How I met your mother ? - Part 2

The Baraat started heading for the marriage venue by around 7 PM. I was wearing a fusion dress code for the event – a black jeans and a black blazer over a yellow colored full neck t-shirt. Surprisingly, I was looking less worse that day as per my own standards. I shook my legs and danced a bit along with other Baraatis and infact enjoyed it too even though I am not so much a ‘dance’ person. The long drawn marriage process started with Baraatis eventually reaching the venue, the first event being the ‘Varmala’ event wherein bride and groom put a big size ‘garland’ around either’s neck. Till this point in time, I had no inkling or clue about the ‘girl’ I was told about. Then suddenly from nowhere, my prospective father in law appeared and took my dad aside and whispered a few words which were inaudible to me. I could see my dad leaning sideward and then exchanging a few words with him before heading back towards me. Watching dad coming towards me, I pretended I had not seen/heard anything (as a son, I was taught not to be enthusiastic about girls in presence of elders). He pointed me towards the crowd at the other end of the marriage lawn and said ‘she is Sonu’ directing his fingers towards a group of girls with one of them wearing pink saree. I said ‘Sonu who?’ He looked at me and smiled and I got the message. As I was trying to have a good second glance at the pink saree clad girl, my dad had already disappeared as I saw him being led away by my father in law. As my eyes started tracing the ‘pink girl’ further, I saw her being introduced to my dad at the other end of the lawn. From this point onwards, it was a cat and mouse game with both of us being aware about what’s happening around. At times, I was following her in the grass lawn with couple of my Baarati gang members and at other times, she was following me and my gang along with her gang. Our eyes met a couple of times and she, contrary to the image of a typical Indian girl in such scenarios, didn’t have any expressions of ‘shyness’ or ‘coyness’ and that to me was unexpected from a town girl though in a way it made me more curious about her. In this cat and mouse game, I had absolutely no inkling about my cousin’s marriage for which I had come here officially. Neither was I getting any urge to drink mineral water in this whole game. So my son, the 2nd morale of the story is – venture in an inhabitable terrain (where there is no mineral water) ONLY and ONLY if there is a beautiful girl around!!

By midnight, all Baraatis had left the marriage venue and were back to Janwasa for the second phase of marriage ritual called ‘saat pheras’ which continues all through the night. Somehow I was feeling physically exhausted and tired as I didn’t have proper dinner/ food (don’t feel like eating in such a mass event) and I actually didn’t have any water as I just couldn’t bring up myself to swallow regular water served there. Though physically exhausted, my mind was racing with what I had seen/gone through and wanted to be back in the ‘mandap’ asap. But being an unathletic person that I am, I crashed in a makeshift bed in the Janwasa and was dreaming big time in my deep sleep. Somewhere around 2AM, one of my cousins came and started waking me up mentioning that my presence was required in the ‘mandap’ for some marriage ritual. I was still in a somnambulant stage to analyze what was happening, I just put my blazer on and went to the nearby ‘mandap’. And behold – I saw Sonu with the entire gang of hers already present in the mandap with the entire mandap brightly lit up and the saat pheras ritual in full swing. It turned out that I was called there to help out the groom save his shoes which were being targeted by Sonu’s gang as part of ‘Juta chori’ ritual which is a lighter side of an otherwise boring marriage rituals. The scene was straight out of ‘Hum Aapke hai Kaun’ movie with Salman/Madhuri having a similar ‘juta chori’ sequence in the movie. In this whole milieu as I was busy protecting the shoes from the evil eyes of the opposite gang, I was called by a couple of elderly people in the distant corner of the mandap. I thought I may just have to go and touch feet of a few elderly people (a typical routine in such functions and be back asap) but it turned out to be something different – before I could realize what’s happening around, I was being introduced to my prospective mother in law. She said a few nice things which I don’t recall now exactly and waived towards Sonu who was still engrossed in drawing up ‘Shoe’ plans with her gang. Mom in law gestured her to come towards where we were standing. My heart was racing at its pulsating high when all these drama was being enacted out. Both of us just said ‘hi’ to each other when introduced formally for the first time. I could not muster enough courage to keep looking/ staring at her as I was surrounded by at least 4 elderly people from all 4 directions. I just said Namaste to all and came back to my seat. The ‘Juta Chori’ episode was back on track and was played out to the climax where the opposite gang had to concede defeat as they could not lay their hands on the groom’s shoes (though my wife till date disputes this version saying her gang just did a favor by not pursuing the ‘juta’ any further). Whatever it might be, I did steal a few moments in that whole ‘juta episode’ with Sonu and tried to strike a conversation or two with her.

I left for Nagpur in the wee hours of morning after the last ritual of marriage called ‘Bidaai’ (bride’s journey to her new home) and upon reaching there, it was almost official that both of us were engaged. The marriage took place around 3 months later in March 2003 and both of us would always treasure and cherish our first meeting forever in our life. So my son, this is how I happened to meet your mother. And finally, the 3rd and the last morale of the story – chase a girl only if you are good at the ‘Juta chori’ business!!