The Mind Reader

It was a near perfect Sunday morning. Clear blue skies and a cool breeze which would kiss your face softly if you stepped outside. It was a great day to relax, unwind and get ready for the upcoming battles in the coming week. I made myself a cup of tea and started reading the newspaper. Tea and newspaper was a satisfying experience, especially on Sunday mornings. So, while I was reading the newspaper an ad caught my attention and it suggested an interesting way to spend my afternoon. A saint claimed that he was enlightened and was giving a discourse on the inner workings of our universe. I decided to attend the discourse as I had nothing better to do. I was mostly suspicious of Godmen and organised religion but the saint's claim of enlightenment made me curious to know more. Not that I believed in the concept of enlightenment but I definitely had a fascination for it. Listening to what the saint had to say would be an interesting experience.

Anyhow, I arrived at the place of discourse and saw that a substantial number of people were interested in what the self proclaimed saint had to say. I hoped whatever he had to say would be interesting enough to make my sunday afternoon worthwhile. I took my seat in the hall and eagerly awaited the saint's arrival. I was expecting an old gentleman in flowery robes and a beard that would reach till the man's stomach. But, I was quite surpised to see a young professional looking gentleman in his late-thirties. He wore a prim blue shirt and nicely fitting black pants with formal shoes to boot. His rimless glasses, clean shaven face and neatly combed hair reminded me of a news reporter. I could see that I was not the only one who was surprised as many of the people had bemused expressions on their face. The person sitting next to me thought he had arrived at a business conference accidentally until I assured him that he was indeed at the right place.

The saint began his discourse by clarifying that he was not really a saint but a philosopher. A philosopher who had experienced enlightenment and that's why people considered him a saint. His philosophy was quite straightforward and personally I thought that it was a ripoff of Buddha's teachings. Anyways, his idea was that all human actions emanated from one source. Thoughts. The stream of words and sentences that come in our heads quite randomly. Thoughts were random but they defined our lives and would be a precursor to our behaviour, actions, emotions and feelings. But his philosophy was not the reason he claimed enlightenment. He claimed he could read people's thoughts with pinpoint accuracy. And hence he could understand any person's feelings and emotions. He claimed he could even predict people's future actions as thoughts propelled action. To prove that he could read thoughts he would randomly pick five people from the audience and predict their thoughts. He was a human thought detecting machine. And he claimed only an enlightened being could be that. He argued that thoughts signified the true inner nature of an individual. After hearing these words, the atmosphere in the hall had become electrifying. The experience was akin to attending a magic show where incredible things could be witnessed. Even I was eager to see how things would proceed from here.

The saint initiated the process by randomly picking a woman in the audience as his first volunteer. The lady promptly walked to the stage and stood beside the saint. The saint explained that to access any person's thoughts he would have to gaze at the individuals eyes for a minute while holding the person's hands. He proceeded to hold the lady's hands and looked at her intensely for around a minute. "Whom have you lost recently my dear lady. I can see so much of grief in your thoughts" he asked her abruptly.

The lady seemed genuinely startled at this proclamation and she looked a little unhinged. " I lost my son three weeks ago" she answered slowly.

"And I sense guilt too in your thoughts. Do you feel you could have saved your son's life"

"Yes. I feel extremely guilty. I feel I could have taken better care of him. Maybe then he could have survived"

"No my lady. There is nothing that you could have done. You cannot fight destiny. No one can. Forsake your guilt. I can see that it is crushing your heart. Take a deep breath. Let go and be free."

"Thank you Sir" the lady replied gratefully and proceeded to take her seat in the crowd. The gathered crowd was both impressed and shocked at this magical display of mind reading. My logical brain was inferring that this was probably staged and rehearsed. But my instincts were telling me a different story altogether.  I felt that the reaction in the lady was extremely genuine. There seemed to be a visible improvement in the demeanor after the saint reassured her. Her drooping shoulders had picked up and it looked like a huge burden had been taken off her shoulders. That gave me reason to believe that perhaps it was not staged. Still, some people were just good actors and hence any judgement at this stage would be premature.

The saint then began to pick another person from the crowd. He picked a sleek and sophisticated person in his late twenties. The person was slightly hesitant to go to the stage as if he was scared of his thoughts being strip searched. But he eventually took the plunge and reached the stage.

The saint held both the volunteer's hands and looked at him squarely. After a minute or two, the saint remarked "You should not have come to the stage son. Now I know why you were fearing to come to the stage son. You wanted to hide your thoughts"

"No no. There is nothing like that" the sleek man stammered in a rather alarmed way.

"Ofcourse it is like that. I can sense fear in you. Fear due to infidelity. You have cheated on your wife haven't you"

The lady who was sitting next to the sleek man, presumably his wife, suddenly broke down at those words and started crying incessantly.

"It's not true. It's not true at all" denied the young man.

"Do not give me untruths and insult my powers by suggesting I am saying untruths" shouted the saint. "I suggest that you confess everything to your wife. the burden of lies will eventually eat you away to the core. Go and unburden yourself without regard to the consequences."

The sleek man stood there for a while before meekly nodding his head and proceeded to his seat. It looked like he was going to take the saint's advice and confess to his wife.

The whole family drama that had unfolded in front of our eyes had elicited a lot of gasps in the crowd. This time, nobody seemed to be in doubt about the saint's capabilities. Meanwhile, the sleek man and his wife had left the hall with the wife still crying profusely.

The third person the saint called for volunteering plainly refused to go to the stage. A few people laughed and someone in the crowd made a wisecrack statement of hidden affairs and dirty underwear being washed in public. I personally could not blame the person for not volunteering as the idea of having your thoughts being X-rayed publicly was indeed scary and not everyone's cup of tea.

Eventually, the third volunteer was found in the form of a thirty something male with a moustache. The saint again responded by holding both the hands and staring intensely at the volunteer. This time the saint reacted differently. He quietly hugged the volunteer and clenched his shoulders. "Do you want me to share your thoughts. I can understand if it's too personal" asked the saint.

"No. You can share whatever you have to say I have no problems with it."

"Thats very brave of you I must say. So, have you attempted it or are you planning it" the saint asked.

"Attempted?"

"Yes. I think you know what I mean. Suicide"

"I attempted it three days back. I was about to hang myself but my wife intervened and saved me"

This time there was an uproar in the crowd with quite a few "Oh my gods" from the people at this revelation. I was taken aback and shaken too. I observed the volunteer closely and saw a normal looking person. I could never have guessed that the person was suicidal.

"What led you to this situation. I am not able to pinpoint the exact reason" asked the saint.

"I lost all my money in the stock market. I gambled it all away" the volunteer replied solemnly.

"I do understand your anguish. But I suggest that you do not take this extreme step. If you go who will take care of your family. Do not orphan them. Restart your life. Get a job. And build your wealth again."

These words seemed to re-energize the volunteer. He nodded vigourously and worked back to his chair with what seemed like a spring in his step.

After this episode, I was virtually convinced of the saint's thought reading skills. And so was the crowd. Whether this constituted enlightenment was debatable but even I had to admit that what I was seeing was remarkable and extraordinary. After seeing the three volunteers, I was quite confident that the process was not staged. No one could be this good in acting. Not even Oscar award winners.

The saint called on the next volunteer. She was a middle aged woman, most probably a housewife. I cannot recount the exact details as her thoughts were mundane and unremarkable especially when compared to the other volunteers. She was worried that her daughter was not eating her food properly or something on those lines. One of the crowd yawned loudly at that. That was perhaps the most remarkable incident with regards to the fourth volunteer. Even the saint seemed a little disappointed at the anti-climax.

For the next volunteer, the saint pointed at the general direction of where I was sitting. "You!" he exclaimed. I looked around me wondering whom he had chosen.

"You in the yellow shirt" said the saint. Yellow shirt! I thought excitedly. That has to be me. I looked at my shirt and confirmed the colour. Of all the multitudes of people, I was chosen as a volunteer. Wow, what were the odds! I had no reason to object going to the stage as my thoughts were as boring as the lady's before me. After this, there would not be a semblance of doubt about the saint's thought reading abilities since I would be a part of the experiment.

My head was in a tizzy as I was walking towards the saint. I was extremely nervous and excited and my knees trembled as I walked. Someone was going to read my innermost thoughts and feelings and perhaps my innermost nature. I was generally skeptical of people who purported to do anything supernatural. But if there was ever a person who could read my mind the saint was one. I reached the stage and stood next to him. He clasped my hands as he had done with the others. His hands were ice-cold and sent shivers through my body. The first thing I noticed about him were his eyes. They seemed glazed and intoxicated. Yet he seemed in total control. He then went on to look at me intently. I realised that he was not looking at my eyes alone. Infact for the first thirty seconds, he looked everywhere but at my eyes. My shoulder, my chest, my stomach, my legs, even my crotch before he finally settled on my eyes. I looked back confidently, comforted by the fact that I had nothing to hide and no troublesome thoughts. Meanwhile, even I was also staring and observing him. His arms were twitching involuntarily. Something told me he was getting uncomfortable. He took around four minutes before he eventually stopped staring at me. My instincts were telling me that there was an art and science behind what he was doing. I felt he was trying to tune in to my body language by mimicking it and thus understanding the vibes. His approach seemed extremely scientific.

