"Keep the Lehenga in this one, that jewellery in the box." Jaivanta Bai was ordering the ladies in the Ranimahal around. Kunwar Shakti entered with an equally stunned Kunwar Pratap at the scene as the hall turned into a mini market thanks to their mothers.
" Kunwar Pratap is here." Dheerbai smiled at the duo as she walked up to them.
" Choti ma, what are all these?" He asked, surprised.
" Shagun!" Sajjabai answered excitedly."For Kuwaranisa. She will be blessed with these for the Sagaai." Sajja Bai smiled at Jaivanta Bai, who nodded.
"What Sagaai?" Kunwar Pratap frowned at his mother.
"Your engagement, aree, no one told him?" Sajja giggled a little, amused.
" The four of us are choosing separate gifts of our own choice for your bride, Kunwarsa, come and see." Veer Bai urged him.
"The Sagaai is in three days, followed by the wedding on the Seventh, Rajpurohitji had said," Dheerbai informed as Pratap stared at his mother, who nodded. She seemed happy.
" What happened, Kunwar Pratap? Do you have doubts?" Dheerbai smiled, asking.
" No. " Came a soft answer as his eyes fell on the heavy jewellery. All of a sudden, he remembered how simply she was dressed even at a wedding. "These are too gaudy for...." He stopped as the mothers looked at him and then at each other. He realised he had misspoken.
"Umm... he means that... for a Samantputri it's too gaudy," Shakti spoke out of turn as Dheer Bai eyed Veer Bai, the newlywed Samant's daughter in Udai Singh's Rani Mahal, who was taking up all his attention, away from her. Veer Bai looked away at the implications.
" Kunwar Shakti." Jaivanta Bai was firm. " After this day, no one here will address Ajabdeh as Samant Putri. Is that clear? She is the Kuwaranisa of Mewar." Shakti nodded, ashamed as he stared at Pratap, who was equally embarrassed.
" I should go," Pratap murmured before walking out. Shakti followed suit.
" I got scolded trying to save you, Dadabhai." He walked behind Pratap, who didn't stop walking.
"Do you want me to thank you?" Pratap narrowed his brows and shook his head.
" Only that won't do." Pratap stopped and turned around.
" What do you want?" He knew his brother had quite a busy schedule and did not follow him around unnecessarily.
" The truth." Shaki smiled.
" I always speak the truth." Pratap sounded a little irked.
" You liked Bhabisa, didn't you?" Shakti teased.
" Kunwar Shakti, you are forgetting, Pratap Singh naam hai humara. I don't judge people without knowing them. So the question of liking or disliking someone doesn't arise."
" You said yes..." Shakti raised his brows suggestively.
" Because what she told was true. I have no right to insult my mother's promise and her family for my plans and dreams. I do hope to clearly tell her my reasons, though." He walked away, leaving Shakti utterly confused. He gathered that his brother must have liked the girl, but denied it; he knew very well Kunwar Pratap always spoke what he felt.
" Kunwar Pratap." Jaivanta Bai entered his room as he stood up. She never called him Kunwar Pratap until she was at a public gathering or disappointed with him. He gathered it must be the second reason as he saw her serious face.
" I need to ask you something."
" Yes, Ranima?"
" If I hadn't given Hansa Bai any word and told you to do this marriage, would you have done it?" He looked at his mother briefly before lowering his gaze. Then, without a pause, he firmly answered, " If you came and told me you liked and chose someone for me, even if you hadn't given your word, I would have agreed."
" Pratap. I don't want you to feel I deprived you of something later." She cut him off as he looked at her, confused.
" Ranima... I ..."
" You know what I mean. There have been a lot of royal proposals, princesses of many states, but Pratap, I felt, for a good life, you need someone to share your ideologies with. When you get to know Ajabdeh, you will know she is so much like you and she..." Jaivanta eyed her son.
" Ranima, I don't think by choosing our Samant's girl over a princess, you deprived me of anything. This is not an alliance for Mewar." He said reassuringly. "This is a marriage you believe would work, so it's fine with me."
" Pratap, I am happy you think like me." Jaivanta Bai hugged her son as he really couldn't help but think about how his mother put so much importance on his marriage, knowing fully about his priorities.
Ajabdeh was in her room, absentmindedly sewing a dupatta, when Balwant came in.
" Jija!" His call startled her.
" Bhai?"
" Lots and lots of Shagun have arrived from Chittor in huge boxes." He said with childish enthusiasm, opening his arms widely to show the sizes of the boxes.
" Shagun?" Her eyebrows narrowed.
" Yes for the Sagaai!" Balwant beamed with joy, "Daata Hukum has talked to Ranasa."
