Ashu forced to become Ashika

Chapter 5: Learning the Feminine Ways

Scene: Kitchen, morning.

Ashu stands by the kitchen counter, his mother Gurpreet by his side. She demonstrates how to knead dough for chapatis, her movements fluid and practiced.

Gurpreet: (smiling) Ashika, you need to learn these household tasks as naturally as possible. Mandeep shouldn't think low of you.

Ashu watches intently, mimicking his mother's motions, but his attempts are clumsy, and the dough ends up more like a misshapen blob.

Ashu: (frustrated) This is impossible. How do you do it so easily, Mom?

Gurpreet: (encouraging) It takes practice, beta. You'll get the hang of it.

Ashu spends the next few days immersed in the world of chores. He's taught how to wash clothes by hand, the scrubbing leaving his hands rough and fingers sore. Folding the clothes proves to be a challenge too, as he battles to make neat stacks.

Ashu: (grumbling) I never realized how much work goes into these things.

In the afternoons, he joins the women of the house in their sewing circle. He struggles to thread needles and clumsily stitches patterns onto fabric.

Ashu: (to himself) I'd rather be out playing cricket.

As the days go by, Ashu's determination grows. He grinds spices for curries, stirs pots of simmering daal, and meticulously arranges dishes on the table. The daily routine becomes a marathon of tasks, and his respect for what his mother and the women of the house do grows exponentially.

Ashu: (panting) How do you all do this every single day?

Gurpreet: (smiling) It's not easy, beta, but it's what keeps our family going.

Ashu's hands bear the evidence of hisefforts—rough, chapped, and tired. But each day, he pushes himself to dobetter, determined to make the role of "Ashika" believable toMandeep.