When he finally spoke he seemed disturbed about something. "Since you are my fifth and final volunteer and there were so many others with whom I have accessed their inner nature, I feel exhausted. That explains why I have taken more than my due time. Anyways, here are your thoughts, my friend. You like to be alone. Intensely alone. You can remain alone without company than most people can. And, uh, you are worried about the health of someone beloved. Isn't that true my friend" His diffidence in mentioning the second part told me that he was not completely sure of it.

"Yes sir. You are right. I have a tendency to be alone. And yes, my father has suffered an accident. I am extremely concerned about his health" I replied.

The saint heaved a sigh of relief. "Meet me after the discourse" he said quietly as he shook my hands.

I walked towards my seat and as expected the crowd were none too happy with my thoughts. The crowd had got used to fireworks after the first three volunteers. But, I was quite satisfied with the experience. I sat down at the seat while the saint went into the finer details of his philosophy. There were far more buyers to his philosophy now that he had impressed everyone with his performance. I was not paying much attention to the discourse as I was busy piecing together the experiences I had with the saint. The more I thought about it the more I was getting confused. He had successfully penetrated my thoughts and found out something very few people were aware of. Was it due to a supernatural ability that he was able to access my thoughts. What he had done was unbelievable. He had guessed what could be considered my inner nature. And most remarkably, he knew I was concerned about someone close to me. Unless he followed me regularly there was no way he could have done that. What he had done was truly magical.

I was shaken from my introspection when I heard a loud applause from the crowd. His discourse had ended. Many people decided to honour him with a standing ovation. I stood up too and clapped enthusiastically. While everyone were departing, I proceeded to the backstage as he had asked me to meet him.

The saint seemed to be waiting for me and shook my hands warmly as I entered the backstage. "Hey. I found it really difficult to access your thoughts. I would like to conduct the exercise once again. For my satisfaction. I take this very seriously. Would you care to join"

"Of course. I would love to join" I replied.

"Great. Meet me at Hotel Ramada then. Say tomorrow 6 P.M"

"Sure. I will be there" I said excitedly.

"Very well. Thank you so much for catering to my whims and fancies" he said smilingly. "By the way, do you play Poker?" he asked.

"Yes. Occasionally"

"That explains. Anyways, see you tomorrow" he said and departed to his room backstage.

I could not believe my luck. I would get another opportunity to interact with the magician. In my eyes, that's what he was. And I wanted to find out his tricks. Because every magician had one. I could not wait to see him the next day

The next day, I reached the Ramada hotel at the designated time. I had a hard time sleeping the previous night as I was recollecting and analysing the events of the day. I felt that I was missing something. Some trick or sleight of hand which could explain something as mysterious as thought reading.But, I was hoping that my meeting with the saint would change the equation.

I knocked at the saint's room and almost immediately he opened the door and led me inside. "I am glad you could make it. You know, yesterday I found it difficult to understand what was going on in that head of yours. I almost guessed at what you were thinking and going through. But for me there is no room for guessing. That is why I take it really seriously. So I want to take another shot at it"

"Sure" I replied.

"If you don't mind, I would like to take this medicine before I start. It really helps me you know" he said pointing at a box containing a green coloured powdery substance.

"The medicine helps you in the process?" I asked. I was quite intrigued. The medicine looked like a psychotropic substance and maybe it was the reason for the saints glazed look that I had noticed the previous day.

"Yes. This is no ordinary medicine. Without this, it is virtually impossible to access other people's thoughts" he said while putting two spoons of the green powder into the glass of water. Once the powder dissolved, he quickly gulped down the glass.

And sure enough, his eyes had become glazed and his body had completely relaxed while he was sitting in his chair. His eyes were gazing at me intently as if trying to penetrate me.

"Now come here my friend. Let me hold your hands" the saint said calmly.

"Wait. Can I try this too. Can I try to gauge your thoughts and inner nature.

"What. How can you? You don't know how to"

"What if I try the medicine too"

"No. You still wont be able to. You are not me. You are not a saint. You need enlightenment for that"

"I know I am not. And if I am not able to do what you do, it will just confirm you are a saint. If I am also able to gauge your thoughts then it is basically the medicine which does most of the work. Right?"

The argument struck a chord with him but he was not totally convinced. I realised that he still had doubts of his saintliness. So, I decided to use that point in convincing him further

"If I fail to read your thoughts which I most probably will, it will show for sure that the medicine only works for saints like you. There will be no disputing that you are a saint and not some street magician"

My persuasion seemed to be working. "There is no way you know a thing about this. You wont be able to read my inner nature and what I am and what I have done. And that will prove I am a saint" he said while handing me the medicine.

"Surely" I said while gulping down the medicine. The medicine tasted like a pungent version of vanilla. It was nothing like I had ever tasted before. And its effects were instant

The colours in the room suddenly looked brighter and with a clarity I could not imagine existed. I looked at the saint and smiled at his smiling face,. But after the medicine the saint was looking like a totally different person. After around two minutes, the effects of the medicine really started kicking in. It exponentially improved my observation and made my thinking extremely sharp and acute. I stared at the saint and observed him intently. I could observe the minutest of his expressions in his eyes, face and even his nose. The medicine introduced intuitive, perceptive and discerning abilities that I never knew I had.

"So, how does it feel my friend. Is it working" the saint asked curiously.

"You have trained for years haven't you"

"Trained in what" said the saint taken aback at my observation. He had not expected this.

"Trained in the field of face reading and body language. I can see that in you." I replied. "That's how you are able to make the accurate judgements about people." I said. The medicine was actually working. It was not like I was reading his mind. I was just reading the signals that his mind was emitting through body language and facial expressions. I was just able to discern things that I normally wouldn't. Someone like the saint  who had years of extreme training could combine his experience of reading people along with the acute observation that the medicine induced to make it look like he was mind reading.

"Listen. It's enough. Stop observing me. The medicine seems to be working to an extent. I don't want you to read me anymore" the saint said. His expressions were changing. He was extremely worried about something. I wish I had his skills to make more refined judgement. But my mind was still piecing things together slowly. The saint had something to hide. That had become clear to me.

"I think you better leave. It was a bad idea to give you the medicine" the saint continued.

"But don't you want to read my thoughts anymore"

"I want to but I don't want you to read mine. Do you know who I am" he asked. His voice had suddenly changed. It had become more edgy and dangerous. He looked at me without smiling. I suddenly realised what he seemed to be hiding. His eyes reflected the answer. I got the vibe that he was a hardened criminal. He was not your usual conman who pretended to be a saint. He was far worse. I suddenly realised that he could sense the fear in me. He could read my mind and know that I had found out.

"Do you have a revolver with you" I asked. I did not intend to ask that but the sentence just poured out of me.

"No. I do not carry a revolver. But since you already know, the knife is the weapon of my choice" He opened the cupboard in his wardrobe and showed me a large glittering knife to prove his point. "I intend to use this on you if you try any funny business" The way he smiled at me told me that he meant it too. The look in his eyes terrified me. It told me that he was very capable of murder. I had to keep my calm but. I knew I was not dealing with a reasonable person. I knew If I panicked he would use the knife as a reaction. I did not have many options in front of me while he was contemplating killing me.

"But you have changed. I have read you. You are a saint now. The past is behind you. You have reformed now. Killing me will not help you. It will only take you back. And you need to go forward" I said pleadingly. I was bluffing at this point. I had no idea whether he had changed or not. But I was desperate and I could not think of any other choice.

"You have changed right. you are a saint now remember" I continued calmly. He kept looking at me with a strange expression while I said this. I was not sure whether my strategy had worked or not. I knew he could read me much better than I could read him. I half-expected him to say "Nice try kid. But it doesn't work on me" and then use his knife to perhaps slash my neck.

"You are a philosopher now. Remember, that's what you said during the discourse. Philosophers are rational people" I tried again.

The final sentence had a definite effect on him. Mentioning the word Philosopher had done the trick. His reaction was completely different. He kept the knife on the table and fell on the chair. He was on the verge of breaking down. My bluff had worked. It was strange to see a self proclaimed murderer almost cry in front of me. But I was more than relieved. He was trying to reform and luckily my words had reminded him of that.

"I assure you that I will not mention this to anyone" I said.

"Get out of here before I change my mind" he replied quietly.

I overcame the temptation to run and slowly walked out of the room and closed the door behind me. As soon as I was outside the room, I ran down the stairs and fled the hotel as fast as I could.

