Tuesday 29 November 2011

Never Regret Your Choices


WHY DO WE CHOOSE TO DO WHAT WE CHOOSE TO DO? WHAT MAKES US FORM OUR JUDGMENET AND TAKE THE DECISIONS WE TAKE? I always ponder about the life choices I have made and I have learnt one thing that every decision you make it’s the best decision you make no matter how bad or good it is. The key to a guilt free life is by not to judge yourself by the choices you make.

Some choices which we make might work out in our favor and some might not but that does not define us, you or me. We are much more and it is not always necessary to come through with people. One’s life choices are one’s own and no one can bend or mend them.

A lot of things inspire me but does that mean I act upon all of those things? No it does not, it is not possible to dedicate your life to everything which pleases you. Sometimes making tough choices is what is required and you need to be a bigger man to sacrifice what you want for the greater good.

People will always judge, it is in our blood, it is something which comes engrained in us, no matter how nice a person is there will always be a judgment call. Then how do we choose to avoid it? How do we choose to be the best and bring out the best in us? The secret to that is never try to appease anyone, if you stand for your choices and what is right for you, yes you might hurt people, you might face the wrath of those who care and those who do not but in the end the best decisions are those in which both mind and heart are in agreement.
For example falling in love, in western countries there are no judgment calls on who dates whom, who loves whom, who sleeps with whom but in our society there is always a moral obligation to appease people. It leads us to losing on a lot of things we hold precious but we still do that, we still give up on things which we felt were precious.

But is that the right thing to do? Is not hurting others the right thing? Is not hurting others and hurting yourself means you are selfless? I feel lying to yourself is the biggest crime one can commit, it is a sin to be self sacrificing as in this world each and everyone fends for themselves. There is no pity, harmony and hatred which rules us. Instead we have started living our lives with pure compromises. What I mean by a pure compromise is a situation where we make ourselves believe that our sacrifice is what was needed to make things right. But is it?

Everything happens for a reason, people say. But the truth is people who would strangle their needs and their wants will do that without being concerned with the society, the age or time. Nothing will matter if you have believed for a fact that self sacrifice is the only path to achieve the greater good.

Everybody has the right to be happy. Happiness and sorrow do not have a shelf life. I have heard many a times that it is our sorrow which makes our joy worthwhile, I partially agree to it but what about those people who give up their joy to see a smile on someone else’s face? Spreading joy is only possible when the person spreading it is happy, you being unhappy to see others smile is just not worth it.

There are people who are very random and impromptu, their life choices are a series of accidents. Their choices hurt them and make them happy but they regret the decisions they make. To such people, I can relate to. But the question is can we be rational about everything in life? If we are always rational then what we live is not a life but we lead each day till the time we die.  It is very important to know who you are and what you are as there is a good and a bad person inside everyone. There is an angel and the devil in everyone, there is a self sacrificing element and the selfish in everyone. Do not judge yourself as it makes our lives harsh. Instead live……… and live more to regret another day.

Wednesday 23 November 2011

Die Dead Enough


Some say that I will burn,
Some say I will freeze.

From the things I have learnt and faced
I smile at those who say I will end in flames.

If I had a choice I would die twice,
I have felt hate and I know how it feels

Freezing will be a potent killer
And It will be enough, to end.

Hate is what I have given up on, Things cease to matter.
I am at peace. So truth be told, I have ceased to exist.

Some still say I will burn,
Some want me to freeze.

Tuesday 22 November 2011

The Long Road


He sat alone on his bed, he liked a specific corner of the bed. It was a corner in which he could hide from everyone and everything. That corner comforted him, felt protected. Sudden thoughts made his heart sink, his eyes were constantly moist but he had a little smile on his face.

Ravi was in love with a girl, Ruhaani but their pair wasn't made in heaven. They were never meant to be together but they still hung on, clinging to each other, loving each other.

He kept thinking what went wrong. They were together so many years why hadnt she thought about her priorities before, he felt lonely and betrayed. Life had cease to mean anything but he knew he had to drag on, he did not have the option to give up living. He did not have an option to give up surviving.

He pushed himself farther in the corner, sat with his notebook. He looked morose, he kept doodling circles aimlessly. His eyes were leaking and he looked as someone who had lost all hope.

