A Hundred Flukes

Palaces Of The Past

Palaces Of The Past - Chapter 1

Shashi Gupta checked on the preparations for the umpteenth time. He tensed, wiped a bead of sweat from his brow and then smiled. The court yard of Gomti Sadan was full of hustle and bustle. His elder sister Madhumati sang and danced in delight. It was funny to see the old woman indulging herself in such boisterous merrymaking but the event demanded it. It was after all, his daughter's marriage. But he was in doubt, somewhere...."Sahib, taste this, today's special- jalebi", the voice shook him off his thoughts. Shashi Gupta tried his best to hide the disappointment, not caused by the sweet but by the question, was it the last time he was being asked this? He nodded towards the worker and slowly brought a blue file to himself. They were the mortgage papers of his sweetmeat shop- his establishment, his livelihood. Though it was a very small shop in one of the narrow lanes of Lukhnow, but it had brought him respect, reputation and means to sustain.

But he was to part with it to meet up to the dowry demands laid by her daughter's would be in laws. And if he were to give all that he had in one marriage what about the younger daughter's future? The thought made him unsure about his action. He shared his beliefs with his wife Garima who was quick to reject it, calling it inauspicious.

 Inside the room, Payal was in a dilemma, "Should we really do this Khushi?" she asked her younger sibling.

"But of course jiji, I am sure jijaji doesn't even know about what his mother's been saying. I'll talk to him, he'd intervene and marry you without the expectation of dowry....Oh, hell why ain't he picking his phone?"

Payal gave her a confused look.

"Look jiji, I think I should go and talk to him. His hotel isn't that far from here. I'll call as soon as I reach there." saying this she was already half way towards the door. She slipped on her sneakers, went out, sneaked the blue file, waved a good bye, pounced on her rickety scooter and was out of sight within minutes.    

......

"Where the hell is Khushi?" Madhumati screamed. All of a sudden the merry making was brought to a halt.

                                                                   ****

Earlier that morning......

As his chartered helicopter hovered over, nearer to the lush farmlands of Lukhnow, the sight disinterred many memories that had been buried deep inside. Memories that he'd give anything to divorce himself from. And wasn't that exactly why he had brought himself there?

As the chopper aligned itself with the familiar helipad, Arnav Singh Raizada felt something choke his throat. He closed his eyes and immediately cut out the feeling.

An excited rage ran across the throngs of media personnel who had gathered in the lawns of the magnificent building since morning, their impatience increased manifold with every passing moment. The man soon to be under camera glare was no ordinary mortal. Arnav Singh Raizada appeared to be a dream. It had been merely four years since his name was heard for the first time and within that span, the founder/ chairman of AR conglomerate had acquired such a position in the Indian corporate scenario, that according to a joke common in his circles, if ASR sneezed, sensex caught cold. From fashion to fabric to construction, he had hardly left any green pasture unexplored, drawing profits (sucking according to some) from everywhere.

Many had questioned his ethics, tried to bring his ways under scrutiny for how could somebody be so rich in no time? But the young arrogant bastard got away every time. Clean.

For the media, he was no less than a film star- dashing, rich and controversial. He would sell. He did. Indeed, they would encash even on the colour of his tie! What baffled them today was the reason why he had chosen Lucknow. It was amazing, so less could be known about him. Several guards and policemen herded them away, an armed guard rushed to escort him out, he disembarked the chopper, walking towards the building taking long strides, in a crisp white shirt, black Armani suit, black aviator sunglasses and a grey scarf around his neck instead of a tie. The press people showered him with questions, each of which went unheard by the aforementioned.