Thanks Shruthe and Ash for the banner
Dumas, here is the English version for you.
Chapter 49 – Madhuban Khushbu Deta Hai – English Version
Next day
Geet shivered as she steeped into Khurana Mansion. Daadima had sent a driver to call her in the morning. She immediately knew the reason for her summons and was instantly attacked by nervousness and panic
"What Daadima must be thinking about me? What have I done"
Drive to KM just heightened her anxiety and now silent and empty living room was just adding to her nerves.
Geet almost shirked back frightened at loud voice of Nakul "She is waiting for you in study"
Geet just nodded and Nakul showed her the door.
She slowly entered inside. Daadima was dressed as usual elegantly in an off-white saree and gestured Geet to take a seat. Geet had not guts to look her in the eyes but whatever fleeting look she gave she saw that Daadima's face was devoid of any emotion. There was no reflection except for deep thought and a worry.
"I am sure you know why you are here Geet. Maan told me about you yesterday. I was taken by quite a surprise but then I guess I failed to read your friendship properly."
Geet squirmed at Daadima's words as the old lady apprised the shaking petite girl in front of her.
"Won't lie to you Geet. Whole night we have not slept because we kept on thinking about you. But before we say anything, I want to ask you something. I have almost decided what I want but still once I want to hear from your mouth that what do you really want and feel for Maan."
Sitting at the edge of the seat, Geet had an urge to run away from the suffocating room. But she stayed put with lowered eyes not saying anything.
Daadima sighed.
"Geet…we can wait till you want. But today I want to heat from your mouth what you feel for Maan."
Silence reigned the room but realising that there was no way out Geet stuttered "I am sorry Daadima….please forgive me. I tried a lot to explain relality...to him, to myself but... I am telling truth Daadima. I even tried to go away but….I couldn't…I can't. Whatever punsihement you want to give, you can give but believe me we never wanted to hurt you."
Tears shone in Savitri Devi's eyes at her words but she controlled her momentary weakness.
"I am still waiting Geet. What do you feel for Maan?"
Geet looked at unrelenting Daadima and finally closed her eyes as tears streamed down on her own cheeks. Facing her with closing eyes all she could say was "I have found sometimes God and sometimes myself in him. I don't know myself when he became my life. A lot...A lot"
Her shaking lips couldn't utter a word more as she finally bowed down her head.
Daadima poured a cup of tea and kept it in front of her.
"Don't cry Geet….if it was not in your hand to not love him then why are you asking forgiveness from me...don't.
Today I want to request you for something but before that I also want to tell you something. Has Maan ever told you about his family?"
Geet could not fathom Daadima's changed demeanour and questions but just shook her head in denial.
"Ok, then I will tell. I am hoping that you will be able to understand my decisison a little better after hearing this."
Friends, this part of the Daadima's past is inspired by a Marathi social worker – Ramabai Ranade. This has shades of her true story which was very inspiring for me. If you want you can read more about her on the following link - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramabai_Ranade
Actually along with a PM asking me to write something on Geet as a widow and GHSP, she was a very big reason why I shaped this story this way. I was very moved by her and her husband's achievements. Being a real story, it encouraged my thought process that each one of us can contribute to the society and the first step is to contribute towards betterment of underprivileged around us. Initially I had planned to write about Daadima's past in great detail. But thinking it may get boring and may take away the focus from the story I went ahead with less details.
I hope you will like it and enjoy it as much as I have cried and smiled visualising this.
I was born in royal family of Jaiselmer and at age of thirteen I was married into royal family of Patiala. My husband had just returned back after finishing his higher studies from Oxford, UK. Won't bore you with too many details but it will suffice to say that I was a scared child who had been ordered by her mother to bear everything in her new home silently. I was instructed to be his shadow and least to say when we were together for the first time, I expected nothing less than a monster.
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJffpr9mcdk&feature=related_embedded[/YOUTUBE]
Link – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJffpr9mcdk
Madhuban khushbu deta hai, saagar saawan deta hai
Jeena uska jeena hai, jo auro ko jeevan deta hai
Madhuban khushbu deta hai...