The disillusionment of Sultana

In the eighteenth century, a genie gave a certain Sultan a magic ring which, when rubbed, would force a woman’s private parts to speak, and confess all their indiscretions. In the end, the Sultan’s misuse of the ring led the genie to take it back. Two hundred years later, in Mumbai - just the other day, in fact - the same genie gave the ring to a good woman named Sultana Begum, and told her that it worked just as well on men.

The genie had been looking for a deserving candidate who was worthy of the ring and decided to present it to the most chaste and virtuous woman in Mumbai. From the vantage point of the genie’s astral dimension, Sultana Begum was an easy choice to make as she had never lied or wished ill for anyone in the fifty two years of her existence. She was also a loving, caring and gentle person who could not hurt a fly. The genie visited her in her dreams when she was fast asleep and found her fantasising about devouring besan ke ladoo alongside badam ka doodh to gulp it down with. 

“Sultana Begum” the genie proclaimed “Keep the ladoos aside and pay attention. I am gifting you a magical ring. As soon as you wear it and rub it while pointing at a man’s groin, the man will have no choice but to divulge his innermost secrets. But do not be surprised when the voice comes from the man’s most precious belonging, his genitals. Since you are the most virtuous woman in Mumbai, you are granted this amazing gift. Now go ahead and peek at souls of men you wish to unveil. Take care and do go easy on the sweets my sweet lady. Sweet dreams.”

Sultana awoke with a start and frantically looked around for the genie. All she could see was her husband Mahboob Khan snoring blissfully besides her in their tiny windowless room. As she was going back to sleep, she noticed a gleaming object near the table lamp. She pounced at it and was elated to find that it was the same ring that the genie had shown to her in her dreams. Her dream had indeed come true! She went back to sleep glowing in the satisfaction that she was the most virtuous woman in the city and the proud owner of a magic ring. 

Mahboob Khan awoke the next morning as the sun rose and glanced at the sleeping figure of his beautifully rotund wife. An angelic smile was plastered on her face. She must be dreaming about jalebis dipped in rabdi I am sure, Mahboob thought to himself. Mahboob Khan considered himself lucky that an auto rickshaw driver like him had managed to find a wife like Sultana. It was not just because she was lovely and beautiful albeit leaning on the plumpier side physically; it was because she made it worthwhile to continue living meaningfully in an otherwise difficult and dreary existence. All the aches in his aging body and the never-ending migraine resulting from a stressful day at work became tolerable due to the inexhaustible supply of her smiles, her charms and her silliness. Had he been stuck with a shrew, he would have had run away from home a long time back to become a fakir in some faraway place where no one could find him.

He woke Sultana up as the day was long and the chores were plenty. As soon as she woke up she began to prattle about some genie and a magic ring which made men reveal their secrets. Mahboob gave her a glass of water to contain her jabbering and to calm her down. Once she caught her breath, she showed him the ring and narrated the dream. Mahboob examined it and came to the conclusion it was no ordinary ring. The colourful jewel that adorned the top of the ring glittered luminously; clearly it was worth a fortune.

“There is no such thing as magic Sultana. I hope you have not started lying for the sake of an expensive ring. Tell me where did you really find it?” 

“If you don’t care to believe me then I will prove to you about its powers. All I have to do is rub this ring and point it at your junior and your junior will begin to speak” 

Mahboob looked at her with a quizzical expression. The conversation was getting too weird for him. “Have you lost your mind early in the morning? What do you mean ‘point at my junior’?”

Sultana began to blush like a schoolgirl. Three children and advancing age had not managed to quell her prudishness about sexual organs. She pointed to Mahboob’s groin and covered her face to suppress her giggles.

 “What a fine specimen you are Sultana. Go ahead and let me also see the wonderful powers of your amazing ring.”

Sultana enthusiastically rubbed the ring and waited for the magic to unfold. Immediately there was a noise of clearing of throat and then a robot like voice arose from the penis of Mahboob and spoke “Your husband Mahboob Khan has hidden many things from you. Once a week he goes to a local bar and gulps down half a bottle of whisky and lies through his teeth once he comes home. He is also in the habit of chewing tobacco everyday but hides the smell by eating cardamom before coming home. Other than you he does not have any other sexual partner even though before marriage he was a total rogue with girls. He would whisper to school girls that he has an amazing secret to tell them but would do so only if they let him caress their breasts. After having his fun he would admit he had no secret to tell and would run away from there. After marriage he almost yielded to your neighbour Nafisa’s charms when she wanted your husband as she was unhappy in her own abusive marriage. But your husband controlled his temptations in time as he remembered your face and remained faithful. Also, once he slapped two children who were renting his auto as he found them making out through his rearview mirror. He was too ashamed to narrate this to you. Enough said.”  

   

The colour drained from Mahboob’s face as this peculiar confession from unexpected quarters left him dumbstruck. There was no doubt in his mind that the ring held powerful magical abilities which could easily extract the innermost secrets of a man as it had done with him. His head hung in shame and he found it difficult to look his wife in the eye. His carefully constructed image of a virtuous person who was pious and upright in his behaviour had been shattered in an instant. To keep his wife in good humour, he had decided he would say only those things that he anticipated would make her happy, thereby hiding those matters which were unpleasant. This he believed was the secret recipe for their happy marriage so far, until the magical ring came along and had other plans in store.

The look on Sultana’s face though was becoming more colourful by the moment. Initially, her face reddened with astonishment but slowly turned a tone of green as she processed the words and became more livid. Mahboob glanced at her uneasily and tried to figure out which of his misdemeanours was hurting her most.

“Don’t you feel ashamed of striking young children? The Almighty will never forgive you and will unleash his wrath on you for hurting them” Sultana shouted while continuous streams of spit sprayed from her mouth and on to Mahboob’s face.

“But they were doing unspeakable things in my auto. You should have seen how that boy’s hand slid inside the girl’s top as he was kissing her. I could not allow this kind of haram to desecrate my auto” Mahboob declared in his defence as he wiped the spit from his face.

“Oh! Haram is it? Have you forgotten what you did when you were a kid? Fooling innocent girls and trapping them with your lies. Hey Almighty, give me the strength to carry on living with this hypocrite!” Sultana exclaimed and began to sob. Mahboob had never seen Sultana this hurt before. He internally cursed the ring for souring his wife’s mood. She had not raised the topic of his hidden vices yet so he needed to think of a way to divert her attention as quickly as possible. He immediately came to the conclusion that the ring should be used on one of their three sons. Hopefully it would distract her from her misery and stop the barrage of admonishments flowing from her mouth. 

He contemplated which of the three sons would be the right choice. Their eldest son Afzal was a lazy good for nothing bugger who whiled away his time doing nothing. The ring could be used on him to extract a distracting enough confession. Afzal would finally be of some use and could be relied upon for this work at least. Mahboob got up from the bed and called Afzal from the adjoining room which he shared with Abdul, his brother. He made Afzal stand in front of Sultana and requested her to test the ring on their eldest son.   

Sultana hesitated for a moment until curiosity got the better of her. She wiped away her tears and rubbed the ring while pointing it towards Afzal. Instantly, a deep electronic voice erupted from Afzal’s crotch. “Your eldest son Afzal has hidden many secrets from you.  His sexual escapades are innumerable. Girls from the age of 14 and women up to the age of 40 have fallen victim to his inexorable seductive charms. His sexual appetite is immense and insatiable. Every afternoon, when you believe he is wasting his time with friends, he is on the lookout for fresh sexual partners as he gets bored easily and needs variety. He visits prostitutes when his daily requirement is not fulfilled and even they who are not easily pleased are enamoured by his abilities and are ready to provide their service for free. Once, he had sex eight times in a single day with three different women...”

Sultana quickly rubbed the ring again to silence the impudent voice as she could not bear to hear anymore of Afzal’s exploits. No words came out of her mouth to rebuke her son. She looked forlornly at Mahboob as if wishing he would tell her it had been a joke all along. Mahboob shook his head and scolded at his son “Had you put half of this energy in a productive business we would not have been so poor. Get out of my sight and make sure you end this indecent pleasure-seeking of yours.” Afzal gave a sheepish grin and went back to his room.

  

Afzal returned soon after, dragging along with him the half asleep figure of his brother Abdul.  “Ammi, please use your miraculous magic ring on Abdul too. Let his true nature be revealed to us. I am sure he is not as sweet as he looks.” Abdul was the apple of the eye of his parents and his pleasant countenance had swept away the hearts of most people in their chawl. His curly hair and the look of wide-eyed innocence bestowed a permanently angelic expression on his face.

