Dhara, Suman and Gaumbi gave each other significant looks, everything they were seeing sent off warning bells in their heads. Things they should have known about before, but here they were, with these two goofballs having made a mess of their lives and relationship. Nevertheless, they fixed their eyes back to the screen, as Raavi and Krish's comically altered face loomed in the projector screen.
"Dekh, ye filter use karega, toh, you will look like a unicorn, but swipe left, you have animal filter. But you can combine the effects and the filters...Then you hit the send button above to send to your friends."
"Raavi Di, apka phone bahut cool hai. Ma aur Gaumbi said I have to wait another year before I get a cell phone..." said Krish wistfully, before turning on his puppy dog eyes and asking if he could play with her phone.
Just then Shiva barged into Raavi's room, in his sweats and ganji. Raavi slid off her bed, walking to him, and said "Shiva? Kya kar raha yahan?"
Krish holding the phone was recording them, quietly whispered, "ab bomb phootega...dekhte rahiye Star Plus pe" and giggled at his own wittiness. With Raavi's back to the camera, Shiva's stormy face conveyed his annoyance at her.
"Where do I start?" said Shiva sarcastically, ignoring Krish, starting to tick off a laundry list of items that bothered him about her.
"First, Don't touch my stuff - you rearranged my cupboard, again, and now, I can't find my soccer uniform."
"Mujhe faila hua cupboard nahi pasand. How can you even FIND your stuff in that mess? Phatichar kahinka" countered Raavi.
"Apna gyaan apne paas rakh, mujhe ab soccer practice ke liye late ho raha hai, abhi mujhe mera soccer ka uniform nikal ke de" said an annoyed Shiva, ready to drag her out of her room.
"Take my organizational tips.... And if you looked carefully, your soccer uniform is in the bottom drawer. Iss nek bande ko thank you bolne ki bajah, tu saasuma ki tarah nooks nikal raha hai."
"Saasuma? Main tujhe daily soap ki saasuma lagta hoon?" he huffed angrily, as she nodded earnestly as Krish giggled in the background. "Haan, bhai, I agree with Raavi Di. You sound like Kokila ben from Saath Nibhana Saathiya, scolding her bahus."
He threw a wayward glare at Krish, took a deep breath, and asked, "Second, you didn't come to school today, and why is that?"
Raavi went on her tippytoes and whispered something in his ear, and he nodded understanding, immediately. But he continued berating her, "Third, because you didn't show up, you almost missed campus visit made today by one of your shortlisted universities."
"How do you know my shortlisted universities?" asked Raavi curiously.
"Gadedhi...tu woh sab chod..." started Shiva, but seeing her mulish expression, he said, "tu aur Hetal yehi bak bak toh karte rehte ho."
"Its not at the top of my list," said Raavi shrugging, implying she didn't worry too much about missing the campus visit, "but what do you mean almost..."
At Shiva's silence, she pressed, "Almost...?"
At his continued silence, Raavi threatened, "Shiva, tell me, otherwise, I will organize the shit of your room... I am warning you now. Forget your soccer uniform, you will need a flow chart to find your bloody school bag."
That did the trick, because he casually said, "Someone accidentally dropped the soccer ball, then he tripped, kicking it across the Main Hall where they were set up for campus visit...so naturally due to the resulting chaos, they will have to come back next week, and share space with another university."
"This happened... accidentally?" asked Krish curiously, behind Raavi's phone.
Glaring at Krish, Shiva said, "none of your business!"
"Answer Krish's question.... And were you there?" persisted Raavi.
"Why the questions?"
"I mean if he had the soccer ball with him, then maybe it was a member of the soccer team," said Raavi, and experimentally suggested, "it can't have been YOU, so maybe Amit or Arjun. But I will personally thank who ever helped me and take them out for coffee date. A nice kiss on the---" she was cut off as Shiva yanked her muttering that she start by helping him find his uniform in the mess she left his room.
Hetal looked at her dumb friends standing in the corner, shaking her head. It was obvious that Shiva had ruined one of the universities' campus visits, yet both her stupid friends were looking at the floor, finding the old design much more fascinating.
The video playing on the projector screen shakily shifted this time to the aangan of Pandya Niwas where a phone was jerked and swerved. Hetal's high pitched voice warning, "Krish, phone de! Nayi hai!"
"Wahi toh, Hetal didi, nayi hai, toh nayi games, app aur camera! Apne chotu Krish ko khelne nahi doge?" Krish pouted.
"Bilkul Raavi jaise nakhre hai tumhare! Theek hai, par wapas dena without breaking or DON'T LOSE IT!" warned Hetal.
Armed with a phone, Krish took turns playing all the games on the phone, and went around filming the house, decorated for Diwali, taking videos of everyone who had the misfortune to cross his path.
"Raavi Di,Main ab aapke pas hi rahunga... sab log busy hain. Say Hi!" said Krish, as seventeen-year-old Raavi was walking out of the kitchen. "Hi Krishu, of course tu mera saath reh sakta hai. Pann, pehle bata kahan hai, tera gadehda bhai, Shiva?"
"Abhi abhi bedroom gaya hai!" said Krish who liked to follow his Raavi Di, around, the least objectionable person in his world. "Shiva!" said Raavi walking into Shiva's room, as if she owned the place. "Dhara Bhabhi kehti hai room main jaane se pehle knock karna chahiye." said Krish innocently following Raavi.
Raavi narrowed her eyes and said "Sahi hai, but yeh Shiva ka room hai. Mujhse kya sharmana."
"Chipkali, ahhh, shit! dafa hoja" said Shiva wincing in pain, his skin sweating.
