Seesh Mahal

Pratap woke, alarmed and frowning, at the knock on his door. It was 8AM as he checked the clock.

“Come in”

Shakti peeped in with urgency.

“Dadabhai”, he looked scared “Where is… Ajabdeh?”

“What do you mean?” he looked at his brother, rather clueless as sudden flashes of last night came to his mind, and scared him. What did he mean? Where was she…

“She is not in her room, or anywhere around, her luggage is here, but Brownie is missing… “ He reached for his phone in an impulse, making Shakti say, “Heer has already tried that.”

“What the…” Pratap looked a little pale “Shit.”

Shakti promptly closed the door behind him and sat down beside his brother with a scared “What happened yesterday?”

“So?” Jalal offered Ajabdeh a cup of tea, but she refused. 

“Why did you tell me to send a car and tell no one? That too at dawn!”

Ruqaiya stared at the duo, Brownie curled up in her lap.

“I…. I can’t stay there, I can't do this project!” she frowned at Jalal. Then looked away at the paperweight she was spinning. In a casual pair of jeans and a T-shirt, Ajabdeh looked sleepless.

“Why not?” Ruqaiya asked like a reflex.

“I… I … have said and done things I shouldn’t have. I can’t go back!” She blurted, shaking her head.

Jalal smiled, amused “What happened yesterday?”

“Nothing happened yaar” Shakti was taken aback by Pratap’s irking tone.

“ I… did you call Jalal?” His tone was hopeful.

“No, I asked you first…” Shakti spoke, “Heer was trying her since last night, she asked me to check on her like two hours back, I went to look, and came back and…”

“I … really like him?!” Ajabdeh looked at Jalal like she was admitting to murder.

“Ahh! Finally.” Ruqs looked relieved as his phone rang. Ajabdeh went on ranting.

"He affects me and I hate it!!" She stared at Rukaiya "You get it?" She clearly didn't. 

“Kika” Jalal was about to pick it up as Ajabdeh panicked.

“Just don’t tell him I'm here.” Ignoring her completely, Jalal picked up the call

“Don’t worry, she is here.” He spoke, making her frown.

“What the hell?” Ajabdeh frowned.

“I called her for some wedding plans,” Jalal added, making Ajabdeh smile. 

“Now let us go before your sister calls the police," He smiled, amused. “He said he will meet us at the site, come on.”

"But... But.... ab kya?" Ajabdeh Punwar was scared that her biggest nightmare was turning into her greatest dream.

Pratap frowned at the phone as Shakti asked, “What is it?”

"She is there, she asked him to send her a car!” Shakti could sense the displeasure. He needed to call Heer and inform her, but before he could dial, a car stopped frantically at the porch.

Heer had had enough. She had waited the whole night since her sister had informed her that she was going to party with Jalal and Kunwar Pratap. Knowing her impulsive sister made Heer worry. What worried her more was the phone going unanswered. Shakti had arrived back tired, so she had been patient till dawn to call him up, and to her dismay, it had been two hours since, and he too was not answering.

Worst-case scenarios shrouded her mind as, for the first time in her life, Heer did something impulsive. She grabbed the keys to the car and told a clueless Hansa, “Come with me”. If anything happened to her sister, it was Kunwar Pratap who would answer her. She knew what was at stake, but nothing was more important than her sister. She kept calling both phones in vain.

“Hansa?” Jaivanta’s smile changed to worry as she saw a rather serious mother-daughter duo on the porch “What happened?”

“Heer was saying…” Hansa stopped clueless at Heer’s “Khamma Ghani Ranisa, where is Jija?”

“Ajabdeh?” Jaivanta stared, confused, and turned to her just-arrived younger son.

“I … Dadabhai called Bhaijaan and… she is there…” he fumbled at a rather displeased Heer, making the mothers smile.

“Baojiraj.” One of the servants came running, making the family stare, “I found this on the porch.” It was Ajabdeh’s phone, Heer inspected. “How can she be so careless?”

“Bhaijaan send her a car and…” He explained, “ They had some important…” 

Shakti stopped at  Jaivanta’s “Come in, Hansa. Let’s talk over breakfast. I am glad you came; now you can leave post-dinner.” 