By now, Mahboob had become more circumspect about subjecting anyone else to the tyrannical powers of the ring, especially more so when it would be used on his favourite child Abdul. “Sultana, let sleeping dogs lie. Do not use this ring on Abdul or anyone else for that matter” Mahboob pleaded but his entreaties were to no avail. Once again curiousity got the better of Sultana as she pointed the ring at a bleary eyed Abdul and rubbed it vigourously.

 

A squeaky voice emerged from underneath the half pant of Abdul “Your middle son Abdul Khan is a master of deceit and guile. He is a compulsive liar and inveterate cheat. He has kept hidden many aspects of his life from you. He pretends to represent the interests of factory workers in the chawl but secretly relays all information to his paymasters, the factory owners. He even fooled his Chacha Taufiq to accept a far lower amount as gratuity after his retirement. His agreeable nature and sweet demeanour makes him seem very trustworthy which he uses to his advantage. He has splurged most of his ill-gotten income on his girlfriend Alice whom he takes to fancy restaurants and expensive malls. He is also a puppet of the partners of a major real estate development firm who pay him to pretend to oppose them while slowly cornering all premium space in the chawl with his help. In short, your son Abdul is highly corrupt and opportunistic.”

 “Did I not say Abdul’s sweet demeanour is just pretence? But he has crossed all limits and has turned out to be a bigger player than I could ever imagine” Afzal muttered in exasperation.

Abdul’s body language remained defiant. “Just because I am born into a poor family does not mean I have to stay poor for the rest of my life. I will do whatever it takes to lead a good life and no one can come in my way, not even my family” he remarked disdainfully and stormed out of the room. Afzal too slipped out of the room without looking at his parents.

Sultana stared blankly at Mahoob. Nothing made sense to her anymore. A sense of a loss of innocence was creeping into her. The shine in her eyes was dimming and her enthusiasm for life was abating.  Life was no longer black and white as things could no longer be divided into good and bad. The men in her life whom she believed to be as innocent as her turned out to be capable of deceit, guile and cunning which were beyond her comprehension. The battles, lust and greed of men was too much for her to handle.

Mahboob tried to put up a brave face even though he was highly distraught at the turn of events which had transpired.  At that moment, Aamir the youngest son entered the room holding his stomach with both hands to indicate his hunger. Aamir was considered the dullard of the house. He hardly spoke as he seemed incapable of any complex human interaction and stayed in a small corner of the house mostly glued to his cheap smartphone.

Sultana looked at Aamir with hope in her eyes. “Let me try my ring on Aamir. At least he will turn out to be a good person.” She said pleadingly to Mahboob. “Sure, sweetheart. What secrets can poor Aamir hold? His junior will go mute within two sentences” replied Mahboob, not having the heart to refuse her request. Sultana immediately swung into action and rubbed the ring perfunctorily. 

A deep baritone voice began to sing from the groin region of Aamir “Your youngest son Aamir has hidden from you the fact that he is a highly knowledgeable person with genius level intelligence. He is extremely proficient in subjects as diverse and wide-ranging as Sociology, Astrophysics, Economics, Botany and Anatomy. He is an author of many papers across these fields. His most important work “The conclusive refutation of big bang theory” (Which is considered as the origin point of the Universe, Aamir’s junior added as a sidenote for the benefit of Sultana) was not even taken for consideration because of Aamir’s lack of physics degree even though Aamir had backed with considerable evidence that the Universe grew billions of years ago from the size of an atomic particle and gradually kept growing in a slow and steady manner which is contrary to what the big bang model proposes.  Had this evidence been proposed by someone with appropriate credentials, that person would have been an easy candidate for the Nobel Prize because the evidence is presented with scientific precision and mathematical elegance. His other important work “The manifesting force of myths in development of civilizations” was rejected by the Brahmins of the Social Science department because they did not want to encourage a Muslim from a humble background. Aamir pretends to be a good Muslim but secretly prefers the symmetrical verses of Bhagavadgita over the profound wisdom of Quran. The only sexual act that Aamir has ever experienced is when Zaira, his friend’s sister, put me in her mouth more out of pity than out of any real attraction. He has also contemplated suicide many times since no one has managed to understand him yet and he feels extremely lonely but his intellectual pursuits have deterred him from committing the final act. I have no more secrets to reveal”

As the revelation ended, Aamir shrugged nonchalantly and proceeded to the small corner where he could read important ideas in his cheap smartphone without being disturbed.  Sultana felt completely exhausted by this time and could feel the walls of tranquillity, which she had erected so carefully over time, being breached and shattered in her mind. Nothing was the way it seemed and everything was shrouded by illusion and secrecy. Even Aamir, whom she believed to be straightforward, turned out to be deviously complex. He even wanted to commit suicide!  The disillusionment of Sultana was complete. Fearing she would go insane if she was dealt more truth, she closed her eyes to summon the genie mentally and implored him to take his wretched ring back.  When she opened her eyes, the ring had disappeared. Sanity prevailed thereafter.

Golden Girl

There was a palpable sense of excitement in the air as nervous enthusiasm intermingled with pulsating energy. It was the first day of college at Carmel College of Arts & Commerce; the most elite, prestigious and renowned undergraduate college in Mumbai. It was no easy task to gain entrance to this college. Students had to be exceptional in one way or the other to make it to the hallowed grounds. Most students had made it on the merit of academic scholarship and there were others who made it on the basis of their accomplishments in sports, dramatics, music and other spheres of life. 

The first year students were the most nervous lot. Even though Carmel College was too cultured to tolerate excessive ragging, many students were tensed about fitting in with their peers and their seniors. Everyone had a similar aim which was to be accepted, make good friends and be popular. Many of the first years were also excited because it would be the first time they would experience a co-ed atmosphere. The St. Mary’s Convent for Girls and St Anthony’s school for Boys supplied the bulk of students to Carmel mainly due to the emphasis on discipline.

All the students had gathered around in a massive Gathering Hall to hear the commencement speech which was to be given by Prof. Raj Khosla, the Principal of the college. At first glance, the first year students were enamoured by the charismatic personality and the elegant poise with which the Professor carried himself. To the delight of the first year students, Prof. Khosla made it very clear that Carmel College focused on developing a well rounded personality of its students. Unlike other colleges which excessively focused on academics and made life miserable for students, Carmel Philosophy incorporated a holistic approach. Extra-curricular activities were as important as studies in building the foundations for success in later life. The second and third year students vehemently nodded in unison to show their agreement while the first years were bursting into wide grins. They could not have expected a better first day!

Among the first year students, four childhood friends had already formed a small group at the back. There were high fives and fist pumps all around in the group at the announcement given by Prof. Khosla. The four friends Sunehri Malhotra, Ambuj Kothari, Farah Tyrewala, and Junaid Khan had grown up together in the same apartment complex in Bandra. There was no doubt that Sunehri was the magnetic centre of attraction within the group. She was the glue that kept the four together. There was just something fascinating about Sunehri.

There was a hypnotic quality in Sunehri’s eyes that would mesmerize people around her. Many boys in her colony had tried their luck in initiating romance with Sunehri but other than Ambuj, she never had a deep enough connection with any other boy. Though she could make friends with any boy or girl in an instant, serious romance was something that eluded her. She had a long list of boys who had been friend-zoned but that did not stop the boys to constantly vie for her attention. It was as if a smile from her face would light up their whole day. There was a majestic magnificence radiating from her inner being.

Junaid and Farah had decided that they were the one for each other ever since they were fifteen years old. Everyone in their apartment and even people in their colony were aware that they were a couple. Farah’s parents knew too and they completely approved the relationship as they liked Junaid a lot. Yet Farah’s Ammi was slightly traditional and expected Farah to follow some rules. No more than hand holding was allowed till they were 21 and if ever Junaid tried to kiss Farah’s cheeks she was to immediately bring it to the notice of her Ammi and Abbu. Boys of Junaid’s age need to be kept in a tight leash lest they assert themselves too much, she warned. Farah put on her most angelic expression and assured her Ammi Jaan that she will maintain all propriety by keeping Junaid in check.

It is the irony of contemporary era in New India that parents are innocent and gullible while their children are street smart and cunning. Farah’s Ammi would have been distraught if she ever discovered that Farah was the assertive partner in the relationship while Junaid was coy and docile. When Junaid was too hesitant to make the move towards their first kiss at their apartment’s terrace, it was Farah who warned Junaid to stop doing time pass as she did not have the whole day. Get on with the business, her dancing eyes were expressing and make sure it’s memorable. Junaid did as he was told with the thought that their first kiss better be special if he ever hoped to win Farah’s heart for good.

Sunehri, on the other hand, tried to make up for her lack of real romantic adventures with a vivid imagination. When she would get too bored of studies, her mind would drift off into a pleasurable day-dream about Ambuj. She would imagine that they were the only two survivors stranded on a desert island. Ambuj would lift Sunehri with his muscular arms when she would be too tired to walk and take her to a cozy fire-lit corner where they would make out gloriously. Other times she would imagine that the two are travelling the world in a cruise ship having amazing conversations with interesting people from around the world. 

