........Manik's POV...........
My friends were busy discussing about her when Mukti got a Abhi's call and she informed everyone about his sister's presence at the wedding.. everyone gave a casual reaction to the news shared..but I was numb at my place anticipating what the future holds... Abhi's sister was coming to the wedding..that means SHE was coming to the wedding ..5 years...I would be seeing her after 5 long years...no one in the group knew that she was Abhi's sister except me...I had seen Abhi's picture in her mobile years ago..the impulsive me had made a big deal out of it at that time.. another guy's photo in my girl's phone surfaced the possessive me..I fought with her for no reason... we didn't talk with each other for 2 days...48 hours..I remember how restless we were then and finally after 48 stressful hours she landed up in one of the jamming sessions..held my hand... pulled me out interrupting my session... literally dragged me to the terrace..and forced me to come out with truth behind my irrational behavior and when I told her she donned a serious face and told me that the guy I was getting jealous with was indeed one of the most important person in her life.. she kept praising him...my jealousy was peeking with every passing second and when I couldn't take it I turned to leave.. that's when she held my hand again and said, "yes he is important but you don't need to feel jealous since he holds the same place in my that you hold in Mukti's...he is my cousin"..and with this she bursted out laughing...Oh Man..!!..
Replaying the memory sitting on a couch in my hall, I was finding it so hard to control my emotions in front of everyone.. I was looking for the reasons to leave the hall in order to out pour the emotions overpowering me for if I stay here I won't have an explanation for my sudden outburst since I had never told my friends that nandini is Abhi's sister...I had my reasons for hiding it... anyways just when I was feeling helpless I heard Mukti say "guys nandini is coming for the wedding...she said yes..she has accepted the invite"... I was searching for the reason and here she gave me one..I felt like she heard me even after being miles away and granted me my wish...I won't lie it felt good..I got up and made way to my room..locked the door after entering...I wanted an uninterrupted time with myself to put my messy head back together...I heard Cabir stopping Dhruv and asking everyone to leave me alone..my buddy knew me the best and I mentally thanked God for blessing me with a friend like him...!!
I opened the drawer next to my bed taking out the flute... though everything in my life had a little bit of her in it...but this flute was all hers...she was the only owner of the memories and peace this instrument held..and I too never let anyone else share it or be a part of it..this was solely ours... everything associated with it was only hers...she loved the sound produced by the flute... her lips automatically curled into a beautiful smile whenever she heard flute notes...so I decided to learn how to play flute..I used to wake up at 4 in the morning learn for my lessons..I lied to my friends saying that I had started going for morning walks that summer and they bought the lie too..I played pretty safe with the lie since I knew none of my friends were early risers... after all who would wake up that early after sleeping at 2... everyone one including her were completely oblivious regarding my newly found interest until i played the flute version of Mann ki lagan her favourite song when she returned from her summer break...she was elated...her face was a reflection of the joy that her heart felt at that moment...her eyes twinkled like never before..i felt like my hard work paid off when her lips curled themselves into a beautiful smile that brought unlimited joy to my heart...when I was done playing she asked me why I did that and I cited my love for her as the reason...I don't know why she found my sincere confession cute and adorable and she just pulled my cheeks as if I was a 5 year old with chubby cheeks...I guess she forgot that between us she was supposed to be cute, chubby and adorable while I had to be hot, slender and irresistible..!!