Heer ignored Shakti’s smile and walked past him, making him sulk.

“Ranima I…” Kunwar Pratap was running down the stairs, fitting his watch, in the first pair of denim and a tee he had found. He stopped at the sight of the guests.

“Where are you going?” Jaivanta asked, amused, at the son who never even saw this early a morning on a Sunday.

“Jalal… err…called for a…” He stopped at Heer’s stare. "We will have lunch at the site itself."
He nodded at Hansa approvingly and left in a hurry.

“I have called the Panditji to fix a sagaai date for Heer and Shakti after Jalal’s wedding,” Jaivanta said at the breakfast table to an approving Hansa and Udai Singh while Shakti eyed a blushing Heer, a little relieved at her smile.

“He will be here post lunch.” Udai Singh checked his watch. " Jaivanta let the guests rest after breakfast"
"Ji."

.

Pratap tried to calm down his racing heart, standing alone at the site. He knew he could go to Udaipur himself to discuss the changes, yet he had called on Jalal on a Sunday. Was it all work or the thought of something else that scared him? He couldn’t tell. Last night had had its effects on his mind, and yes, it was not all alcohol doing the talking. But what next? The rest of the way, like she said, but... The rest of the way required something he had never ever even imagined in his darkest nightmares. Commitment. The word itself scared him, not because it meant forever with one crazy Ajabdeh Punwar but because it meant a lot more. Marriage, Kids, and Responsibilities were never their cup of tea. His mind remembered their first conversation. They were on a road they both dreaded. A woof made him turn as an over-excited Brownie ran to greet him, wagging his tail and making him smile.

He turned at the sound of Jalal’s car. Jalal noticed Rukaiya and Ajabdeh walking past Pratap, getting down from his car and into the lobby, appearing gravely engrossed in a conversation. Jalal greeted him with a smile and noticed how Ajabdeh ignored his presence and Pratap hers, in vain.

“What is the change of plans? Let’s sit in the lobby.” He offered.

Shakti had done what he had never done in his life. He had climbed over the balcony of his own house, into Heer's guest room, which was actually Ajabdeh's. The empty room made him frown as she came out of the bathroom wide-eyed.
"Kunwarsa?" She stared at the door. "How did you..."
His eyes travelled to the balcony as hers widened.

"Jija has her effect on everyone, doesn't she?" Heer smiled. Her smile relieved Shakti, who promptly hugged her. 
"I missed you, Soon to be Mrs Shakti Singh"
"Not so soon." She shook her head, making him frown.
"What?" He asked, raising his brows as she walked out of his embrace.
"You are forgetting something." She reminded him.
"No, I ... remember them, it is just that Bhaijaan said..."
"See, we are their siblings. We should talk to the parents." She reasoned.
"Okay, okay, but where will we start?"
"You will start." She smirked, making him sulk. 
"Why me?"
"Shadi karni hain na aapko?" She narrowed her eyes.
"You are so the Hitler version of your sister." His accusation made her laugh.
"Waise..." he sat down as she rubbed her wet hair. "Something definitely happened yesterday."
"What?" she frowned, displeased "What did he do?"
"OH, hello! He's... umm... decent with her." This made Heer laugh. 
"Yes, with her." She agreed. "But what happened?"
"I don't know... I think..." A knock interrupted with " Baisa, it's lunchtime" from the maid. 
"Ji", she answered, looking at him.
"I should go." He got her stare. He walked past her rather reluctantly and came back to kiss her forehead as she pushed him away.

The lunch table was silent until Udai asked, "Pratap?"
" Jalal Ajabdeh and Ruqaiya said they will have it at the site. I sent them the food," Jaivanta smiled.

“Umm… Ranima?” Shakti cleared his throat. “I… “ He stared at Heer. “We have something to…” His phone rang as an interruption.

Bhaijaan, the called ID, made him murmur an “Excuse me” and left in a hurry.

