A peal of laughter drifted in the office of Kesar Mehal Group of Hotels. The owner, the Daatahukum of Surajgadh raised his head and a fond smile replaced his otherwise stern features. Motioning his personal assistant to leave the office, he got up and went towards the window niche that was left ajar for fresh and cool air to enter the place...the same breeze that was responsible to carry the soft giggles from the kids that were playing in the magnificent gardens of Kesar Mehal Residential Unit.
Daatahukum leaned by the window and crossed his arms on his chest. His gaze was casted towards the gardens and the sight he beheld, made him sigh with a profound sense of peace.
He saw four heads; three of them belonging to the youngest children of the Singh family, and one head belonged to the love of his life, his wife, the Thakrani Sa of Surajgadh. Their heads were so close, but still Daatahukum could easily spot the dark brown hair of two little girls and the jet black hair of a small boy with them...And then his gaze fixed on the luscious grey hair of his wife...The same woman who was now pointing towards a flower and explaining something about it to her company of three of her grand-children.
Daatahukum Ratan Maan Singh's gaze was fixed on his wife only...and as always, her beautiful profile still did the same thing that it had done some thirty years ago! He smiled at the realization that despite being the most powerful Daatahukum in the entire Rajasthan, despite being the most feared Lord amongst other estates, despite of all the wealth that he had acquired with his superlative intelligence and acumen, despite his grand stature, for his wife, he still was the same flirtatious, care-free boy of 21 years old that he was thirty years ago, when he had first met her.
It still felt as if it was yesterday when he had come down to Surajgadh after a 12 years hiatus, and he saw her at the airport. The sheer beauty of that girl had completely bewitched him...but later he discovered her strength, her bravery and her strong character and Moral values...and he was completely enthralled by this beautiful human being, inside out.
Till date, she was his best friend, his support system... she was the most important person in his life...
He had loved her since he had known her... and she had showered him with a lot of love too...
Their equation had not changed. Even after thirty years of togetherness, she still was fiercely protective of his whereabouts and his meetings with different people. She used to train his guards by herself... she made sure that they gave the most elite, most advance security services to their Master. Her Pehredaarni nature had not changed at all...and till date, she took care of him like she had started doing it some forty-two years ago!
Daatahukum shook his head and smiled at the way his Pehredaarni wife was kneeling beside those flower beds and how keenly the three kids were listening to whatever she was telling them. A butterfly decided to sit on the flower they were discussing about, when his wife very gently, very delicately managed to make the butterfly sit on her finger. The three kids squealed with happiness and started clapping...and this made him chuckle too.
He knew that his wife loved to spend time with their grand-children. She was like that...fierce when HIS protection and life was concerned, but otherwise she was a real softy...a gentle, fun loving and innocent soul. She was the most famous Maharani of Surajgadh...respected by everyone, including his family members...but what was special about her was the way she was loved and adored by the children, not only in their own family, but outside also...just like his Kaki ma sa...
Diya Thakrani sa also used to tell stories to little children, and she loved to play with her grand-kids. Although it was the era of gaming consoles and technology, but Diya believed in raising kids in as natural environments as possible. She used to take them out daily and tell them about different stuff...teach them trivial things that would build them into learned, well-mannered and good human beings. With them, she used to become a child herself sometimes...and he just loved that side of his wife... He knew why she was so attached with children...
She herself had faced a very tough time in conceiving his one and only child.
The memories of that time still squeezed his heart with pain. For the first two years of marriage, he had seen his wife crying in the restroom over negative pregnancy test results. He had watched her getting affected by the murmurs amongst the outsiders about her age and the fact that he was younger than her... He had heard old women "advising" her, rather "patronizing" her to make a child as soon as possible because she was older and her child bearing years were close to an end. But age was not the only thing that was causing the problem...
