Hi hi hi hi hi hi hi! ;) Thanks for the AMAZING response! Really 50+ votes and 150+ comments :") It is my first attempt and I really didn't expect so much support and enthusiasm from you guys :") Thank you so much for 100 followers! Big milestone for me, believe it or not! So here you go with Chapter 2! :P I'm going to use the YouTube tagline: Vote kijiye, comment kijiye aur share bhi kijiye! XD
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Parth
I was sitting on a couch with Disha and Charlie. Charlie was one of my oldest and closest friends. We worked together once in BFF as best friends too. They both were chatting and I took that moment to await Niti's arrival. Vikas had told me her role for Nandini was confirmed and Charlie was going to play Mukti.
If you were wondering about Disha and me, we were in a very complacent relationship. She was hot, she was a familiar face and the whole dating part came as part of a random hookup. I didn't love her, I guess. I was just possessive of her and she just wanted me, because I could do the right things to her. Whatever.
It was a little weird for me though, when I met Niti for the first time. She was exactly how I'd pictured her in my dream, which is weird enough because I was dating someone else and I shouldn't be dreaming about someone else. Anyways, we were going to be a couple on the show but was it really a good thing? There was just one problem, she was too short!
Ayaz had been fixed for Cabir which didn't come as much of a surprise to me. His jokes were pretty witty. He was a friend of mine since Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya and we got along pretty well. According to the show script, there were four friends, two boys and two girls. Alya, the girl Manik initially had to date, was not confirmed.
Niti ran in a moment later, tossing her bag on the chair nearby and began reading the script. Veebha had to play Navya. There were tons of characters on the show and the theme was purely love and the consequences love could bring. Manik wasn't to enter until the fifth episode or so, which meant I was a spectator for the initial scenes.
"Aarav, come here." Disha pulled me closer for a selfie. I didn't mind a picture but I wasn't the kind of person who would publicly exhibit his love for someone. I was open about my relationship with my close circle, but I was a reserved person by nature. Disha and I were opposites. We fought a lot, but would make up with sex or sometimes steamy kisses but over time, it became complacent. The crew however didn't want to waste my time, so they began shooting my entry sequence.
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Niti
I was secretly glancing at the 'couple' every now and then. Parth was being modest though she was really pretty, but his girlfriend was hyper and all over him all the time. Why didn't he introduce her as his girlfriend? Did he think of me the way I thought of him? "Niti... You're playing Nandini! Here's your script." Vishal Sir, the actual script-writer gave me a handout. I briefly read through, but there was no Manik for the first four pages at least.
I shot a cursory look, only to catch him observing me. Why was he looking at me? Isn't his girlfriend giving him a good enough time, with her hands running along his chest? The fact that he was already somebody else's, brought me back to sanity. Stop thinking about him, it's just a stupid dream.
One thing about dreams is even if it's a mere glance at a person of the opposite sex, it feels too personal and real, almost etching itself into the heart. That explains why I have this weird feeling with Parth even though he isn't mine. This is dangerous, Niti. Don't let a man get to you like this.
I restricted eye-contact, and so did he. I occupied myself with the script I was handed over. So the first few scenes were to be shot with only me, and some guest actors. Good enough, lesser heat to handle. I shot about two episodes worth of my shots all day and then packed up. As I was leaving my vanity, I spotted Parth approaching me. Avoid him, avoid. I walked a couple of steps, without looking up, but neither did I watch out for the ground because before I knew it, I had tripped over the stairs and was about to fall flat on my face. I felt two firm arms hold me just in time, saving me from serious injuries.
"Careful there..." He nudged me to raise my face. I craned my neck awkwardly in the position that I was, my eyes meeting straight with his. Oh God, those eyes! He should've never really revealed them because ever since, they were just too intense to make contact with. A weird feeling stirred inside me, breaking my dreamy thoughts. I stood on my own feet, flustered. Niti, what the hell was that? I looked upwards, through the gap between my eyebrows stealthily to find Parth lost elsewhere, with his hand over his face, taking controlled breaths.
"Thanks." Without turning back, I walked as rapidly as I could, playing with the shoulder strap of my vanity bag. I really wanted to know what was going on, but I couldn't dare face him after that incident. Forget it, just avoid from now. The moments we shared from the first day we spent together eating food now seemed insignificant. He's with someone, you should stop giving into these lame dreams.
I booked a cab and headed home. I rang the doorbell and as soon as it opened, I wrapped my arms around her. "Chandu, chandu, listen!" Parth Samthaan was the first thing I told Chandni when I reached home. She knew about the dream I had and how everything was perfect until his girlfriend came into the picture. She was excited when she heard that we shared a moment together, yet again, though I felt extremely irked.
