Shoda ani Shudhha
(To search and pure)
The following week was great, she only followed Aadhya's bus to playschool one time, on Tuesday,
Paakh liked the creative plan she came up with, they had deep pockets and were willing to go all the way, in buying media of every kind
This was Delhi Office's first big win after Neel came on board
Advtg, much like everything else in consumer driven India was highly competitive
A big chunk of political advertising, hoardings, billboards etc, public service advtg etc was untapped market for McKinsey
Gomez and Neel were targeted to make inoroads into befriending netas and other powers that be to turn the key to open the vault doors so cash could flow out
Neel's email about a good job with Paakh was copied to all of the Paakh team internal and external
She met him in the hallway many times to and from other meetings.
One time returning from lunch with her two friends she met him outside the elevator
"I am still working on trying to get it right" he said cheerfully
"U should have taken the week off to practice" she laughed, and told her friends he was working on his cooking skills
"Can we get some too?" they asked
"If u are willing to undertake the risk of eating it, sure, why not?" he teased them back
"All this anticipation is making my expectation high" Suvechha reminded him
"Plan wohi hai, mediocre cheez bhi aapko badhiya lagegi agar bhook zyaada ho to" he laughed
She noticed pearly white teeth, a crease formed on his right cheek by his mouth.
"Humko Agra ka pedha maanga tha, mala bhithi vaatete" (I am afraid now) she smiled
He noticed her lower lip strain to form the smile, he had not seen a fuller lower lip
There was a "first Campaign celebration at his house on Saturday"
Payal sent out the email on Thursday morning indicating it will be at his house in NOIDA
The email was being sent to around 50 people, mostly Manager and up
she headed Creative so she was expected to go
On Thursday night she got a text from him
"Aadhya Tai ke paas rahegi?"
She was fixing dinner she didnt see the tex, Tai saw it but the whole Hindi in English thing stumped her so she couldnt comprehend
When Suvi saw the text after Aadhya went to bed
"Pata nahi... mulanna dvesha" she typed accidentally in Marathi (Tai hates kids)
"Aap usko la sakte ho, yaha jinke ghar Nihar jaayega, waha bhej sakte ho, if you like"
"Thank you, but koi arrangement ho jaayega" she said, realizing she hadnt asked her play school owner earlier in the evening when she picked up Aadhya
She knew she did that upon request
She was blunt and unfriendly but was quite professional
"Aaj to karhi bigad gayi" he informed
"Kone sa try tha?"
"Usko abhi zara
raaz rakhte hain" he sent a smiley face
"Maine kitna time diya?"
"bees saal shaayad" he said
She laughed out loud
"I can learn before" she mocked
"Do u like any other thing in UP cuisine Suvechha?" she asked
That full name mention... it got her every time
"Vichar karun?" (i have to think)
"Jaldi" he sent a smiley again
She wore a saree to his house on Saturday, in dark pink with a geometric pattern with a sleeveless blouse
She never wore anything in her neck or arms, or wore make up or bindi
The saree stood out drawing people's attention to her curvaceous form
Tai broke the bathroom pipe by trying to wring water out of her wet saree (tying it around the faucet)
The pipe broke and flooded the bathroom and the little vestibule area with water
Trying to find the society maintenance people ona Saturday, when most working couples try to get ALREADY BOOKED appointments taken care of
Was almost impossible
The water poured for atleast an hour before the help came
Throwing all her chores off
By the time she got her Bai to clean and mopp up the mess it was 3ish, she fixed lunch, and then as an after thought made more bhaaji by going down to buy shimla mirch etc all over again
The party was at 7, she reached at 8:15
She wondered how many people would be there to see her bring in food for the big boss
She admonished herself for the sucky idea
Thankfully she had it ina fancy gift bag like sack
She had a a picture of Ganpati she had bought at the neighborhood Archies Gift Shop that was big enough to mask the bhaaji container down below in the bag
There were people wandering and drinking in the front lawn, chatting, the tiny front lawn was lit up with music playing a a catering table in the corner with food and booze
There were people on the terrace and all over the house
She walked in tentaively, hoping to spot Neel
Gomez was there with his wife
"Suvechha office ka meeting hai, itna late kai ku?" he teased
"Motari chalavinyasa tya vela charcha karu nai" (those that ride cars shouldnt talk about time)His wife chuckled and nodded
She seemed pleasant and friendly to Suvi
"To tumhal shodat aahe" (he is looking for you) Gomez told her about Neel
For a second she forgot he was her boss and thought about Neel actually LOOKING for her
If her face was covered in self conscious heat then so be it!
"Mee tula shodat hotey" (I was) neel said
He looked GREAT, in simple blue jeans and a stripe shirt, not tucked in
Suvi hadnt recovered from her own fantasia, when Neel stroked it further, she went delirious
"Aapana bheeti vaatat aahet?" (are you afraid?) (U have to hand over the karhi?) Suvechha laughed
He was checking her out
Gomez and his wife turned to another couple to speak
"khoop" he said slowly
"Main Nihar ke waaste bhaji laaye" she struggled with her Hindi "Meri Hindi saaf nahi hai" she said sheepishly
She handed him the bag, he pulled the Ganpati picture out
"Boss ko aur kya dene ka?" she chuckled
"Barobar" he smiled
"Thanks Suvechha"
"Koi saree nahi pehna hai" she said in grammatically incorrect Hindi
"There was no dress code, aapne PEHNI hai, you should be happy" he smiled gently
"Mere ko faqat English mein bolne ka, hai na?" she asked softly
"U remind me of home" he said somberly
She nodded at his reassurance and kindness
They walked to his kitchen, he pulled the bhaji out and set it in the frig
"Mera kadhi mujhe nai deekh raha hai" she said in bad Hindi again
"Aap kuch bhi nahi bhoolti?" he laughed, making a face
"Neel, Nihar friend ke ghar hai?" she asked
He wasnt expecting her to say his name, when it slipped out of those lips, he almost reached out and saw it fall, holding it with both hands like it was a rare crystal artefact
For the first time she said his name face to face, the rustic earthy Marathi sounding "Neel" tickled the shuddha UP brahmin Neel Pandit.
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