" S...S...Sagaai? So early?" Ajabdeh's heart thumped in her chest. Her throat suddenly felt dry. She assumed there were a few more months she had in Bijoliya before the nuptials.
" In three days, there is a Sagai; they are coming here in two." He rushed off but stopped at the door and turned back. " Ohh! Jija, the wedding is in seven days."
He left a wide-eyed Ajabdeh with a pounding heart and cold hands. Hansa Bai walked in and, seeing her pale face, she gathered that someone must have told her the news.
" Ajabdeh." She held her daughter's stone-cold hands.
"Maasa, why is everything hurried this way?" Her voice trembled. "I... I thought..."
"The next good day isn't until winter, and Ranisa did not want to wait." Hansa patted her daughter's head gently. "What scares you?"
" Maa Sa. I ... I don't know... I ... Since childhood, we have read about the Raghuvansh and Chittoor in the Veer Gathas and now... now..."
" It's going to be your home." She hugged her nervous daughter. " Why are you worried? Ranisa is there; always be with her and listen to her. She will guide you. I know Kunwar Pratap's name itself scares people. But you are going to be his wife there, not an enemy."
I am not sure, Maa Sa, even if I can be a friend or not, let alone a wife. He has his doubts, I'm not sure if it's about me or about the idea of marriage. His eyes were full of doubts. She was lost in her thoughts as Hansa caressed her hair.
"They are here!" Ratan gushed as Ajabdeh was getting ready in her new yellow and pink lehenga and the gaudiest jewellery Hansa had. " Come with me, Jija." Ratan held her cold hands.
" No Ratan." Ajabdeh looked reluctant.
"Oh, to the Jharokhas, they can't see us!" Without paying heed to her protests, Ratan took Ajabdeh by her hand and dragged her to one of the Jharokhas. Rana Udai Singh was on his horse up front, with the Princes, Kunwar Pratap, Kunwar Shakti and others on horseback and five Palanquins carrying the queens and princesses.
"Which one is Kunwar Pratap?" Ratan was confused. She, unlike Ajabdeh, had no power to recognise the same faces in different attire. " Jija, what do you think?"
Ajabdeh was at a sudden loss for words. Her eyes were fixed on the Royal Blue attire and the red pagri, and the Tilak. Only today, the tilak was longer and more prominent. His dark brown eyes were not confused like that day, or maybe she was thinking so, making herself believe something she wanted to. His Royal Belt, and brooch as well as the Talwar and Khanjar he carried, the way he walked up to her mother for the aarti and touched her feet, everything mesmerised her in a way she regretted admitting even to herself. She couldn't look away.
" Jija," Ratan spoke a little louder, dragging her for a better view.
The sound of a familiar voice made Pratap look up at the jharokha in reflex as Ajabdeh pulled Ratan away from view. He frowned a little, knowing fully well that a pair of eyes was watching him from up there. He felt a little uncomfortable as his warrior instincts kicked in. The sense of being watched was too prominent to ignore. Ramrakh led the men into the hall as Shakti walked behind him with a smile. He had seen what he had to and had a plan. He called his sister, Padmavati and whispered something into her ear. She giggled as he warned her. She nodded and ran to follow the ladies into the Ranimahal.
"She is very pretty." Veer Bai gushed as Dheerbai unveiled the bride after she touched their feet. Dheerbai promptly took a Kangan from the Shagun carried by the maids and gave it to Ajabdeh. Ajabdeh stared at Jaivanta Bai, who nodded in approval as she took the Kangan.
" Aree wah Jija, she has learnt to seek your permission in everything already." There was a hint of sarcasm in Dheer Bai's tone.
" That's a good trait, isn't it?" Sajja Bai gushed.
" Kunwarsa, here in Bijolia we have a tradition that the groom sees the bride's face in the water for the first time, before the Sagaai," Raoji explained. Kunwar Pratap's mind in a flash travelled back to the pond where he saw her face in the water reflection before asking for...
" Where are you lost?" Shakti nudged him. "Smile a little, you look like we forced you to be here." His words made Pratap shake his head.
" Follow me, please." He looked at his father for an approving nod before following Raoji to another room.
" Ajabdeh." Her mother called. "Time for the Muh Dikhana Rasm." Ratan stood clueless as Hansa explained, " Before the sagaai, the groom sees the bride's face in the water, to approve of her."
"Chaliye, we also want to see Kunwar Pratap's reaction!" Sajja Bai dragged a reluctant Veer Bai as Ajabdeh blushed.
" Haan, this is very important that Kunwar Pratap sees her and judges before taking the plunge." Dheerbai smiled at Jaivanta Bai, who smiled back, saying, " Don't worry, Behena, I have never taught Pratap to judge a person only by looks, unlike his father."
