This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents
either are products of the author’s imagination or are used
fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons,
living or otherwise, is entirely coincidental.
It was 1:45 in the afternoon , the July sun was at its peak in Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu . The family home had been repainted just a week back and it was sporting a bright new look .On the porch, a small girl was crying, her red banana had been snatched away by a group of five year old boys who were grinning from ear to ear .The lunch was almost over . The last batch of relatives finished their lunch and the maids took the plantain leaves out and fed them to the cows . A well polished silver square container with betel leaf was being passed around .It was only three hours before the groom and his family members arrived . A few of them dispersed to find a place to have a nap , while the others occupied themselves with card games and gossips .
'Diya! Get up Akka ! Why are you not getting ready ? Don't you want to look nice for Mama ?' shrieked her little sister .She was so excited about her sister's marriage . She would get two sets of new dresses , lots of jewelry and all the sweets she could eat plus two weeks of holiday at school and lots of photographs . Just then her sister's mobile buzzed .She tried to reach it but Diya quickly pulled it towards her . Go and play outside , I have work to do said Diya. She closed the door and looked at the message on her phone .
[ 'Diya .. What happens if he says yes .I know I was calm before you left but I am freaking out now . .Please tell me you will stop this ? ' ]
She typed out ' Don't worry . I'll take care .Just don't text. I'll message you after its over ' and sent it , deleted the entire conversation from her phone and proceeded to take a shower . The cold water put some calmness into her . She walked out and dried herself . Her mother would come in in a few minutes . It was an elaborate ceremony and it would take her a couple of hours to get ready .If the groom said yes , they would go ahead and fix a date for the marriage . She didn't know the groom personally but had heard about him on a number of occasion through her parents . Ajay this . Ajay that . To her Ajay was okay ,made good money ,didn't look too bad but more importantly approved by her parents and relatives . She didn't have the stomach to do anything else other than marry this guy .
Just then her mother walked in and asked her to get ready . Her mother looked very content about the entire situation . She had known earlier about the texting boy . She had prayed that Diya doesn't follow up on him and her prayer had come true . She still didn't trust Diya completely because she knew her daughter was not the innocent girl everybody believed her to be . Diya's mobile buzzed again . This time her mother picked it up . Diya's heart skipped a beat . It was from Airtel Money . Diya had been working in Chennai for two years now . She would be forced to quit her job once she got married . She had known this earlier . After fours years of college in her hometown she wanted to experience the City before her parents locked her down in old fashioned clothes , in an old fashioned house with an old fashioned husband.
She got ready and looked at herself in the mirror . ' Who could say no to this ' she thought to herself and chuckled a little . She felt bad for the poor guy who was in Chennai hoping she would stop all this and marry him instead . For a while she too believed this was possible . Chennai had shown her what life could have been .She had a good job , helpful roommates and an adorable boyfriend . She had told him this was going to happen but he didn't want to believe it .Before she left , she had told him she would try everything to stop her marriage but she knew it wasn't true . He didn't .
The Open hall was a sight to behold with its natural lighting and its sheer grandeur . It was 5:30 in the evening. Just as expected the groom and his family had arrived and now everybody had gathered around in the main hall . Family members were all seated on the floor . The bride walked down the corridor . She was carrying the tray of coffee her mother had handed out to her in the kitchen. The kids were running down the corridor , into the main hall hoping to annoy some more people . Diya walked carefully , thinking about what she was about to do . She almost wanted to walk down the hall and scream to everybody that this was not what she wanted . She wanted to work and earn . She wanted to get married to her guy in Chennai .Chennai had always felt like home to her . She didn't want to spend her entire life in this little town in the middle of nowhere . She couldn't do any of those things though .
She had hoped she wouldn't be weak when the moment came . Now she was really nervous . She entered the Open hall . Everybody just turned around to catch a glimpse of the bride . She looked beautiful . She walked towards the groom and his family . She gave them all her coffee and got their blessings .She sat down and glanced towards the floor . Her father spoke in an intense voice asking the groom's father for his word . Ajay's father then joked that he was already married .His wife gave him an angry glare.
The crowd held its collective breath for the groom to speak . He sat upright and said ' Who could say no to her' . A big wave of joy swept across the Open hall . Everybody stood up and began greeting each other . Sweets and coffee were distributed among the audience . The bride started to walk towards her room. The mobile in her hand buzzed just then . She looked to see that no one was watching and looked at the text . It read ' Did he say No? ' .
