Married in Love

1. The First Meet

*Purely Fictional Story*

__________________

In the year 1990

Amidst the bustling streets of a posh locality in Madras sat an independent house with bougainvillaea trees arching on either side of the big black gate. As a fiat car approached the gate, the watchman swiftly moved to manually open the gate wide and to let the car in.

The car drove a few metres on the driveway and stopped behind another parked fiat car. Hearing the sound of the gate and the car, Murali came out of the house, clad in a smart shirt and veshti. He was closely followed by his wife, Sandhya, who was dressed chicly in a brown kanjeevaram saree. They waited for the people to alight from the car and walk towards the steps of the house.

"Vaanga Ananth. Vaanga Sundar." Murali extended his hand for a firm handshake with the young lad Ananth, and then to Sundar, who was similar to his own age. He then turned to the slightly elderly lady and welcomed her with his palms folded in respect. Meanwhile, Sandhya was already holding the lady's hand and was patting the shoulders of the two young girls who had just made their way around the car.

"Vaanga maa. Vaanga pasangala. Ulla vaanga." Sandhya ushered them all inside the house where the fans were already kept running for the comfort of the guests. The elders sat on the cushioned seats while the two young girls sat on the dining table chairs that had been arranged near where the adults sat.

Sandhya nodded her head at a caretaker near the kitchen door and the lady, understanding the gesture, quickly moved into the kitchen to bring out the refreshments. Water and juice were offered to the guests as a respite to the late-afternoon heat, along with snacks. And then, to ease the situation, Sandhya initiated the main conversation.

"Sadhana mela room la ready aagara. Neenga vandhadhum keezha vara sollalam nu dhan wait pannom. Koopdava?" Sandhya asked the elderly lady, Radha.

"Adhuku dhane vandhom! Koopdunga ma." Radha replied, with a wide smile. While Sandhya went up to bring her daughter down, the two young girls sat erect on their seats with eager eyes - for this could be the moment they first see their potential anni. They started whispering between themselves while Radha was giving them a stern look which told them to behave themselves. Soon their voices drowned in the noise of the loud conversation between Murali and Sundar, who seem to have been talking about mutual acquaintances.

In all this commotion, no one paid attention to the poor lad who sat there with visible anxiety. Ananth had never been in this position before. This was the first alliance that had come ever since his mother had brought up the topic of his wedding two weeks ago. He had expected these things would take time. Alas, here he was, already ready to see a bride for him. He meddled with the strap of his watch, patted the crease off his black pants, and adjusted the hem of his tucked-in peach coloured shirt. He was about to play with the cuff of his shirt around his wrist but his attention was caught by a movement on the stairs.

A slender hand adorned with orange and green bangles slid along the handle of the stairs but the owner of the hand stayed hidden from his view.

It was the bottom pleats of her rust-coloured sari that he caught sight of next as she turned on the landing of the stairs before she descended the next set of stairs to the hall where Ananth was seated. With each step that she took, his eyes were fixed on the size of her small feet and he could not help but feel warmth inside seeing her delicate feet. Raising his eyesight upwards, he noticed her one palm resting over the back of her other palm at her hip level.

Wait, did he think she had small feet? Then what would you call her hands?

A thin smile spread on his lips as he lifted his face to observe her face. She had her head down as she descended the stairs, her face tinted with a natural blush. An unruly strand of curly hair rested on her cheek, while strung malli poo rested on her delicate skin on each side between the green blouse and her neck - neck which was showing signs of gulping down her anxiety.

Assured now that he was not the only one in tension, Ananth relaxed a bit and settled back in the seat - he had not even realized that she had already brought him to the edge of this seat. Thankful that the rest of them also had had their eyes on her and not on him, he took a quick look at her and turned his attention to her father, lest Murali thinks something ill about him.

On cue, Murali caught Ananth's eyes and spoke to him, "Ananth, meet Sadhana, ennoda ponnu."

