AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I had spent the last few weeks imagining a very emotional scene of my vidai. My vermillion-smeared forehead covered in a pallu, tears flowing unabated, family and friends queuing up for that hug, a sad song playing in the background.
Well … none of that happened. The four sets of parents were all too dazed to react. Purva, Pitajee, Anu and I squeezed ourselves into one car and we dropped Anu and Pitajee off at their place first, before heading to Purva’s house.
An overwhelmed Pitajee had mumbled, ‘Thanks guys, I … I … I love you!’ as he’d got out of the car, looking away, a tad uncomfortable.
‘Just return the ring when you feel like it,’ said Purva, and everyone had laughed and huddled for one last hug before the most eventful night of our lives came to an end.
The guests at my wedding went back very content, to say the least. They had come to see one wedding and had seen two, plus some drama and some more drama. One aunt, who had gifted me a pair of gold earrings, came afterwards with a gold pendant. ‘After all, itna maza aya,’ she said, earnestly.
The next few days are now a blur.
Pitajee’s mother, who has always been very fond of Anu, has taken to referring to her new daughter-in-law as the ‘return-gift from Kasturi’s wedding’.
Anu, obviously, now has a very complicated relationship with her parents. Both parties think they are victims. My mother told Anu that she and Pitajee need to have a baby as soon as possible. ‘Babies,’ she said, looking pointedly at me, ‘are so dear to grandparents, after all.’
I had been married for four days then.
By the end of this month, Pitajee’s family will be hosting a proper reception for the wedding. We are all hopeful that Anu’s parents will attend the function, though I have my doubts.
Mum, obviously, posted details of the wedding on ‘Pearls of Wisdom’. There are three posts dedicated to how Pimple helped her best friend run away from her wedding and, in the process, united true love. To be honest, I come across as quite the hero and have therefore shared links to the post with everyone. In a matter of days, the number of followers of the blog ballooned to 3988, as some small websites picked up on the series and people began to share it on Facebook. Last I heard, a local newspaper was going to cover Mum’s
stellar rise to cyber stardom through a three-part interview. Mum is already talking about writing her first book, which will be titled Pearls of Wisdom.
Dad is doing fine, thank you. The surgery and the trauma of it all are past us and we have collectively decided to move beyond it.
Anu and Pitajee. Purva and I. It’s funny how our lives are now entwined in one fabulous, dramatic, Bollywood-esque story that we will probably never tire of discussing. Not only do we share the same wedding date, but also the wedding venue, panditji, puja samagri and, lo and behold, engagement ring as well!
‘What are you thinking, Kas?’ asked Purva, bringing me out of the past.
‘Nothing,’ I said smiling. ‘Ready?’
‘Yes,’ he said.
The honeymoon had been paid for by Purva, but planned entirely by me. There have been … errr … let’s just say, some changes. I felt a little nervous as we made our way to the check-in desk.
‘Flight BA 345 to Brazil, please,’ said Purva, blindly handing to the lady behind the desk the tickets I had just passed on to him.
The lady looked confused.
‘No…’ I said. ‘These are for the US.’
‘The US?’ asked Purva, looking in bewilderment first at me, then at the lady.
I nodded my head. ‘We stop first at Disneyland and then head to Brazil,’ I said, smiling. ‘It’s high time you got to do that trip.’
Purva stared at the tickets in his hand, then at the lady at the desk and then at me. And before I knew it, my brand new, anti-PDA husband had lifted me off the ground in a fierce hug.
‘I love you, Kasturi Shukla!’ he said.
‘Let me down,’ I squealed, kicking my feet with delight.
‘These newly-weds!’ murmured the lady at the desk, pretending to be exasperated but unable to hide her smile.
