Making Of A Star

Father

"They were around here when you last saw them, right?" Turning his head to his guards, Chaudhary asked.
After two days of mindless searching on the streets of Bombay, a megacity of 13 million inhabitants, Chaudhary came to his senses that this is not his small kingdom and he is certainly not the king. So, he ordered his guards to take him where they last saw Padma and Trisha, which was the metal gate at the rear of RK studio in the film city.

"Yes sir, they were here. I think they hid inside this studio for a while because we were so close to catching them, but they just took this turn and vanished. There were a lot of people dancing in front of the door too." The guard briefed him on the situation.

"Hmm.. okay let's go inside, maybe someone remembers them but before that, remember to act civil. They don't need to know about our intentions" Chaudhary said calmly, carefully hiding his gun in the inside pocket of his coat as he did a subtle inspection of the surroundings.

Threading their fingers through their hair to appear more civil, the guards nodded and followed their master through the gate. A security guard was standing in front of the studio beside the marble wall on which, in big letters, RK studio was engraved.

"The studio is closed today, are you all in continuation?" Upon watching the balding man in a fancy suit, drenched in gold rings, chains and quite a noticeable brooch at the front, the security guard mistook the fallen king, currently out of his realm, for a junior actor in continuation. This really did aggravate Chaudhary and his loyal pets in a chain reaction. But simmering down, he replied
"Ah no brother, I-I.." pretending to whimper a little, he rose his hand to wipe off his fake tears.

"I can't find my wife anywhere, she was here-" taking out a photo out of his pocket, he walked towards the security guard, further continuing his act
"She was here when she last called me with our daughter, but then she didn't return home" holding the photograph of Padma and Trisha in front of the security guard's face, Chaudhary asked him

"Have you seen her?" After inspecting the photo for a few seconds, the guard's eyes lit up

"Yeah-yeah, I've seen her, don't worry brother, I saw her two days ago with this kid, she was in that building with Rumi, I think she came here for an audition" The guard said reassuringly, pointing to the nearby studio.

"Ohh she was with Rumi...?" Having no idea whatsoever of who Rumi was, Chaudhary just went on with his loving, caring, scared-for-his-wife husband facade.

"How can I be such a fool..." Letting out a chuckle he continued
"But she should've informed me, right? I was so scared, but I think it's my fault, I was the one who didn't give her the permission to act..." slumping his shoulders, he shook his head a little.

"It's not your fault, brother. You seem like such a genuine and caring husband. I think Rumi would know where they are" The security guard said with a comforting smile.

"But I've never been to Rumi's home, I know the locality, but not the exact address-" he got interrupted as the security guard placed his hand on his shoulder
"You know that she lives in Devanand Nagar, right? Just go there and ask anyone, everyone knows where that loud lady lives." The guard said, a blush making it's way on his cheeks as he recalled his last encounter with the curly haired woman, with the big fierce eyes and a whimsical humour.

Leaving the guard in his trance, Chaudhary turned to his own guards and smiled wickedly as they proceeded to leave for Devanand Nagar.

-----------------------------------------------------

A day ago at Rumi's Place:

It was night time, when Rumi abruptly left Padma, Trisha and Madhubala back at home after attending a call from his brother. Telling them that she would be back soon with a surprise.