Chapter-8 (Taking a Break and Making a New Beginning)
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Sanchi had just reached Vijayawada. She was unpacking her luggage when her eyes suddenly fell on the dupatta Kabir had gifted her. She put it in one corner of her cupboard before placing the rest of her clothes over it. She took a deep breath and had a glass of cold water from the fridge. She had not answered to any of her parents’ questions or Sunny’s queries about how her life in Mumbai was. She had just asked them to leave her alone for some time. They left her without asking her any further questions.
They knew that Sanchi had become like this ever since that first marriage and divorce. One moment she would be so happy and all smiles while the other moment she would become moody and very reclusive. All of them wanted her happiness but didn’t know how to bring it back into her life again. None of them knew that her present mood swings were not due to her past but due to her present. They did not know that she had almost been on the verge of giving herself a second chance with Kabir.
Sanchi began thinking about all that had happened in her life. She always knew that KG was a very complex man. Though he never told her, she could guess that he was like this due to some past hurt or betrayal. She ought to have steered clear of him especially after her first marriage went so wrong. How did she imagine that this relationship of two traumatized individuals would ever work? But her problem was that she always saw the Kabir in KG unlike others who saw the KG in Kabir.
Sanchi’s anger for Kabir had cooled down long back but doubts about the credibility and compatibility of their relationship took over her. She could see that Kabir was reacting only on the spur of the moment to Nikhil’s accusations against her. And KG was reacting to it in the only way he knew when he was faced with betrayal. He reacted in anger while she felt let down when he believed somebody else’s words over hers. She could see all this clearly now. But even this realization was not going to solve any of their problems.
Kabir had anger and trust issues while she had communication issues and the tendency to go into her own shell and live vicariously. Such issues would always crop up if they were thinking of a serious relationship like marriage. Despite all the love they had for each other, their lack of trust and communication would eat away at the vitals of their relationship. Their past baggage would always undermine their relationship. Both of them were most imperfect for each other. Perhaps both of them would be better off with life partners who had no past to weigh them down than with each other.
Kabir would never think about all this in that way but she had to convince him somehow to it. They were such an imperfect couple and their relationship would never stand the test of time in the real world. Sanchi had lied to Kabir when she told him that she was apathetic towards him. She only knew how difficult it was for her to act as though it did not even matter to her when he kissed her or embraced her. Those moments of closeness were etched in her mind forever. Even though she tried to forget them, those memories would not leave her behind.
Sanchi literally quivered within herself and was almost about to give in when she saw Kabir breakdown before her. He wouldn’t have seen or known what she felt because her back was turned towards him. There were tears in her eyes seeing him like this. She quickly brushed them aside because she felt that she had to be strong for both of them and get them out of this entanglement which was neither good for him or her. She was thankful to Veer for this break because she knew that she couldn’t keep this pretence up for long. If she kept meeting him every day, she would give in to her feelings some day or the other. Now Kabir would get an opportunity of forgetting her though she knew that she would never forget him.
They were small and trivial things but they differentiated Kabir from others for Sanchi. They kept replaying in her mind again and again. It was a hot day at the shooting location. She was explaining the next scene to Kabir. She was sweating profusely and in great discomfort. The shooting resumed and Kabir left for his shot while she continued sitting there at the same place. The spot boy Mukund came there and started adjusting the umbrella properly. He told her that KG had complained to him that it was not fixed properly and that he had been feeling very hot since a long time.
Sanchi knew that it was actually not him but she who was feeling hot and uncomfortable. He had been aware of her discomfort and helped her in this way. When she got up from her chair, she found a handkerchief with the initials KG fall from her lap. She stealthily picked it up before it came to Mukund’s notice. She wiped her sweat with it before thrusting it into her bag. Kabir who was observing all this from a distance gave her a knowing smile. It was their little secret. After adjusting the umbrella Mukund came and gave her a tender coconut to drink. He informed her that KG had given him money and asked him to bring tender coconuts for the entire crew and star cast as it was very hot that day.
Another day, both Sanchi and Kabir accidentally came to the NGO at the same time. The administrative officer offered both of them tea. While mixing the tea, she added one sugar cube each to both the cups when Kabir spontaneously said, “Add one more to Madam’s cup. She prefers her tea extra sweet.” Sanchi sounded greatly surprised, “Do you observe even such small things?” He smiled and replied, “Not everyone’s but I do observe yours. I know that you drink one cup of coffee in the morning at home, two cups of tea at the shooting location, one with Veer and the other with me, and one more cup in the evening while you are writing if you are alone or two more cups tea extra if I come to your house. And your favourite tiffin is aloo poori and your favourite flower is red rose.” She laughed and remarked, “Quite the encyclopaedia, aren’t you?”