In his mind a myriad of thoughts came and went, the immense feeling of loss made him remember each second spent with her. HE kept saying to himself "Now she has forgotten me, Um sure she has. Hope she is happy" and he kept staring.

He remembered small things, minute details, as how she ate a brunch on sunday instead of eating breakfast. How her family lunches were so very late on sundays. The memories of day to day routine stuff seemed to keep him alive, these mundane activities were the only things he could hold on too. He was trying hard to recollect each and every second spent with her.

The feeling of being lost was greater than the sense of loss. He had always been with her since childhood and suddenly losing her made him vulnerable.

It was not as if Ruhaani was happy in doing what she did, she had to do what she did. It was not forced upon her but because she was a selfless person, a sort of person who would sacrifice her happiness to see the people around her happy.She sat in a well lit room, the walls had beautiful flowers painted all across it, the sun
was pouring in through the balcony. It was a beautiful glass wall through which the sun's rays filtered and seeped in. For years she had admired the beauty of this sun but not today. It seemed corrupted and dark and weak.

She knew that after years of holding hands and contemplating there future together they were over, Finally. The imminence of the whole thing shook her, she fought the urge to cry but it was the only way she could do to find some solace. She was not a weak person who spilled tears but these tears were for someone who will always live on in her life. Someone whom she knew will never give up on her, someone who would love her unconditionally even if he was hurting from inside.

They both huddled in their corners and the day shifted to night and then again....

They both woke up with moist eyes and nightmares.

They got dressed for work, wiped their eyes dry and left for work. The first thing she would do is to call him when she left, but she did not.

He kept waiting that maybe she will call.The call never came.....

Saturday 19 November 2011

Jo Beet Gayi So Baat Gayi: Harivansh Rai Bachchan


Jeevan Main Ek Sitara Tha
Maana Vah Behad Pyara Tha
Vah Doob Gaya To Doob Gaya
Ambar Kay Aanan Ko Dekho
Kitne Iskay Taare Toote
Kitne Iskay Pyare Choote
Jo Choot Gaye Fir Kahan Mile
Par Bolo Toote Taaron Par
Kab Ambar Shok Manata Hai
Jo Beet Gayi So Baat Gayi

Jeevan Main Vah Tha Ek Kusum
They Us Par Nitya Nichavar Tum
Vah Sookh Gaya TO Sookh Gaya
Madhuvan Ki Chaati Ko Dekho
Sookhi Kitni Iski Kaliyan
Murjhaayi Kitni ballriyan
Jo Murjhayi Woh Fir Kahan Khili
Par Bolo Sookhe Phoolon Par
Kab Madhuban Shor Machata hai
Jo Beet Gayi So Bat Gayi

jeevan Main Madhu Ka Pyala Tha
Tumnay Tan Man De Daala Tha
Wah Toot Gaya To Toot Gaya
Madiralya Kay Aangan Ko Dekho
Kitne Pyale Hil Jaate Hain
Gir Mitti Main Mil Jaate Hain
Jo Girte Hain Kab Uthte Hain
Par Bolo Toote Pyalo Par
Kab Madiralaya Pachtata Hai
Jo Beet Gayi So Baat Gayi

Mridu Mitti Kay Hain Bane Hue
Madhu Ghoot Phoota Hi Kartay Hain
Laghu Jeevan Lekar Aaye Hain
Pyale Toota Hi Karte Hain
Fir Bhi Madiralaya Kay Andar
Madhu Kay Ghat Hai Madhu Pyale Hain
Jo Madakta Kay Maare Hain
Vey Madhu Loota Hi Kartay Hain
Va Kachcha Peene Wala Hai
Jiski Mamta Ghat Pyalon Par
Jo Sachchey Madhu Sey Jala Hua
Kab Rota Hai Chillata Hai
Jo Beet Gayi So Baat Gayi

Friday 18 November 2011

Fine Line Between Right and Wrong


They knew this story would not have a happy ending, but they were still afraid to let go.
Do you remember the day when we met the first time?
I remember it vividly, I Remember it fondly.

You made an impression which I wont forget.
I do not want to forget.

How I, to and fro between the right and the wrong.
How I resist the temptation to do the thing which is wrong.

