Kaise yeh yaarian

Part 39

INT. STUDIO – ALBUM PHOTOSHOOT – DAY

Blinding lights.
A stark white backdrop.
Reflectors crowd the space like interrogators.

Fab5 stands in a straight line.

And they look... wrong.

Too polished.
Too controlled.
Like versions of themselves approved by strangers.

Manik's leather has been replaced with a stiff designer jacket — tailored, expensive, lifeless.
Cabir's raw, reckless edge is boxed into buttoned-up "urban chic."
Dhruv keeps tugging at structured layers that don't let him breathe.
Mukti's boldness is dulled, styled into something glossy and curated.
Alia's sharp confidence softened into something safe. Sellable.

They shift. Uncomfortable. Restricted.

The PHOTOGRAPHER circles them, unimpressed.

PHOTOGRAPHER
Relax.
You all look tense.

CABIR
(deadpan)
Because we are.

A STYLIST rushes in, adjusting collars, fixing hair, tugging fabric into place.

STYLIST
This is the look. Clean. Marketable.
Trust the vision.

Manik's eyes flick to the side of the set.

Nandini stands near the monitors, arms crossed, jaw tight.

She hasn't spoken yet.

Nearby, SOHA talks to a LABEL EXEC — mid-40s, confident, distracted.

LABEL EXEC
This sells.
Young. Aspirational. Controlled chaos.

Nandini steps forward.

NANDINI
Controlled is the problem.

The air shifts.

LABEL EXEC
(smiling politely)
And you are...?

NANDINI
The one who knows this band.

She gestures toward Fab5.

NANDINI (CONT'D)
That jacket isn't Manik.
That styling kills Cabir's edge.
Dhruv looks like he's wearing someone else's life.
Mukti's fire's been muted.

She stops. Regroups.

NANDINI (CONT'D)
None of them look comfortable.

LABEL EXEC
Comfort isn't the goal.
Impact is.

NANDINI
Impact comes from authenticity.

The stylist scoffs.

STYLIST
Audiences don't buy authenticity.
They buy fantasy.

CABIR
Then why do we look miserable?

The photographer sighs.

PHOTOGRAPHER
Can we just shoot?

Manik finally speaks.

MANIK
This isn't us.

LABEL EXEC
This is the album launch.
Not a jam session.

Nandini steps closer to the monitor, taps the frozen image of them.

NANDINI
You're selling a band that doesn't exist.