Back at Mumbai, things were getting very tense between Veer and Kabir at the shooting set. They went across their various duties without even speaking to each other. Their differences were very palpable to everyone on the set. Everybody was missing Sanchi in their own way. She managed to bring the smile on everyone’s face in her own simple, unobtrusive and imperceptive ways. It was no longer fun working on the sets without her. There was hardly any mirth or merriment. None of her colleagues knew that they would miss her so much. They never realized her true value when she was there amidst them. But the two people who missed her the most were Kabir and Veer.
After the day’s shooting was over, KG said to Veer, “I want to have a word with you alone, Veer!” Veer did not give any reply to it. That evening after everyone had left, KG began, “Did she reach Vijayawada safely? She does not speak with me nowadays that is why I am asking you.” He said, “Yes, she’s fine. She reached there safely. Honestly, I must say that you are a very good actor. For a moment even I felt that you were really concerned for her. But I know the truth and I will see to it that she never comes under your influence even after coming back.”
KG retorted back, “I’m concerned for her and that’s the truth. I’ve never influenced her or even tried influencing. Let her decide for herself what she wants when she comes back. Let’s not force our opinions or wishes on her. Let’s try to bury the past and make a new beginning. Everyone at the set is becoming highly uncomfortable. If we go on in this way, this show will shut shop even before she comes back. You too know that this is her dream project and we cannot let it suffer in her absence. What do you say?”
Veer said, “Even I keep trying to tell myself all this, but the only sight I remember before my eyes is her fighting for life and death because she made the mistake of loving you. She may forgive you but not me. I’ve always loved her since our days at the university but I never told her for fear that I would lose her friendship too. Both of us were happy all this while, and one day she would perhaps have realized my love for her, and even accepted it. But then you came into her life and in between us. She fell madly in love with you though I still fail to see what she actually saw in you. I tried to be happy for her sake though I’ve always had my doubts about your worthiness for her. I believed in her belief on you. When she told me that she was going to confess her love to you on your thirtieth birthday, I was very happy for both of you. Do you even realize that she could have even died in that accident?”
KG said, “Veer, I never came in between you and her. Love either happens or it does not. It is as simple as that. She always looked at you as her BFF. Irrespective of whether I was there in the picture or not, she would never have seen you in the romantic sense or loved you back. I’ve done countless love scenes on television with some of the most beautiful women in the industry, but I never thought about them after my scenes with them were over. I never felt for any of them what I feel for her just as she cannot feel for anyone what she feels for me. I know that I’ve made a mistake but I’m trying to correct it. I was badly misled by somebody. Otherwise I would not have suspected her or her love. And my past experiences have been…”
Veer replied, “Don’t bring in that excuse of the past! Your past is never a license to hurt somebody’s present. My friend too had a past. She never went around hurting or insulting people.” KG tried to justify himself, “You would never know Veer how difficult everything was for me, and why I am like this today. You never had to fight for anything be it your footing in the industry or your friendship with her.”
Veer scoffed at those words, “Nobody has anything easy, Mr. KG! I had to fight even to earn my father love, affection, attention and appreciation even though it ought to be mine by right. And do you think this perpetual struggle to prove myself and all these high expectations from me to succeed at all costs would have been there if I did not belong to a media family? If, according to you, everything right from her friendship came easily to me, then even her love ought to come to me easily. But it didn’t; she bestowed it on you. You got her love very easily but couldn’t keep it with you because of your own mistakes. Don’t ever give me that stale explanation of your past!”
KG told Veer, “I know that I was wrong. But I really can’t change what I’ve already done. I can only correct my mistakes for the future. I’m just asking you for an opportunity. You are her BFF and she listens to everything you say. Just ask her to give me another chance.”
Veer asked, “Why should I? If she listens so much to my words, wouldn’t I want to make her my own? How would I know that you will not repeat this mistake again? You past and her past are still the same. So are you going to hurt her again at the first opportunity you get? No, Mr. KG I won’t give you another chance to repeat all this. One mistake is enough for me. From now onwards, I’ll stand in between both of you.”
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So guys thanks for bearing with me and reading this chappy and if you like it please let me know how it is and express your views
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With love~
Rishika❤