Maan's Daadaji was a very different man. That night he helped me in changing into something comfortable, allied fears of a frightened child and made me sleep. He even sang a lullaby to me and from then on helped me in saying and doing things which will please his mother.
A month later, he said he wanted to start some business and leave to Delhi. I was sad because now there would be no one to sing for me or help me from getting scolding of my in-laws."
Daadima sighed heavily. Geet saw a small smile playing on her lips as Daadima recounted the days drowning in the past memories.
"But just a week later my mother-in-law told me that I had to go to Delhi. Maan's Daadaji hated the food there and he needed someone to look after him and had asked for me.
Day after reaching there, I got up early as instructed by my sasuma. He wasn't in the room so I entered kitchen and started making breakfast. As gas was at little height I brushed my hand on the hot flame as I kept the vessel and yelped in pain. I will never ever forget that day in my life Geet. That was the only day I had seen my husband so angry with me. He was full of rage and angrily held my hand and marched me to the bedroom. I expected him to raise his hand on me for making him late but instead he just applied medicine on my hand quietly but sternly.
Later when he had calmed his anger he explained to me that he had lied to his parents. He can look after himself and he got me here so that I can continue my study and grow up without shadow of orthodox responsibilities.
I was shocked by his words but he patiently and relentlessly helped me. I had been homeschooled before that and he did everything from preparing me for school to dropping me there and even picking me up. He will not let me enter the kitchen ever and will end up even cooking for me. It may sound something very normal now but that era was very different. I can't even begin to tell you what his gesture meant to me and my future.
He kept me away from my in-laws. He would avoid them visiting us and we will go there in vacation where we will play role of a dutiful wife and a callous husband.
Life was going on smoothly but one day his parents came unannounced and found out about my school. As expected thye were horrified at my sins and my irresponsible behaviour. That day he had a big fight with his father…all for me.
"Bauji, I wanted to avoid giving you pain. But I will not stop Savitri's education because of this. She is my wife and this is my decision."
His parents broke all ties from him. They stripped him of his royal title, throwing him out of the royal will. But he stood by me.
Suraj na ban paaye toh, banke dipak jalata chal
Phul mile ya angaare, sach kee raaho pe chalata chal
Pyaar dilo ko deta hai, ashko ko daaman deta hai
Jeena uska jeena hai, jo auro ko jeevan deta hai
Madhuban khushbu deta hai...
When I passed my 12th, he got me admission in DU. By then I was little grown up and in those days going to college used to be a big thing for girls. I was scared of loosing him. He had already broken ties with his family and last thing I wanted was to alienate him from everything.
He was setting up KC at that time with help of his friends and loans from banks. I was worried for him and wanted to support him and not become a burden. So I denied saying I wanted to look after him but that day he gave me the biggest lesson of my life - "You just worry about your studies. You are my responsibility and I will look after you. I haven't married you to be my shadow so that you walk behind me. I have married you so that you are my life partner. I have taken vows to be with you my entire life and I will fulfil each of those vows. But I want you also to have ability to fulfil those vows. I want you to be educated, confident and a woman who can walk beside me. I want a friend in you whom I can confide my problems in. I don't want someone to just take out my frustration but someone who can support and help me in coming up with solutions. I want a well wisher with whom I can share my success because she is the only one who will not be jealous of it. Someone I love and cherish because she loves and cherishes me. You will never be a burden for me because you are a part of me but we will truly be married the day I am not a burden for you. I will be your husband in real sense only when you love and cherish me."
He taught me that marriage is to have a life long partner. Not someone who just leads or walks behind you but someone who walks with you.
He truly loved me and I have no shame in saying it. He is a man I admired, respected, loved and still cherish. He did so much for me but I never thanked him because it was his right to do all that for me. I just in return try to shower him with same love.
You must be thinking why I am telling you all this Geet. I want you to understand the expectation from word "wife" I have from my bahu. I want my son's happiness and I know he can only get this happiness when he has someone who walks with him…lifelong. Someone who will always be there with him in every shade of life. From this world'd point of view, maybe Maan has done a lot for you. But in reality that was just his love's right. To me what is important is that will you be able to return that same right on him.