Yet, she would wonder why she and Ambuj had not seamlessly intertwined as a couple just like Farah and Junaid. It was obvious that Ambuj cared for her the most and made her laugh all the time. Many times, Sunehri was plagued with self doubt that maybe she was not as attractive as she believed she was. Maybe the mirror was a lie, reflecting a different picture which did not match true reality. But there was always a hope inside her, alive and kicking, regarding Ambuj. Maybe Ambuj did not prefer displaying affection as easily as she did.

On the first day of college, the gang of four was lucky to be placed in the same section, which was section C.  Harshad, who was well known to the gang as a lighthearted prankster who always had a trick up his sleeves, had colorfully named the class as ‘Sec C Stallions’ winking naughtily while emphasizing the words ‘Sec C’. Harshad’s announcement met with wild approval from all his classmates. 

The junior class was happy that the first week of college had a light schedule so that students had time to orient themselves. The college seniors had arranged for an icebreaking session at the college auditorium where all juniors would introduce themselves and say something interesting which would strike a chord with the seniors. It was in this icebreaking session that Ambuj first noticed Shlok Mehta and excitedly pointed him out to the rest of the gang.

Shlok had already developed a reputation in school as a ‘Heartbreak Kid’. His extra-ordinary good looks and athletic personality had girls swooning left, right and centre. The fact that his father was a big time Real Estate tycoon immensely added to his charm. He was an intense loner who hardly hung out in groups and he only travelled in a chauffeur driven Mercedes during day time and rode a Hayabusa superbike by himself during night. He was also a champion football player who had helped St Anthony’s win the inter-school trophy. As soon as he entered the auditorium where the orientation was taking place, time seem to have paused to allow everyone to soak in the sight of Shlok. Even the seniors were impressed by the assured ease with which Shlok carried himself as if he was a royal prince who deserved all the attention showered on him. 

Most of the girls at St Mary’s school had heard about Shlok and his reputation but seeing him in person was even more enthralling. There was intensity in his aloofness which went well with his personality. Junaid felt a pang of unease as he saw Farah ogle at Shlok. Sunehri could not suppress her giggles at the sight of Junaid’s visible discomfort. Sunehri found his attempts at hiding his jealousy cute and funny. It seemed only Sunehri was immune to the immense charm of Shlok. Hmmpf, what was so special about Shlok she could not imagine. She thought he had an oafish expression as if he had just been struck in his head with something heavy. She thought Ambuj would be pleased to see Sunehri’s complete lack of interest in Shlok but Ambuj himself was too busy being mesmerized by Shlok as if he was a celebrity film star. 

She looked around to see who else was as uninterested as her and was happy to notice that the boy sitting right next to her seemed to take no interest in being a part of Shlok’s fan club. She caught his eyes and was startled to see a shining gleam in his eyes. He introduced himself as Nayan Lakhanpal, who had come all the way from Lucknow to study at the esteemed Carmel College. He shared to Sunehri that he was nervous at the prospect of talking in English in front of such a huge audience as his English was weak. Sunehri was touched by his polite demeanor and shyness and tried to make him feel better. “Arre don’t worry; just speak in Hindi if that makes you comfortable. We are a chill crowd you know. We don’t judge like that”. That brought a smile to Nayan’s face and immediately decreased his anxiety.

When Nayan’s turn came he conversed confidently in Hindi and explained that he was a Poet and Musician with a ‘Sufiana Andaaz’. He even sang a couple of lines from his own poetry which was a hit with the audience. When he got back to his seat, he clasped Sunehri’s hand gratefully and thanked her profusely for making him feel at ease. Sunehri instinctively developed a liking for this old school kid who looked wise beyond his age. She immediately introduced him to the rest of the gang who welcomed him warmly.

Sunehri had a fondness for standup comedy and when her time came to introduce herself she gamely entertained the crowd with a couple of jokes that she had created herself. But the crowd was too busy appreciating her enchanting beauty and hardly paid attention to her words. She got a raucous applause from the audience more for her personality than for her jokes. She had particularly created a great impression on Shlok, the only person she had managed to dislike so far. Shlok could not take his eyes off Sunehri even after she had resumed her seat. Sunehri’s beauty was unmatched and there was a depth in her personality that he had never seen before. Farah had observed that Shlok kept craning his neck back towards where Sunehri was seated. When she shared her observation, Sunehri replied “That mannerless, uncouth oaf can go to hell for all I care”. The next time Shlok craned his neck, Sunehri squinted both her eyes and stuck her tongue out and gave him a scorching go away look. 

But that was not enough to shake Shlok off her tail. He approached her after the session and gave her a friendly smile and tried to strike a conversation. Sunehri saw a group of junior girls who were already star-struck by Shlok and were looking at Sunehri with venomous envy for catching Shlok’s fancy. Sunehri tried to shoo Shlok away but he was not to be deterred. He was used to winning, and winning easily. 

“Have you heard about the ‘Mr and Miss Junior’ pageant that the seniors are conducting?” Shlok said hoping for a long conversation. “Of course I have. Who hasn’t” Sunehri interjected rudely. “Well, they don’t need to take the trouble. They should just hand over the prize to us right away” Shlok replied. “Don’t be so cocky, Mr. Shlok Mehta. There are far better deserving people than you”. “Who is it Miss Sunehri Malhotra? Can you name even one?” 

“Ambuj! He is way more beautiful as a person than you can ever be” Sunehri instantly replied. Sunehri realized that she was being more rude than necessary but she could not help it. Something about Shlok repulsed her. Yet, the more caustic Sunehri was the more interested Shlok became in her. Here, finally he had found a worthy girl who was not so easy to catch. He loved the prospect of wooing a girl and winning her affections.

“So do you think you are dating Ambuj?” Shlok asked while making an unbelieving face. “Yes, I am!” Sunehri replied proudly and vehemently. “But you are not his type Sunehri. I went to school with him, so I know. Oh, you are so clueless, sweetheart. Catch you later” Shlok took his leave with this cryptic remark. Sunehri was shocked by what she had heard. He had caught her weak point and pinched her where it hurts the most. Her relationship with Ambuj was not progressing beyond a point and Shlok had sensed it somehow. His mocking words were ringing in her ears which prompted her to run towards the canteen where Ambuj was hanging out with the rest of the gang eating pakodas along with a steaming cup of chai. “Ambuj, I need to talk to you alone” She remarked urgently. Ambuj knew that it was no use to argue with Sunehri when she was in such mood.

Sunehri took Ambuj by his hands and placed him in an empty classroom. She immediately confronted him about what Shlok had said. Ambuj bowed his head and replied “I owe you an explanation, Sunehri. You mean the world to me; I can do anything for you. But it’s true. You are not my type. I did not mean to lead you on, but you took this romantic fancy towards me and just ran away with it before I could explain”

“What do you mean that I am not your type? What the heck do you mean Ambuj? Am I not beautiful enough for you or not smart enough?” Sunehri began to sob. She did not cry easily but now the dam was bursting and overflowing. Ambuj wrapped her in his arms and consoled her “It’s not like that, Sunehri. You are really amazing. It’s just that.. It’s just that I prefer boys. But please, please keep this to yourself. There are many people in this world who are yet to get out of medieval age. You have no idea how regressive people can be” 

“What!” Sunehri exclaimed. “How did I never realize this? We hung out with each other all the time. You could have told me at least. Don’t you trust me?” For the first time ever there was bitterness in her voice when speaking to Ambuj. She had placed him in a pedestal and had imagined a future with him in such intricate detail. But all of that came crashing down right in front of her. Now it was Ambuj’s turn to break down “You have no idea what I have gone through Sunehri. My family is not liberal like yours. They will never accept me for who I am. Do you know how I felt, when my own parents reject people like me as freaks, as disgusting creatures who should be jailed? You were the only person I wanted to talk to but you complicated things by falling in love with me.  You are my best friend and yet I could not talk to you, just because I knew you would get hysterical.  Please try to understand. I have enough on my plate and have suffered enough by keeping this bottled up inside. I cannot reciprocate your love but I do genuinely believe we are besties forever. Right?” 

Sunehri melted completely at this outpouring of emotions by Ambuj “I am so sorry for shouting Ambuj. Please forgive me. Your pain is much greater than mine. Of course we are besties forever. I always wanted a gay bestie and I had one right under my nose! You are really cool Ambuj. I am sure your parents will understand. Give them some time, they will eventually grow up and get matured enough to accept you.” She hugged Ambuj with all her might as tears rolled down both their eyes. “But tell me one thing Ambuj; how the fish did Shlok know about you. Is he actually smarter than he seems?” Ambuj looked a little embarrassed and his cheeks were getting rosier by the second “Actually, I have been crushing on him since forever. He must have noticed. Now stop crying silly. Let’s go, Farah and Junaid are waiting for us” he started to leave, wiping his own tears with a kerchief. “You carry on, Ambuj. I need some alone time right now” replied Sunehri

Sunehri had shown a brave face when Ambuj was around, but as soon as Ambuj left, she completely broke down. Sunehri was a person who felt things deeply and intensely. When she loved, she did it completely and her love poured from every cell in her body. The shock that Ambuj did not feel the same way towards her was too much for her to handle. As she sat crying alone in the empty classroom, Nayan Lakhanpal noticed her while passing the corridors.

