Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

It was happening. It was finally happening. Pihu and Prachal were getting engaged and Chanderi could not stop smiling. She looked so good in the orange and pink saree Chanderi had helped her pick and Prachal looked like he was on cloud nine, any minute and he would start floating.

After that initial remark on how if Chanderi had married Chiranjeev she wouldn’t be attending Pihu’s wedding as a divorcee but as a married woman from Mrs. Chudasma, which had led to a mini war in their house with Mr. Chudasma wisely or unwisely electing to stay out of it, everything had gone as per plan.

Chanderi had arrived at the hotel at 3, as Pihu had requested. She had supervised the makeup and the draping of the saree, which was not required but she had done it to please her friend. She had then gone to get dressed herself.

They were in one of the lounges of the hotel that was decorated in orange and yellow marigold. The drapes were of the same colour. On one side was a small photo booth and stage where the couple were seated to exchange their rings. On the opposite side was the DJ and an open chaat bar which was being set up in anticipation.

Chanderi watched it all with a proud smile on her face but she couldn’t deny that there was a slight twinge, a teeny-tiny one, that reminded her she was alone, human and jealous. She laughed at herself but clapped with everyone once the rings had been exchanged.

The crowd rushed in to congratulate the couple and Chanderi stepped back, waiting her turn. She was itching to take her phone out, click pictures and send it to Chiranjeev. She had noticed an oddly shaped candle on one of the tables that littered the room and she just knew he would love it, say it looked at an elephant or what not.

But she refrained. He had gone for a holiday and apart from the usual let’s catch up when I’m back message, they hadn’t texted. She had wanted to ping him regardless but the distance and lack of messages had given her some perspective. A perspective she didn’t know what to do with.

Pihu was the one she would have spoken to about the inner turmoil. Or lately, it would have been Chiranjeev. Since both were busy and she wasn’t speaking to her mother, she didn’t know who else to speak to.

So, when her father came next to her and put her hand around her shoulder, she did not fight it. She did not tell him she was fine. She put her head on his shoulder and sighed.

“Bacha, I will not ask you if everything is okay. I know it’s not. Will you tell me what’s troubling you?”

Chanderi chuckled. “Too many big feelings, nothing else.”

“Big feelings?”

And there they were, the sting of tears she could not explain. Rather, she didn’t want to look too closely. She brushed it aside. “I’m just feeling a little emotional. Pihu and Prachal are getting their dream. Both sets of parents look happy.”

She felt her father squeeze her shoulder. “That’s not all of it.”

She took a breath. She lifted her head. She needed a little distance if she wanted to admit what she was about to. “I also feel like a bad daughter for not giving you that same happiness.”

Mr. Chudasma blinked, then blinked several times like he was trying to process the words his daughter had uttered. “Don’t worry about mamma. She means well, most of the time.”

She laughed. “I know. Most of the time.”

He left it at that. He knew there was more but his daughter had a right to her secrets and privacy. He did not dig, just gave her a shoulder to lean on.

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Chapter 18 of 26 of the ongoing series Chanderi. You can read all posts here. Written as part of #BlogchatterA2Z.