Pri-Sanyo Reunion Script (Part 8)

Payal and Sanyogita somehow completed the decoration of the wall assigned to them and moved to the next. This time Prithvi kept on looking at Sanyogita from time to time. Payal noticed that and acted before Sanyogita as if she is comunicating with Prithvi through eyes. Sanyogita blocked their path by standing in front of Payal, facing Prithvi. "Yeh mujhe aaise kyun dekh rahi hai" Prithvi asked himself and blushed.

Everyone was working in full force. To keep children from disturbing others, they were assigned the task of distributing decoration material. But this idea brought more trouble. They started misplacing things. Payal added fuel in the fire and asked them to place sanyogita's garlands near Prithvi and his material near her. When Payal decided to go and get things from Prithvi, Sanyogita stopped her and told her she will do that.

"Ab hara dupatta yaha rakha tha, who kaha chala gaya? " asked Prithvi when he was unable to find it, in the mess lying around. "who raha…aaaaa…..Pundir jara who le aana" he was about to go, but saw Sanyogita near it.

"Pundir" Prithvi turned around."Pundir??"

He saw Pundir gesticulating at Payal and she was replying in the same way.

"Kya ho gaya hai sabko?" wondering he went towards Sanyogita.

Repeatedly Prithvi and Sanyogita faced each other and silently swapped things, avoiding eye contact.

Children's chasing did not cease. Many times Prithvi dashed with them and at one spot he fall down due to them. Watching Prithvi's expressions Sanyogita smiled covering her face by her dupatta. Prithvi saw that and blushed again. After so many years, he saw her smiling, though for few seconds.

One gang of teenage girls was also there. They were laughing all the time and busy doing nothing. It was difficult for Prithvi, Pundir and Arjun to finish their work quickly with disturbance around. From time to time these girls went to them and asked help for some stupid things. Prithvi and Pundir got irritate, but Arjun enjoyed. For things like colour combinations of ribbons and dupatta's, Arjun started discussions with the girls around. He carried out trial and error method in decorations. Many times he fixed material on the ceiling and then removed, when girls standing around argued: "Yeh kuch thik nahi lag raha."

"Bolo maa Santoshi ki........Jai......."

"Aaise toh kal shaam tak bhi, hum mandir saja nahi payenge, Arjun. Jaldi karo." said Prithvi.

While chatting with one man Prithvi got to know that Maha mantri was staying there. He decided to have a word with him; he may get some clue from him. But since he had promised Payal to help in temple work, he was forced to stay there in the temple premises and complete the work. But he was enjoying that unknowingly and the good thing was that Sanyogita was there, in front of his eyes.

Payal told Sanyogita that according to her, Prithvi's attention is more on those girls around than his work.

Sanyogita (wearing sour expressions on her face): "Yeh ladkiyon ko aur kuch kaam nahi hai kya?" she tried to spot Prithvi surrounded by girls. "Aur lagta hai Lakshman ko bhi bahot maja aa raha hai."

"Lakshman, jara yaha aana. Yeh thik hai."Payal called out his name loudly and asked him about the red and yellow combination of dupattas she was holding. Prithvi went there.

Three to four women were sweeping the floor around.

Sanyogita (turning back where Payal was previously there):"Arey yeh waha kab pohchi?"

That spy again reappeared and Payal saw him. She kept looking at him. That guy went out of her sight. Payal was about to follow him, when Prithvi asked"Kya hua, kaha ja rahi ho?"Even he saw that man hiding.

Payal:"Tum dono ke chakkar mein hum inn logon pe dhyaan rakhna, toh bhul hi jate hai." looking in that guy's direction.

Prithvi:"Tum dono ke chakkar mein, matlab? Mere aur kiske? "

Payal:"aaaaa nahi matlab Woh .....dekho….. woh wohi aadmi hai jise maine kal raat tumhare tambu ke yaha dekha."

Prithvi:"Tum janti ho usse?"

"Bolo maa Santoshi ki........Jai......."

Payal: "Nahi par..... ho sakta hai yeh unhi logon mein se ek ho." Still looking in that direction where that man disappeared.

Prithvi (sounding alert): "Kin logon mein se?"

Payal (realizing what she said just now): "aaaaaaaaa.....woh jinhone kal humpe hamla kiya." She could not find any other answer and the truth slipped out from her mouth.

Sanyogita saw them chatting and started moving towards them.

Prithvi: "Toh kya woh daku nahi the?"

Payal: "Pata nahi, shaayad nahi the."

Prithvi: "Toh woh kaun the, aur tumpe hamla kyun kiya?"

Payal: "Kyun ki shaayad humne unka ek sande......." She patted on the sandesh hanged on her waist.

"Kya hua Payal?" said Sanyogita coming there, before Payal completed her sentence. She looked from Payal to Prithvi.

Payal: "Kuch nahi, koi khaas baat chal rahi hai." As if ignoring her, Payal turned her face towards Prithvi.

Sanyogita (looking at Prithvi): "Khaas baat? kya hua?"

Before Prithvi answered, Payal tried to turn Prithvi to other side by pushing his arm,

Payal: "Hamari aapas ki baat hai, Lakshman tumhe yeh batana jaruri nahi samajta. kyu Lakshman?" Looking at him, she smiled.

