The Plan

The car was parked right opposite Dheer's Boutique. Pratap saw Roshni and Phool step in. His heart was stuck in his mouth. He insisted on going with her, but she was determined. He looked a lot like his father. What if she recognised him? The whole plan would be spoiled then. He kept insisting it was not safe. He kept a hawk's watch at the door. Vishal looked ahead, having a packet of chips.
"Chill, bro, they will get out the info, they are smart, you know."
His voice seemed to fall on deaf ears as Pratap looked out of the car window anxiously.

Roshni and Phool stepped into the well-furnished shop and were welcomed by a woman in her twenties. They looked at each other. This was not her; they had searched all over and found a picture of her from a paper clip, and she was indeed mesmerisingly beautiful. They searched around pretending to look at the things.
" May I help you, Miss?" The sales lady asked. The name read Veer.
" Veer is it?" Phool tried to show some confidence.
" Yes, Miss."
" Where's this boutique's owner? We want to order something special."
" You can wait, Miss, she will be here within 15 mins."
" What is it?" A man called out from behind a curtain, really disturbed.
" Sir, they are looking for Ma'am."
"I'm her son, Jagmal. Can I help?" The guy looked no more than twenty.
" No, actually, we want to see your mother. We will wait."
" Stepmother." He corrected.

They waited on the sofa, tensed when Roshni texted Pratap, " We are waiting for her."
She entered with an assistant, and Veer interrupted her walk towards the curtains.
" Ma'am."
" What is it, Veer?" Her voice was urgent and rude.
" These girls want to see you, Ma'am," Veer replied, visibly scared.
" Yes, how may I help?" Dheer came with a pleasant smile.
" We want to order a special Lehenga." Phool started talking as part of the plan. Dheer nodded and went through the requirements with Phool and showed her the catalogues. Phool leafed through some designs while Roshni frowned at Dheer.
" Aree Phool, I have seen her somewhere." Roshni interrupted.
" Me? Where?" Dheer smiled back, a little surprised.
" Weren't you an employee of Sisodia Enterprises?" Her question made Dheer's smile fade a little.
" What?" Dheer's face was visibly pale. " No, never heard of it." A reply came from behind her. An identical-looking woman, perhaps a little older than her, replied.
" Uma Jija..." Dheer asked, surprised.
" But I am sure I saw her there, my father was an employee." Roshni insisted.
" I told you, Miss, you are mistaken." The older lady was firm.
" How dare you talk to my friend this way?" Phool was visibly overacting." Come, Rosh, let's go! We will find another Boutique." Damn it, she said the real name!

They stormed out and crossed the road, and got into the car. Uma watched them go.
" Why did you react, Jija? We could just deny." Dheer asked her from behind. "We lost a client."
" That girl did not come for the lehenga." Uma shook her head, closing the curtains shut.
" What? How do you know?" Dheer asked, confused.
" They went towards a car." Uma paced the room.
" So?"
" That car was Pratap Singh's." Dheer took a step back at her sister's words.
" How do you know that, Jija?" Dheer asked. "he was a child when..."
" I spotted him, an exact reflection of his father's." Uma snapped. "You better be careful, Dheer!"

" Jija, are they after us?" Dheer was restless.
" Let me get some information first, Dheer," Uma reassured.
" If Jagmal gets to know of my past, he will drag me to court for fraud and take away all that his father gave me instead of him," Dheer whispered, intimidated.
" Yes, Dheer and Udai Singh will get their lost glory back; we can't let that happen." Uma shook her head. Not after he had the audacity to choose that Jaivanta over me!
" Yes, Jija, what will we do?" Dheer asked. Uma picked up her phone. " We need every information on them if they are doing what we think they are, get rid of that girl first, then Pratap." Dheer looked tense, " Say such things in a lower voice, Jija, Jagmal is in the next room."

Meanwhile, the four friends were in Pratap's room as soon as they entered the house.
" I am sure she was at fault; there was guilt all over her face," Phool concluded.
" But she saw us get in the car; she will be after us." Roshni's voice was tense.
" What? Are you sure?" Pratap was anxious.
" Yes." Roshni stared at Phool, omitting that she had mistakenly taken her name.
" We stop this right now!" Pratap was firm.
" But..."
"Not another word from you." Pratap scolded Roshni, much to Phool and Vishal's surprise. He was angry and worried.

He walked away to the balcony to cool himself off. Roshni followed him there.
" What's wrong?"
" Look, I don't want you to be hurt in any way." Pratap looked at her anxiously.
" I won't be hurt as long as I am with you," Roshni replied with a smile.
" Why do you never listen to me?" He held her hand, sounding helpless.
" Why do you always worry?" She replied in the same tone.
He smiled at her.
" Let me drop you home?"
" No, I will go with Phool."
" But..."
" Don't worry, I will call when home." She insisted.