“Sunehriji, what happened? You looked so happy just like an hour back. Is everything alright?” Nayan asked. “Nothing happened, Nayan. I just realized that the one love of my life, the perfect one, does not love me. It was just a stupid one sided love affair from my side. It was all an illusion.” “So what Sunehriji, the whole world is your oyster!” Nayan replied dramatically.  “When one door closes, another door opens! So please stop this ‘Dil ke armaan aasuyo main behe gaye’ and smile! This outdated tragic queen look does not suit you. Smile please. It’s really simple Sunehriji. Just widen your lips and show your teeth. Like this” That managed to crack Sunehri up as Nayan clownishly smiled and tried to show all his 32 teeth. 

“I will smile only if you stop adding ji-ji in the end. Just call me Sunehri” She replied wiping her tears with her kerchief. “You need more than one kerchief. Here, borrow mine too” said Nayan and like a magician removed a kerchief from Sunehri’s ears.  Sunehri was smiling more widely now. “Thanks for cheering me up Nayan” “Please do not thank me Sunehri, you cheered me up at the audi and I returned the favour in this empty classroom. Hisaab Baraabar” There was a roguish charm about Nayan that could improve the spirits of the dourest and sourest individual. Sunehri, the born optimist stood no chance. She immediately felt a lot better and clasped Nayan’s hand in gratitude just like he had in the auditorium. Along with their hands, their eyes connected and it gave birth to Nayan’s great love for Sunehri.

If Nayan was asked subsequently when did he fall in love for the first time in his life, he would reply that it was the exact moment when Sunehri clasped his hands. It felt like a great opening up of his heart, as if someone had showed him a treasure chest of emotions for the first time. Sunehri was the golden key that could unlock pathways to feelings he never knew even existed. Once again Sunehri noticed a diamond like gleam in Nayan’s eyes. She could not help remarking “Your eyes shine a lot, Nayan.” Unfortunately, as soon as Nayan fell in love he suddenly started feeling tongue tied. The emotions and feelings whirling inside were so overwhelming that he could no longer produce coherent speech. “Th-thanks” he stammered awkwardly and abruptly left the classroom and ran away from the person who could create such intense turmoil inside.

Sunehri felt a lot better as she got up to leave the empty classroom. Nayan’s charm had done the trick. It felt like a great burden had been removed from her chest. The symptoms of shock still existed but it was much more tolerable after Nayan’s cheering up session. Yes, there is so much to look forward to. For example, the ‘Mr and Miss Junior’ title was up for grabs and Sunehri would be out of the reckoning if she showed the attitude of someone who had just come back from a funeral. The pageant was a week away and she could win it if she played her cards right. There were three rounds. The Costume Party where you could dress up as anyone or anything, the talent round and finally the ramp walk.

The winners, ‘Mr and Miss Junior’ would get to perform a bollywood style dance as a tribute to the cult movie DDLJ and its video would be uploaded in social media. As the college placed a lot of emphasis on art, significant budget and talented seniors would be at disposal to work on the project. Sunehri had always dreamed of performing to a throwback themed bollywood dance and did not want to lose this golden opportunity. Being busy would also help her in getting over the pain of love failure. She prepared a plan to ensure her win.

As expected, Shlok and Sunehri emerged as winners of the pageant. But there were other highlights too. Harshad, the college clown, had come in his underpants with just a few leaves covering his private parts. Eventually, the Principal had to intervene as even parents had come to watch the pageant. Harshad protested that he was wearing the costume of Tarzan and should be permitted his costume. Only when Principal Khosla threatened Rustication, did Harshad back down “Take a chill pill sir, you don’t need to use the R-Word so easily.” he muttered under his breath. Nayan participated too and managed to dazzle the audience with a beautiful piece of guitar work in the talent round. Farah won the Miss Congeniality contest and Junaid seemed more proud of it than even Farah herself. “Hey, Farah is my girlfriend by the way” he would tell with a huge grin to anyone who would care to listen.

Sunehri was going through bittersweet emotions once she was announced the ‘Miss Junior of Carmel College’. The rapturous applause from the audience gave her an adrenaline rush that she would remember for a long time. The prospect of the video performance was also something to look forward to. The only dark cloud interloping the glorious sunshine was the fact that she would have to perform with Shlok. It was told to all pageant participants beforehand that the dance performance would include an intimate romantic scene where the winners would kiss at the end of the video. The very idea of kissing Shlok brought a pukish sensation in her stomach. She had never really kissed anyone before. She had managed to peck Ambuj on the lips once but that no longer counted in hindsight. It was as if life was turning out to be a tragicomic parody with every passing moment. Her first kiss, the moment that had previously filled her with such delicious anticipation, was turning out to be a dud moment as it would be with Shlok. She would rather kiss a pig happily if it meant she would not have to kiss Shlok. 

The verdant environment of the college park was chosen as the setting for the shooting of the video. When the shooting started, Shlok looked like a man on a mission. Sunehri had to admit that Shlok was a superb dancer. Why does he have to be such an all-rounder? She wondered to herself. After the scene was over, Shlok came eagerly towards Sunehri hoping for words of approval. In spite of her aversion to Shlok, it brought a smile on her face. Shlok’s expression reminded her of a street dog hoping for biscuits from passersby. “You are just an average dancer Shlok, there is a huge scope for improvement” she remarked. 

When have I learnt to lie through my teeth? She thought to herself.  The fact that Sunehri had smiled was something that Shlok had observed like a hawk. Keep smiling you beautiful angel, he thought to himself. 

Finally, the moment that Sunehri was dreading was about to arrive, the kissing scene. Sunehri almost wanted to back out of the project but decided to stay seeing the hard work everyone had put on the project. On the other hand, the kissing scene was the moment that Shlok was waiting for the most. He could not stop smiling and seemed to be in the best of spirits. 

“Eh, Chipku” Sunehri muttered to Shlok as they stood facing each other “As soon as you hear ‘Cut’, you back off alright, or else get ready for a nasty kick in your groin” she whispered threateningly. “Of course, my good lady” Shlok replied, bowing his head and tipping a pretend hat in a mock gentlemanly manner. 

And Actionnnnn! Shlok began to kiss Sunehri, and before Sunehri could realize what was happening, wonderful music started to play in her mind. Neither of them heard the cut signal which the director shouted thrice before giving up to watch them kiss, the director could no longer bear to interrupt something this beautiful. Everyone who was present could not help but gape in amazement at what they were witnessing. It was truly a magical moment which uplifted the spirits of everyone watching. Sunehri and Shlok had seemingly melted into each other and kissed for what felt like an eternity. Eventually, the kiss ended only when Sunehri lost her balance and fell on the floor as her knees collapsed with pleasure. 

Nothing had prepared Sunehri for this experience; the sensual delights that erupted inside her as their lips converged, the intoxicating rhythm of the music in her head, the soft delicate movements of Shlok’s tongue merging with the movements of her own inexperienced tongue. Shlok too had lost his footing and looked dazed but he was aware enough to offer his hands to pick Sunehri up. Extremely embarrassed, Sunehri fled from the scene as fast as she could.

Sunehri could not make sense of what had just happened. All she knew was that she had just experienced paradise. As she sat in the taxi which was carrying her back home, she suddenly remembered the words of Nayan “When one door closes, another door opens”. Even in her wildest imagination, Sunehri had not contemplated even for a second that Shlok would be the one who would open the doors! The doors of love; it was love which was flowing within her with an unbridled passion, for the one who had opened the doors. 

She felt an inexplicable longing for Shlok with an intensity that took her by surprise. She tried to recall the minutest details of what she had gone through during the kiss. All the prior dislike she felt for Shlok was a relic of a distant past and even seemed silly in retrospect. All she could now remember was the surreal journey that Shlok had led her towards. The kiss had changed everything. It was something more than just sensual or erotic. The experience with Shlok had touched the deepest core of her soul.

“Calm down, young woman. Relax. Take a deep breath and get back to reality.” A calm voice had emerged inside Sunehri’s head. “It’s just a kiss. No big deal”. A part of her, the emotional one, wanted to keep going back to the moment of the kiss; while the logical part of her kept trying to steer her away from it. For the time being, logic prevailed as she was just about to enter her flat. She could not afford to look like she was high on drugs in front of her parents. She had never taken drugs before but she now had an idea what it felt like.

