The Birlas' - PARINAMA

PROLOGUE

At Birla House:

Abhimanyu and Abhir walked down from the terrace with smiles on their faces. Neil saw them and greeted them cheerfully. 

"Sawaari kahan se aa rahi hain? Terrace?" He acted as if he had no clue where they have been till now. 

"Haan Chachu! Bahut achi weather hain. Dida nahi hai ghar pe warna ab tak pakode ban chuke hote" He spoke glumly after giving Neil a side hug. 

"Are woh toh abhi bhi ban sakte hai. Staff ko boldo banadenge woh log. Maa ne unhe sab kuch sikhaya hua hain" Neil encouraged him. 

Abhimanyu cringed at the mention of pakode but shut his mouth willingly. He didn't want to have the whole house turn on him for being unreasonably particular about healthy eating. To be fair to him, he only tried to push them to eat healthy in a hope that at least a few things might undergo a change, but he was so wrong. Even though Manjari tried her best to incorporate healthier ingredients, the dishes that the family members craved remained the same. 

Everyone stuck to their fitness regime and followed it diligently, so he had nothing to complain. He was smart enough to know when to push and when to hold back. He didn't want a rebellion at hand to deal with. He saw Abhir going and asking the staff to make him 'Dida wale pakode' and they obliged and walked into the kitchen. 

"Aise kya dekh rahe ho aap? Baarish mein normal log pakode hi khate hai. Abhir bhale hi aapka beta hai but woh normal hai. Thank God for that" Neil taunted. Abhimanyu just ignored him.

 "Waise bhi aapne punish kiya us bechare ko, rulaya bhi hoga. Itna toh banta hai aur meri mano toh aapko toh khud pakode banane chahiye uskeliye" Neil said and gave him a sly look. 

"Galat toh nahi keh raha hoon na main Bhai?" He teased while Abhimanyu glared at him.

"Tu wahan tha? Tune hamari baatein suni. Abhir ke saamne aise kyun natak kar raha tha?" Abhimanyu asked, irritation evident in his voice. 

"Woh kya hain na Bhai! Main nahi chahta ki woh embarrass feel karein. Kuch cheezein private hi achi lagti hain" Neil answered playfully. 

"Itna sab jaanta hain toh eavesdrop kyun kiya? Tab nahi socha about giving privacy?" Abhimanyu snickered at him. 

"Tab main curious tha na. Itna socha nahi. Yeh sab toh after thoughts hain" Neil sassed back.

"Teri toh..." Abhimanyu reached to whack him but he dodged it. By the time Abhir was back from the kitchen, he could see his father chasing his Chachu all around the house. 

He just loved seeing this side of his father and only his Chachu could get that out of him. Neil saw Abhir and yelled, "Abey dekh kya raha hain? Bacha mujhe" which Abhir royally ignored and sat down to watch TV. 

The last week has been so busy for him, all thanks to his stupid obsession with Biology and misconception that he needed to be a doctor to help his father. Now that he is free of that, his study time has considerably come down and he had more time to spare. He would have loved to play Basketball with his Chachu and Dad but his legs were already done for the day. 

He was surfing channels when a cushion hit him right on his face. He turned to find an angry Neil glaring at him while running away from Abhimanyu. Neil was clearly expressing his displeasure regarding Abhir not picking his side. 

"Kya yaar Chachu! Mujhe nahi padna aap donon ke beech. Abhi toh Dad aapko chase kar rahe hai per suddenly aap donon miljaoge aur mujhpe chad jaoge for picking a side. I have fallen prey to this too often to fall for it again" Abhir exclaimed as he focused back on the TV while Neil smiled at his annoyed face.