In the past, while protecting him, she had been hit by a bullet in a terrorist attack, and one of her ovaries and Fallopian tubes had been damaged in the process. For Ratan, all that mattered was that she had survived that incident...but the damage it had done was a major cause of concern for her and for everyone else in the family. As the Thakrani sa and wife of the Daatahukum, she was expected to bear his children...but it had become very difficult for her now... And the added talks of her age and everything were enough to make her desperate for kids. In front of their eyes, Yash banna and Mohana baisa had been blessed with children. He had seen his wife taking care of Mohana throughout her pregnancies, and then of her kids as if they were her own...and he had watched her silently wiping away her tears on seeing those kids happily hugging and playing with their parents.
Childlessness or Infertility was not a major concern for him. He was more than happy with his life with her... Their passion and love had increased with each passing day...and for him, that was enough. Naturally, he would have liked to have a child of his own, but even if he did not, it hardly mattered to him. What bothered him was that his wife was getting affected...and her sadness was unbearable for him. In all those years of their marriage when they were trying to conceive, he had seen her getting emotionally weak month by month...and that was when he had become her pillar of support. To see his strong wife getting weak was unacceptable for him... it hurt him to hold her in his arms, clutch her to his chest and feel her body convulsing with sobs against his body. Tears used to fall from her eyes, but he used to feel as if they were wrenching from his own heart. He had spent many nights holding her, comforting her, absorbing her tears in his own chest, and soothing her aching heart with his loving whispers. He had devoted his time to take her out on tours... he had made sure that she never stopped coming to the hotel and helping him out with the business. He kept her busy and occupied, he paved ways for her to start new projects... Together they had started a jewelry and clothing line with Sakshi baisa and Mohak sa and it was a very good diversion for Diya.
With all his efforts, he had tried to fill the void in her heart and in her life...
Because he had understood that a marriage takes a lot of effort, a lot of time and a lot of compromises. Having a loving partner whom you love too is just not enough. In those years, he understood the real meaning of "Marriage". He fathomed that it means that you must stand by your spouse in thick and thin... He had seen his wife taking care of him for so many years...but when she weakened, it was his job to take care of her...keep her happy...stand by her side no matter how bad the days were. Love is not just a one day thing...He realized that Love is a promise for the entire lifetime. It does not end...but it can fade away if the lovers are not careful enough to protect it. It is like a child too...and it also needs proper nurturing, time, and devotion...and he made sure to devote his everything to that one person, who had devoted her entire life for him too!
He had taken her abroad for advance infertility treatment, and after some failed attempts, she had finally managed to conceive. Her joy was a remarkable sight! And it made him very happy to see her like that. At the age of 36, she finally embraced parenthood... They had been blessed with a healthy and very handsome son. She had proved to be an excellent mother, just like she was an excellent wife. They had raised their son, Kunwar Rudra Maan Singh, with a lot of love and then got him married at an early age too...just like his own father. Rudra and his wife, Parvati had completed their family by giving them twin girls. On the other hand, Yash and Mohana's children had grown up too and they had become grandparents to a small boy also. With her three grand-children, Thakrani sa had become the coolest and the most fun Dadi sa hukum... Children loved being with her...and they respected her too, despite being so young.
Ratan smiled at the way the three kids were now tugging at her sari from all sides... they were demanding her to play Blindfold hide and seek...and the way she was, they didn't have to make much effort to persuade her. Soon they produced a piece of cloth, and the children decided that Dadi sa hukum would tie it around her eyes and seek them first. He saw Diya smiling on their demands, and then she signaled the guards nearby. He knew what she was telling them now... She wanted the guards to make sure that the children did not go anywhere else beside the gardens. Ratan shook his head, still smiling at the protective nature of his beautiful wife, he decided to join the party downstairs.
When he stepped in the gardens, Diya's eyes were covered with the cloth and she was trying to "seek" the hidden children... who were giving out clues of their whereabouts with their happy chatter and squeals... and he knew damn well that she could easily get those kids, but she was relenting just to prolong their fun time.