Jalal was off the phone when he came back to his laptop, on which Pratap was viewing something. He noticed his friend rub his hands like he wanted to say something, and smiled with a very casual "So what are you thinking?"
“I was thinking of… Having an apartment for myself, on the top floor.” Pratap pointed at the portion on the blueprint.
"The renovated secret of yours?" he smiled, amused.
"No, that and this adjacent portion." He added.

“Well, the portion Ruqaiya has suggested for your family…” Jalal frowned.

“I want her to make an apartment for ME. And keep it a secret from…” He stared at the girls, engrossed in admiring a piece of artwork, at a distance.

“I got it, someone is planning a home, huh?” Jalal smiled, making him shake his head, heart thumping with a  “Maybe.” He smiled at the girls playing Fetch with Brownie.

“Where was I?” Shakti came back to his place “Oh yes, about Dadabhai and…” he stared at his parents and Hansa and back at Heer, who added “Jija?”

Jaivanta smiled at Hansa and said, “We have it under control, don’t we, Hansa?” She nodded.

“JI?” The children asked cluelessly.

“You forget, we are the parents!” She smiled, “Ayiye Panditji.” She welcomed the man with a smile “You remember what you have to do?”

“Ji,” he nodded, grinning as Heer and Shakti exchanged a glance.

Pratap had received a call from Ranima about Panditji's arrival. In the hide-and-seek of adulthood, he had completely forgotten to tell Ajabdeh about Heer's arrival in the morning. He shook his head.

“Ajabdeh.” She turned to frown at him, “Ranima is calling you home.”

“Me?” she frowned.

“Heer is here so…” Pratap thought aloud, “Maybe that is why...”

“What?” she looked wide-eyed. “Heer is here and you didn’t tell me!” Her accusing tone made him stare.

“Ahem, we will come in a while, you two go on…” Jalal nodded at Pratap as Ajabdeh followed in silence with Brownie in tow.

“They are here. Action!” Shakti smirked, excited.

“Tone it down”, Heer warned beside him as the parents and Panditji sat on the sofas, and they stood behind it.

“What?” Jaivanta fretted worry “This can’t be”
"Yes, Ranisa, I'm afraid that as the Kul Pandit of..."

"Heer!!!!!" Ajabdeh's soft shriek had echoed enough to make the Panchang fall out of Pandit's hand in startle, and she ran to hug her sister, Brownie, in between like they were separated in Kumbh Mela.
"Jija, where were you?" She straightened her sister's messy hair "I called you and..."
"My phone?" Ajabdeh looked like something hit her "Shit, my phone!" 
Heer made a face and waved it at her, making her smile and hug her again.
"They can't live without each other" Hansa cleared her throat, staring at Kunwar Pratap, who smiled back with a frown at the gathered crowd.
"Umm... agar inka Bharat milap samapt hua ho kya main..." The pandit asked, picking up the Panchang.
"Ji... you were saying?" Udai Singh rushed to the topic.

"As the Kulguru of the family, I should remind you of an ancient rule."
"What rule, Panditji?" Shakti spoke eagerly.
" The Prince who marries first is the heir to the throne, the next king!" He stopped at Pratap's amused chuckle 
"There is no such..." he stopped at Ranima's stare.
"So it is important that Kunwar Pratap marries first." The man stared at him, grinning.
"What?" Pratap's shocked voice was louder than usual, and an amused Heer saw his eyes travel to the one beside her, who was frowning at him.

"Dekhiye Panditji I... am not interested... Shakti is..." He was stopped by his father's firm, " Kunwar Pratap"
"So, if Kunwar Shakti..." The man started again.
"I don't want titles, let Shakti take that", Pratap spoke without a delay, "It's just a title and...His happiness is more important to me..."
" Dadabhai", Shakti looked pretty serious "I will not marry if you won't, I can not take what is yours."
"Kya?" Pratap frowned at his brother, "But..."

" We do have a lot of interested families, right, Jaivanta?" Udai smiled at Jaivanta's approval. 
"We can start looking and in a year..."
Ajabdeh's hands around Brownie tightened, making him jump down and grab some attention as he wagged at Pratap. Eyes met and looked away.

