Next day, Rahul looked for his dad at breakfast.
"Mom... aaj dad breakfast nahin le rahey" Rahul enquired
"Nahin beta...wo aaj morning ki flight se Chennai gaye hain....2 din mein aayenge"
"Mom....phir main aapsey kuch kehna chahta hoon..." before Rahul could say anything, his cell rang, "Hello....haan Mr Chopra....aap Mumbai kab aaye?....meeting?....haan aaj hi 9 baje mil lete hain....OK see you in a bit..." Rahul hung up, picked his bag and jacket and left for an important meeting. This was a crucial deal and Rahul, who had a habit of forgetting everything else when faced with work, forgot about Armaan and Riddhima at that moment.
HOLI PARTY AT THE MALIK'S
The Malik's threw their annual Holi bash at their house. They invited all their family, friends and business contacts for this function. They always had live music, a band, lots of color and water balloons to play with, and of course tons of alcohol and bhaang to drink!
The Gupta's got ready to attend the party this year. Shashank and Billy had decided to announce Armaan and Anjali's wedding at the party, but they had kept this a secret from the rest of the family, as they wanted to surprise everyone. Padma, Anjali and Riddhima all got ready in their crisp white clothes to leave, they wanted to be there on time as was expected of future "samdhis."
Armaan saw the Gupta's entering from the gate. His face lit up when he saw how pure and angelic Riddhima looked in the white salwaar kameez. He went ahead to greet the Gupta's. Padma blessed him as he touched her feet; Shashank embraced him and put color on his face as Armaan returned the favor by coloring Shashank's face also. Anjali then took some color and put it on Armaan's cheeks. Armaan put some on her face also. Before he could approach Riddhima, Muskaan called for Armaan, "ARMAAN! Jaldi aao...ek zaroori baat hai..."
Armaan turned around without putting any color on Riddhima.
"Kya baat hai bhabhi...main Riddhima ko rang lagaane hi wala tha...." He walked towards Muskaan.
"Armaan.... dad or Guptaji aaj tumhari aur Anjali ki shaadi announce karney waale hain...." Muskaan whispered so no one else could over hear.
"Parr...bhaiyya toh dad sey baat karney waale the na..."Armaan looked worried
"Tum apney bhaiya ko toh jaante ho.... he is an absent-minded professor.... wo Chopra industries ke contract ki wajah sey he completely forgot.... he just remembered when he overheard dad and Gupta uncle talk about it.... ab kya karein...??" there was an unusual urgency in Muskaan's voice.
Armaan stared at Billy and then at Riddhima, "Bhabhi...leave it to me.... ab main hi kuch karoonga..."
Muskaan tried to stop him as Armaan could be impulsive at times but he had vanished from her sight.
Armaan went up to the stage and announced, "Aaj Holi ke shubh avsar parr main apney singers sey ek gaana sun na chahta hoon.... this song is dedicated to the woman I love...and will always love..." he smiled and looked in the direction of where Riddhima and Anjali were standing. They were both together, Anjali gave a big grin as she was confident that Armaan meant it was her; Riddhima just blushed, the color of the holi rang blended with the color of her cheeks....
Here is the song:
"kehna hai" sung by Kishore Kumar from "padosan"
Kehna hai kehna hai
(Kehna hai kehna hai aaj tumse yeh pehli baar
Ho tum hi to laayi ho jeevan mein mere pyaar pyaar pyaar) -2
Tum se kehne waali aur bhi hai pyaari baatein -2
Saamne sab ke bolo kaise keh doon saari baatein
Aaj magar bas itna hi karna hai ikraar
Tum hi to laayi ho jeevan mein mere pyaar
Kab se dil ne mere maan liya hai tumko apna -2
Aankhen meri dekh rahi hai jaagte sochte sapna
Mere gale mein daal rahi ho tum baahon ka haar
Tum hi to laayi ho jeevan mein mere pyaar pyaar
Kehna hai kehna hai
....
...
Shashank and Padma came and stood next to Anjali as the song played on. Shashank had his arm around his daughter as if congratulating her on a big achievement. Billy and Ananya looked at each other; Billy whispered in Ananya's ear, "lagta hai...Armaan ney Anjali ko finally select karr liya..."