"Wow! Imagine a handsome man, with ripped jeans showing off his perfect thighs, staring into your eyes with such intensity as he holds you!" She let out a sigh of dreamy sigh. I rolled my eyes as Ador barked and ran into my lap. I gave him a few kisses and some rubs while he sat quietly in my embrace. At least he was mine to keep! Ador, you are not going to fall for anyone baby, okay?
"Yeah, but he's seeing someone. That makes the whole situation weirder." I couldn't be having weird feelings around him when he was already someone else's. "Hey Ni, okay let's forget about him for now, I made pancakes for you!" She hopped to the kitchen and returned with some pancakes and maple syrup. My mouth watered. I was glad she was there with me, to make me such tasty food even when my family was kilometers away, in Delhi.
My parents would occasionally visit. The roots of my family belonged to different communities and their marriage was proof enough that there were no barriers when it came to love. My mother is from a traditional Bengali Christian family and my father was a conventional Gujarati. Neither of them was very fond of Mumbai, after all, they lived in 'Delhi', capital city, blah! I was doing my BA degree here until I took a year gap last month, to work. They weren't pleased with my profession but they trusted me enough to let me do whatever I wanted, and I love them so much for that.
My phone buzzed. You have been added to HINM Team 2014! I checked the message to see what it was, but Chandni snatched the phone, accidentally tapping the 'call' button on Parth's profile.
"Niti, you've got to stop checking your phone. I'm here na?"
"Hello?"
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"Hello?"
We both heard a faint, deep masculine voice. "What's that voice?" She squealed and my eyes shifted to my phone in her hands.
"Chandni, my phone... what! Parth?" I grunted at her and grabbed the phone. Obviously now she needed to put me in more trouble.
"Hello, who's speaking?"
"Pa... Parth, this is Niti!" I shut my eyes closed nervously. I didn't even know what to say. I puffed, making faces at Chandni, while she silently chuckled. Best friends are a pain when it came to such things.
"Oh, hi Niti!" I awkwardly gazed at my best friend in hope for some reason. "What's up?" Why were we acting like we were all 'fine'? Just a few hours ago, we couldn't even look at each other.
"Ahh... Parth, actually... is this a good time to talk?" I could hear football commentary going on in the background, ahh... Manchester United match maybe? I heard him lower the volume of the television. You should've just cut the call, Niti.
"Hey, sure!"
"Yeah, about the scene..." Which scenes did I want to talk about? Say something, Niti! "I had an idea for the upcoming track. Maybe you guys could... group up and shoot for small video segments that reflect on the friendship between F4." He gave it a moment of thought and Chandni showed me a thumbs-up. According to her, the fact that he was ditching a match to talk to me was a clear sign!
"Oh. Yeah, that sounds good! Thanks!"
"Hehe... Yeah... Okay then." My cheeks turned red in embarrassment as we held onto the call in silence. Should I just cut it or would that be too rude?
"Err... would you mind coming a little early to set tomorrow? I was thinking... maybe we could rehearse our scenes together." Our segments in the show hadn't even begun yet. What did he want to rehearse? Chandni was highly impressed by his advance, though. Her approving of men was really rare.
"I'll make sure I get up on time!"
"Ahh! That's a pain I totally understand." We both laughed. Behind each other's faces, we could be so casual and that was so surprising. We really got along except for the 'girlfriend' and 'staring' part.
"See you. Bye."
"...bye... Niti." Did he just say my name in a whisper? Why can't I breathe now?
"What the hell, Chandni!?" I huffed, unable to gather my voice. It
"No no, see my mistake now made something work out between you two." She chuckled evilly. Uh-oh! The avoid plan is off for a toss then? How would I face him if every time I saw him, all I wished for was for him to not be dating?
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Parth
I smiled as I cut the call. Niti and I didn't really feel like strangers who'd just met, except for when we actually met every time after that, there was so much tension. We had some understanding on many levels and some strangeness on many levels.
I didn't like how I watched her every time she sulked to do multiple takes of those Nandini scenes. Those multiple takes were another reason why I really wanted to rehearse our parts together. With me, anything more than two takes just kills the feeling of being immersed into the character. After that, it's just fake acting to do away with the scene. My job is exciting for me, only because I'm into the character, and that cannot happen if I'm sick of doing the same scenes over and over.
"Aarav, chala, khana laga diya maine!" Aarav was my call name at home. Everyone close to me called me that. She called Baba too, and we all sat on the dining table. It was a tradition we followed, to eat dinner together. Until Baba or I got really late from work, we always made it a point to bond over dinner. It was one of the practices both my parents followed in their maternal homes. Yes, I'm half-Maharashtrian and half-Sindhi. My mother is from Mumbai and my father is from Sindh. However, he migrated to Mumbai later in his life and met Aai and you can guess the rest!