"I am not marrying any of those random people." He shook his head, "I am not."
"Then I won't marry ever too!" Shakti said equally stubbornly.
"Then what will happen to my sister?" Ajabdeh frowned, rather displeased at Shakti.
He looked away as everyone stared at Pratap.
"I am not marrying any random..." he stared back at a frowning Ajabdeh, "I am not!" With that, he walked up the stairs, followed by an overwhelmed tail-wagging dog in tow.

"Ab?" Hansa looked around "What will be their future?" She stared at Heer and then at Shakti. Ajabdeh was irked.
"Look, I respect whatever your rules say; I see that it is important. But for me, my sister is most important and Shakti can not just .."
"Then help them" Jalal's voice at the threshold made them turn as he and Rukaiya stood at the threshold. Jaivanta rushed to hug her favourite person as Rukaiya smiled. Jalal stared at Ajabdeh with a very serious nod and continued, "You can help your sister in this, but..."

"How on earth can I help them, Jalal?" Ajabdeh frowned "Wouldn't I have if I could?"
"Well, you can." Jalal smiled at a nodding Jaivanta.
"How?" Heer asked with a giveaway smile. Ajabdeh was too lost to notice.
"By marrying Kunwarsa, of course!" Hansa's voice was met with a rather fast approving "Yes." "Yes" and Shakti's hopeful stare as Ajabdeh felt... Trapped!

"How can they just..." Pratap paced his room as Brownie joined him, until he bumped against his leg, looked disappointed and decided to nap on the couch. "How can they tell me to marry any random..." his thoughts trailed. For the first time, his mother had mentioned marriage, and his brother Ajabdeh. He wished things were simpler and not this scary. The whole idea of it. He sighed, shaking his head.

"What?" Ajabdeh looked wide-eyed at the crowd. "Are you all crazy?"
"What's crazy? That was the initial plan until..." Jalal stopped.
"Haan Jija maan jao na." Heer held her hand as she shook it off.
"You!" She looked shocked "You don't even like him"
"But he's perfect for you!" Heer smiled sheepishly.
"And you don't need to leave, Heer!" Shakti smiled, nodding at her.
"And you li... umm..." Rukaiya stopped at her cold stare.
"You are not any random girl." Jalal managed.

"This is perfect." Jaivanta smiled.
"Toh hum baat pakki samjhe?" Hansa hugged her.
"Panditji, there will be a double engagement",  Udai Spoke.
"Wait!!!!" Ajabdeh almost had to shout over the mayhem, "Wait!"
Everyone froze in their spots and stared at her.
"Someone... umm.... aa...." She stared at the crowd and at the stairs.
"I will go ask him!" Shakti dashed off.
" Chaliye Panditji, hurry." Udai Singh urged, "Before they change plans!"

"Dadabhai Dadabhai." Shakti came in like he used to as a kid, and Pratap stared at him.
"Dekho... I..."
" Will you marry Ajabdeh?"
"What?" His eyes widened at his brother's smirk that reduced to a decent smile, adding, "For me and Heer?"
" But... She..."
"She is no random girl, and she will do this for Heer, so come on, say yes." Shakti urged.
" She said that..."
"She said to ask you... Now come on,.. yes? Yes?" Shakti looked at his face, which went from shocked to happy to pale in a flash.
"Ummm...."
"Yes!" he ran downstairs with "Dadabhai Maan gaye!"
Pratap sat down on the couch in a very shocked state, as to what just happened. He landed on Brownie, making the poor napping dog yelp and move aside, startling him.
"Sorry, Buddy," he murmured.

" SITE INSPECTION. BRING BROWNIE FOR A WALK AT 4PM." Read the text from a certain Ajabdeh Punwar as his heart raced.