It was 1:45 in the afternoon , the July sun was at its peak in Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu . The family home had been repainted just a week back and it was sporting a bright new look .On the porch, a small girl was crying, her red banana had been snatched away by a group of five year old boys who were grinning from ear to ear .The lunch was almost over . The last batch of relatives finished their lunch and the maids took the plantain leaves out and fed them to the cows . A well polished silver square container with betel leaf was being passed around .It was only three hours before the groom and his family members arrived . A few of them dispersed to find a place to have a nap , while the others occupied themselves with card games and gossips .
'Diya! Get up Akka ! Why are you not getting ready ? Don't you want to look nice for Mama ?' shrieked her little sister .She was so excited about her sister's marriage . She would get two sets of new dresses , lots of jewelry and all the sweets she could eat plus two weeks of holiday at school and lots of photographs . Just then her sister's mobile buzzed .She tried to reach it but Diya quickly pulled it towards her . Go and play outside , I have work to do said Diya. She closed the door and looked at the message on her phone .
[ 'Diya .. What happens if he says yes .I know I was calm before you left but I am freaking out now . .Please tell me you will stop this ? ' ]
She typed out ' Don't worry . I'll take care .Just don't text. I'll message you after its over ' and sent it , deleted the entire conversation from her phone and proceeded to take a shower . The cold water put some calmness into her . She walked out and dried herself . Her mother would come in in a few minutes . It was an elaborate ceremony and it would take her a couple of hours to get ready .If the groom said yes , they would go ahead and fix a date for the marriage . She didn't know the groom personally but had heard about him on a number of occasion through her parents . Ajay this . Ajay that . To her Ajay was okay ,made good money ,didn't look too bad but more importantly approved by her parents and relatives . She didn't have the stomach to do anything else other than marry this guy .
Just then her mother walked in and asked her to get ready . Her mother looked very content about the entire situation . She had known earlier about the texting boy . She had prayed that Diya doesn't follow up on him and her prayer had come true . She still didn't trust Diya completely because she knew her daughter was not the innocent girl everybody believed her to be . Diya's mobile buzzed again . This time her mother picked it up . Diya's heart skipped a beat . It was from Airtel Money . Diya had been working in Chennai for two years now . She would be forced to quit her job once she got married . She had known this earlier . After fours years of college in her hometown she wanted to experience the City before her parents locked her down in old fashioned clothes , in an old fashioned house with an old fashioned husband.
She got ready and looked at herself in the mirror . ' Who could say no to this ' she thought to herself and chuckled a little . She felt bad for the poor guy who was in Chennai hoping she would stop all this and marry him instead . For a while she too believed this was possible . Chennai had shown her what life could have been .She had a good job , helpful roommates and an adorable boyfriend . She had told him this was going to happen but he didn't want to believe it .Before she left , she had told him she would try everything to stop her marriage but she knew it wasn't true . He didn't .
The Open hall was a sight to behold with its natural lighting and its sheer grandeur . It was 5:30 in the evening. Just as expected the groom and his family had arrived and now everybody had gathered around in the main hall . Family members were all seated on the floor . The bride walked down the corridor . She was carrying the tray of coffee her mother had handed out to her in the kitchen. The kids were running down the corridor , into the main hall hoping to annoy some more people . Diya walked carefully , thinking about what she was about to do . She almost wanted to walk down the hall and scream to everybody that this was not what she wanted . She wanted to work and earn . She wanted to get married to her guy in Chennai .Chennai had always felt like home to her . She didn't want to spend her entire life in this little town in the middle of nowhere . She couldn't do any of those things though .
She had hoped she wouldn't be weak when the moment came . Now she was really nervous . She entered the Open hall . Everybody just turned around to catch a glimpse of the bride . She looked beautiful . She walked towards the groom and his family . She gave them all her coffee and got their blessings .She sat down and glanced towards the floor . Her father spoke in an intense voice asking the groom's father for his word . Ajay's father then joked that he was already married .His wife gave him an angry glare.
The crowd held its collective breath for the groom to speak . He sat upright and said ' Who could say no to her' . A big wave of joy swept across the Open hall . Everybody stood up and began greeting each other . Sweets and coffee were distributed among the audience . The bride started to walk towards her room. The mobile in her hand buzzed just then . She looked to see that no one was watching and looked at the text . It read ' Did he say No? ' .
2 comments:
Suspense story ah machaan?
PS blog regularly... English slight aah idikudhu after a gap....
Suspense laam illa.. Google 'Haruki Murakami '
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