I lived in a two bedroom flat with my parents in Andheri West. When I first entered acting, my friends suggested me to move out and move in with some people from the industry, or some known contacts. I wasn't very keen on it, given I'd spent half my life in boarding school, away from them as such. I think I was lucky though, that Vikas was our family friend. My entry into television wasn't that hard, and the new show just made it easier. I didn't see the need to separate from my family.
I helped my mother serve and my father fetched us water. We had a nice vegetarian meal, with Baba and me watching the match and Aai interacting with us every now and then. Match nights were an exception to the bonding.
"Half-time lag raha hai, ab batao kaisa tha din tumhara?" Don't be surprised. I was the only child at home and my parents did everything they could to not make me feel lonely. Aai knew several players in the team too. I promised to take her to one of the matches in Europe someday. I was naturally closer to my mother than my father but I didn't love him any less.
"Changale hote, aaj Disha bhi aayi thi sets pe!" I added the Disha part with a bit of spite, peeling off some roti. They knew about Disha and me being in a relationship and they were okay about it. They didn't know the depths of it; obviously it wouldn't be nice to discuss sex with family. They believed we were adults and we could make our own decisions. I wouldn't say they were totally pleased, but they accepted her. "Par main bahut late ho gaya tha! Mom, kal aap mujhe 7:30 ko uthaaoge, kuch bhi karke! Sets jaake practice karni hai." Like I said, Mama's boy. Despite the alarms, I needed her to wake me up.
We had a small conversation to catch up with how our days were, and went back to watching the match. Manchester won at 2-1 with Liverpool. I was glad. I wrote a little tweet congratulating our boys and then went to my bedroom.
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I reached the café next to the sets at 8:10. I parked my bike on the side and sat on it, with my helmet over one of the side mirrors. I'd told her to be early. How early is early? I waited outside, checking my phone. I went through the messages in the new group that I was added to. I came across Niti's profile.
She wore a cute pink sweatshirt with a grey bunny stitched over. In her lap was a dog clinging to the arms that held him/her, God knew! I saved her contact number as Niti with a bunny emoji. She was a cute girl. I was lately growing too concerned about her, which was not good. I had to put an end to the depths of my dream. I was dating Disha, whether I loved her or not, I was committed to her. It would be morally wrong of me to think of Niti while in a relationship.
A cab parked a little farther from me. She paid him and hopped over to me. She was dressed in a frilled maroon off-shoulder top and baby pink palazzos. Her hair was braided according to her look on the show, and a strap bag hung over her tiny frame. She was hot. I felt a small part of me get defensive, because I knew I couldn't stay sane for long.
"Hey Parth, sorry I kept you waiting." She checked her phone for the time.
"Nah, that's okay. I am... I'm sorry for yesterday. I mean..." See, I am stammering already! I didn't know why I was sorry; for holding her? Definitely I shouldn't be because otherwise she might've hurt herself. In fact, she should be glad I saved her.
The other reason I called her ahead of time was to avoid an encounter with Disha. I wasn't doing anything wrong as such, but I didn't like that Disha came onto sets often. It felt like an invasion to my personal space and being the reserved man I was, I didn't appreciate that much. Of course, also I knew the others at least a little; so I wouldn't have problems acting with them. Niti didn't know how I worked.
Bahana bhi acchese dhoond lete ho! My inner self taunted me.
"Let's search for a Manik-Nandini sequence. Aha, page 42." She flipped to the page. The first dialogue there was mine and so, she read out the introductory lines to the scene.
"Manik is swimming shirtless." She paused for a moment and then continued. I secretly gave her a small smirk, imagining her watching me shirtless. What would she think of me then? "Nandini comes to see him and brings a towel. Manik steps out of the pool." Breaking from my thoughts, I adjusted the script sheet against the wind.
Without reading the entire sentence, I just said as I read, in a hostile 'Manik-Malhotra' tone: "Mere room main chalo!" Instantly, her attention shifted to me. Wow! Nice way to screw up, young man! She gaped at me as if I was addressing it to her.
"What?" Her face had something in it, beyond just surprise. I didn't know she was actually reading the dialogue out. I thought she was referring to me, asking me 'what'. After that one awkward incident, we said goodbye to our rehearsals and interactions too.
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Did you, did you, did you like it? #TeamRippedJeans or #TeamAdorNi :P Share your views with me! Thank you so much once again for everything! I hope you enjoyed this! I'll see you soon!
With love, signing off, Krishi.