THE NAMESAKE MARRIAGE

THE STUBBORN GRANDMOTHER

3) THE STUBBORN GRANDMOTHER

Shantanu**

The Investors were not happy.

 Damn that girl.

It was so difficult to acquire that land for building the Hotel. The city council took months of persuasion and loads of bribe to sign over the land. That low life girl had to come and create a scene in the office, now the investors are becoming varied of the investment. What if this girl went to media?

The media will not leave a stone upturned to publicize the first ever scandal by the Indira Group of Hotels. A negative publicity was not something Shantanu can afford; especially at this stage of his career.

 Mr. Verma has already given him ultimatum; a single downbeat from the media and he will pull his hands from the project.

Shantanu was not poor by any means, his father and his father and so on had all had good business senses and his family was among richest in India if not in Asia. But this was his project and he wanted to take this step with investors and not his parental heritage.

He pulled off his suit jacket and sat in his chair thinking of the best way to silence the girl without drawing attention, when his intercom buzzed. It was his secretary.

“Yes Sheila”

“Sir, It’s your grandmother and she won’t take no for answer.” She said. Sheila has been his secretary from the time he began working in his father’s office. She was of her mother’s age and it showed in the whites of her hair and wrinkles on her skin, unlike his mother who liked to behave like a twenty year old.

“Put her on line.”

“Yes Sir”

A beep sounded followed by the crispy voice of his grandmother.

“So Mr. High and Mighty do you have time for your old grandmother or I need to make an appointment with the reception.”

“Sorry Dadi-ma I was very busy with all the paper work here.”

"Don't try to play with your grandmother Shan; I know all your ploys. And what's going on with you and this orphanage, are you trying to demolish it." 

Shantanu pinched between his eyes "Who told you about that Dadi-ma?"

"I don't need anyone to be a tattletale to know what's going. You listen, young man and listen it clearly you won't take an orphanage down. This not the kind of man I raised you to be, and you are going to apologies to that girl you behaved so rudely to."

"Dadi..."

"No Shan not a word. Building a project is a different thing but disrupting life of little girls is not something I'll allow, at least not in my watch. The orphanage stays." 

"But grandma..." he started to protest but she had already cut the line.

Throwing the receiver on the land line he marched out of his office

"Who told my grandmother about the drama yesterday?" he roared to his employees.

Everybody froze in where they were.

The receptionist looked up at him with her eyes saucer wide "Sir, she called when that girl came and heard all that happened and demanded to be told what was happening and why a girl was shouting at you."

"Next time she calls you directly transfer her to Sheila. Back to work everyone and Raman you, in my office" 

Six hours later the plans for the hotels were under change and the work of construction delayed for the time being. Shantanu was really angry at that girl; she had cost him loads of money. It was her safe heaven wasn’t it, that orphanage. Now he'll show her what a Hell is. No one walks over Shantanu Aacharya without scars and horrors to show for it. 

Tomorrow will be the best and the worst day of her life or we can say the beginning of worst days.