Oh god...Not again...!!...I mentally slapped myself...It was my imagination of her to be someone that she wasn't and my stubbornness to be nothing less than what I thought of myself that led to our fall out... I can't let that happen again...As remorseful as I was of my actions, I was equally angry with her...Agreed..!! ....I was stubborn arrogant monster but then she knew she was the only one who could transform me into a headstrong modest human..but she gave up on me...I knew I had given her pain but wasn't our love worthy enough of a second chance...She left me because I was stubborn but I wonder if she realized that she herself had turned into a inflexible soul...She didn't meet me once when I lost my parents 4 years ago..wasn't that being adamant..??...My friends they messaged her about my miserable state but she refused to budge in...she knew she was the only one who could heal me and fill in the emptiness that I felt but NO...!!...She never came...instead sent her ideas through them...she assumed that I was stupid..So Stupid that when my friends used different ideas to cheer me up, I would think they the ideas are their brain-child and not hers...Well to her dismay I am not that stupid...I knew it right from the start...right when Cabir said we should camping in the woods since he was bored of the monotonous life...or when Mukti and Alya made cheesecakes because they wanted to learn baking or when Dhruv woke me up at 2 at night only to accompany him for a late night bike ride or when Navya decided to tag me along to an Old age home only because she was finding it hard to manage the gifts she had bought the people living there...I knew it..I knew it all..but I guess she didn't know that all I needed to heal was her EMBRACE and not her IDEAS..or May be she knew but was too stubborn to accept it..But in all that I also realized how far she had gone...and I decided to detach myself too...I categorically asked my friends not to discuss about me with her and after a few disagreements they obliged..
My friends loved Nandini...they missed her a lot...Over the years they had cultivated a habit of not agreeing with my decisions easily especially whenever the decisions were related to Nandini in any way what-so-ever...I don't blame them....after the incidents of the past they strictly followed the principle , "Once bitten twice shy"...So though they agreed to my demand they still spoke about her..the messages they sent to her...her replies...they kept her alive in their lives....As for me I "tried" my best to make an cordial atmosphere around without any discomfort...initially it was difficult..but then slowly and gradually I got used to it...
I wouldn't lie after she left, I kept holding on to rope of HOPE for quite some time...but then her aloofness at the time of my parent's death, probably the worst time of my life, somewhat made me indifferent too and I unhooked myself from the rope while my friend were still glued to it...I realized that the different roads we had taken will never intersect at any point...A HARSH REALIZATION but was truthful one..!!
A year later after my parent's death, I met Abhi for an Album contract...I was stunned to see him but as we were meeting for professional reason, I decided not to bring in personal issues...Also by the time I met Abhi, I had detached myself from the worldly emotions including Love..My professional life had acquired the supreme position in my life..Immersing myself in work was my way of not feeling the pain... I did make an effort to be with my friends and extended family whenever I could...Surprisingly I and Abhi became good friends in a short span of time.. Our wavelengths matched...our approach towards work was always professional just the way either of us liked it...Abhi's relationship with Mukti was an icing on our friendship cake...I knew Abhi was perfect for my sister..I somehow had a belief that Abhi would never hurt my sister because if there was one of the things these Murthy siblings were good at was that they never judged anyone based on their past or future..the only valid judging criteria for them was the Present...and at present Mukti and Abhi were best for each other...!!.
Becoming friends with Abhi also gave me an insight to a cruel reality...I realized that me or my friends were not the only ones whom Nandini had left..She left her family too...God..!! This girl..she would drive me crazy one day...What is she punishing them for or for that matter what is she punishing herself for...??....I knew she would be hurting herself being alone but why is she doing that...why doesn't she come back...Why was she pushing herself to into darkness..?? Did she not realize how much her family missed her when they celebrated the success of Abhi's company...Her Amms had tears in her eyes but she wasn't there to wipe them off...Abhi was grumpy all day on his B'day since he wished to have heart to heart conversation with his darling sister but instead ended up having a conversation which was more like a formality....
How can she turn a blind eye towards every emotion and relation..?? I was mad at her for hurting herself...for leaving everyone...for giving up on me...Her absence turned me into a loner...My parents left me...she left me... I "tried" to put up a brave face but everyone around could send the void and emptiness in me...EVERYONE EXCEPT HER..!!....I agree I was the culprit but with whatever that has happened in these 5 years, I am not the only one at fault..!!
I was crying holding the flute in my hand when I heard Cabir saying, "Manik Dude..the video of your yesterday's conference in on TV...they would be playing your new song released yesterday post the conference...we haven't heard it yet..Come down..we want to hear it with you...Come fast...!!"