A tempest rises in me when I think of you.
A battle already lost I pursue.

I can never forget those dreamy eyes, those luscious lips.
Your silky hair or your undeniable charm.

My battle rages within, I ask myself why you mean so much.
I yet do not know the answer.

I know I can’t have you, I know you will never be mine.
This thought keeps me awake till dawn.
And the love still lives on.


Thursday 17 November 2011

We Walk Alone


A journey I began alone seems never to end.
I look for you, I try to.

This journey breaks me, hurts me but I have to go on.

I cannot stop to find you, I cannot stop to see you
I will stop when my day comes.

Why is it that I look for you, Why is it that I feel you?

I know I have an endless path to tread, I will tread it alone.

I wish I never waited, never hoped, never wept.

Someday the journey will end, waiting for it and walking again.

Change


I sit alone sometimes. Wondering.......
Is it me or everyone else.

Why do I feel its me vs the world.
What have they done to earn my rebuke.

I wasn't snarky, I wasn't evil.
So what changed.

Will I change back and be good.
I abhor if this is what we call progress.

Everyone is an outsider, everyone an enemy.
It stifles me, makes it hard to breathe.

Wil this change, change.....
I wonder..... I wont surrender.

Tuesday 15 November 2011

I Have Read All His Journal Entries


I have read all his journal entries. Hi, I am Suhaani and I am telling you my story of the person I love. The strange part about him is that he thinks I have not read his journal entries but I have read them all, I read them every now and then and he is blissfully unaware. Sometimes it makes me smile and sometimes it makes me cry. But I read them, reading them makes me realize what he means to me.

He never mentions his name, he is always he. His name is Arnav and this is the story of my love, our love.

He is not the only one who looks at me when I am asleep, we both do it but he does not know when I look at him till the sun rises as he is busy sleeping. Arnav is a heavy sleeper, when he is not reading and not watching me he is busy sleeping. He always sleeps on his tummy and his face is always on my side of the bed, not one day has he slept without facing me, even when we have fought. He tells me that whenever he wakes up in between his sleep he likes waking up to my sight, he finds it reassuring to find his love next to him.

Arnav is a simple guy with complicated passions. He is a strong person with a soft heart, he cannot bear disharmony and he loves me. As you must have read in his entry that I was hurt once and it made me cold towards people. So this story is about that one day when his actions changed the way I felt forever. It was the day, I rose in love. And it was the reason that till date he is making me my favorite tea.
It was a day I still clearly remember, it was raining, sixteen years ago. I already knew that there is this person Arnav on this planet but I had been stalling his advances. I was waiting for an auto outside office and it was a bit dark, I was afraid but was too proud to accept it. Whenever a car zoomed by or a lecherous creep walked by I shivered in disgust. I never stopped keeping up a brave front and returning their looks with nasty stares of my own.
A man stopped right in front of me and was about to comment and suddenly I felt someone move behind me, before I could react I saw Arnav standing in front of me. He said nothing, asked nothing, he just held my hand and started walking. Something happened, something magical, something beautiful and natural. I could not rebuke him or come up with a snarky retort. I just kept walking behind him and he kept holding me by my hand. We sat in his car and he drove in silence, he asked me for directions to my home but there was no chit chat going on between us. The silence was uncomfortable, he stopped the car outside my home and said “just do me a favor, don’t get hurt” he waved at me and left.
I stood there speechless in the rain, I was dripping but I was unable to make a run for it. I was enjoying the rush of emotions I was experiencing and the wet rain made me happy. Many guys have tried to woo me but his persistence had taken a different turn altogether, his passionate rants about his love were vindicated today with his sensible and heartfelt actions. Whatever he did that day just felt so right and perfect. I knew that I was in love with him. I did not love as I had not met a match who could reciprocate the intensity and passion I was capable of giving. Everyone shouts about undying love which ultimately fizzles out. But with Arnav, I felt I had met my match. A person who can reciprocate as intensely as he felt and that’s exactly the one thing I needed to grow in love.
Our courtship was very innocent, we used to talk on the phone for hours, it was strange for both of us as we hated talking on the phone and neither were we that young to feel all giggly and childish but strangely this person made me feel all of those things which I never thought I could experience again. Yes, my heart was broken by someone whom I cared but I forgave him the second I realized that Arnav is my soulmate. People might question me that “why forgive him when you found happiness?” to that my reply would be “ I am a human being, I feel hurt too. If I am happy I do not mind moving on with things that have ceased to matter”. I learnt to care again, I learnt to love again, I learnt to believe again in the immense capacity of love being a positive force. Its true that when you have met the one, you just know it. So we spoke on the phone, weaved weird fantasies about random things. The thing is we made each other happy.
Arnav, is innocent till the point when you start feeling he is an imbecile, a sucker for emotional support, he never realized when I was joking and when I was serious. There were instances when my fake anger would turn his eyes moist.
Fond memories, beautiful memories.
Arnav is not insecure, he never was, he had been hurt too by the people he loved the most and what scared him was the fact that he himself did not know how so soon he could love someone so much. He just did not want to this relationship to fail, he was never afraid of showing his love and as he matched my emotional temperament, his need of me never came out in the wrong light.
One day we both took an off so that we could spend time together. I always pulled his leg and a generic conversation began leading to bam!!!
Arnav: “Ummm, um getting bored. Want to get married?”
Suhaani: “ Noi. Me not feeling well. Let me recover then will think about it.”
Arnav: “Are you feeling better now? Now can we get married?”
Suhaani: “Yes, lets go.”
We were taking the joke further, we both were not ready to concede defeat. We were standing outside the court, we were excited and nervous at the same time. We both knew our parents wont object, but even for them it would be weird that when a wedding was imminent then why do something so random. We kept on thinking about our stupidity and forty five minutes, two signs, two witnesses and one picture later we were married.
When we walked out we were still reeling from what had happened, the immensity of the situation overcame us and we kept holding on to each other for support. We were quiet, he had a gleam in his eyes but he found me nervous and contained his feelings. He understood my needs even before I realized them. I wanted him to be there for me.
(Arnav’s grip on Suhaani’s hand was firm). He looked into her eyes and said “ Babe, I was always there for you but I still want to tell you that I will always be there for you in sickness and in health.”
That’s all he said, I gripped his hands hard and we walked off to begin a life of our own.

Monday 7 November 2011

Journal Entry of Love


It is not a story. It is an account of truth. A journey penned down in words. A factual representation of two people in love.
Yes it is not a story but there is a girl and there is a boy. The girl is indifferent to the boy but finds his ardor charming. The boy loves the girl and he knows in his heart it will never change.

What if this was a story? Will it make a difference to the readers? I cannot be the judge of that.

Suhaani was sleeping, she slept awkward. I watched her sleep, she was on her stomach head resting on two fluffy pillows, her arms were flayed on both sides. Her posture made me smile, she slept peacefully it seemed nothing worried her anymore.

I like to read at night, there were many nights like this one in which I could see the night turn over. The sun coming up in all its glory. It was her beauty which kept me awake, I would lose the book midway and keep looking at her and sometimes il just sleep off while I admired her tranquility.

The flying newspaper hitting the window sill woke me up, it was a cold morning and I had to get ready for work. Suhaani was still sleeping, she preferred waking at her own pace. She worked but it was only to distract herself from the nothingness around. She told herself everyday that in one of these days I will have my own thing up and running.”

Generally by the time I was having breakfast she would prance around the house getting ready, juggling between tooth brush, curling irons and clothes to be worn at work. She was a true blue queen, the morning rituals were simple, I had to make her elaichi n adrak waali chai, then wait for her to decide when to get up. She liked things to come to her ,so, by the time she was through with her juggling of a million things she expected her breakfast to be on the table or packed depending upon her mood.

She wore whatever Salma picked out for her. Salma had been with us since she was a child and she loved us like family.  We never treated her with indifference. She was an integral part of our family.

The world saw Suhaani as a cold and tough person. It was an image she was happy to portray. Her approach to life was simple ‘I don’t care who you are or what you are. I just don’t’ she took no offence when people thought of her as a cold person. It was exactly what she wanted them to believe cause from within she knew what she was.

