to not knowing anything. Arnav repeated Shyam's question, "Who are we?" and proceeded to say that it was the most pertinent one. He said, "We are the fools who have been meeting every extravagance of yours and feeding you for the past three years. In whose house you have been staying for the past three years." Arnav told him that they were those gullible fools who were the suckers of his act for the past three years!
"There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn't true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true"
~ Soren Kierkegaard
Shyam by now getting his act together, repeated to Buaji and Amma that they were being heaped with lies. He knew his only chance to escape was to convince Buaji that he was innocent of the crime accused. Buaji would protect if she believed in him. So when Buaji asked him, whether he didn't know them, putting on a face of an innocent, helpless victim, he replied that they were strangers, and he had never seen them in his life.
"Nothing is more deceitful," said Darcy, "than the appearance of humility. It is often only carelessness of opinion, and sometimes an indirect boast."
~ Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice
The ladies were in a fix. They were not able to decide whom to believe. Seeing their dilemma, knowing that if given a chance Shyam would wriggle away, Khushi standing beside Shyam snatched his cell phone and rushed behind her Buaji. Before Shyam could react she quickly scanned through his call record, pressed Rani Sahiba. Anjali's cellphone rang.
"O spirit of love, how quick and fresh art thou"
~ William Shakespeare
She asked him, if he was meeting them for the first time how was he in possession of Anjali's number and how was it there were numerous calls logged under the same number? Hearing her querry, all were stunned. In order to stress her argument, Khushi then picked the name Arnav and dialed. When Arnav's phone rang she again asked Shyam how was it that he possessed the number of the stranger and that too with the entry of a number of calls in the log.
"A sharp tongue is the only edge tool that grows keener with constant use"
~ Washington Irving
Khushi had caught him outrightly and exposed him in front of her family and guests. Her presence of mind made him squirm. Buaji was now convinced that whatever had come out of Shyam's mouth were utter lies. She told him so. Claiming to be an orphan he had sought the room for rent. He had pretended to be a man of good bearing and had fooled them! She berated hiting her head with her hand! Khushi's mother whispered in disbelief, "And then you asked us for Khussi Bitiya's hand..." and Buaji added,
"Like fools, we agreed..." When amma told, "Khussi didn't want to marry you..." Buaji once again completed her sentence, "But we forced her... thinking that you were a good man...", Both Buaji and Amma were lamenting the fact that they couldn't see through the con man Shyam.
"Right reason is stronger than force"
~ James A. Garfield
Feeling strongly for forcing Khushi into this engagement, with tear filled eyes, Amma said,
"And all the time you had a wife, a family... a house in Delhi... you liar!" and Buaji called him all the names that her Nandkisore would allow her to say, "You cheat! You dhokebaaz!".
Amma suddenly realized that they were fortunate enough to come to know about his con ways now itself. Her heart thudded with fear if this secret had come to light after the marriage what would their state be! Listening to her ranting Buaji, being the one to act, ran for her favored weapon, the rolling pin, her equivalent to the proverbial mace that would pulverize the opponents. Shyam called "Buaji..." after her but was cut short, "Don't call me Buaji! I am not your Buaji. I am not the Buaji of any Kamina!" She returned brandishing her much feared rolling pin.
"Always remember: Good people give you happiness and bad people give you experience"
Arnav Singh Raizada, who along with others was witnessing the verbal exchange asked Shyam, "Now what will you do, Shyam Manohar Jha?, You have no place in Shantivan & my family. Apparently, you have no place here too. Now what?" Seeing that he was trapped and his tongue had failed him to bail him out of the situation for the first time, Shyam thought of slinking away through the back door with his tail between his legs. He had run out of luck! His dark deeds seem to be catching up on him.
"When people cheat in any arena, they diminish themselves-they threaten their own self-esteem and their relationships with others by undermining the trust they have in their ability to succeed and in their ability to be true"
~ Cheryl Hughes
He found, NK guarding the rear door, had pulled up his sleeves and had his fist tightened, all set to jab him left and right!
"Warriors want a worthy opponent. There is no redress in fighting the pathetic"
~ Donna Lynn Hope
The ladies who had gathered for the function started to get up. Vimala Maasi said, "This is not a problem that affects just your family, Madhumatiji. We too have daughters."
Nirmala Chachi agreed. Preeto's Nani incited,
"Ladies, show the kamina what he will get in the future if he so much as looks at another girl."
The ladies gave a whacking of his life to Shyam Manohar Jha! It was a lesson never to be forgotten, for a crime never to be repeated anywhere. Chappal's, Buaji's rolling pin, Babuji's umbrella, anything and everything were made full use of to beat him into blue. It was the manifestation of women power. They had resorted to correct it by themselves. They showed that they were not helpless. They fought collectively for their rights.
"We were born to make and manifest the glory of god that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others" ~Marianne Williamson
The justice being meted to Shyam was watched in silence by the Raizadas and the Guptas. Once the ladies were satisfied that they had taught him a good lesson, they backed away. All that remained there was, Jha curled up like a worm on the floor, his clothes tattered, his hair wild, his body bruised...
