Hi..Since the forum has zero activity, I am daring to post an AshMal OS... had I written it when the forum was still abuzz with activity, I would have received flying joothas and stinky chappals.. This is a safe time to post it.
Assumptions- Jagan courted and ditched Mallu in college.
No Mallu bhootni track... Mallu sobered up after AshNi acknowledged their love for each other and stopped victimizing Nidhi...She was opposed to the union but didn't act like a deranged woman.
Here it begins---
Mallika stepped out of Blossom book shop in Hazratganj when she was heard “Ch***l Mallika tu marr kyu nahi jati”.. Wasn’t it Nidhi’s Dadi Bua? She rushed to her car to avoid hearing the curses that were directed her way.
She drove to Mathur Mansion rather distractedly…she rang the bell and went inside without greeting the person who had opened the door for her. Baba walked up to her and asked her lovingly- “Mallika beta any problem?”
“Nahi Baba…I am fine…Has Adhu had her lunch?”
“Yes…and she is watching Peppa Pig now”
Mallika walked to her daughter’s room in a huff…”Adhu…Adhvika…stop watching Peppa..enough for today.. “
Adhvika gave a cute pout “Mumma ..but I Papa said I could watch it”
“When did he say that?” Mallika didn’t disbelieve the kid though.. Ashutosh never said no to his daughter…he might have said yes to this request too.. Ashutosh’s complex about his childhood will surely spoil the child.
“Chalo baby..Mumma has got these books for you…I will read them to you”
“No Mumma… I will wait for Papa to read them to me”
“Why”
“You don’t read them properly”
Mallika shook her head… she believed in fairy tales once upon a time…but then life taught her convoluted lessons on love.
“Will you take me out for ice cream Mumma”
“I will take you out tomorrow… Kaka has made custard for dessert today..eat it after your lunch”
“Custard…yuck… Take me out today Mumma…you will go to work tomorrow and have no time for me..please Mumma”
“Mumma always has time for you baby”
“Nahin Mumma aaj hi”
“Papa won’t agree”
“Give me your phone Mumma..I will talk to him… he is cool..he will agree”
Mallika laughed out loudly..cool and Ashutosh??? Only his daughter can say that
“Oh God no.. ..Today is really a bad day”…Mallika uttered to herself and turned her face away to avoid seeing the couple that had just entered the ice cream parlour… Nidhi was looking every bit the vivacious woman that she was in a knee length floral summer dress. The guy holding her hand was absolutely smitten by her….”How I wish Ashutosh looked at me like that” Mallika talked to herself..but then she realized that Ashutosh was different from the young poet Nidhi was seeing.. so his way of expressing love would also be different.
So DB’s bacchi has moved on… then why does DB still resent me?.. why does she spit on the ground I walk on? Whatever happened was for the better.. Ashutosh and Nidhi were an odd couple.. they mistook attraction for love…It is good that they broke up before bringing a child into the equation.
Mallika reminisced …Ashutosh always ran away from romantic love.. he rejected it when she offered it to him during their college days. Maybe Sheetal’s rejection had hurt him irreparably… He always denied that he felt anything for Mallika ..he said that for twelve long years ….and then fate played a cruel joke… he developed a mid life crisis called Nidhi…So blind was he in her love that he refused to hear what his well wishers were telling him.. he married her in spite of fierce opposition from everyone.. after that he became an object of ridicule and Mallika an object of pity among their friends… that is how it remained till Amar entered their lives… Nidhi was too wrapped up in notions of chastity to hear what her heart was telling her….but Ashutosh could clearly see what was happening.. Amar was in love with Nidhi…he went to the point of harming himself to get her attention….Nidhi knew what Amar felt about her but her marital status kept her from acknowledging her own feelings….. Nidhi was fighting a losing battle between her heart and her mind. Her mind told her that she was Ashutosh’s wife but her heart wanted something else..it wanted to be wooed ..it wanted to hear crazy shayari on her beauty… her body wanted to be kissed by a mouth that was not critical of her all the time….she wanted a lover who was fascinated with her and didn’t act like a strict foster father for the greater part of the day.
Mallika’s thoughts strayed to the fateful night when Ashutosh knocked at her door… she was shocked to see him at her doorsteps…he had stopped visiting her ever since he fell in love with Nidhi!!! What had happened? He didn’t look himself from the past few weeks but today was worse….he looked like a miserable wreck …She knew that Nidhi was staying at her parent’s place from the past few weeks…has the fight aggravated?
“Mallika andar aane ko nahi kahogi?”
Mallika gestured him to come in… her strong sense of smell told her that he had a drink.
“Ashutosh!!... tell me what you want to eat..I will whip it up in a jiffy”
“I want succor…emotional succor Mallika”….. Mallika’s thoughts went back to her college days- How broken she was when Jagan dumped her ..Ashutosh had provided her with a shoulder to cry on..She would have ruined her studies if not for him.. he did everything that a friend could do to pull his pal out of depression…and eventually she grew to be dependent on him emotionally…reverence gave way to love - unrequited love….. She knew fully well that her love will never be reciprocated but she couldn’t turn her back on Ashutosh when he needed her emotionally… was Ashutosh reading too much into a benign relationship Nidhi had with Amar? After all which woman didn’t like attention..what was wrong in indulging in a little bit of flirting???Mallika brushed off thoughts about Nidhi..she was no expert in psychology to understand Nidhi’s intentions… what mattered now was that Ashutosh was at her house and needed her emotionally.. she felt honoured that Ashutosh chose her over Armaan to seek emotional support from.
