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Kathhal and Kachauri
They had the Paakh meeting Wed, he was polite but preoccupied, he was like that a lot
He forgot his coffee mug in the conference room a lot, Payal ran after him to hand it after meetings
It had pictures of Nupur and Nihar
He ordered lunch from the building cafeteria and it sat uneaten on his desk.
Nihar called him multiple times before he left work
He forgot when the cook had an off day at the service apartment in Nizamuddin and hence the jeera rice. He wasnt a great cook
He got by
Nupur was an excelent cook, his Amma (Mom) adored Nupur
She was still reeling from shock and was on depression meds
His Mom had met Nupur first and was blown away by the dahi vadey and kathhal ki subzi Nupur had made
His Amma had given up eating BOTH since Nupur was gone
He ate it at every opportunity so as to be able to detect that single flicker, that TINY WHIFF of Nupur's culinary marvel
But till this date there was none in the 100s of kathhal he had tasted
Nihar and him flew down Wed night to Mumbai
To surprise his Amma, bring her back if they could, before school started Monday
Now he had a place
He had made the sudden plan on Wed morning
Asking the movers to come by Sunday instead
The brother's family Amma lived with now was truly surprised
They were all crowded around the TV watching a soap when they knocked
"Jeeji Neel aaya hai" his Uncle hollered
Neel stood in jeans and navy loafers and a white shirt, he rarely wore tee shirts
Nihar hid behind him
"Arey rey, Nihar bhi?" Uncle hollered
His mother appeared from one of the tiny Borivili bedrooms
She was active and skinny, almost as tall as him
She smiled wide
"Amma ki yaad aa gayi?"
"Kya baat keh dee Amma" he touched her feet
Aunt ran inside to make chai, the cousin and his wife picked up newspapers from sofas and pushed kids like rabbits
The girls giggled
Sulekha and Sunanda Pant the twins were almost the same age at Nihar
They picked on him incessantly
"Maaa Dilli ke mukhya mantri aa ye hain" they cooed together
Nihhar giggled but hid
Aabha, Saksham's wife smacked the girls " Dadi ki madad karen aap" she ordered
"Garmi bahut hogi?" Amma enquired feeling her son's head
"Dilli ki garmi to ma khatarnaak hai" he nodded
Mamiji brought chai
Aabha bhabhi brought kachari and gujiya
"Jeeji ne chhupa diye Holi waale gujiye" Uncle laughed
His Amma smiled with pride
"Mujhse hafte pehle banwaata har baar" she said
"Aur mukhya mantri?" Sulekha asked eagerly
"Mukhya mantri to apni safed gaadi mein ghoomta rehta hai, laal batti rehti hai us par" his mother hugged and kissed Nihar
"Kaash yeh sapna ho, aur Nupur andar ke kamre se aa jaaye" his mother began to cry
Neel grunted and felt his vision blur
The room took on a quiet somber feel
They had the Paakh meeting Wed, he was polite but preoccupied, he was like that a lot
He forgot his coffee mug in the conference room a lot, Payal ran after him to hand it after meetings
It had pictures of Nupur and Nihar
He ordered lunch from the building cafeteria and it sat uneaten on his desk.
Nihar called him multiple times before he left work
He forgot when the cook had an off day at the service apartment in Nizamuddin and hence the jeera rice. He wasnt a great cook
He got by
Nupur was an excelent cook, his Amma (Mom) adored Nupur
She was still reeling from shock and was on depression meds
His Mom had met Nupur first and was blown away by the dahi vadey and kathhal ki subzi Nupur had made
His Amma had given up eating BOTH since Nupur was gone
He ate it at every opportunity so as to be able to detect that single flicker, that TINY WHIFF of Nupur's culinary marvel
But till this date there was none in the 100s of kathhal he had tasted
Nihar and him flew down Wed night to Mumbai
To surprise his Amma, bring her back if they could, before school started Monday
Now he had a place
He had made the sudden plan on Wed morning
Asking the movers to come by Sunday instead
The brother's family Amma lived with now was truly surprised
They were all crowded around the TV watching a soap when they knocked
"Jeeji Neel aaya hai" his Uncle hollered
Neel stood in jeans and navy loafers and a white shirt, he rarely wore tee shirts
Nihar hid behind him
"Arey rey, Nihar bhi?" Uncle hollered
His mother appeared from one of the tiny Borivili bedrooms
She was active and skinny, almost as tall as him
She smiled wide
"Amma ki yaad aa gayi?"
"Kya baat keh dee Amma" he touched her feet
Aunt ran inside to make chai, the cousin and his wife picked up newspapers from sofas and pushed kids like rabbits
The girls giggled
Sulekha and Sunanda Pant the twins were almost the same age at Nihar
They picked on him incessantly
"Maaa Dilli ke mukhya mantri aa ye hain" they cooed together
Nihhar giggled but hid
Aabha, Saksham's wife smacked the girls " Dadi ki madad karen aap" she ordered
"Garmi bahut hogi?" Amma enquired feeling her son's head
"Dilli ki garmi to ma khatarnaak hai" he nodded
Mamiji brought chai
Aabha bhabhi brought kachari and gujiya
"Jeeji ne chhupa diye Holi waale gujiye" Uncle laughed
His Amma smiled with pride
"Mujhse hafte pehle banwaata har baar" she said
"Aur mukhya mantri?" Sulekha asked eagerly
"Mukhya mantri to apni safed gaadi mein ghoomta rehta hai, laal batti rehti hai us par" his mother hugged and kissed Nihar
"Kaash yeh sapna ho, aur Nupur andar ke kamre se aa jaaye" his mother began to cry
Neel grunted and felt his vision blur
The room took on a quiet somber feel
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