When the kids saw Dada sa hukum, they immediately quietened. He signaled the guards to leave also. Ratan's presence and demeanor demanded utmost respect from everyone... but today his persona looked a bit different..a little playful. The kids saw their Dada sa hukum raising a finger on his lips, gesturing them to stay quiet and not to announce his presence, and then he stood near a chair, right behind Diya. Diya's back was towards him...but she sensed his presence. With a smile playing on her lips, very slightly she stepped back until her back touched his chest. Her smile broadening, ever so slightly, she leaned back into him and he brought his arm forward and snaking it around her waist, said teasingly,
"Aaj bhi Diya, aap ko fool nahi bana sakta... aapko nahi haraa sakta."
Still smiling, she replied,
"Aaj bhi Ratan, aap ki saanson se hi bass aapko pehchaan lete hain hum!"
He shook his head and snuggled her closer to him and whispered,
"Aur aaj bhi Diya, aap utni hi khoobsurat hain jitni pehle thyn."
She slightly turned her head towards where she could feel his mouth and his breaths fanning on her neck and said with a hint of pride for her husband,
"Mager aap pehle se kahin ziada handsome ho chuke hain,Daatahukum...aur enigmatic bhi!."
Ratan was losing his control in her proximity...and with difficulty, he managed to say,
"Lekin aaj bhi aap se buht ziada muhabbat kerta hun..."
Her breath hitched as she whispered back,
"Itne saal guzar gaye Ratan... itni zindagy dekh ly... itnay utaar chadhao se hum mil ker guzre...aur aap ne humara haath kabhi nahi chhoda. Hum kia kahien...hum aaj bhi aap se behadh muhabbat kerte hain."
Ratan was about to kiss her on her neck when Yash's grand-son called out,
"Dada sa hutum, tia aap bi humale sshaath thelien ge?" (Dada sa hukum, kia aap bhi humare saath khelien ge?)
The two girls started clapping happily and began their chant, "Thelein ge thelien ge..." (Khelien ge khelien ge..)
Diya straightened up quickly as if she had been caught red handed doing some inappropriate act!
Truth was, like always, Ratan had this power to completely take over her senses whenever he was near and a simple touch of his still managed to make her heart skip its beats. Smiling at her helplessness towards the way she always felt for her husband, she untied her blind fold cloth and called out to the kids,
"Haan haan bacchon...bilkul khelien ge. Abh yeh patti hum Dada sa ki eyes per bandh dete hain." Then she turned her face towards him, her lips playing a beautiful smile, and her eyes shining with teasing mischief, she called out to Ratan,
"Kyun Dada sa hukum, khelien ge na humare sath? Humien pakad ker tou dikhayein zara!"
As always, the glow of love on her face was enough to melt Ratan's heart. With a teasing smile of his own, he replied,
"Arey aapko tou aisa pakdun ga ke phir kabhi chhodun ga hi nahi!" Then he sneakily pinched her waist and whispered, "Soch lijiye Diya...mujhse panga le rahy hain...aur aap ko pata hai ke mien raat ko phir aapse badla kaise leta hun!"
The kids were watching their grand-parents talking about the game...but they were shocked when they saw their Dadi sa hukum's complexion turning deep red and then she burst into laughter. Their usually reserve Dada sa hukum had the naughtiest smile on his face as he pried away the cloth from Dadi sa's hand and tied around his own eyes.
The kids were small...so they could not understand the exchange between their grandparents... But everyone else in Surajgadh knew how they both were so happy with each other.
Life had taught them a lot of things... they had many difficulties and they saw many bad days also, but they never left each other's hands. They had been together in every turn of their lives...and they braved every situation just by being with each other. Never did they let each other down... And their unbreakable trust in each other, their unwavering love for each other, their unrelenting support for each other and above all, their uttermost respect for each other was what made their relationship so special. And it was the same relationship that had raised many questions in the past... but now they were like an institution of a happy and successful marriage for everyone around. Both knew that happiness is not a permanent thing, just like sadness does not prevail always. They clearly understood that the important thing in life is to manage to find satisfaction in small things. This satisfaction reflected in their relationships with others... and with each other too. It gave them strength to cross the hurdles that life threw their way. They had found this simple formula; Be satisfied, find happiness and then share it with others...
Real Estate
Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon
