हमारी शादी में अभी बाकी है हफ्ते चार
महीने बीत गए ये दिन भी हो जायेंगे पार
ना फिर तरसाऊँगी और करवाके इंतज़ार
मैं यु पहना दूंगी ऐसे पहना दूंगी
हक़ से पहना दूंगी तुम्हे अपने बाहों का हार
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The two dates announced by Pandit ji were 25th November of this year or the same date after two years. The elders decided that two years would be too late and finalized the date after a month, considering it was currently September.
As the date was decided, both Avyuktta and Yashveer shyly glanced at each other before looking away. Both of their cheeks were lightly painted in a pretty pink blush. Tripti, who saw this, cooed at them and let her eyes wander to search for someone. Upon finding him, she walked up to him and tapped on his shoulder.
Aaryan, who was talking to Mridul, exited the conversation immediately to look for his own Gulaab. Mridul, upon feeling a tap on his shoulder, turned around and came face to face with Tripti. A deep red blush automatically crept up and rested on his cheeks as he remembered their conversation from the night before.
“Mere khayalon mein kho gaye kya, Swami?”
Mridul came out of his trance and stammered—“M-mai kisi ke k-khayalon mein nahi khoya hu aur y-ye s-swami-wuami kya hai?! Mai aapka koi swami-wuami nahi hu.”
“Aaj nahi toh kal toh ban he jayenge.”
“JI!!?”
“Jii! Aaj di aur jiju hai yaha, kal aap aur mai honge, priyatam ji.” she said and moved towards Avyuktta who was giving her a thumbs up.
Mridul was not expecting such a statement from her, that too in front of everyone. He thanked God that at least he was the only one who heard it — or so he thought.
“Ye sali-sahiba ko bhala aapse kya kaam tha Mridul ji??”
Mridul, who was startled out of his lala land (Tripti land), came face to face with Yashveer, who had one eyebrow raised with a teasing smirk playing on his lips.
Mridul almost saw Yamraaj and was ready to faint but composed himself and answered his brother— “B-bhaiya aap yaha?”
“Haan mai yaha. Ab bata Tripti se kya baat kar raha tha?”
“Kuch nahi bhaiya! Unko choriya na chaliye... aapke tilak ka time ho gaya hai, chaliye chaliye!”
And that's how Mridul saved himself.
The elders had decided to perform the tilak ceremony and the engagement on the very day itself after taking permission from Pandit ji. Later during the tilak ceremony, everyone was present in the living room.
Yashveer and Avyuktta were seated on the sofa together. Anuradha placed a red chunri on Avyuktta’s head and a handkerchief on Yashveer’s head, then placed a shawl on his shoulder before tying them together.
Abhinav came forward with an aarti ki thaal and started the rituals. He first dipped his right hand's ring finger in the mixture of sandalwood and vermillion paste and applied it on Yashveer’s forehead before sticking a few grains of rice on it and sprinkling some on his head too. He then performed aarti on both of them before keeping the thaal aside.
Abhinav opened the jewellery box that was kept on the table, took out a gold chain and put it around Yashveer’s neck. Yashveer then bent down and touched both Abhinav and Anuradha's feet, seeking blessings.
They placed their hands on his head, blessing him with prosperity and happiness for his upcoming future.
Thus, the ceremony came to an end. Everyone decided to take a small break before proceeding with the engagement. Everyone was engaged in conversation when Yashveer’s phone rang, pulling his attention from the conversation to the device in his hand.
“I need to take this,” he said, getting up—when he felt a tug on his shoulder. It was the shawl that was tied to Avyuktta. He gently lifted the shawl before placing it in her lap. “Aap zara isse sambhaliye, mai abhi aata hu. Hmm?”
Avyuktta was too shy to utter a word at how gentle his voice was and simply nodded, looking down.
As Yashveer left, Aaryan turned to Avyuktta and teased— “Aur bhabhi, shy-shy ho rahe ho?”
She simply blushed more and kept looking down, waiting for him to return.
After some time, Yashveer returned to see that the preparations for the engagement had already begun. He went and took his seat beside Avyuktta, and as soon as he did, the couple was surrounded by the younger crowd—excitedly talking about the first marriage of their generation, the outfits, the dances, the food, and so much more.
After a little more chit-chat, the elders returned to the living room with all the necessary preparations. The squad was told to leave the couple alone to give them space for the ceremony. The Pandit ji took his place near the couple and started chanting mantras and showering flower petals on the idols.
Once done, he instructed the couple to exchange rings.
Yashveer and Avyuktta turned just slightly towards each other—now their knees touching. Aaryan held the ring box for Yashveer, while Kanay held the one for Avyuktta.
First, Avyuktta was told to put the ring on her soon-to-be husband’s finger. She gently took his left hand in hers and with her right hand, she tenderly slid the ring on his finger. An electrifying current ran through Yashveer’s spine as the cool texture of the ring touched his skin—as if a reality check that this was finally happening and there was no going back. Not that he ever wanted to.
Next, it was Yashveer’s turn. He gently, warmly, and kindly held her hand in his before giving it a firm squeeze. Then, he took the beautiful ring and slid it onto her finger—slowly, like a silent vow. Oh, how he wanted to kiss the ring on her finger—marking her as his—but refrained, not wanting to make his Avyuktta uncomfortable in front of everyone.
His Avyuktta.
It had a pleasant ring to it. He liked it.
Everyone clapped, pulling Yashveer out of his lala land (Avyuktta land). The room was filled with joy and excitement. After some more cheerful conversation, everyone headed to the dining room for their first meal of the day. Over lunch, all the wedding details were discussed and decided. It was agreed that the wedding would take place in Mumbai itself rather than the ancestral haveli in Delhi, because Avyuktta wanted to begin her new journey from her own home.
It was also decided that all the post-wedding rituals would take place at the haveli, and the newlyweds would stay there for a few days before returning to their own house.
After lunch, the youngsters gathered in Avyuktta’s room and began sharing stories from the couple’s childhoods. Both their faces flushed with embarrassment when Aaryan suddenly came up with an idea that he clearly wasn't going to keep to himself.
“Mai soch raha tha, kyun na hum sab koi trip pe chale? Shaadi ko abhi bhi pura mahina hai toh hum log ke paas time bhi hai, aur hum sab ek doosre ko ache se jaan bhi jayenge.” He said the last part while glancing at Kanay.
“Good idea!! Good idea!!” Tripti chimed in, all while slowly placing her hand on top of Mridul's, who flinched at the touch but did not pull away. Their hands were hidden behind them—out of everyone's sight.
“Lekin chacha-chachi maanenge?” came a soft voice that snatched every bit of Yashveer’s attention.
“Arey bhabhi, unhe toh humare bhaiya ji mana lenge. Kyu bhaiya?” came Aaryan’s voice.
“Hmm.” Yashveer said, smiling—still looking at Avyuktta, whose face was no less than a beetroot now, too shy with all the attention.
“Arey jijaji, humari didi se dhyaan hataiye aur charche pe lagaiye,” joked Tripti.
The entire room burst into laughter and a soft blush coloured Yashveer’s cheeks, perfectly complimenting his shy smile as he finally looked away from the beautiful dream sitting beside him.
A dream that was soon going to be his reality. He thought to himself, ‘Ab inse dhyaan toh kabhi nahi hatega.’
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DONEEEE))))))!!
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