I wanted such a bahu for Maan's father also. "Krishna". You know Maan's mother's name but do you know why she opened that hostel? To understand Maan, to understand my decision, you have to understand Krishna.
She was an orphan brought up in a state orphanage. She was sixteen when to save her dignity, she ran away from there. But she was not a weak woman. She was a very brave woman. Left behind in a dumpster, she had learned to fight all through her life. In lot of ways when I see your determination to fight even after so many adversaries I see that same zeal which Krishna had. That sixteen year old girl, worked as maid, cleaned people's houses, washed clothes and utensils but managed to give her 12th exam. Then she went from company to company till she found a job.
For two years she worked as secretary for various managers when she finally became PA to Maan's Daadaji. Her sincerity towards work, her honesty, her self respect and independence to live life on her own terms shone through her every action. Very soon he and me both realised the potential of this girl. When Maan's Daadaji found out that she was trying to complete her graduation using part time, he sponsored her education. He took her under his wings and very soon they had a very special bond.
He always asked me before taking any important decision in life. Such was his faith on Krishna, that he didn't ask but pleaded me to agree to make her as my bahu. She had no background. We didn't even know whose blood she had but all we knew was that in our whole life we had not seen a more moral girl than her.
There was no other girl in Raj's – Maan's father's life and he had no reason to go against his father's wishes. But like you are sitting in front of me today similarly Krishna had no idea that why someone like Yashwardhan Singh Khurana wanted her to be associated with his son. Like you, she also asked for forgiveness assuming she had done something wrong. But my husband, just caressed her head and said.
Daadima got up from the chair and caressed Geet's hair repeating words Yashwardhan Singh Khurana had said to Krishna one day to Geet today
Chalatee hai lehraake pawan, ke saans sabhee ki chalatee rahe
Logo ne tyaag diye jeevan, ke prit dilo me palatee rahe
Dil woh dil hai jo auro ko, apanee dhadhkan deta hai
Jeena uska jeena hai, jo auro ko jeevan deta hai
Madhuban khushbu deta hai...
"I want such a life partner for my son who supports him in every role. If need arises, she becomes a mother and shows him the right path. At time of problems, she becomes a friend to share it with him. She becomes a lover to fill his life with love and happiness. She becomes a sister or a daughter to celebrate his every happiness.
Your morals will not allow him to stray. Your patience will become his friend. Your heart's and outer beauty will shower his life with colours of love. Your innocence will increase his every happiness.
I am a begger in front of you beta. I am standing today in front of you with bare hands asking for life long happiness of my son. Please come in my son's life and awaken his life with your presence. You are that aroma which will fragrant my every corner of my house. This world did not value a diamond thinking it is stone. But you are a diamond. Invaluable, beautiful and today I am asking you from yourself. Please don't deny me….please.
Tears spilled Geet's eyes as she turned and hugged Daadima by waist
"Daadima!!!"
All – I know I kept this as a big surprise. But this and the next chapter is something I visualised at the very beginning of this FF. My whole character sketch of Daadima and Krishna was based on this conversation. Although this did not have Maaneet but this has everything to do with Maan and Geet. I really hope you liked this chapter and will enjoy next one too. I am sorry if it got boring but these chapters are important in giving foundation to Maan-Geet-Daadima relationship which will always stay on strong foundation in this FF just like my other FFs. Problems will come and go but this foundation will not shake.
Shruthe – I hope you remember that in one response to your comment i had mentioned that there will be one very important person who will take Geet out of her guilt of being a widower. I guess you know now and why I said it will be very important. Sometimes friends and lover can not do what the person you look towards as a true elder can do. Same words when spoken by authority figure be it father, mother, grandmother or mentor has far more affect on the brain compared to those whom we feel are saying it just by understanding our pain. I hope I was able to do justice and this will continue in next chapter as well.
Precap – Jyoti Kalash Chalke
comment:
p_commentcount