That night was both the longest and shortest night of her life…Ashutosh poured out his insecurities and clung to her…. Mallika felt Ashutosh was reading too much into Nidhi’s behavior.. The trauma he suffered during his childhood gave him a low self esteem..something which no amount of professional success could alleviate… Granted Nidhi was being difficult…the marriage won’t survive..but the reason for that would be the differences in Ashutosh and Nidhi’s outlook towards life.. Nidhi’s infidelity didn’t seem to be a plausible reason.
Mallika spoke to herself--- “stop being Nidhi’s advocate and stake claim to your happiness”….she felt as if Ashutosh was within her reach… he could be hers…if he wants to believe Nidhi was being unfaithful , so be it…the marriage was anyway like a patient in coma…and she firmly believed in euthanasia.
Ashutosh rested his head on her shoulders and held her tight… Mallika couldn’t label the emotion she was feeling… she didn’t have the courage to think about what she ought to be feeling at that moment… she had spent a lot of nights imagining what Ashutosh made Nidhi feel during their intimate moments.. was today her turn to feel what till date only Nidhi felt…There was Sheetal in college…but Mallika was sure they never went beyond embrace.
Was it right to impinge on Nidhi’s territory? But then didn’t Nidhi impinge on Mallika’s territory..or whatever that was…. Would Ashutosh give Mallika whatever she wanted?? He was emotionally weak..he was drunk… but was he in his senses? He was…granted he was vulnerable, but he was definitely in his senses..and she wanted him when was in a position to consent…Should she lead him on? What if he revolts and hates her for trying to get close to him..but what if he complies!!!! Can’t this one night be hers? It wouldn’t be her first time…that was with Jagan…but this would be the first time she would be one with a person she loves to the point of madness …her liaison with Jagan was purely experimental….she had the sense to see it for what it was now....but does Ashutosh feel the same about his relationship with Nidhi? She knew that one day she would see the end of Ashu’s relationship with Nidhi..what she didn’t know that it would be Ashutosh not Nidhi who would be writing its obituary with her as the co- author.
Ashutosh didn’t know how to react…the morning after was a new concept to him…Mallika couldn’t fathom what he felt… He wasn’t cheerful …but he didn’t seem to regret it either…He didn’t speak much….he casually got dressed and started searching for something …. He refused to eat the toast that she was buttering for him…all he asked for was her help in finding his car keys …Mallika handed him the keys with a hopeful look in her eyes.. but Ashutosh grabbed the keys and left without meeting her eyes…
Ashutosh shocked Dr.Ranganath by cancelling all his appointments for the day…something that he never did unless he was very ill… Ranganath didn’t know whether he should ask Nidhi to call MM and enquire about Ashu’s health…he finally decided against it..Nidhi wasn’t reasonable nowadays…
Mallika, however, decided not to skip hospital that day.. she wore an old but well preserved georgette saree… Ashutosh had once joked that particular saree reminded him of Keukenhof… and she had dreamt of visiting that place with him..and romance like Amitabh and Rekha in Silsila.
Mallika was disappointed to know that Ashutosh wasn’t at the hospital..but there was one person in KGH whom she didn’t want to see.. and her paths crossed hers unnecessarily…. Was Nidhi deliberately waiting for her in the corridors??? Did Ashu tell her everything…No no.. he wouldn’t do that..that would effectively end his relationship with Nidhi….but how long would he flog a dead horse? Didn’t he enter in to a relationship with Mallika yesterday? Was it a relationship or just a one night stand? What is Ashutosh’s relationship with Mallika now? Their friendship had now entered its thirteenth year…was 13 really an unlucky number? Would Nidhi forgive Ashutosh and take him back? Was Nidhi that magnanimous? Where would that leave Mallika?
Mallika got her answers with time.. Nidhi didn’t return to MM….Ashutosh’s relationship with Nidhi got even frostier with time.. and Mallika had noticed that Nidhi used to be glued to her phone nowadays….Going by Nidhi’s politeness around Mallika, it was clear that Ashutosh didn’t tell her anything about his ONS with Mallika…Ashutosh behaved as if he and Mallika were nothing more than professional colleagues.. She felt that she had entered into a losing bargain… but that was about to change..
A skipped period and a positive pregnancy test made her dizzy with happiness--- getting pregnant at 38 wasn’t so easy.. but she was as pragmatic as ever....she knew that she had to leave Lucknow….she didn’t want Ashutosh’s pity..if he really loved her then he would have treated her better….Mallika wanted Ashutosh to love her—and not view her as a responsibility---someone he impregnated by accident.. she decided to resign from her position at KGH and move to Bangalore …her cousin Manasi would help her for sure…she was a single mother herself and feminist to core. Her brothers would want nothing to do with her---but that was ok..she would get someone more precious—a child of her own…
Mallika however underestimated Manasi… While she visited Mallika ostensibly to take her along with her, she was too firebrand to resist confronting Ashutosh..
