INSEPARABLE I

XXI

Observing the atmosphere to be much more relaxed now, Gulab spoke up. "Noor..." She began. "Let's have boli (a couplet). Now that you guys have been blessed by both of your mothers, I think a few boliyan are overdue from you two...what do you guys say?" She looked around at their friends.

A cheerful agreement was the response from the group.

"Go for it, Noor." Prem's mother leaned in towards Noor this time. "Show them all." She said looking up to scan the crowd of both the pleased and displeased alike. "Make sure the boli is explosive. The type that can only come from Jageer Kaur Dhaliwal's daughter-in-law."

Noor smiled, pausing to think for a moment. Settling on just the right boli, she cleared her throat and proceeded to draw her embroidered chunni over her face. Prem too smiled, shifting a little to get a better look at his wife.

"Shava ghund chuk ke...(when I lift my veil)" Noor sang gradually lifting her chunni and revealing her face. "Ve ghund chuk ke, (when I lift my veil)" She repeated mesmerizing her audience with her stunning expressions. "Pavan jadon boli ve mein giddhe vich uth ke, (and sing a boli in the giddha (a type of dance performed mostly by women))". She made a rhythmic clapping gesture with her hands imitating the dance form she was referring to in the boli. "Amberan ton taare peinde dig dig tut ke. (The stars start breaking off of the night sky.) Dekh chann nu tareli thandi aayi raat nu...(the moon itself broke into a cold sweat last night). Noor pretended to draw the moon in a corner above her head before wiping the pretend sweat from her forehead. "Ve agg paniyan ch' haniyan main layi raat nu... (I set the waters on fire last night)." She sang the chorus making an upward wave motion for flames and then looked at Prem as if she were telling him the tale. "Ve sachi paniyan ch' haaniyan main layi raat nu, (I truly set the waters on fire last night)." She repeated the chorus as the girls around her excitedly joined her and sang along.

"Sounds like the daughter-in-law of the Dhaliwals." Prem's mother said eyeing Noor in awe. She made an evil eye removing gesture from Noor's temples to her own before removing yet another piece of jewelry and placing it into Noor's lap. This time it was a ring from one of her fingers. Noor made an attempt to say it wasn't necessary but Lady Dhaliwal silenced her right away.

In that moment, Noor exchanged a look with Prem expressing her inability to believe the surreal love, honor, and acceptance being bestowed upon them. He looked back at her in a similar expression.

"Prem. Your turn." Prince Udam called on Prem. "Give us something that can only come from a Chief." A charming smile sat on Prem's lips as the crowd cheered.

He was silent for a moment as he traced his eyes from the Prince to Noor and then to their circle of friends. "Now.." He cleared his throat looking down in a shy smile, "I'm usually a pretty humble guy but..." he looked up slightly to set his eyes on Noor before singing, "tere utte, tere utte duleya phire, pachiyan pindan da Sardar kuriye (the Chief of 25 villages is crazy for you, girl)".

"Aaye hayeee!" One of his maternal cousins let out from the visibly elated group. "You tell 'em, Sardara!"

Noor too lowered her eyes in a shy smile. There was something about the bliss in this moment she couldn't quite fathom. Her cheeks hurt from smiling so hard. Her heart swelled in pride with the knowledge that Prem's boli spoke the truth. He truly was the most noteworthy man in the area and he was all hers. The greatest joy, however, came from the fact that they were able to sit in public and say that to one another out loud. And then, the question mark hanging over the longevity of this joy crossed her mind and her heart sank. She wondered how long this joy would last...

"Noor..." Gulab called on her snapping her out of her trance as the response to Prem's boli began settling. "Any response?"

"Well..." Noor spoke mentally shaking herself out of the negative thought. She also scanned her audience for a moment before glancing over at Prem. She had just the response for him. "If he's the Sardar of 25 villages then...Jatti pachiyan, jatti pachiyan, jatti pachiyan murabbeyan wali, hath ch' rumal rakhdi... (the landlady has 25 murabbe (250 hectares) of land to her name, she's so fancy that she's always seen carrying a handkerchief)".