The time in which these facts are being documented is/was/would be the time when it is very hard to find a person who had the gift of trust. And she was a person who had this gift, she won’t trust anyone but if she did then she would never judge them. It’s a volatile gift, people misuse it so she chose to be the cold one. The less people get to know you the better chances are there to stave them off.

She garnered a lot of attention for how she looked. She was beautiful. As it’s an account based on facts, I will put the facts forward. These feelings are not feelings, these are not biased judgment calls but only facts. She was not very tall, her complexion was fair and she had beautiful long hair. Her eyes were a deep shade of brown, it seemed as if your falling, real large eyes, so expressive and innocent. You just could not do anything wrong and get away with it when those beautiful eyes accused you. She was lithe and confident, she smelled like fresh lilies combined with the smell of morning. A chilly freshness, her sight gave hope. There are so many things that I should tell you, the facts I mean, this is not a story, it’s a compendium of facts and I am not a writer but a more of a person making a journal entry.

I had been hurt so had she . She was hurt by the person she loved and I was hurt by the person I thought I loved. Being hurt is an alien feeling, when people say “I know what you are talking about” I feel like telling them “no, you do not know what I am going through!!! I do not want you to even anticipate the sense of my loss”  

So when we met we were two weary people who did not trust anyone. I am a romantic, I fall in love with the same passions every time but this cold person who was trying to prove a point as to how bad she actually was, was making me feel something. We spoke on the phone once, I liked her voice, I told her that. She was cordial but she told me that she is not a nice person and I should definitely stay away from her.

Till date I will never know was she trying to entice me into chasing her or she truly meant that. It’s  confusing when people talk in riddles. I chased her night and day, did not give her any space. The more I knew her the more innocent she seemed. A girl driven by simple passions of being loved and wanting to love back in return. Her giggles still ring in my ears, a continuous flutter of childlike emotions.

I never realized when we came so close. Every time I think of her I sigh!!!, a sigh of relief knowing that she is safe as she is with me and then I fret what if we lose each other one day, what if the days which seems so promising become dark and corrupted.

Her immensity of emotions baffle me, it seems as if she is evolving. I do not know what it means but its what I feel, I do not think she is changing, somehow change has a negative connotation attached to it. Whenever I feel that “I am so lucky to have her!” she would dazzle me with something else. How does these things work? I am a romantic but I have always been confused between true love and the make belief world of being in love. I feel people like being in love, it s a warm sunny comfortable feeling. But I was believing again in something beyond what I had experienced.

When I look back the reason I was attracted to her was not because how she looked but how she made me feel. I felt sure, certain. I felt! I had been numb a long time and just to live again was a blessing.
I observe her. She just knows exactly what I need. I keep on observing her, there is no scope of ambiguity when she knows when you need her. She knows when I need her, she picks up the things that I need. I am trying to find out how does that work? Does telepathy really exist? Can two people think alike? Sometimes it makes me emotional but I won’t talk about that. I am just here to present facts.

I know someday she will go away from me. I have a bad feeling about it but I know it is bound to happen. What makes me so insecure? Is it because I feel she is reaching out and settling for me? Why could I feel her love and still feel insecure?

The chilly weather continued, I woke up to find a note on the fridge. A sticky memo, it had just seven letters written on it. “Goodbye”. It made me aware that finally the day had come when she did leave me but I did not understand why it happened. I went about my day to day stuff and kept thinking the goodbye was written with the same green pen I had bought her at the store, she had loved it and I bought it for her.

Why did she use a gift to write those seven letters? Why was I thinking on those lines? I do not know. Am I expressing myself? I should not digress. I sat down and waited for her to call. The whole day passed, I made no effort to call her. I stared at the phone sitting on my bedroom. I kept looking, I kept looking at her clothes and her stuff. I laughed aloud, she had forgotten her pretty dresses and her favorite comb. She will come back I thought.

I felt asleep waiting for her and then I was jolted awake by someone, It was Suhaani, her delicate hands running on my face and her soft hair falling on my chest. I looked at her and my eyes were filled with tears.  I said “I, thought you left, why did you come back?” to which she replied “Hatt!!!”