The next day as Sunehri woke up; she could not wait to go to college. To meet up with Shlok and talk to him about the previous evening’s experience. She now understood why so many people went gaga about Shlok. Sunehri felt a glow of happiness as everything around her seemed more beautiful and colourful. Her heart was beating faster and she felt the proverbial butterflies in her stomach. As she waited for him near the college entrance, she was counting the minutes and even the seconds as any moment, Shlok would arrive to college. And there he was; he had arrived. She flashed the brightest smile that her face could offer as he walked towards her. Shlok acknowledged her with a curt nod and walked past her as if she was just another member of his fan club. “Hold on Shlok, wait. We need to talk” she shouted. Sunehri half expected Shlok to keep walking away and ignore her. But Shlok hesitated and walked back reluctantly towards her.

Sunehri had by now realized that they were operating on two different wavelengths. The roles had been reversed. She was no longer pursued by him. “Yeah, so about yesterday” Shlok drawled to Sunehri as if he really wanted to be somewhere else. “Whatever it was that happened between the two of us, just forget about it alright Sunehri”. “Forget about it? What do you mean forget about it? Don’t you want to at least talk about it?” Sunehri tried not to sound pleading. She was stronger than that. “There is nothing to discuss about Sunehri. The shoot is over. Everything is over. Please do not pursue me like the others. I have better things to do than indulge in a romance.”

“Why are you acting like this Shlok, this sudden change towards me?” Sunehri said, trying to keep her out of control emotions in check. “Is it because the thrill is in the chase? Now that the chase is over, there is no thrill. Is that what you seek, Shlok? You chase me as long as I am not interested and as soon as I do get interested, you begin to ignore me. So, all I am is just another notch in your belt, right?” 

“That’s right, Sunehri. As soon as you flashed that smile today, you became boring. As you said, the thrill is in the chase. So as this chase is now officially over, please do not bother me again”

 “But Shlok, what about the kiss? Did it mean nothing to you? Answer this one last thing and I will never bother you again?” Sunehri hated the sound of pleading in her voice. She was now on the verge of crying but she willed herself to not cry. Shlok could not be allowed to break her. She was raised better than that.

Shlok hesitated before answering. He found it difficult to look her in the eye but finally managed to maintain eye contact. “I will be honest with you Sunehri. I was being mean to you on purpose right now, but even I am emotionally impacted as much as you are. Just like you, the kiss shook me to the core. I could not sleep the whole night. Yesterday, for the first time in my life I felt I am in love. You managed to penetrate all my defenses and made me vulnerable. But I do not want to feel vulnerable or fragile. Not know. Not ever. I do not allow anyone to get too close to me. My life is not a fairy tale like how others believe it to be. My parents are separating. My life is a mess and love will only make it messier. I just want to be left alone as I always have been all my life. Stay away from me Sunehri. You deserve better than me. And I deserve to be alone” Shlok gave her one last look of longing and started to leave.

Sunehri could not believe what was happening. No one deserved to be alone, especially someone like Shlok who was too complex for his own good. She could not allow him to leave a good thing that was beginning to develop between them. She tried to stop him. “Don’t walk away Shlok. I am giving you one last chance. If you walk away, you lose me forever. And remember, I am the one person who sees you for who you are beyond your looks, body or wealth. And even though you are the weirdest person I have ever met, I like you for who you really are” 

“I like you too. In fact, I love you. But love is the one thing that scares me the most. It’s better for both of us if I walk away. Goodbye Sunehri”. And he walked away. Because he truly believed that he deserved to be alone and unloved. Sunehri bowed her head down in sorrow. In a strange way, she understood why Shlok had walked away. She wished he had stayed and allowed love to take its course. But in Shlok’s complicated mind, love was much more dangerous than loneliness. In his own weird way, giving up on love was his path to liberation.

Sunehri shrugged her shoulders and proceeded towards her class to meet her friends. The gang of four had been extended to five with the inclusion of Nayan who had finally regained speech in front of Sunehri. Her friends began to notice a change in Sunehri as she had become quieter and paler after Shlok had walked away. Concerned by the change, Nayan and Ambuj went to meet Sunehri at her home late in the evening. Sunehri’s mother was also worried as Sunehri had completely lost her appetite. When Sunehri again refused to eat when her friends came to visit, Nayan took matters in his own hands by feeding her Roti Sabzi himself. As usual, it was difficult for Sunehri to refuse Nayan when he turned on his charm. To make Sunehri feel better, Ambuj suggested that they visit a nightclub and dance away her sorrows as she was really fond of dancing and music. Sunehri initially refused, but she reluctantly agreed when Ambuj and Nayan insisted.

As soon as they entered the nightclub, Ambuj handed Sunehri a glass of wine. “Cheer up girl. Here, this will help raise your spirits” he told her with a wink. Sunehri immediately started feeling better after a drink and in spite of everything, her mood was improving. She started swaying to the groovy tunes that was being played by the DJ. She instantly became the center of attraction as she was a very talented dancer. She had an innate grasp of music and dancing came very naturally to her. After the party was over, Sunehri felt lucky to have friends who cared.

Seeing Sunehri’s interest in music, Nayan began to share with her the music he had composed and asked her feedback. The lyrics of his songs had a common theme; it was about the poet’s great love for his ‘Mashooqa’. But his beloved who was unaware of the poet’s love had fallen in love with someone else. All the lines flowed from Nayan’s heart and soul as the lyrics were inspired by the feelings that Sunehri generated in him. But when he was questioned about his Mashooqa, Nayan pretended she lived in Lucknow and refused to share her name or details. One evening, he suggested to Sunehri that she sing the lyrics that were to be delivered by the Mashooqa in the poem. She was hesitant as she had no prior experience in singing but as usual, Nayan managed to cajole and convince her to sing.

When Sunehri started singing, Nayan was blown away by the quality of Sunehri’s voice. Even though her voice was untrained it was incredibly melodious. Nayan had been looking for the right ingredient to complete his songs. Now his songs felt complete. “You are a freaking sensation Sunehri. Where were you hiding that voice all along?” Sunehri immediately brightened up after hearing the pleasant compliments.  After Shlok, she was beginning to go into a shell but it was Nayan and his music which was bringing her out of it. 

Even Sunehri was impressed with how the songs were turning out. She decided that they were good enough to be recorded in a music studio and then released on social media. Nayan and Sunehri shared the studio expenses and worked on fine-tuning their songs. Sunehri suggested that only the audio should be released as making a video would be too cumbersome. But Nayan was vehement that they should make the video too. “Sunehri, why waste the immense beauty that God has gifted to you. We have to capture it on video”. Sunehri felt herself blushing.

A total of six songs had been composed and recorded as audio, out of which the best one had been made into a video with Sunehri starring in it. Ambuj and Junaid who were handy with camerawork and Farah who was good at Editing contributed to the video-making process. The gang was hopeful that it would be well received by the public. They had put their heart and soul in making the video.

After a hard day’s work of recording, shooting and editing; Sunehri and Nayan were spending some time in the canteen and enjoying a well deserved break. The two had gotten closer over time, and a deep friendship was developing between them. Sunehri felt a powerful feeling stirring within when she was around Nayan but it was a feeling she was not ready to acknowledge. Sunehri knew how deeply Nayan felt for his ‘Mashooqa’ and did not want to trespass on Nayan’s emotions. Sunehri decided that she wanted to know more of this mysterious ‘Mashooqa’ who was the source of such brilliance in Nayan and inspired such beautiful creation of music. 

Nayan smiled at the paradox, Sunehri wanting to know about ‘Mashooqa’! How he wished to bare his heart out and proclaim the deep emotions that he felt for Sunehri.  He wanted to explain to her about how he felt more alive, energetic and happy whenever he was around Sunehri. That ‘Mashooqa’ was none other than Sunehri. But as luck would have it, Nayan suffered from a profound sense of self-doubt. He felt deep inside that he was not good enough for Sunehri, that she was too good for him. She was too beautiful, too intelligent and too classy for him. And now Sunehri wanted to know more about his ‘Mashooqa’.

What could Nayan say? He began describing the qualities of Sunehri to Sunehri herself. The more Nayan described his Mashooqa, the more despondent Sunehri became. “I wish someone loved me as much as you love your Mashooqa, Nayan. But all I have in my destiny is rejection and abandonment. I have such an infinite capacity to love but no one wants to like me, let alone love me. Your Mashooqa is lucky that someone has such intense emotions for her”. It was at that moment that Nayan decided that he would reveal his feelings for Sunehri. He was sure that Sunehri would be delighted to know that she was the very ‘Mashooqa’ whom she envied so much. He did not mind getting rejected as long as it brought a smile to Sunehri’s face. 