Baba was shocked when a livid Manasi entered his house and asked for a skunk called Ashutosh… he refuted her allegations and defended Ashutosh ..that was until Ashutosh himself appeared on the scene.. Ashu was shocked by the news of Mallika’s pregnancy and rushed to her house immediately… A child!!!! His sad childhood flashed in front of his eyes.. his mother was a destitute who died of unknown and untreated diseases when he was very young… his father had abandoned them.. he still didn’t know if his mother was married to his father… all that he knew was he never fulfilled any responsibility towards him… he wouldn’t let history repeat.. he will take charge of his life.. he will take care of his child…he will have to face taunts of the society but that doesn’t matter.. . if one is man enough to father a child then he should also be man enough to give it his name, his love and his care…… he will remedy everything…
Baba had to steadied by his helper HK…he had dreamt of Ashu becoming a father.. but certainly not this way.. he had initially viewed Mallika as his bahu and the mother of his grandkids but Nidhi’s arrival had changed everything….This news was shocking..he never imagined his conscientious Ashu would cheat on his wife…and that too with Mallika… he had always sworn that she was nothing more than a friend to him…and now this news tells a different tale….
Ashutosh entered MM with Mallika in tow.. it wasn’t the grahapravesh Mallika had dreamt of..she had always imagined herself entering MM as Ashutosh’s bride…of being welcomed with arti by suhagans…Reality was very ugly.. no one viewed her with hostility but nobody was friendly either.. Baba was still in a daze and didn’t know how to react to the situation.. HK was polite to her but she knew that he viewed her as an usurper.. HK preferred Nidhi to her…Nidhi was the bahu of the house..and Mallika was no one..
The word soon got out .. Mallika had anyway quit her position at KGH, she further insulated herself as far as she could… but she couldn’t avoid the critical eyes of the doctors at when she went for check-up… Dr.Renuka, her gyneac and a good friend often wondered why she and Ashutosh took the difficult route…They could have married each other if they were so attracted to each other..not a single soul would have objected, but why did Ashutosh chose to marry Nidhi amidst wagging tongues and then have an affair with Mallika…hadn’t the two surgeons learnt about contraceptives in med school? granted Ashutosh was living separately from his wife but shouldn’t they have waited until they were officially divorced?
Ashutosh and Nidhi filed for divorce with mutual consent.. Nidhi to her credit didn’t utter a single word against Mallika…she realized that Mallika was just a catalyst…the marriage was on its last legs even before she left MM…Why should she blame Mallika when it was Ashutosh who had strayed?…he was the one who was married to her..he should have given their dying relationship some respect…
DB’s reaction was however the polar opposite of Nidhi’s …she screamed her lungs out…used the choicest of abuses on Mallika…the only reason she wasn’t physically assaulted was because she was pregnant.. Ashutosh ended up with a torn shirt and a few cuts.. such was DB’s rage… Ashutosh didn’t try to defend himself…his usual savior Baba also kept quiet after commanding Mallika to go back to her room.
Things improved after Adhvika’s birth… Ashutosh absolutely doted on her…Baba too left the past behind…. And Ashutosh’s divorce with Nidhi came through in another one year… Ashutosh and Mallika married in a simple ceremony.. Armaan boycotted the event..his sympathies lay firmly with Nidhi.. Mallika felt lucky that Ashutosh’s care and concern for her eventually gave way to love..it wouldn’t have happened if Adhu wasn’t there..but so what…their relationship eventually succeeded and gained the respectability that she wanted in the eyes of her colleagues….The scandal value of the gossip also diminished with time… it wasn’t that difficult as people saw Mallika as a better match to Ashutosh than Nidhi…she was an established surgeon herself..she had made a good name for herself before getting involved with Ashutosh… even people who usually took a moral high ground learnt to separate her professional life from personal- Dr. Dubey being one of them. A lot of people even said all is well that ends well…Mallika thought it was funny… people and their penchant for proverbs…
Nidhi , she heard had left medicine and was helping her father in his business….she was doing quite well for herself…she was going steady with Amar--- Did Ashutosh know about it? Does it bother him? Was he right all along? Or did Ashutosh’s indiscretions give Nidhi the freedom to explore her feelings?
Mallika was broken out of her reverie by Adhu’s persistent calls of Mumma….Mumma…the girl had polished off Mallika’s ice cream too.. “How much ice cream do you eat Adhu? “
“Very little mumma… don’t worry I won’t get fat..I have your metabolism …I don’t have to exercise like Papa to stay fit”
Mallika was shocked… metabolism??? Kids these days know everything..
Adhvika looked at the ice cream jar in front of Amar and said “Mumma I want to have what that uncle is eating”
“Enough Adhu..lets go home…don’t point fingers..it is rude”
Mallika and Adhu left the ice cream joint…Nidhi was too busy laughing at Amar’s antics and savouring the ice cream that he was feeding her to notice them……..
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