Jaivanta Bai walked off, leaving her fuming. She stopped the queens right in time before Ajabdeh stepped into the jharokhas, " Let's wait here." She ordered.
Ajabdeh was left alone at the jharokha as Ratan stepped back. Ajabdeh interlocked her cold hands in nervousness as she saw him approach the water. Raoji left him there as he looked around the room. First to his left, then to his right. He is more interested in the vases, so I should go. Ajabdeh had almost started to step back when the sound of her payal made him forget why he was there, and he immediately looked up to see where the sound was coming from.
Eyes met as hers went wide with sudden, unknown fear. A shiver ran down her spine. Kunwar Pratap regretted making such a silly mistake as soon as he saw her. Of course, it was her payal; no one else was there. The warrior instinct that kicked in everywhere had embarrassed him today that too, in front of his bride-to-be. She must be thinking I looked it up on purpose. What is wrong with you, Pratap? He realised even as he was thinking this, he was still staring at her scared face. He immediately lowered his gaze at the water where her reflection fell and then to his left. He heard the sound of anklets walking away. As he turned to leave, he stared back at the empty jharokha again. If you ask him why, he couldn't tell.
Ajabdeh seemed to be in a trance. She managed to walk away the moment his eyes left hers. She was held captive by his eyes, like a fawn was to the stare of a tiger. She broke free the moment he lowered his gaze, clearly regretting his action. She knew he didn't mean to look up, but he was not used to the sound of payals that were not his mother's. She knew as a warrior, his mind and eyes were always alert. She was always taught that as battlefield basics. What she could not explain to herself was why she felt the way she felt. There was a sudden fear in her as she realised Kunwar Pratap Singh of Mewar was staring right at her, alone, without a veil or a purdah, right into her eyes. How will I live with him? He scares me. A thought came as his sisters entered to meet their Bhabisa.
" Do you know... " Padmavati was amused. " Dadabhai is very strict. He gets angry when people oppose him"
" Jija, you are scaring her." Maan protested.
" I am telling her the truth. Don't oppose him ever."
Ajabdeh was more scared hearing his sister's words, not aware that her Nanads and Devaar were actually playing a trick on her.
" Kaise lage ve?" Veer Bai asked the question everyone wanted to ask. He looked up at the eager, smiling crowd. His Mother, her parents, his brothers and sisters.
" I ... Ummm...." Kunwar Pratap cleared his throat awkwardly.
"Dadabhai won't say a thing," Shakti concluded. Everyone laughed as Pratap looked at his mother with an awkward face. Jaivanta couldn't tell why he looked guilty all of a sudden.
The day of the Sagaai was here. Jaivanta Bai was getting Pratap ready in his green sherwani with golden embroidery and a red pagri as a Sevak walked in to say, " Panditji is calling Kunwarsa."
" You go with him."
" Ranima?" He frowned. "You?"
" I will bring Ajabdeh." She walked away as he shook his head and walked out to be greeted by a smirking Shakti with a smiling Chakrapani, who was two years older than him but also his childhood friend. He had recently become a proud father of a baby girl, and Pratap hadn't expected him there.
" Bhago didn't want to miss the wedding, so we came with Parvati." He hugged Kunwar Pratap.
" She is Bhabisa's childhood friend. Can you believe that?" Shakti was smiling.
" Chaliye," Pratap said without a reaction to his brother's words.
" Ale le she is so sweet." Ratan hugged the baby girl as Ajabdeh turned with a warning look to her sister.
" Aree Bhagwati?" Jaivanta Bai's voice made them stand up. " You are here?"
" Yes, Ranisa, she was Ajabdeh's childhood friend before her father moved to Chittor; they stayed here," Hansa explained.
" She is Pratap's best friend's wife now. That's Parvati?" Jaivanta Bai blessed the baby. " I am here to take Ajabdeh." She declared, staring at how royal Ajabde looked in her green and red lehenga and the traditional royal jewellery. She put on the dupatta to hide her face and held her cold hand, and walked her to the hall. Pratap didn't turn this time as the sound approached him. He was more careful in front of a room full of people. All through the ceremony, they were more comfortable staring at the petals, lota, kund and Purohit ji than the person in front of them. Shakti's hawk eyes were disappointed, and so were Ratan's.
That night, Kunwar Pratap had called upon his best friend for a heart-to-heart conversation that he rarely had with anyone.
" You came here, and she recognised you?" Chakrapani looked at Kunwar Pratap, bewildered.
" Yes, I just want to meet her once and tell her why I was here. I had my own reasons. I didn't doubt her for anything. I want to clear this misunderstanding before the wedding." Pratap looked unsure.
" Wait a minute." Chakrapani stood up, scared. " You are asking me to help you?"
" Just a minute with her, and I will just tell her..." He stopped at his friend's shocked stare.