I do not know how could I assume the worst, I would leave the details of her sudden vanishing act for another entry in my log. However as my readers should not be agitated, I found another note beneath the fridge, a sticky note which read “ baby I have to go to work, something urgent has come up. Love you loads. Breakfasts ready and be a “ “Goodboy” the good boy was written in the second note which I found on the fridge, my perception made me feel it’s a goodbye. I decided not to live my insecurities rather to live my life. We have been married for fifteen years now and while I pen the facts,  I can hear the kettle whistling. It’s a chilly morning and I still have to get her the same tea.

I walk up to her with her cup and she still sleeps funny, body splayed all over, neck in some twisted form, silky hair falling on her face, delicate hands with orange nail paint. I feel she is old for orange now, but I cant say that to her, she can punch me, I know it for a fact.

I sit next to her and wake her gently, she moans and does the whole routine and says “luv uuuuuuuu” and for some reason it strikes me the way it struck me fifteen years earlier.

This journal entry is messed, I have involved too many emotions. But I am not a storyteller but a documenter of facts. The fact is we lived happily forever and after.





Confessions of a Whore


I don’t know why you would do these things to me. I will never understand what motivations you have to constantly hurt me. Is it fun, to see me weep? Do you derive any sort of pleasures in it? Sometimes I feel you are sick. Why do I feel that when you talk to me in all your honesty. Why do you make me feel things that churn my stomach and I feel repulsed at my own presence.

I know when it started it was so beautiful, you made me feel as if I am the one. Why did I ever believe you? What made me trust you? Did I trust those unassuming eyes or did I trust what I saw? I saw love in your eyes but how could it change so fast?

You made me feel like a whore, a whore whom you fuck and leave to rot. Why did you make a whore feel that she was alive, she could feel and she could see good in this world. Didn’t you understand that I loved you? Didn’t you feel that after you leave my whole being will be wrecked? How could you touch my cheeks and say love you and then decide to go away. Go away forever.

It does not hurt me to see you happy, it hurts me to see that you do not even remember who I am and what I was. The fact that you made me your whole world and one day you decided to go will never cease to hurt me.

The constant numbing pain tells me to cry but I cant. I feel like hurting you the same way you hurt me, I want to rip your soul out. I want to pull your hair and smash your head in the wall. But I know I can never do it. I cant do it cause you are not here anymore, I can’t reach you. You have gone too far way too far.
When you visited me you spoke about emotions, when you undressed me you spoke about what I meant to you. When you were inside of me you proclaimed your love, I still remember that gravelly voice of yours pronouncing your love for me.

You looked so innocent, so different from all the other people in this world. You were the first person who did not leer at me. You were the first man whom I thought to be a man and not a hyena. But what good were you? You were pathetic than them. They came on to me, satiated themselves and left. You came to me, made me your whole world, you made love to me and then you took care of me.

I still remember your bespectacled face, your cheap suit, your flouncy hair and your unassuming airs. I know you thought nothing of yourself but for me you were the only ray of hope I had in my pathetic life.
Why didn’t you just fuck me and leave? Why did you have to make me feel special? Why did you make me feel alive? Why did you do all that? I would have still moaned your name, I would have still scratched and bit you. But that did not satisfy you.

Making a whore fall in love was your ultimate challenge. A personal victory . Yes, you ruined my faith for a game of emotions.

Why did you do it? Was it a bet you had with your colleagues who worked with you in the bank? Do you even work in a bank? Or was it a sense of insecurity arising from being inadequate?

I wont punish you but the universe will. The universe will punish you for making the life of an unassuming numb whore into hell. In this inferno I burn I wish you burn in it too.

Yes, I hate you with as much passion with which I loved you. But I will always love our child, she gives me hope to live. I will live and someday you will die…alone.


Friday 4 November 2011

There was a couple madly in love.