I placed the flute back in the drawer, went to the washroom, splashed water on my face, composed myself since I knew I have to be really calm when the song plays...because for the first time in 5 years, I had composed a song only for HER...After pulling myself together, I went downstairs to join my friends to listen the song written for NANDINI
.............Manik's POV ends...........
Location - At Nandini's Apartment
............Nandini's POV..........
God.!! .Weddings are seriously a crazy affair...It looks like the hand of the clock picks up the pace and move with faster speed with a wedding around... I couldn't believe it was almost lunch and I haven't done anything concrete in the meantime..nonetheless I cooked myself a lunch and switched on the TV to update myself with the happenings of the world...I was shuffling through the channels when the news flash at the bottom of a news channel caught my attention.."Manik Malhotra releases his new single." ...And my fingers automatically stopped..The channel was telecasting a press conference where Manik was answering the questions posed by the reporters
Reporter1 -A romantic sad song is not really Manik Malhotra's genre..any specific events which led to you to write this song..the reason behind a sudden sad song..??
Manik – Agony...I guess pain and agony are a part of everyone's life...sometimes we get past it and the other times we just get used to it...Someone once told me Pain transmits very quickly (I told him that)....and probably that why I feel this is one emotion that anyone can connect too very quickly and that too at a deeper emotional level.
Reporter 2 – This is also for the first time that your composition has flute playing an important role...Any specific reason for that..??
Manik – Well this song seems to have many firsts..first song on pain...first song I wrote myself....first song with flute in it...I guess at times there are certain memories or thoughts that are only yours and you would not like to share it and therefore I had many firsts together in this one special song...I hope you guys like it..!!
Reporter 3 – In the past whenever you came up with a special song, it was always a dedication, is that the case with song too..??
Manik – Absolutely...like my previous compositions this is also a dedication...A dedication to some someone who brought Flute...agony and wait in my life...!!
.............And my world stopped....Flute and pain..is this a song for me...who am I kidding this is a song for me...Manik had written it himself....An array of thoughts and doubts cluttered my head...I lost the track of the questions and answers still on...I just wanted to listen to the song as I knew the song will have the answers to all my unasked questions...Soon I heard flute notes in the background and I knew my wait was over
Samandar se zyada meri aankhon me aansu, Jaane ye Khuda bhi hai aisa kyun
His magical voice....I knew I could never have enough of it
Samandar se zyada meri aankhon me aansu, Jaane ye Khuda bhi hai aisa kyun
Tujhko hi aaye na khayal mera
Patta patta jaanta hai, Ik tu hi na jaane haal mera
Patta patta jaanta hai, Ik tu hi na jaane haal mera
The song was playing and I sat there numb..yes it was for me....i could sense it... !!
Nit-din nit-din roiyan main, Soh Rabb di na soyan main
Ik tere piche maahi, Savan diyan ruttan khoyan main
Nit-din nit-din roiyan main, Soh Rabb di na soyan main
Ik tere piche maahi, Savan diyan ruttan khoyan main
The words..the words pinched and ached my heart...
Dil ne dhadkano ko hi tod diya, Toota hua seene mein chhod diya
Dil ne dhadkano ko hi tod diya, Toota hua seene mein chhod diya
Khushiyan le gaya, Dard kitne de gaya
Ye pyaar tera
Patta patta jaanta hai, Ik tu hi na jaane haal mera
Patta patta jaanta hai, Ik tu hi na jaane haal mera
The song got over and I had tears in my eyes...I wanted to stop them but they kept flowing....every song that Manik had released in the past took me deeper into the memory lane but this one got all the memories rise to the surface by themselves...I got up from the couch and headed towards my room...I took out my dairy ,scribbled something in it before keeping it back and lied down on bed...I closed my eyes without wiping off the tears because I knew they wouldn't stop that easily NOT THIS TIME...!!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------End of Chapter 5--------------------------------
Most awaited Manik's POV is here...hope you guys like it...!!
The song in the end is the first para of the song "Tu hi na jaane" form Azhar...(lyrical video in the media box)
As a writer this was the most difficult part for me to write....so I am equally nervous...hope it meets the expectations..!!
That's it from me for today...See you guys..Cheers..!!