Prithvi (trying to resist payal's push): "ha..... nahi... matlab aaisi koi baat nahi hai woh....."

Payal (facing Sanyogita): "Par sanyogita, tum apna kaam chode yaha waha kyun ghum rahi ho? Jao apna kaam karo."

Sanyogita (feeling irritate): "Dekho payal tum hume mat samjhao hume kya karna chahiye aur kya nahi."

Prithvi being stood between them, turned his face from left to right.

Payal: "Kabhie kabhie samjhana padta hai."

Sanyogita: "Tum bhi toh yaha waha ghum rahi ho."

Payal: "Ha toh hum apna kaam hi kar rahe hai,"

Sanyogita: "Achha, kaisa kaam?"

"Payal jara woh yaha lana." Pundir in high volume asked for the ribbons lying on the floor.

She picked those ribbins, again gave a big artifical smile to Prithvi and went towards Pundir. Sanyogita exchanged angry looks with her.

Prithvi found all this weird. He was never ever sandwiched between two quarelling ladies.

Sanyogita turned towards Prithvi: "Kya hua?"

Prithvi: "Kuch nahi.....Woh ek aadmi yaha tha jo....."

Sanyogita: "Kaun aadmi?"

Prithvi could feel the heat of anger transmitting from her. He looked here and there. "Woh kal tum dono pe jo hamla hua..." He got panic and could not understand why? May be because she was talking to him in a more-than-normal way.

Sanyogita: "Achha ....." nodding her head she kept one hand on her waist.

Prithvi: "Kya hua tumhe?" examining her carefully.

Sanyogita: "Sach kya hai batao."

"Bolo maa Santoshi ki........Jai......."

Prithvi: "Sach hi toh bata raha hu."

Sanyo: "Lag toh nahi raha."

Prithvi: "Payal se mein un logon ke bare mein hi puch raha tha....."

Sanyo: "Toh isme aapas ki kya baat hui?"

Prithvi: "Koi aapas ki baat nahi hai. Mujhe nahi pata us Payal ne aaisa kyun kaha?"

Sanyo: "Woh jhuth kyun bolegi?"

Prithvi: "Mujhe kya pata? Tum mujhse iss tarah se kyun baat kar rahi ho?" moving his hands. He could hear his voice raised.

Sanyogita: "Ab hamari baatein bhi tumhe aajib lag rahi hai?" Even her volume increased.

Prithvi: "Dekho Sanyogita inn sab baaton ke alava mere pass aur bhi bahot kaam hai."

Sanyo: "Ha ha..... abhi toh bahot kaam aa gaye tum pe."

Prithvi: "Tumhe ho kya gaya hai?"

"Bachon yeh mandir hai.......yaha toh mat jhagdo." said one of the four middle aged women working around.

Prithvi and Sanyogita completely forgot that there were people around.

Sanyogita: "ji.....ji nahi hum jhagad nahi rahe..."

"pati patni apne jhagde ghar mein hi rakhe toh achha hai." said other woman laughing.

Sanyogita: "Ji??" All ladies gathered around them. Payal had told them that Prithvi-Sanyogita are newly married couple and always squabbled on stupid things.

Prithvi: "Aap galat samaj rahi hai hum....."

"Waise jodi badi pyaari hai tumhari" said the third woman holding their chins by both hands.

"Ha.....kisiki nazar naa lage tumhe." Saying this first woman moved her hands in opposite directions around them. It is an action to get saved from bad eye.

"Ek dusre ko zamane ke nazar se chupayiyo....." They all laughed.

Prithvi and Sanyo looked at each other. They couldn't answer those ladies further.

"Lakshman yaha aao, hamari madat karo" said payal in a cloying tune from other corner.

"Ha" Prithvi went there leaving Sanyogita with those ladies in her 'do-not-understand-whats-going-on' state.

Special lunch was served for all the volunteers. Payal did not leave Pundir and Arjun's company. Sanyogita who was angry on Payal took lunch with Maya maa. Maya maa along with other devotees too got lunch break. Though away from Payal and Prithvi, Sanyogita constantly kept on watching Prithvi and too some extent kept an eye on Payal. Naturally she always saw what was in her mind: Payal and Prithvi laughing and enjoying together. "Par ab hamara usse kya lena dena? Yeh hume ho kya raha hai?" Many times this question arosed in her mind and she felt that her actions are getting out of her control.

After lunch, children were assigned the work of bringing pots of water and spreading it on the floor to wash them. Women were washing it. These people interferred a lot with the decorating team. They were continuously asked to move here and there. Accidently one kid poured water on Payal who was sitting on floor, tieing ribbons together.

Pundir laughed pointing finger at her and so all the kids around.

Payal reacted "Tumhe hasi aa rahi hai, yeh lo." and poured remaining water from the pot on him.

And when Arjun laughed on them, Payal and Pundir together poured two whole pots of water on him. "Yeh tum dono kya kar rahe ho......oyeee"

In this time pass, Arjun slipped from the ladder and fall on Prithvi. Everyone around joined in. Sanyogita too went there. Now it was Prithvi's turn, who felt nettled. He took the pot and poured water in Arjun's direction. Arjun instantly bend down and water splattered on Sanyogita who just arrived there.

