PROLOGUE
Connaught Place, New Delhi…
“What
a day it was, Nawab Saab!”
Arjun said with a loud sigh of relief as we came out of the branch at 9PM and headed
towards the parking area.
The air outside was completely still with relative
humidity; as we expected early summer this time. There were a handful of hurrying
shoppers around, as most of the showrooms were closed or were bringing their
shutters down. The famous corridors of Connaught Place wore a deserted look as
even the hawkers who keep the place alive with their sales pitch calls and
continuous movement during the daytime have left for the day leaving behind
empty spaces for stray dogs and beggars to take their places for the night.
The focus has distinctly
shifted towards the various restaurants, bars, and cafes which were lit up with
multi-colored glow signs and witnessing the built-up of patrons at their gates waiting
eagerly for their turn to enter. There were restless children, eager singles,
and bored senior citizens, all waiting for their names to be called.
Arjun and I worked in Current Account and Investment Banking
verticals, respectively, with the country’s leading financial bank based at
Connaught Place, New Delhi. It was yet another stressful year end for us
bankers, but we closed it with flying colors.
The banks had progressively recovered from the COVID-19
mayhem.
“Chal yaar… let’s have a chilled beer to
unwind before we go home. Any which ways it is too hot and I am sweating
already. There is a nice bar in N-block which boasts of superb ambience and
scrumptious snacks. Reviews bhi ache hain.” Arjun was understandably in a mood to relax after a
stressful, long day.
Reality was…I too needed a drink desperately.
In the next 10 minutes, we were standing outside a
majestic building illuminated by a yellow and green glow sign that read ‘Welcome to My Bar Headquarters.’
There was a decent crowd outside the entrance, comprising
youngsters who were out for a nice evening or were there to unwind after a long
day at work like us. Inside, the atmosphere was full-on with loud music and colorful
neon lights, with people letting their hair down on the dance floor.
“What
a place Arjun!” I said, feeling
delighted right away, not sure if Arjun heard me or not in the deafening noise.
We went straight to the dance floor and started
grooving when all of a sudden the music changed to ever-green Sukhbir’s song ‘Sauda Khara Khara...’ The next moment
we were dancing like two mad men who had just been out of the asylum.
After an hour of energetic dancing, I was comically pulling
a reluctant Arjun, who was completely drenched in sweat, off the dance floor. Eventually,
after some struggle, I could drag him to a corner table.
“Bus
kar bhai…ghar bhi jana hai.”
I said amusingly.
“Nawab
Saab kuo le aye aap mujhe wahan se? Abhi to mahaul jamna shuru hua tha.” He said eyeing a girl in pink micro shorts and a
revealing top who was still grooving on the dance floor and giving him looks.
I called the server who as if on cue quickly came with
the menu card. Arjun ordered without even having a look at it. The Server’s
face lit up and he went away as swiftly as he came. Evidently, he was happy not
having to wait endlessly to take orders as is the usual norm. I didn’t mind Arjun
taking the lead as I was happy saving my energy in going through the menu and
deciding for both of us which has always been a tedious task for me.
Food was delivered to our table in no time despite the
decent crowd. Arjun had ordered a brewery pitcher, roasted prawns, my bar
special roasted peanuts, and chili chicken for starters.
After a few beers went in, Arjun started off with the
same question which he must have asked me umpteen times in all these years, “To Nawab Saab batao…kya itni saari ladkiyon
mai se aapko koi pasand nahi ayi? Chalo mai to married hun par aap to abhi bhi
bachelor hain. You have the license bro! Why are you still single? You are such
a good-looking man and I am not ready to buy this argument ki koi pasand nahi aati.”
As always, I dodged Arjun’s questions like an
experienced batsman dodges a pace bowler’s bouncer.
We finished our meal with a large Mexicana Pizza on
the server’s recommendation.
It was well past midnight when we came out of the bar.
“Chalo Nawab Saab…let’s go to my place. Apko
Sadhna’s special coffee pilata hun.” Arjun said putting his arm around my
shoulder as we reached our cars.
“Nahi
yaar…It’s too late…some other time. Itni raat ko Sadhna ko coffee banane ko
bolega to hum dono ko ghar se nikal degi.” I said laughingly giving him a hug and bidding good night.
Arjun and Sadhna are a gem of a couple and best
friends to me. I never felt homesick in a big city like Delhi in all these
years because of them. Whenever I craved homemade food I could pick up the
phone and directly call Sadhna to inform her that I will be coming home for
dinner. She too considers me her elder brother and is always more than happy to
oblige. Sometimes she used to send two lunch tifins with Arjun when there was
something special prepared at home.