There was a couple madly in love. In Urdu you call such people diwaaney. They were madly in love. A love not defined by status, caste, physicality or raw sensuality. It was an ever present entity, a love which is just there; it had its own aura. Two people who realized that they have met their soulmates. Ayana used to ask Raajvir every now and then. “ so what makes you love me so much?” and he always started passionately, saying “I love you so deeply because………..” then a dull pause in which he jogged his brain to analyze what made him love her.. and then he said “ I just love you, I have no reasons to support my belief. Its just the way you make me feel and I know for sure this is how you will make me feel till the time I breathe my last” One special day when he quoted these words, he didn’t stop… he continued on.. hugged her and said “happy anniversary my love, got something for you”… it was a plain gold ring with ‘ il embrace death before I leave you. Love you always’.. She was speechless, she touched his face and her eyes were wet with tears. Cupid could see a tear blessed with sun’s golden rays… they were as big a drop as a giant pearl. A beautiful sight. They cried and kissed.
She was from a well to do family but Raajvir’s parents were snatched from him at a very young age. Despite all odds he wanted to give Ayana a life of pleasure and happiness. For him his love for her was not enough, he wanted to bring the whole world down on its knees just to bring a smile on the face of his lady love. She understood his passions and never derided them, she was a true supporter. It did not bother her that his need to satisfy her in every way was becoming a self consuming passion for him.
They had faced good times and harsh times together, they knew each other. They loved each other. She did not have to look the other way or make an extra effort to forgive him. When you truly love someone you can never ever hate those people. As no matter what you made them feel, they made you feel special. Her support was leading him to better things, a constructive love affair. A relation made to mend rather than break.
The amount of work Raajvir was putting in was clearly visible, he looked pale but always had a brilliant smile over his bony but strong façade. He wasn’t weak instead he was inspiring, but Ayana worried for his health. He just did not know how to take care of himself and that did not please her. She did not pamper him, it was an outright one sided shouting match. Then he had no option but to take care of himself. He was too stubborn to accept it but he liked being a baby in front of her, he liked all the mommy style scolding and all the care she showered on him. He worked while she stuffed his face with food.
Ayana was talking to her mom. She was talking about fixing a marriage date. We will call her mummy for reference. So Mummy tells Ayana “ you know beta if you are happy then we are happy but we don’t trust that boyfriend of yours, think about it. You are 24, you still can wait.” The conversation turned south there onwards and Ayana decided not to listen to her mother rip her man’s self respect to pieces any further.
She decided to take a walk on the gravelly road on the back alley of their make shift home. It was windy, the sky was blue, pink and orange in places. The wind had an eerie feel to it, she pulled her coat closer to her body and kept walking. Something kept nagging her and then she saw Raajvir in a roadside café hugging his best friend Asma. It was a different hug, a lingering hug. She held his hand after that. She smiled at him peacefully and then they parted ways. Ayana hid herself, her heart was thumping; a feeling so unbearable that she wanted to rip her heart out. Her mind was screaming for the pain to stop. She felt as if someone was sledge hammering her heart at unequal intervals. She was unable to breathe. She fell on the pavement and started grasping for breath. She kept telling herself that it was not what she thought and Raajvir will never hurt her.
Wearily Ayana walked into what they called as home. The door of their home had a hand painted sign.. It had their names written in varied colours and it was circled by a quote from Rumi, which stated “Love has no cause, it is the astrolabe of God’s secrets” . It was her habit to recite these lines while she entered and as she did the same she saw Raajvir sitting by the window looking outside the purple sky…which felt like impending doom of the unavoidable night and the promise of a brighter day.
He saw her and focused, he walked towards her and kissed her. Raajvir said “I am not the person you thought me to be. You treated me like a God but in the end I realized I am only a human being. I am sorry Ayana. Forgive me.” He kissed her again, took the ring off her finger and walked out of her life forever. Ayana froze, she could not even say anything. Her whole being waited to implode. An implosion of pain, a feeling so real and unbearable that anyone who has ever truly loved could understand her suffering. She begged and cried and looked at the sky. Nothing changed. She looked at the lightened skin of her index finger and cried. The ring was gone and so was Raajvir.
It was very tough for Ayana to piece her life back together. Her daily routine was picking the shards of the life Raajvir left into bits. She used to drip tears without even realizing. Her pain had such immense beauty that it made the people near her cry. Mummy intervened, she could not see her daughter suffer like that and asked her to zap out of it. An epitome of mother’s selfless love, never she rebuked her. She accepted what happened and helped her back on her feet.
After a year Ayana was engaged and married. A businessman, a goldsmith. Arun was from a different part of the country but he made his business flourish in Ayana and Raajvir’s city. He was a simple man, big hearted. He did not know about Ayana’s past and he did not care. He was confident of what he and Ayana shared.
Arun proved to be a great husband and father. They had a baby boy whom they named Karan. Ayana had finally forgiven Raajvir and wished he was happy with Asma.
Ayana was a doting mother and could not see Karan cry. He had the tendency to fake stomach aches to get chuttis from school. He just knew how to mess with her mother’s mental peace. One fine day he did just that and then after sleeping his heart’s fill he started throwing tantrums about visiting dad at work. Ayana knew she was being taken in for a ride but why not!!! Karan would love to see his daddy, so will Arun…. How often do you get to see your raja beta and Karan ki maa at work.
The weather was chilly. Both mum and son hurried inside the jewellery store and huddled besides the counter. Karan was playing with his Doraemon while Ayana was adoring her beautiful child. Suddenly her eyes fell on a diary. An old diary which Arun generally used to note special requests. As they sold run of the mill stuff it was not a stuffed diary instead it had entries spacing between months and even years.
she kept flipping back until she reached 2007. The year when Raajvir left her. She read an order for a gold ring with the words  ‘ il embrace death before I leave you. Love you always’. Her world shook. Memories started flashing, she broke into a cold sweat and requested water. Arun was concerned he asked her “ What happned wifey?” she replied “this message to be engraved is so haunting, reading it gave me a terrible feeling about things”.
Arun remembered the order with a smile and said “the fellow who ordered the ring was a sickly guy, but so passionate about this ring. He called me every half an hour to know the update on his ring. He kept babbling about how her jaan should love this ring and so on.  The strangest thing happened, after a few months a pretty girl came in with the same ring and asked me to encase it in an ornamental box. A memento.” Arun tried to recollect her name, he was closing by but still time has its toll on everyone’s memory. Then Ayana nudged in “ Was it Asma?” Arun nodded in agreement and knew there was something wrong. He trusted his wife and when she left in a hurry; he picked up karan and told him that mumma would be back home late so he should better teach his dad how to play with a doraemon.
Ayana ran to a telephone booth and picked up a directory, she ran her fingers through name starting with A. There were 7 Asma’s. The first three were duds but the fourth one was the person Ayana was looking for.
Ayana: “Asma, this is Ayana. You remember me?”
Asma: “Yes Ayana, I do. We never ceased to be friends”
Ayana: “ Yeah, yes. Of… ofcourse”. So hows Raajvir? Are you guys together? Are you happy?
Asma: “Raajvir is content. Happy am sure. Why don’t you visit me Ayana? Come right now”