But just as Nayan was about to reveal the true nature of ‘Mashooqa’, they were joined by the rest of the gang and Nayan lost his opportunity. The rest had brought their laptops and had a look of excitement in their faces. The editing process was complete and now the video was ready to be shown to the world. Sunehri pressed the enter button to simultaneously upload and broadcast the video in YouTube, Instagram and Facebook. The gang looked at each other with pride and happiness, confident that their efforts would be appreciated.

The response to the video was better than anyone’s expectation and the reactions were phenomenal. It was catching on like wildfire and people from all over the country were transfixed by the video. Sunehri’s beauty as well as her soulful voice and Nayan’s magical composition turned out to be a winning combination and took the internet world by storm. The video had notched up more than a million views within a span of two weeks. Everyone in college were now recognizing Sunehri and appreciating her talent. Even Nayan was getting his fair share of recognition for his composition and lyrics. He was not used to being the centre of attraction as he preferred being in the background and let others hog the limelight. But when musically inclined people in the campus recognized him and shook his hands, the shine in Nayan’s eyes got even brighter.

The making of the video and its subsequent success had made Sunehri and Nayan inseparable. They began to spend more and more time together. They needed the slightest excuse to meet each other alone which even prompted Farah to ask Sunehri if she was dating Nayan. Sunehri just smiled and informed her that they were just really good friends. For Sunehri, the past wounds had not completely healed. Love just seemed to jinx everything and desecrate the emotions that she held sacred. Again her vivid imagination was activated to assuage the void she felt inside. As she would lie in her bed, preparing to go to sleep, she would imagine that she was Nayan’s ‘Mashooqa’, his beloved, and not some random girl in Lucknow. Just the thought that she was the inspiration for Nayan’s rhapsodies gave her goosebumps and produced within her electrifying sensations of delight which she found very difficult to shake off.

For Nayan, hanging out with Sunehri itself felt magical and powerful. He could listen for hours as Sunehri shared everything about her life. The expressions of her beautiful face and the soft looks of her innocent eyes could hypnotize him and put him in a state of profound satisfaction. He no longer wanted to reveal to Sunehri that she was the ‘Mashooqa’, his beloved, and not some random girl in Lucknow. He was scared that revealing it would drive her away from him and he would lose her friendship that he cherished so much.

After the first term was over, Principal Khosla announced that the college would organize a trip to resorts in Manali so that students could unwind, relax and release the tensions which accumulated during exams. Farah and Junaid could not hide their excitement as this news came out on the notice board. There could not be a more enchanting place to further explore their romance than the scenic foothills of Himalayas. The trip would last a week, and most students of Carmel would be taking the trip including Shlok, Sunehri and Nayan. Ambuj had to miss out as he would be vacationing to Europe with his family during the same time as the trip.

As the college students reached Manali, the whole mass of students got divided into smaller groups. Within the gang, the two lovebirds Farah and Junaid cocooned themselves away from the world while Sunehri and Nayan stuck to each other like glue. There was something in the mountainous air of Manali that made Sunehri and Nayan even more joyful in each other’s company. After a tiring day of games, fun and frolic the two sat around the fireside holding hands and snuggling up to each other as closely as two friends would.

The radiance of the joy that was emanating between them could not seem to contain itself. Shlok, who was nearby caught a whiff of it and was mysteriously drawn to the fireside where Nayan and Sunehri were sitting and watched them slyly from a distance. Seeing them together, Shlok could no longer suppress the feelings that were bursting inside his heart. After he had walked away from Sunehri, he had continued his string of meaningless and pointless relationships. But now that he had experienced something deep and real with Sunehri, everything and everyone else felt vapid and artificial.  The sight of Sunehri and Nayan so close together made his heart burn with jealousy, which was a feeling he had rarely experienced before. He realized that he could not digest Sunehri being with anyone else. A rage was building up within Shlok and was almost reaching the point of explosion when to his relief Sunehri got up and bid Nayan goodbye. 

Shlok followed Sunehri to her bedroom and seemed hesitant and confused about knocking on her doors. The confidence and swagger that he was well known for was deserting him at this crucial time. He finally mustered his guts and knocked on Sunehri’s bedroom. Sunehri quickly opened the doors expecting that Farah, who was her roommate in the resort, was back. She gasped with surprise when she saw it was Shlok. She quickly steadied herself and asked Shlok the reason for visiting her.  A barrage of pleas, explanations and proclamations of undying love streamed forth from Shlok’s mouth as he held Sunehri’s hands. Sunehri’s head was reeling as a mixed set of emotions began to engulf her. She could sense how strongly Shlok felt about her.

Shlok had not been the only one who had been suppressing emotions. All this while, Sunehri had tried to keep at bay the flood of emotions she felt whenever she remembered the kiss. Shlok had walked away and there was no point harking back to the kiss that changed everything. But now that Shlok had suddenly turned up at her doorsteps pleading for her love, it felt like someone had turned on the tap of emotions. All the feelings and emotions that had been kept locked leapt forth as if a caged wild animal had just been freed. Noticing that Sunehri was reacting positively, Shlok stopped groveling and became more of his charming and suave self. He had been scared that Sunehri would not respond to his display of love but the look in Sunehri’s eyes showed that she was totally smitten by him.

As Sunehri looked deeply into Shlok’s eyes; she was completely swept by the torrential flow of her emotions. The unbridled passion that the kiss had ignited was re-emerging with a force that was ferocious. She recollected the divine rhythm in her mind that Shlok’s lips had composed and she wanted to re-live it yet again. And so did Shlok. He took Sunehri by her arms and drew her closer. Just as Shlok was about to kiss her, Sunehri was struck by an intense flash of clarity: The image of Nayan’s smiling face suddenly etched itself in Sunehri’s mind. Before Shlok could kiss her, she backed off and pushed him away. Shlok stood dumbfounded by her behavior. 

Sunehri broke into a wide smile as she realized the magnitude of what she had done. She had incredibly resisted the irresistible. “Don’t get me wrong Shlok. This is nothing personal. In fact I want to thank you.” Sunehri said excitedly by way of explanation. “All this time, I was shying away from the truth but when you were about to kiss me I realized how badly I want to be with Nayan. You can imagine my love for him by the fact that I am refusing you, the guy who blew my mind away and swept me off my feet! Thanks for everything once again. Goodbye Shlok.” Sunehri hugged him warmly and kissed him on the cheeks before turning her back on him. She hurriedly left her room with a determined sense of purpose in her strides.  In a strange way, Shlok understood why Sunehri had walked away. He was only glad that he had lost her to a worthy person. There was no shame in losing out to a more deserving opponent. Shlok was no sore loser. If Sunehri would be happier with Nayan, who was he to complain? He shrugged his shoulders and returned to his own room, defeated but not dejected.

As Sunehri was rushing towards Nayan’s room she realized winning Nayan’s love would not be that easy. There was that stupid ‘Mashooqa’ to contend with. “Mashooqa ki aisi ki taisi. Nayan should not care a rat’s ass for someone like that silly ‘Mashooqa’ who fell in love with someone else.” She concluded to herself.  She confidently reached up to Nayan’s room and knocked on his doorsteps. A bleary eyed Nayan opened the door, looking like someone who had been woken up from deep slumber. Once he saw it was Sunehri, he immediately brightened up and welcomed her inside his room. As soon as Sunehri sat on the chair, she directed the most colourful curses and abuses that were available at her disposal and aimed them at the Lucknawi Memsaab ‘The Mashooqa’. 

Noticing the irony of the situation, Nayan immediately shushed her “Sssh Sunehri. Stop cursing her. I love her.” “And I love you Nayan” Sunehri replied passionately. “I love you from the bottom of my heart. I can understand if you choose your ‘Mashooqa’ over me. It was wrong of me to abuse her. But I could not help it. I really do love you” 

Finally, Nayan connected the dots as he saw Sunehri looking at him doe-eyed with love immeasurable in its capacity. Just like the moment when his great love had first struck him, Sunehri’s look of forlorn love left him too overwhelmed for words. He was feeling tongue tied and incapable of speech yet again. He pointed his fingers at Sunehri and somehow gurgled out the words “You are Mashooqa. Always.” At hearing these words, it was Sunehri’s turn to connect the dots. “Ohh. I am Mashooqa!!”  Sunehri exclaimed and broke into uncontrollable peals of laughter with tears of joy raining down her cheeks. With regards to Nayan, words have not been invented yet to describe what he felt at that moment. It would be an injustice to even attempt to explain it. Suffice it to say, the shine that gleamed from his eyes was enough to illuminate the darkest corners of earth. 

Sunehri’s laughter of joy eventually abated after a considerable amount of time. She crashed into Nayan’s waiting arms and kissed him with a feverish fervor. As they embraced, it would not be an overstatement to say that their souls merged into one. An eternal, everlasting and timeless love had found its home.

Written by Smiran Bhandari

Email: smiranb@gmail.com