I reached my flat in Noida, changed, got freshened up
and as I picked up my phone for the first time in a few hours, there were three
missed calls from Mom. I immediately re-dialed her number knowing she must be
wide awake and waiting for my call. It was a routine since the time I came to Delhi
few years ago.
“Kaisa
hai beta? Kahan tha? kabse call kar rahi thi. Khana khaya?” Mom bombarded
me with her usual questions.
“Maa…Haan
Maa! Kha liya. Wo aaj annual closing thi to der ho gayi. Nikalte time phone bag
mai rakh ke bhul gaya isliye call nahi utha paya. Abhi ghar pahunch kar check
kiya to aapki missed calls dekhi.” I replied as I went and lay on my bed.
“Itna
late beta? Ye bank walon ka ghar baar nahi hota kya jo itni raat raat tak kaam
karate hain?” Maa was at it
again. “Acha sun… agle mahine Sudha aa ri
hai Lucknow apni beti ke saath...mai kya bol ri hun tu bhi aaja aur ek baar
unki beti se mil…”
Sudha Aunty was Maa’s school time best friend and she
was most interested in getting her daughter Priya
married to me. Priya was a decent girl. We had met a few times during our
growing up phase in Lucknow when I used to take Maa to Sudha Aunty’s home but
that was many years ago. After school, Priya moved to Indore with her family and
we haven’t been in touch at all since then. Only Maa and Sudha Aunty kept the
connection going via phone calls and her frequent visits to Lucknow. She had
her ancestral house in Kaisarbagh and used to come to meet her brothers.
Maa couldn’t complete her sentence when I intervened. “Maa... Maa tum fir shuru ho gayi. Is bare
mai hum pehle bhi baat kar chuke hai.” I retorted unsuccessfully.
“Haan
haan tujhe to lagta hai teri maa tere peeche padi hai par dekh sharmaji ke bete
ki bhi shaadi ho gayi pichle mahine. Tu to itne bade bank mai Manager hai aur
kamata bhi acha hai fir tujhe kya pareshani hai shaadi se. Pata nahi meri
kundali mai bahu ka sukh hai bhi ki nahi. Kitne saal nikal gaye umeed mai.” She ranted again in filmy style.
Sharma Uncle and his family was our next-door neighbor
in Lucknow and his son is a good-for-nothing human being who used to roam
around the city aimlessly on his bike the whole day despite having a
flourishing hardware business and Maa was giving me his example.
“Acha ye bata Megha se koi baat hui kya?” Maa touched where it used to hurt immensely. My body
went numb and I was speechless for a few seconds before I recovered.
“Nai hui Maa…hoti to bata deta apko. Wo
chapter kabka close ho chuka hai. Acha ab mai sone ja ra hun rakho phone!” I said irritatingly just to escape from the topic.
“Sone
do usko…bahut raat ho gayi hai. Tum bhi na kisi bhi samay shuru ho jati ho.
Phone kato aur tum bhi so jao.” I could over-hear my father from the other side which brought a smile to
my face. He was a savior for me every time Maa tried to corner me.
He always said, “It
is your life…you decide when and whom to marry rather than succumbing to your
mother’s emotional drama.” Infact, it
was he who convinced Maa to let me go to Delhi amid her emotional and teary
drama. He always wanted me to become independent and learn life’s difficult
lessons on my own living away from the family.
“Haan…haan
thik hai! Mai konsa usko rok rahi hun. Chal ab soja kal baat karungi.” Thankfully she cut the phone and I was saved.
Maa was always worried for me. After all, I was her
only child. She has always been a devoted housewife and a loving mother who had
taken care of the house single-handedly all her life as my father was mostly on
tours for work during my growing up years.
Sleep had already escaped my eyes. Megha’s name brought
back intense memories that hit me like strong waves hitting the sides of Gateway
of India during high tide. I reached for a locked folder in my phone gallery
which was not opened for a long time.
Oh! I forgot to introduce myself… Hello! I am Tarun. A
professionally successful, handsome young man all of 37…The ONLY downside is that
I was too naïve to realize that I was in a situationship after being in a
so-called relationship for six years…and this is my story.
Panchkuiyan
Road Furniture Market, New Delhi...
SAME DAY
“Bhaiya itne mai hi dena ho to do nahi to
rakho apna saaman aur bhi dukane hain yahan,” I was terrorizing the shopkeeper at the Panchkuiyan
Road Furniture Market over the price of a beautiful corner lamp shade which had
caught my eyes. I was there shopping with Maddy- my elder sister.