"There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." ~Anais Nin
After being battered-up he realized his salvation lay only with his wife redeeming him of his offences. He whimpered, "Rani Sahiba...", like a simpering fool he was.
"A wanton eye is a messenger of an unchaste heart"
~ Saint Aurelius Augustine
His attempt only resulted in getting Anjali shout out, "Don't call me that. Don't ever call me that! Get out of my life, you cheat! I never want to see you again!"
"It's not what you call me, but what I answer to" ~African proverb
Her brother's who were just waiting for a cue from her, dragged him out like a lion dragging its hunted prey outside its cave after its meal and throwing it to the wolves. Arnav, NK, & Akash dragged him out of the house and threw him into the street, scattering a crowd of hungry dogs sniffing around a garbage pile. Then they returned to the house to find Babuji with tears of joy in his eyes. Buaji & Amma were apologising to the Raizadas'. They apologized profusely. Buaji said that they had no clue about his real identity and they had never suspected him to be a twister, else they would not have let him set foot in their house. Amma told that they were taken for a ride by his dignified, cultured, Lucknavi behavior that they never even dreamt that they were feeding a vulture!
"When you realize you've made a mistake, make amends immediately. It's easier to eat crow while it's still warm"
~ Dan Heist
Nani after listening to them told that it was not their fault. Even Raizada's too fell for his smooth talk and polished perfect ways! Mami who always thought differently sighed, "Atleast we found out now! Anjali Bitiyaa ijj safe. Khushi ijj safe."
"I never thought I'd hear myself say it, but safety first!"
~ J.K.Rowlings
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Buaji looked at Arnav and said in a choked voice,
"But for you, our Titliyaa's life..." Arnav told them then, "Khushi found out the truth about Shyam first. She came to me. We talked it over. I checked the facts, & found them true. We planned to catch him red-handed. I informed Akash & NK last night, and we got him."
"Having a sense of purpose is having a sense of self. A course to plot is a destination to hope for"
~ Bryant McGill
Buaji who knew Khushi was a crazy girl gasped,
"Titliyaa!" with wonder for having seen through the conman when no one else had a clue. Khushi kneeling by Anjali sought her forgiveness saying that she was the reason for the break-up of Anjali's marriage even though that man was a fiend! Anjali consoled the teary eyed Khushi that she was not at fault. If it was not her it would have been somebody else! Her marriage had been on rocks. She hadn't realized her castles were actually built in air. So Khushi was not to take the blame on herself! Both Nani and Mami concurred with what Anjali said.
"There is no one giant step that does it, It's a lot of little steps" ~ Peter A. Cohen
Seeing that his sister was on the verge of a break down, Arnav asked,"Shall we leave?" and the rest nodded. Turning to Khushi he said he would call her later. Arnav Singh Raizada led his sister out to his car and made her comfortable. The Guptas watched, NK supporting Nani who at her age was weathering the storm that befell on her family and Akash with his arms around his mother heading towards their vehicle and their destination being Home.
In this update, Shyam Manohar Jha, though caught out, uses his lawyer's instinct to bail himself out of the mess he had created, first by pretending, Raizadas' to be strangers. Then he resorts to appealing to the good nature of Buaji. But Khushi who had thought various things that he would resort to in his defence, exposed him with the help of the stored contact numbers in his cell phone. She questions him how such numbers of the strangers are in his possession for which he had no answers. She pulls the rug right from under his feet.
Then we see once his guilt is established, the ladies of the neighbourhood, whipping him thoroughly and giving him a lesson not to be forgotten in his life time.
It showed the strength of the women in that neighbourhood. It also showed how Gupta's were held in respect by the womenfolk in the neighbourhood.
It also exposed Anjali as person who could rise above the ashes to make the right decision even in the bitter times of her trial.
It unmasked Shyam the vile person he actually is and showed that he deserved all that he got and some more too!
It showed Nani, Mami and Arnav's magnanimity. Nani and Mami showed it when the Gupta ladies sought their forgiveness for helping in Shyam's sin unknowingly.
Arnav showed his when Buaji tried to thank him for saving Khushi. He revealed that it was Khushi who sought him out and informed about his Jijaji. When confirmed about Shyam's treachery both had met and devised the plan.
It showed Khushi's good nature by apologizing to Anjali and Anjali too showed that she doesn't hold it against Khushi and they were just pawns in Shyam's game.
It showed that for Anjali, not only Arnav but also Akash and NK were pillars of strength. If anybody dared to play with her emotions they were answerable to the three samurais.
Finally we see Arnav telling Khushi to expect his call later, right in front of her family, thereby unveiling the fact that they both had kept in constant touch.
That's why I call this update DENUDED.
That's it from me. Hope you enjoy it!
Edited by rulama - 12 years ago
Arjun
Cricket
10