He sat with his phone, anxiously waiting for her to call when home, he waved her goodbye anxiously, as her smiling face got into Phool's car. She waved back, promising to call. It had already one hour since then. He paced in his room, tensed. His phone rang; it was an unknown number.

" Hello...."
"I'm calling from Sangram Singh Hospital. I found your number from the phone of one of the accident victims."
" Accident?" He couldn't breathe properly.
" Yes, two girls... in a white SUV ... it was hit by another car.... they are unconscious... hello? Hello??" His phone fell from his hand as he rushed out. He could barely speak when he told Dadi to call his parents and inform them. Vishal and Pratap drove to the hospital in a haze.

Purnota: Chapter Thirteen

Aniruddha eyed Trilochon, sitting at the desk in his room, attending to some paperwork. His reading glasses were on his nose, and he appeared engrossed in a financial document. He stood at the threshold, a bit unsure and glanced over his shoulder at Somnath, Batuk and Bondita. She gestured at him to go on. Aniruddha cleared his throat. That prompted Trilochon to look away from his document at his nephew. “Jethu, if you are busy, I can come back…” He suggested unsurely. “Come in and close the door.” Trilochon glanced over Aniruddha’s shoulder at the others who walked away hurriedly. Aniruddha closed the door, and Bondita tiptoed to place her ears on it. Batuk and Somnath stood at a distance. “So you met her?” Trilochon spoke while cleaning his glasses. Aniruddha nodded. Somnath had introduced them to Ashalata. Bondita, Batuk, and he had met them in a Dhaba off the highway. Although Bondita did most of the talking, initiating a friendly gesture to put the nervous Ashalata at ease, he had...

Purnota: Chapter Sixteen

It had been a month since Bondita had started working in the firm. With Somnath’s wedding date being set for winter, many things were keeping Trilochon and Kalindi busy as they took charge of the smooth running of things leading up to the wedding. They needed to shop for everyone, buy gifts and choose jewellery and sarees for the bride. Despite his attempts, Trilochon found Binoy reluctant to participate in his son’s wedding arrangements. Somnath took him and Kalindi to places they wanted to go, especially Kolkata for shopping, and Trilochon made arrangements to make sure that the first wedding of the generation was grand enough. Bondita tried to help as much as she could as she noticed Aniruddha being oddly aloof from the entire thing. She assumed it was due to Trilochon’s reactions to his lack of interest in marriage. Trilochon kept pestering her to enquire into his reasons while she kept stalling him with excuses. Bondita also failed to know more about Kalindi and Trilochon’s past, ...

Purnota: Chapter Fifteen

A week was all it took for Bondita to get used to work and the new routine. She would wake up early and hurry through her chores, helping Kalindi prepare a tiffin of either Chirer Polao or bread jam and then proceeding to the Roy Chowdhury house. She would arrange the day’s paperwork before Aniruddha arrived at the study room. Occasionally, she would hear him call out to Koeli for breakfast and pack her things, knowing he was almost ready to leave. He would walk into the chamber, check his list, and they would go to work. She would follow him from courtroom to courtroom. She would be sitting in the audience and learning. She would follow him to conferences and client meetings and take notes. They would discuss complicated cases. She would share the tiffin she brought from home. He would at first take a reluctant bite, then eat more than her. She often gave him her share of food discreetly. They usually stayed back after everyone was gone and ordered food for dinner. Some days, he woul...

Purnota: Chapter Seventeen

Bondita opened the curtains of her room at The Park to find the view of Stephen Court and the street below going towards the Maidan. She eyed the double bed and placed her things on one side while lying down on the empty side. The soft bed made her yawn as she sat up, staring at the clock. She needed to change for a quick dinner. They had an early matter at the High Court, and the client’s car was supposed to pick them up around 9 AM. As she changed into a full-sleeve black top and jeans, removed her earrings and adjusted her smudged Kajal, she heard a knock on her door. She opened it to find Aniruddha standing in a pair of jeans and a grey polo-necked T-shirt, his hair brushed back, as he cleaned his thin-rimmed glasses with the edge of his T-shirt. “Are you ready for dinner?” He asked, putting the glasses back on. As she nodded, she grabbed her handbag. They walked into The Bridge, and Bondita was a little conscious of her environment. Many foreign guests, businessmen and even s...

Towards You

The Afghans, after Sher Shah Suri's untimely demise, were at loggerheads for power. Their troops near Mewar were now led by Mehmood Shah. They secretly captured territories in the forests and waited to attack Mewari camps when the time was right. Rawat Chundawat and his spies had confirmed the news, and Udai Singh sent a warning to Mehmood Shah to withdraw his troops from Mewar in vain. Now that it was out in the open, it was time they declared war. Mehmood Shah had limited resources in Mewar. His internal rebellion against his commander did not help his cause. His spies clearly suggested that in no way could he win, especially with Kunwar Pratap leading his troops. He was having second thoughts about the war. It was then that one of his aides suggested a perfect plan. Maharani Jaivanta Bai had decided to go to the Mahakaleshwar Temple near the outskirts of Chittorgarh, in the forestlands of Bhilwara. They had travelled a long way and across the Gambhiri river that meandered during...