Pundir and Arjun muted their laughter but payal let out a loud laugh.

Sanyogita: "Yeh tumne ....."

Prithvi (paniced): "Woh maine jaan bujke nahi kiya..... yeh Arjun..."

"Bolo maa Santoshi ki........Jai......."

"Lo didi ab tumhari bari." said one kid by holding a pot in front of Sanyogita. They behaved as if they were there to celebrate holi. Sanyogita did not take it.

"Isse chodo, lao hum hi Lakshman ko bhigate hai." said Payal in a playful tone.

"Nahi tum nahi." Sanyogita snatched the pot from Payal and as if it was an immediate action required;

"Sanyogita .....yeh tum...." She splashed the water on Prithvi.

"Jungli bi......" Prithvi left his sentence incomplete. Everybody let out a cry of enjoyment.

He and Sanyogita could not stop themselves from grinning. Situation was out of control.

But then everyone got back to work when pandit shouted at them. Nobody went to change the clothes and allowed them to dry on their body itself.

By afternoon whole ceiling, walls and railings of the temple were decorated. Though tired of doing all this Prithvi enjoyed this change of work along with Arjun, Pundir and Payal. Payal purposefully sidetracked Sanyogita thinking she would interfere even more and it worked. She did not leave Prithvi and Payal alone and repeatedly asked him go for the work for which he was there. She was right, but some middle aged men and gang of giggling girls did not allow Prithvi and his friends to go out of temple and look for his enemy spies. He remembered he did not complete his converstion about those people with Payal. Hence he was even searching for an opporunity to talk to her and always found her busy with Pundir. And when he got a chance to talk to her, Sanyogita interrupted. This girl, what's wrong with her, he thought.

After completing ceiling decorations only railing decoration was left. Payal and Pundir decided to join people to decorate left railing of the main staircase and Prithvi and Arjun went for the right railing. Other girls joined them too. No one involved Sanyogita. She felt lonely but stood still in the centre of the staircase as a supervisor and doing nothing.

Payal again started making gestures looking at Prithvi. Prithvi couldn't catch her behaviour because when he asked her "kya" through eyes, she did not respond and continued with her funny expressions.

"Yeh Payal kar kya rahi hai?" Prithvi asked Arjun who smiled saying "Apna kaam kar rahi hai."

"Bolo maa Santoshi ki........Jai......."

Again when girls around seemed more talkative with Prithvi and Arjun Sanyogita went there. She picked a lying garland and gave it those girls. "Yeh lo, yeh aaise waha lagao" Saying this she send them away.

"Arjun, tum log yaha kyun ruke ho?" Sanyogita asked thinking now this is the limit. She pushed those girls slightly.

Arjun: "Hum log, pata nahi yeh Prithvi aur Payal ka kuch .....(Prithvi sharply turned his face and casted an angry look at him)....inka aapas mein kuch tay hua hai....." He said with scary look on his face.

Prithvi: "Arjun? mein tumhe bahot marunga.....tum.."

Arjun: "Lagta mujhe koi bula raha hai, mein abhi aaya....." and he escaped.

Prithvi looked at Sanyogita. She was giving him a wild cat look.

Prithvi: "Mein nahi janta Arjun ne aaisa kyun kaha." shaking his head. He again wonder about the rising panic in him.

Sanyogita: "Ab yeh bhi jhut bol raha hai, hai naa?"

Prithvi: "Ha ..... maine..."

Sanyogita: "Sab galat hai aur sirf tum sahi ho."

Prithvi: "Mera yeh matlab nahi hai."

Sanyogita: "Sab kuch samne dikh raha hai....aur tum"

Prithvi: "Kabhi kabhi jo samne dikhta hai woh pura sach nahi hota hai."

"Tumne kabhi koi baat puri jani hi nahi. Bas jo suna, dekha usko leke natije pe poch gayi." He had decided never to take out this subject or talk to her about this but, what was in his heart came out naturally.

That night when he tried to tell her the truth suddenly rolled in front of him and he became serious. He remembered how he tried to tell her what exactly happened, but his act of killing Jaichand affected her so much that she was not ready to listen anything.

Sanyo: "Hume ab kuch nahi sunna hai, Prithvi." She started going away from him.

Prithvi: "Mein jo samjhana chahta hu Sanyogita, tum woh sunna hi nahi chahti. Yehi toh pareshani hai, hai naa?"

Sanyogita stopped and turned back at him. Prithvi went near her.

Prithvi: "Aaj ki hi tarah, pehle bhi mujhe apni safai mein kuch kehne ka, tumne mauka hi nahi diya. Agar deti toh dastaan aaj kitni alag hoti."

Sanyogita kept on looking at him and so did he. Suddenly she felt something hurting and bad and her heart beating fast. She found him very sad and she felt like crying. She tried to recall their past.

"Hum kaha galat hue? Humne kya nahi suna Prithvi?" she asked him but,............ in her mind.

*********************************** End of Part 8 ***********************************