"Kya hua? Dikha mujhe." said Raavi walking to Shiva and blotting his forehead with her dupatta. "Kuch nahi, tu bas ja yahan se." gritted Shiva.
"Raavi di, Shiva is bleeding, there is a stain there." said Krish, pointing to Shiva's back. "Dekh gadedhi, tu jaa, aur iss 2 Rs. Doctor ko bhi leke jaa. Main sambhal loonga. Tu kuch ulta seedha karegi, aur mujhe seedhe hospital jaana padega, aur karche badenge," said Shiva, shuddering in pain.
"Bakwas karliya? Ya kuch aur baaki hai? Nahi nahi, bolo bolo. Dard ho raha hai, phir bhi South ka hero baana hai. Kabhi toh Chattan Pandya se Common Sense Pandya bann ke dekh," said Raavi, simultaneously turning him around and grabbing the hem of his shirt.
"KYA KAR RAHI HO?" yelped Shiva. "Dekh rahi hoon. Krish, mujhe cupboard se First Aid kit leke de." said Raavi calmly. "Shiva, ye shirt nikal, it may get infected. Waise bhi tu kaunsa Ranveer Singh hai" said Raavi checking for other bruises, as Krish sniggered.
Krish came back to give the First Aid kit because a shirtless Shiva and Raavi were back in focus. Raavi took Dettol and cleaned the affected area. Shiva balled his fists and repeatedly hissed in pain.
"Bahot dard ho raha hai kya?" Raavi asked her voice full of concern.
"Nahi nahi, bahot hi aacha rag lag raha hai. Tu ek kaam kar, sara Dettol mere upar phek ---OW!" yelled Shiva. Breathing deeply, he spoke again, "Waise tera kya kaam hai mujhse, ki tu mera izzat lootne pe aayi?"
"Hai kuch kaam... baad main kitchen me milna." said Raavi.
After disinfecting the area, she applied Burnol, bandaged the wound with Krish's help. Raavi asked, "Ye kaise hua?" Shiva didn't reply at first, when Raavi pinched his shoulder, he said, "ow! Pandya Store had an extra shipment of rice. Because it wasn't our fault, they gave us a discount, and I decided to unload all the products myself. It was a sweltering day; I was working without a shirt and jute bags were really rough..."
Duffer, muttered Raavi, as she packed up the First Aid kit and went to his cupboard. She picked out a kurta set and threw it at his face. "Pehen lena. Aur neeche chalo, patake bhi jalana hai." said Raavi.
Facing the camera in selfie mode, "Raavi di, agar mujhe chot lagegi, kya app meri aise hi patti karoge?" asked Krish with wide eyed wonder.
Raavi smiled, bent to kiss Krish's cheek, and said, "Haan mera Krishuuu."
As Raavi left, Krish dramatically held his cheek and said into the camera, "My first kiss", to which Shiva whacked him in the head and left his room.
"Kahan jaa rahe ho, Bhai? Koi mujhse khel nahi chahta" whined Krish following Shiva. Reaching the kitchen, Shiva barked "Tu nikal yahan se aur phatake phod," and went inside. As Krish was leaving, he peeked thru the grilled kitchen window, he saw Shiva and Raavi arguing, "Ab hoga dhamaka!" said Krish relishing the prospect of having something incriminating of Shiva to be used as leverage later. He zoomed the camera, to eavesdrop on their conservation. The voices were hazy; cutting in and out, but the video was clear.
It seemed Raavi was scolding Shiva holding a ladle, ".... Itna practice aur bahut kaam karta hai... school library main sota hai..." to which Shiva stepped in closer to Raavi, grabbed her by the waist, and retaliated with his unclear choice words.
Raavi coolly looped her arms around his neck and her threatening voice floated, "... low marks... university selection... Dhara Di."
At the mention of his beloved Dhara Bhabhi, Shiva visibly cooled and backed off. Satisfied that her threat worked, Raavi went and grabbed him a cup of gajar ka halwa and handed it to him. Watching Shiva eat ravenously, impulsively, she tussled his hair, leaned in, and pecked the side of his nose.
"Ab hoga dhamaka!" repeated Krish into the camera, in anticipation of a fight. Right on cue, "Ayy Gadehdi, baal kyun kharab kar rahi hai? Aur agar koi dekh lega toh? Meri izzat ki band baj jaati..." yelled Shiva, irritated and trying to fix his hair. Raavi just laughed and left the kitchen.
The screen went blank and appeared back to life with Hetal filming the Pandya family. The whole Pandya family along with Raavi were celebrating Diwali outside their house. Shiva, Krish and Raavi were lighting up fistfuls of firecrackers, ground spinners, fountain crackers at the same time and ran back to watch the colors blast into the air.
As Hetal caught the lighthearted moments that would one day become cherished memories; the camera also captured Shiva holding Raavi's arms and straighten her after she stumbled, running back after lighting the fireworks.
Sumanlooked at Shiva intently, realizing that their relationship was a lot deeperthan anyone had known until this point. It was obvious to her that Raavi andShiva were taken in by each other since they were teenagers. It was clear toher that Shiva was aware of his feelings for her but looking at Raavi; whileshe was always in Shiva's periphery, it was unclear whether she understood herfeelings at all. Suman looked down and disdainfully clucked her tongue. Pyarke chakkar main mere bete ki zindagi barbaad hone wali hai. Main ab uskizindagi track pe laaungi. She caught Dhara's eye; her oldest bahu gaveher a look to say, look what you are doing – can't you understand your son,now? Suman looked away rejecting her plea. She knew what was best for herson.