Dreams and Wishes

At dawn, the Bhil women took the girls to the Kalika Mata Temple and the Jal Kund. Dressed in white, a nervous Heer followed everything Ajabde knew and did, trying to explain the significance of the rituals to her. They prayed to Lord Ganesh. Kunwar Shakti and Kunwar Pratap were staying at Punja Ji's place, as they were not supposed to see the brides before the wedding. Ajabde was dressed in her mother's lehenga, a mang tika Jaivanta Bai gave her as a family heirloom and the simple nosering Pratap had gifted. They made their hair into a simple bun with wildflowers before putting on their dupatta. Heer was dressed in traditional Bhil jewellery of silver and beads that the women had gifted her. They made her wear a red and white saree draped as a lehenga and a red chunri with it. She looked like a pretty, colourful Bhil bride. Kunwar Shakti was a nervous groom dressed in a traditional bhil dhoti, kurta and cap. The bhil shawl hung from a side, making the white attire colourf...

You Deserve More

Ajabdeh woke up with the song of birds as she felt something warm on her hand. Her eyes went wide. Her hand was on the pillow in between them, between his hands, clasped as he slept. She thought of removing it slowly, but he was holding on to it so tightly. Ajabdeh's heart beat faster and faster. What do I do now? How do I not wake him? What if... why is my hand in his? She was utterly confused. " Am I...In love?" Pratap was staring at the sleeping figure on the bed as he stared back at the rain. Then he frowned as he noticed that she shivered. He closed the windows of the room to make it cosy, then sat on his side of the bed. A lamp flickered on her side like always, and he stared at her sleeping figure as he put his blanket over her as well. She shifted a little in her sleep to make herself cosy again. Her payals and bangles made a rhythmic sound, breaking the silence of the room. Her hand was out of her blanket and on the pillow in between. He tried to slowly put it ...

My Everything

Kunwar Pratap stormed into the Mahal at Gogunda amidst uncertainty and chaos. Happy faces of the chieftains and soldiers welcomed him as Rawat Chundawat, and some other chieftains stopped the ongoing Raj Tilak. A visibly scared Kunwar Jagmal looked clueless at a visibly angry Kunwar Pratap. Rani Dheerbai Bhatiyani hadn't expected Kunwar Pratap to show up, that too, despite her conveying to him his father's last wish of crowning Kunwar Jagmal. Twenty-one days after Udai Singh's death, she was finally close to a dream she had dared to dream since Jagmal was born. He was not informed about the Raj Tilak as per Dheerbai's instructions. She eyed Rawat Ji. He must have assembled the chiefs to this revolt against her son, against the dead king. No one except them knew where Kunwar Pratap was staying. It was for the safety of his family. " What are you doing, Chotima?" A disappointed voice was directed at her. She could stoop down so low? For the first time, an anger...

Purnota: Chapter Fourteen

“Why can’t she work? I will too.” Bondita had barged into the Roy Chowdhury living room early in the morning, still in her loungewear, as Aniruddha looked up at her through his glasses. Trilochon was showing Aniruddha some paperwork from one of their investments as Bondita stood by the coffee table, wearing a frown. Aniruddha looked confused. Trilochon cleared his throat as he shook his head at Bondita. “It's different. She is going to be the daughter-in-law.” Aniruddha eyed Trilochon and Bondita, who shook her head in disappointment. “So?” She questioned, “She can’t have a life?” “When a woman marries…” Trilochon stood up, straightening his Panjabi “Her life is about being a good wife and mother.” Bondita gasped. Aniruddha’s jaws tightened as he kept the papers down. Bondita spoke before he could. “Then by that logic, men should also concentrate on being husbands and fathers.” “Then who will earn the bread?” Trilochon rolled his eyes. Bondita eyed Aniruddha, expecting him to speak...

Purnota: Chapter Twelve

Bondita woke up to the alarm clock ringing as she struggled to get her hand out of the quilt wrapped around her. She sat inside the mosquito net, rubbing her eyes and staring at the clock, trying to remember why she had set the alarm at 3.45 AM. Then her eyes shone in delight. It was Mahalaya. She remembered that during her days in Dehra, she had educated her roommate on the tradition of starting pujo with the voice of Birendra Krishna Bhadra echoing through the air. She was uninterested, and Bondita had borrowed her headphones to hear the program and deeply missed home. She remembered that as a child, while her father was still alive, he would gently wake her up, and take her on his lap to the huge Banyan tree near the Panchayat where people gathered near the Pradhan’s radio, putting flower garlands and lamps around it and folding their hands as they heard Mahishashur Mardini killing the Asura. When she arrived in Kolkata to get her law degree, she thought things would be different. B...

RAABTA

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