" Baojiraj, do you realise we are in Bijolia? Everyone knows you! You can not meet outside or even inside the Mahal; it's impossible."
" I need to clear up the misunderstandings and tell her what my priorities are." Kunwar Pratap was adamant.
" You can do that after marriage." Chakrapani reasoned.
" She should have the right to change her decision if she doesn't agree to a marriage where my priorities will be my motherland and my people."
" Okay, I have a plan. Do you still have the commoner's attire?" He asked.
" Ajabdeh came with me to the Parvati temple." Ajabdeh narrowed her eyes at her friend, Bhagwati, who added, "I want to pray for my Paro."
" Jaiya na." Hansa agreed. She nodded as she got up and took her puja thali.
Kunwar Pratap and Chakrapani were hiding behind the big banyan tree to the right of the temple. Ajabde noticed Bhago's eyes searching as she asked, " Are you looking for someone?"
" Nahi..." She gulped.
" Did she see you?" Pratap asked from behind the tree.
" Not yet, I am trying." Chakrapani shook his head.
Bhago did spot her husband this time as he managed to say "Kund" before hiding himself from Ajabdeh.
" Kund!" Bhago exclaimed.
" Ji?" Ajabdeh was confused.
" I need to go to the kund... I mean... You need to go to the Kund to fetch me some water, please, Ajabdeh Baisa."
" You also come with me." Ajabdeh urged her.
" I will go inside and...." Bhagwati shook her flower basket.
"Oh, Bhago, you need the water? What will you do inside?" She tugged Bhago by her hand as she helplessly said a "No" and shook her head at Chakrapani, who managed to say " Churiyaan."
" No, No Ajabdeh, I think you should go to the Kund while I look at some..."
" I will wait for you." Ajabdeh shook her head. Bhagwati looked helpless.
Kunwar Pratap was getting impatient under the Banyan tree. Chakrapani and his wife could not get a girl alone for a minute at such a large temple complex. From behind the tree, he spotted Ajabdeh, her face covered in a dupatta, her hand adorned with his mother's gifted bangles, as she clasped Bhago's hand as if to never let go.
" Wah Chakrapani, what a plan!" He taunted.
" Aree I Am worried..."
" Are you worried?" Pratap frowned.
" Yes, if she is not leaving my wife for a second here at Bijolia, what will she do with her when she goes to live with you in..." Chakrapani stopped at the cold look, saying a quick " Shama kijiye."
Bhago murmured a quick apology to Chakrapani as Ajabdeh tugged her by her hand into the palanquin after the puja.
" Sometimes you behave like a child, Bhago." She complained.
" What... I...."
" You do realise it would have been awkward if we met?" Ajabdeh's frowning face made Bhago skip a beat.
" You know he was there?" She asked, surprised.
" Yes, I saw you talk to your husband more than once. If you two planned this and tricked Kunwarsa..."
" No, No Ajabdeh! You are silly! You are so wrong. Kunwarsa wanted to talk to you."
" Kunwarsa?" Her eyes went wide as her heart sank. Now what?
" I have never had a failed plan in my life, Chakrapani! All because of you today..." Kunwar Pratap narrowed his eyes at his sulking friend as they sat down under the tree.
"You have never met a wife before Kunwar Pratap Singh." Chakrapani was amused. "She was the one who didn't want to be alone." He thought his words would anger Pratap, but instead, he said, " Repeat what you said."
" I felt she didn't want to be alone," Chakrapani repeated. She knew I was there. She didn't want to talk about that day or anything. Why? Does she not have questions, or do these not bother her like others her age?
" Now what, Bhago?" Ajabdeh paced her chambers, the night before her wedding, a little worried.
" Now, you have to ask him what he wanted to talk about on your first night, Ajabdeh." Bhago teased. "Shama kijiye Kunwaranisa."
" Bhago!" She scolded, embarrassed as Bhago giggled.
" I couldn't tell her. I promise I will tell her everything at the first opportunity I get." He was speaking to himself as he heard Shakti laugh.
" The wedding is tomorrow, and you have already started acting strange, Dadabhai." He looked angry at his brother.
"Don't look at Bhabisa like that; we have scared her enough already." Shakti bit his tongue as the words came out.
" What did you do?" The question was firm and clear.
" I ....err... We... Padmavati told Bhabisa You are always angry, and she should fear you." He hid a smile as Pratap nodded, " No wonder she didn't want to..."
" What, Dadabhai?" Shakti asked.
" Nothing, sleep." He shook his head as Shakti smiled sheepishly.
" Vivah ki Subhkamnaye Dadabhai." Shakti ran off into the dark corridor, smiling before Pratap could catch him. He shook his head, saying, " When will he grow up?"
