Mrinal was barely managing to put up with the long, tiring rituals. He was ready to burst by the time his noisy baraat had reached Guptas’ house, taking forever to walk through a distance of half a kilometer! What had calmed him down was the sight of Antara walking on to the stage for jaymaal. The heavy dress, makeup and jewelry had overwhelmed her persona. She hardly looked like a person, more a showcase of everything that was draped on her. His own sherwani and the few ridiculous accessories that had been forced upon him started feeling very light. Hers were daunting. Still, unlike him, she looked calm and patient. He drew a deep breath and decided to follow her example. But he didn’t let the boys surrounding him to play the usual game of lifting him up and not letting the bride garland him easily. He dutifully bent his head the very first time and accepted the garland amidst a lot of hooting and leg-pulling from the guests about being joru-ka-gulaam.

The actual wedding rituals were to start only late at night. After jaymaal everyone sat down to eat. At the insistence of his cousins and sisters, Antara was brought in the dining hall to join them at the table. Getting to know her was hardly any excuse. They all knew her very well. But that was how everybody did it. So, that was how they wanted to do it too. Antara was still clad in her entire jaymaal ensemble. She was seated beside him. More leg-pulling started. He sat back silently, and she responded mostly with a shy smile and only occasionally protesting the jocular accusations like it was a childhood romance that they managed to keep under wraps all these years. “If that were the case,” she said gently, “I wouldn’t have left Auntie distressed all these years about his wedding.” That drew some appreciative nods and whistles. She had passed the test of wits.

But his patience was to be tested more. When the food came, she didn’t take anything. “Your dinner?” he asked in a whisper.

“I am fasting,” she mumbled almost without moving her lips and keeping her eyes on others on the table, not wanting to be caught in a chit-chat with him.

“What for?”

“Wedding…”

“But…”

She pressed his hand under the table, surprising him, and stopping him from questioning further. Then she removed it hastily. He didn’t realize what effect that brief physical contact had on her!

He found it difficult to eat anything after that. He was generally known to be a withdrawn, not-so-social kind of a person. So, people who were supposed to make sure he was fed well, did not insist as incessantly as they would with any other groom.

“When will you eat?” he sent her an SMS after the dinner was over and she was back in her room.

“In the morning. Please do not worry. I am used to fasting on several occasions. You didn’t eat well. Have something before the rituals start,” she replied.

When she came to the mandap later at night, he could see that she was tired and sleepy, but silent and forbearing as usual. He had been able to take a nap that afternoon, as well as after dinner. So, he wasn’t irritable on that count, at least. He watched partly in concern, and partly in amusement, as she fell asleep through the long mantra-chanting sessions of punditji. There was one moment in which she was fully awake though. When her hand was put in his for panigrahan. He could feel the slight trembling of her hand. Was it excitement? Or was it fear?

At last the rituals were over and they were led to Antara’s room together. Mrinal looked at his watch. It was five in the morning. A bunch of women and girls were following them. Mrinal was surprised that they still had the energy for lengthy, animated discussion over what the next set of rituals should be and exactly how should they be carried out. Antara was worried about how Mrinal would behave during the ritual of dwaar chhekai. She couldn’t imagine him happily arguing and bargaining with her cousins and friends who would demand exorbitant amount of money for letting them into the room. For the ritual of shoe-stealing, his cousins and friends had taken the lead in bantering and negotiations. His father had paid the money and he didn’t have to participate. But this one would be difficult.

The girls started off by asking for fifty thousand rupees. His reply surprised her, “I will not argue and wait silently until you name an amount that I can actually give right away.” He was prepared.

“We will have to ask for a chavanni then,” somebody tried to mock him.

“I had hoped you have better standards, but if that is what you want, I will graciously pay four-times more.”

It attracted some appreciative grunts. After a while they came down to ten thousand rupees. Mrinal took out fifteen thousand in cash and handed it over to them drawing absurd squeals of joy from them. They got sometime alone as the youngsters went off to take some rest and the women got busy preparing for the coming rituals.

He was annoyed that nobody seemed to be concerned about breaking Antara’s fast.

“Here,” he took out a packet of biscuits from the pocket of his kurta and offered it to her, “Eat this until they arrange for some breakfast.”

“Excuse me?” Antara who was wondering whether and what to talk to him about was startled.

“You are hungry since yesterday. I see no food in sight. Eat this.”

“Chachiji  or somebody else will tell me when I should break my fast.”

“I don’t see anyone concerned about that.”

“How can I break my fast with biscuits?”

“This is the best I could manage.”

“Mrinal ji…”

“You were sleeping through the lengthy explanation of wedding vows. So, let me remind you. You have just promised to obey me for the rest of your life. Now don’t break it so quickly.”

“What?” she looked at him puzzled. Was he angry that she was sleepy? But her concerns were laid to rest immediately. He was smiling. She smiled back and shook her head. “You are too much.”

He took her hand and pushed the packet of biscuit in it. “Eat before someone comes, please.”

“You didn’t eat last night either…”

“I had been eating all day yesterday.”

Just then they heard footsteps approaching. Antara grew nervous. Mrinal looked around and hissed, “Go to the bathroom. Eat there…”

“What?”

“Go!” he almost pushed her towards the bathroom.

“Arr… we have left him all alone like that… Where are the girls? Only good for taking money, eh? And where is Antara?”

“She is in the bathroom,” she heard him say. She looked at the packet of biscuit, then at her hand. The hand with which she had touched him last night to stop him from speaking more on her fast; the hand that had been put in his later in the night… She allowed herself a happy smile. And a hope… Of a life where someone would care… He already did. She didn’t need to eat. But she would keep her vow of obeying him, as he had demanded. She grinned as she thought of how he had said that; in such flat voice that she had believed him to be serious for a moment. She opened the packet and started nibbling at the first piece. As soon as she ate one, her suppressed hunger was awakened. She ended up finishing the entire packet. She threw the packet in the dustbin. She made to wash her hands, but stopped remembering that she had touched him with that. She wanted the feeling to linger on. She did not wash, just rubbed her hands together to get rid of crumbs. She checked her lips carefully in the mirror to remove the crumbs before coming out.

—

To be continued