Rahul looked apologetically at Muskaan, who was still upset with her absent-minded husband, and touched his ears. Muskaan said, "I hope Armaan does not do anything to embarrass Riddhima..."
As soon as the song finished, Armaan took red colored "holi rang" in his palms and walked towards the direction where all the Gupta's were standing.
He stopped in front of Riddhima and Anjali and looked at both. He took a pinch of the red color in his fingers and gradually lifted his hand......he filled Riddhima's maang with the red color and said, "HAPPY HOLI.... RIDDHIMA.... THE LOVE OF MY LIFE!"
Everyone was stunned. Riddhima did not know how to react; she buried her eyes into the ground.
Shashank's nostrils flared as he looked at Armaan and then Riddhima, "ANJALI! CHALO YAHAN SEY...ITNI BEIZZATTI MAIN NAHIN SEH SAKTHA.... PADMA TUM BHI CHALO!"
Padma was reluctant to leave Riddhima alone but was dragged by her husband. Billy tried to stop them, "Shashank...please wait.... I had no idea Armaan key damage mein kya tha.... please wait."
Shashank was red with anger, "Malik sahib...hum aap jitney bade aadmi toh nahin hai parr humein bhi apni izzat pyaari hai.... I cannot stay here for another second.... I will never forget this insult on my daughter's pride.... yaad rakhiye aap hi yeh rishta lekar aaye the...."
"Parr Shashank Riddhima bhi toh tumhari beti jaisi hai...." Billy pleaded with him
"Beti jaisi hai.... parr beti nahin hai..." Shashank moved Billy's arm from his way and walked out with his daughter and wife.
Muskaan went and rescued Riddhima from the crowd as everyone was trying to get close to the most eligible bachelor's choice. Muskaan walked inside with Riddhima and had her sit on a chair, "Riddhima...don't worry hum sab tumharey saath hain.... Armaan is a little impulsive at times.... wo apney dil ki baat bataane sey nahin darta.... what matters is that he loves you a lot and we are all on your side...."
Riddhima started sobbing, "Didi.... main aisa nahin karr sakti..." she kept sobbing and buried her head in Muskaan's lap. She got up after some time and firmly said, "Didi...main Armaan sey shaadi nahin karr sakti.... main ussey pyaar nahin karti..." Muskaan, who was very perceptive, knew Riddhima was lying.
"Riddhima....tum kuch bhi keh lo....main sach jaanti hoon....Armaan aur tum ek doosrey ko bahut chahtey ho......tum sirf Anjali aur apney mausi-mausa ke darr sey aisa keh rahi ho.....main jaanti hoon tum kisi ko dukh nahin pahuncha sakti....yeh maine pehli mulaqat mein jaan liya tha....yaad hai tum uss ghayal pakshi ko kaise sambhal rahi thi....?.....We are here to support you..." she hugged her and kissed her forehead.
Outside, Billy and Armaan were having a heated discussion as the guests were partying oblivious of what was going on.
"Dad...aapney kaise soch liya ki main Anjali sey shaadi karney ko tayyar hoon.... maine Khandala mein hi aapko bataa diya tha...."
"Parr beta Anjali is a better fit for our family.... she can join the family business and be a big asset for all of us.... I think you are just getting carried away by Riddhima just like you have with other beautiful girls in the past...." Billy was trying to reason logically with his son
"Dad.... aap Anjali ko ek employee ki tarah hire karr leejiye.... I NEED A WIFE NOT A BUSINESS PARTNER!" Armaan had never raised his voice like that in front of his parents.
Ananya intervened, "Billy...thandey dimaag sey socho.... mujhey toh dono ladkiyan pasand hai.... after all, Armaan ki khushi bhi toh dekhni hai.... main Padma sey baat karoongi.... she will explain everything to Guptaji......tum aadmi log jaldi garam ho jaatey ho...." Ananya patted Armaan's back, "Beta....jo tumhey pasand hai.... wohi hoga.... Riddhima is a very nice girl...." She smiled and joined her guests.
Billy also looked at Armaan and calmed down, "OK...son.... I will handle everything..."
Armaan hugged his dad, "Dad.... I am so lucky to have parents like you...."
YOU ARE READING
The First Kiss 💋❤️
FanfictionArmaan is supposed to get married to Anjali but falls for her younger sister Riddhima. What will happen? How will they meet? What problems will they face?