Ayana disconnected the phone and hailed a taxi. At the foot of the steps, she felt dizzy. She did not have the guts to face what was to come. She cursed her foolishness. How could she ever think that after all of this they could be friends? She decided to carry it through and forget about him after that.
Asma opened the door, she looked beautiful. A haunting quality was about her which made her beauty painful. Ayana walked in….. and said “can I see raajvir?” Asma pointed her towards the study. She walked in. A framed picture of Raajvir hung by the dark side of the wall. The base of the picture was supported by a rack which had a gleaming glass and bead box with a ring stuck in between. Besides his picture were tiny frames containing eye lashes. Ayana remembered how Raajvir used to pick up her lashes when she wished something out of them. Her eyes were brimming, she had an unfathomable expression of hurt and grief however she managed to smile at the same time.
She walked towards the picture and touched his face.. her eyes dripping. She turned towards Asma looking for answers. Asma said “ Raajvir could never ever have stopped loving you. He knew how much you loved him. He was detected with cancer right after he proposed you. There were no symptoms in him making him feel sick but by the time he got the medical attention required, it was too late. The doctors had given him 4 months. He knew that you will kill yourself if you got to know so the only thing that we could think of was to make you hate him. It was tough for me to lose a friend like you and to lose my best friend forever. But he just wanted you to be happy”. His last words were “Asma tell Ayana that it hurt me to snatch the ring out of her finger but I had to, I had promised her il embrace death before I leave her…. Oh I left her before um dead. Guess the joke is on me. Tell her I loved her. Tell her I will look out for her from the other side. “
Ayana hugged his picture and stared at the floor. She picked herself up, she still kept hugging the picture and walked out of there.
Curtains close.