Mentally chiding her husband, Sandhya quickly intercepted the conversation and steered Sadhana towards Radha. Immediately, Sadhana raised her hands in respect and made eye contact with Radha with a shy smile.

"Vaa da, okkaru" Radha pointed to the chairs that her daughters had vacated in excitement. Taking the one closer to Radha, Sadhana eyes wavered between the floor and Radha's face. "Azhaga iruke ma." Radha complimented her, patting her hand.

Taking a moment to study Sadhana's face, Radha turned to Sandhya "Sandhya, unga ponnu romba chinna ponnu a iruka. Avaluku ippove kalyanam pannika sammadham a? En pyyanuku muppadhu vayasu, Sadhana ku ippo dhan iruvathi onnu. Ungaluku indha vayasu vidhyasam thodhupadutha? [is it acceptable?]"

Ananth went into alert mode hearing this question, for somehow the past few minutes had made him a vested person in this. He looked at Murali expectantly.

"Ippove kalyanam panni aaganum nu naanga mapla thedala ma." Murali addressed Radha. "Nalla varan a vandha paakalam, illena post graduation padikattum nu dhan yosichom. Aana Sundar unga pyyan varan a eduthutu vandhadhum, engaluku romba pidichu pochu."

Murali reached across and patted Ananth's shoulder "Chinna vayasulendhu Ananth ku appa illa, porupa padichu, kudumbatha paathukararu. Ippo Madhya Pradesh la oru university la economics lecturer a irukaru. Idhellam kettadhum, naanga impress aanom. Self-made person a irukaaru. Adhan engaluku romba nambika kuduthuchu - indha kalyanam nadandha nalla irukume nu. Of course, namma pasanga dhan mudivu pannanum final a" he concluded, nodding his head at his daughter.

Radha then shared their side of the story "Sundar a engaluku romba varsham a theriyum, enakku thambi maari. Avarum idhu nadandha nalla irukum nu sonnaru, avaru car laye kootitu vandhutaaru. Suthti valaikaama sollaren, naanga ivalo vasadhi illa ma" she waved her hand around and turned her position towards Sadhana again. "Ellathayum yosichuko da. Nee enga veetuku vandha naanga romba sandhosha paduvom, aana idhu un vaazhaki, adhunaala nalla yosichu mudivu pannu. Seri a?" She pressed her hand softly on Sadhana's hand and gave her a smile.

Sandhya felt a sense of relief that her daughter's potential mother-in-law was considerate of her daughter's future, and she responded. "Illa ma, idhu avaru Central Government employee nu kudutha guesthouse. Neenga vareenga nu dhan naanga inga vandhom. Naanga Delhi la dhan ippo posting la irukom. Engaluku posting maarite irukum. Adhan ivala oru edathula settle pannita, iva adhuku apparam padikaralo, illa velai ku poralo, avalum ava husband um decide pannikatum nu yosichom."

The minute he heard the word 'husband', Ananth's cheeks flushed. He could not believe his thirty year old face was capable of reddening. Heck, this alliance was not even finalized, yet he somehow felt that the reference was to him. He tried to look at Sadhana for her reaction but the lass had her eyes fixed on Radha.

It was now Murali's turn to assure Radha "Inga paarunga ma, namma pasangaluku education kuduthurkom. Adhuku mela vanga lifestyle avanga dhan paathukanum, adhuku etha padi ozhaikanum. Pasanga paathupaanga. Neenga kavalai padatheenga."

Satisfied with their responses, and assured simply from the way that the three of them conducted themselves, Radha was relieved. To her, Murali and Sandhya seemed down to earth, and instantly amiable. And Sadhana had been emanating good vibes ever since she descended the stairs. On the whole, Radha approved. And it looked like Murali and Sandhya were already vested in this.

Now, it was left to Sadhana and Ananth.

AN: Am going against my OCD of preparing drafts for ALL chapters before I start publishing the FF. Plot iruku, chamatha ezhudharena nu paakalam 😀