Panchkuiyan Road Furniture Market in Delhi, has
attained an iconic status for home furnishings since its inception in the
post-independence era. After the metro started functioning, they shifted the
market from its earlier location to the nearby Gole Market commercial complex.
Despite such roadblocks, the Panchkuiyan Road
Furniture Market continues to shine brightly and is definitely the most popular
and affordable furniture market in the city. People from distant places come to
shop at this market like we came today all the way from Faridabad.
“Kya
madam aap bhi subah subah itni bargaining kar rahi hain! Acha 500/- aur de ke khatam
kariye.” The shop owner
said to get rid of a troublesome customer hurriedly.
“Are
500/- kuo…” I was about
to argue, when Maddy slipped a 500Rs note to the shopkeeper, picked up the
lampshade and actually pushed me out of the shop.
“Lo
madam sara saaman rakh diya apki gaadi ki dicky mai. Waise thodi choti nahi hai
ye gaadi aur purani bhi kaafi lag ri hai? The helper said sheepishly, putting a fancy table and
chair, a corner lampshade, and a few showpieces in my beloved EON.
“Tu
jyada nahi bolta hai? Ye le pakad aur nikal yahan se,” I said, glaring at him as I pushed a 50 rupee note in
his hands. He ran off like a trace of a bullet.
“Tu
bhi kahin bhi kisi se bhi bhid jati hai…na jagah dekhti hai na insaan.” Maddy said, rolling her eyes as I came to sit in the
driver’s seat of the car.
“Are
uski himmat kaise hui meri gaadi ke liye kutch bhi bolne ki? Tumhe pata hai na Di
meri pyari gaadi ke liye mai ek shabd bhi nahi sun sakti.” I said, putting the car in first gear.
I bought my beloved EON five years back from a doctor
friend who drove it for a good eight years. Since then, me and my car have been
inseparable. I take extra care daily in keeping it spotless and getting it
serviced well in time. Age has picked up on her, but I refuse to part ways with
it despite immense family pressure.
“Haan…
haan gaadi na ho gayi Rani Padmavati ho gayi jiske liye yudh ho jaye. Thoda
narmi se pesh ate hain Pal logon se.” she said in a mocking tone. Pal is my love name
copyrighted by Maddy.
“To
meri gaadi koi Padmavati se kam khubsurat hai kya? Aur mai aise hi baat karti
hun Di apko to pata hai.” I
said irritatingly as we came out on the main road and turned towards the GPO
roundabout.
It was 2 PM and the weather outside was dry with sun
glowing in all its glory. I rolled up the windows and turned on the car AC.
“Mummy
bata rahi thi Girish ka phir phone aya tha…tujhe puch raha tha.” Maddy said in a serious tone bowing her head as we
passed Shri Gurudwara Bangla Sahib, quickly changing the atmosphere in the car
from light to heavy in a flash.
“Aya
hoga mujhe nahi pata.”
I said blandly.
“Tujhe
kaise pata hoga tune uska number to block kar rakha hai aur ghar mai koi tujhse
uske baare mai baat nahi karta darr ke maare.”
“Badi
bhuk lag rahi hai Di…kutch khate hain fir ghar chalte hain.” I said wanting
to change the topic as my white EON cut
the lane and moved ahead with speed towards Connaught Place.
Maddy couldn’t keep a straight face after a while. She
looked at me and we both burst out laughing.
“K****i
hai tu… sacchi!” Di said punching my left shoulder
jokingly.
We are two sisters. Madhavi or Maddy or Di as I fondly call her, is five years older
than me. She got married fifteen years back into a business family in Meerut
and is blessed with a son Avi and a
daughter Nitara.
Me and Maddy are just like best friends forever. She
plays the role of a friend, elder sister, and mother to me with equal ease. We
share all our best-kept secrets with each other. She has been a pillar of
strength to me and it is because of her I am standing tall and full of
confidence today.
You must be wondering how arrogant and rude I am with my
behavior at the market today. I wasn’t like that from day one but certain events
in my life changed me forever. More on that in pages ahead...abhi to kahani shuru hui hai!
Oh! I forgot to introduce myself…Hello! I am Pallavi-
the Yoga expert…a beautiful, attractive, and fit girl with a body that can
compete with a ramp model any day…I am 35 but look not more than 25. I am
MARRIED…umm…SEPARATED …umm…it’s a COMPLICATED status and this is my story.
