Everything was abuzz with excitement in the white sprawling mansion by the lakeside. The fragnance of the flowers, the sound of music playing, the diyas all over the balconies and the terraces, the trees lit with multicoloured bulbs.... Just like any other typical Indian wedding!
She was nervous and was not able to focus on what was going on around her. The chatter of her cousins, her friends dancing to the tune of the dholak, her hands getting exquisitely designed with the henna... Everything seemed to be perfect... She was getting married to her childhood friend and sweetheart! Why was the doubt lurking in her mind was something she just could not figure out...
Anyways after the music had subsided, she lay on her bed thinking about how the events had taken place. Her thoughts kept rotating on whether he would love her as much as he did now, trust her as much and above all respect her as much... She kept wondering if she would prove to be the right partner for him, innocent as she was, delicate as she was, stubborn as she was... She kept thinking if she would fit in with his family, his relatives, his friends, his life... wondering if she would be able to balance her responsibilities with her desires... Whether he would be the same person she had loved always was another question to which there was no answer! People do change over time, don't they! The thoughts kept churning in her mind until her eyelids started drooping and finally she fell asleep... though a fitful sleep it was!
The next morning came with her friends trying to wake her up from her slumber giggling away. The traditional turmeric-sandalwood paste was smeared all over her face, her arms, her feet. After the bath, her friends and cousins were all dressing her up like a doll for her big day... And she was definitely a sight to behold! Her skin glowed with the turmeric and sandalwood paste, the flowers in her hair, she was all glittering with all the jewellery, the blazing red saree with the pallu on her head, the clinking of her bangles, the clamour of her payal, her hands a shade of dark brown with the last night's henna, her cheeks pink with all the excitement... Looked like a fairy had stepped onto Earth!
Everything was ready and the bridegroom was expected at any moment. And there came Rohan, dressed in an elegant sherwani on his bedecked horse... Her family greeted the bridegroom and his family. All the time she had always thought how it would feel to garland him but now when she was actually supposed to do it, she stood rooted to the ground! Her mother nudged her and she garlanded him! When she looked into his eyes, she saw the same love she had always seen but something about him was not making her feel comfortable today... Maybe it was not him, it was her!! She was scared about all the expectations that a marriage carried.... Whether they would survive it together.... the metamorphosis of their life from innocent teenagers to mature adults...
The bridegroom was taken to the shamiana where the pandit had started chanting the shlokas... The confusion in her mind persisted and she was not even sure if she could opt out now... She could not do this to Rohan, her best friend, his parents, her parents... But the question only kept ringing in her mind if she would be able to match his expectations of a partner, whether everything would continue to be as before. She wanted to know if he would still allow her to make her decisions, maybe some of his too, allow her to soar into the open sky like a free bird, be the princess like she had always been... She was wondering if he would love her like he used to, respect her like he used to, understand like he used to... Or did marriage change all that?
Her mind kept tormenting her until her friends came to lead her to the mandap. She got up from the bed reluctantly and was forced to the mandap by the giggling lot of girls and her mother. She took her place in front of the sacred fire. He looked at her and smiled back which was replied by a wan smile. Attempts at talking to her were cut short. Touching her was met by her sharp glare! He was wondering what had happened to her, she had always been so affectionate but let it pass as a case of pre-marital nerves.... They were supposed to pour ghee into the fire. His palm was below hers, the ghee in her hand. He looked at her again but was met by a sullen glance again. He was only puzzled... they had loved each other so much and that was the reason why this decision had been taken collectively! What was wrong, something certainly seemed to be wrong! Looking at the uncomfortable girl whom he loved shift in her seat made his mind flutter...
He just let it pass thinking it was a result of lack of sleep.. And he knew how she could get when she didn't sleep well... The time for the pheras had come. She looked genuinely traumatised and would not budge from her sthan... This was when he was wondering what had gotten into her... He wanted to desperately know if she was happy taking this step... with him.... He got up and gently took her by the arm.. She looked at her parents, at his parents and knew they would be embarrassed in front of the guests... When she didn't move, he took her by the arm forcibly and led her to her room.
There were questions all over... Her parents were very anxious and apologetic about the entire incident. His parents were not, very relaxed and composed, they had faith in their daughter that she would come up with the right decision... And these decisions are decided by Him in the Heavens above...
Meanwhile in her room what ensued was a silent storm... He waited for her to say something and she did the same. Finally Rohan threw an leading question, "Do you want to get married?" The reply was a nod. The next question was, "To me?" to which the reply was a stream of tears flowing from her eyes... "What happened? Do you really want to call it off?" The lump in her throat did not allow her to speak... An answer was warranted for a person who could actually care so much for her that he was even ready to call the wedding off if it gave her any happiness! She asked, "Would you care for me as much when we are married? Love me as much? Forgive me for my mistakes if I do make any? Would you respect......" He sighed in relief..... Ahhhh!!! It was only that. What had marriage got to do with feelings, he wondered.... He replied, "Love, I always will! It's true it would transform over the years, in fact even maybe grow over the years but take a different manifestation.... Why this doubt, Shikha?" She threw herself into his arms and smiled amidst the tears... Just like a rainbow after the rains!
They looked at each other and he asked, "Will you marry me, Shikha?" The answer was a smile in her glistening eyes and the intertwining of their hands... The mahurat had gone by... But both of them knew that for a marriage to be a success, it took more than a mahurat!! The marriage is of the souls of the two individuals involved! And so long as they were with each other, no mahurat could spoil anything between them! As they walked back to the mandap, they promised to each other that they would be together... always!! The marriage of their souls had just happened in her room... Now it was a matter of the rituals!!!