The Sun was almost going down the western horizon as Ajabdeh sat on one of the restored Jharokhas. The wind played with her hair, her jhumkas made a tinkling sound and her heartfelt contentment at the sight. The sun was almost red between the trees on the horizon.
"Woof!" She turned first at Brownie's call and then at the sight in the empty lawn beneath as the guards at the gate saluted the prince, in a blue kurta on a white horse.
"Chetak!" She smiled delightedly as he spotted her, in her all-white sleeveless top and long skirt, with a multicoloured Bandhni ethnic scarf, on top of the Jharokha, her face red in the light of the sun. She almost jumped down from the Jharokha, made her way down the spiral staircase and ran to the lawn.
"Hi, Chetu!" She patted the horse that neighed at her. "How are you again?"
"He's fine." He got down, staring awkwardly at the guards in the distance and at her.
"Come, Brownie." She collared him, taking it out of her bag "Let's walk to the back orchards and pools."
"Woof!"
"Stay!" Pratap commanded Chetak and followed in silence.

They were almost at the orchards when Ajabdeh stopped "Do you know what my book is about?"
"What?" Honestly, he hadn't expected this! "Umm..."
"Choices." She smiled at Brownie. "Life-changing choices we make. We are compelled to. Or we rebel for. Or simply with the flow."
"What choice did you make today?" He asked with a frown.
" To face what once were nightmares." She flashed a smile that made his heart skip a beat as he smiled back.
"They aren't nightmares anymore?" He asked as she shook her head.
"Not anymore." She took three measured steps towards him, her hand at her back, holding Brownie's leash. "I have travelled my way towards..."
" Towards?" He smiled.
"The keys of the lock." She smiled and walked past him
"What lock?" He frowned, making her giggle softly.
" I want the best for Heer, her dream, her..." She changed the topic.
"I know you do I will see that she gets all that and more." He nodded.
"And?" She stared at him.
" Let me show you something." He smiled. It was time.

He threw open a huge Sandalwood door, carved with leaves and flowers. Ajabdeh gasped. The huge hall that stood in front of her was in the East wing of the Heritage Palace. Atop the hotels, where the private areas were. But this hall was different. Glass carvings adorned the walls, in all kinds of colours and textures, mirrors reflected lights like millions of stars, and a huge chandelier stood in the middle of the majestic hall.
"Oh my gosh", her eyes widened as she twirled with Brownie circling her excitedly. He smiled from the threshold.
"What is this place?"
"It is anything you want to make of it." He smiled at her wide eyes.
"What?"
" Glasses and Mirrors Ajabdeh." He looked around, "They reflect anything you want them to. Like people. Your deeds reflect what you are and how people see you. And I..." He held both her hands, making her stare. "We both know that what people see us as, we are far different people from that, aren't we?" She nodded with a smile.
"This sheesh mahal is for us to be who we are, actually, vulnerably, truthfully, with each other, here, in this hall, our own reflection."
" Wow!" She looked wide-eyed, "Poetic?" she smiled, amused.
"Just Ajabdeh Punwar effects," He shrugged as she laughed. He smiled.
"So here is your hall of reflections," he smiled.
"Wait a minute," she frowned. "You made this even before... did you... How did you..."
"Even if we didn't talk, Ajabdeh, I would have still gifted you this, for making me face who I am."
" Eww, Princy Mushy!" Her face made him laugh. She looked around wide-eyed.
"Can I have a piano?"
"Yes."
"And a rare books collection there?" She pointed.
"Yes."
"And a writing desk?"
"Absolutely"
"And a bar?"
" I was thinking that would come."
"I am kidding!" She looked, narrowing her eyes at his chuckle.

"You like this?" He smiled.
"I love it!" She smiled back, "Can I have a ..."
"We... We can have anything we want, as long as we are happy." He smiled. Ajabdeh frowned.
"What if we are not?" she asked, tapping her feet and raising her eyebrows.
"What if we fight?"
"We will sort it." He shrugged.
"What if we have misunderstandings?"
"We will talk it out?"
"What if I ask for a divorce?" She asked, smirking.
"You will get alimony," he reasoned, making her frown.
"What? You will just do away with a marriage if I say so?" she frowned. He chuckled.
"That! That Ajabdeh Punwar proves, you will never ask for it!" He smirked.
"Over-smart princy, I hate!" She snorted.

"Let's go." He picked up Brownie.
"Where?" She asked, frowning.
"Home," he reminded.
" It's here." She twirled, making his heart beat as his stare made hers thud faster.