MARRIAGE BY DEFAULT

                    MARRIAGE BY DEFAULT

Love marriage, inter caste marriage, arrange marriage, marriage by running away from folks are few kinds of marriage listed in the literature. But there is one more addition to the list, that is marriage by default, where there is no love, no inter - caste issues, no prior arrangements, no dramatic issues, nothing of that kind at all. It just happened without any prior warning. It just happens.

THE SCHOOL DAYS

For this story we have to back in time in nineties in a co-head government school where the protagonist of the story studied. They were in ninth standard at that time.

The boy was just like road side Romeo hitting every girl in his class. He was the leader of the gang and very proud of his athletic, six feet tall lithe and the diamond stud he wear in his right ear, actually if his words are to be believed he said that he started this cool fashion for boys wearing studs in one ear.

He was not good in studies, just average and spent his time roaming in the streets with his gang. He was a type who shunted girl friends every month. His making girl friend funda was to just get his assignment done and to keep his nose high among his peers who worshiped him as the demi-god.

The girl on other hand was very descent and rustic type with not even the faintest ideas of trend and fashion. Small stature, white complexion and healthy size, she wearied the school uniform’s skirt waggling down the knees contrary to the style of exposing maximum legs, very common at that time by the girls of the school. Oiled her hairs and made two platelets tied at the end with the blue ribbon {color of the school uniform}. Though she was also average in her studies but still she confined herself in the class room till the bell didn’t ring.

Her day started going to the school, standing in the front row of the school assembly, earnestly singing the national anthem, when her peers were busy discussing the latest bollywood flicks and latest trends of society among themselves. After the assembly she confined herself to her allotted seat and dug her eyes in the books and ears were assigned hearing what teacher words of wisdom, irrespective of the fact whether or not what she sees and hears she could understand thoroughly. In the recess she had lunch with her friends still confining herself to her seat or maximum outing was using the toilet facilities of the school and after the recess she went back to her prior activity of seeing and listening.

So these are the protagonist of my story and their life before it clashed with each other. They were poles apart and none in the school ever thought that the stud of the school would end up marrying the bhenji of the school.

 THE TRAITS AND PHRENOLOGY

STUDDY BOY

Wits – broad forehead and broad chin

Thespian qualities – big eyes, nose pointing downwards

Leadership qualities – long convex nose, broad nasal bridge, muscle filling in tip of the nose

Self will – muscle filling at the root of the nose

Self esteem – good length of upper lip

Constructive qualities – well formed alae nasi {nostrils}

Lack of modesty – shorter distance between tip of the nose and center of upper lip

Friendly – well formed cheek bone

Amativeness {conjugal love feelings} – moist and full center of upper lip

BHANJI GIRL

Sluggish – round face

Lack of ideas – small eyes

Credenciveness  {easy come in talks of people} – sparse growth of hair in the eyebrows, protruding ears, high raise eyebrows dividing the forehead equally in two parts

Lack of self will – narrow distance between the eyes

Self esteem – good length of upper lip

Friendly – well formed upper cheeks

Hospitality – ell formed lower cheeks

Economical – dewlap {muscle hanging} under the chin giving an appearance of double chin

JAB WE MET

All the teachers of the school were very annoyed from the mischievous of the boy. The study boy danced on their nerves and none among the staff of the school was efficient enough, not even the principal to bridle his lavish ways of destruction.

It was only when the boy reached the tenth standard that he came across the teacher who matched his wits and strength, who was successful in taming him and his gang and change the course of his life.

Their English teacher was their class teacher and on the first day of the session she made her terms loud and clear to the class and the one who defy would suffer till eternity. And there is no prize in guessing who the first convict of the session.

The teacher knew the history of the studdy boy and gave it a thorough thought deciding his punishment. She knew the convectional punishment won’t serve any purpose, on contrary will add credits to his reputation among his peers.

Her verdict came astonishing the whole class, petrifying his friends and breeze of joy to his rivals and ex – girl friends, but most lethally affected were the boy and the bhanji girl. They both couldn’t believe their ears and for fifteen their mouth remained open.

The teacher made the studdy boy shadow the bhanji girl for 24 x 7 for next three months and in case he refuse or avoid her or became absent, the chastisement will extend to more six months or further on. It could go on indefinitely, as he still has two years to leave the school.

Three months was a huge time. Both stared each other for a while and didn’t speak a word. They have never ever talked before and the first day they sat together the awkward silence persisted.

THREE MONTHS LATER.....

Miracles do happen and they sometimes happen when we least expect them to happen and they ultimately lead to total change of course of life.

The unexpected happen. The studded boy started to ground himself, stayed much in the class, did his assignments and became less noticed by the teacher about his waywardness. The girl on the other hand was named as BTM, meaning bhanji turned mod. She got confidence to speak up her point in front of people and began to ask question in the class about things she didn’t understood, even her skirt started settle above the knees now. Most important she shed off lots of fat and it turned out that under that adipose she was a very beautiful woman.

The unexpected happen; the studded boy became best pal with the bhenji girl. The three months passed with just a blink of eye and the both decided to sit together from thereafter. The teacher on other side was cherishing herself acclaimed success over bridling the outrageous boy to descent and civilized pupil of her class. She did what no – one ever thought of doing. She became famous in her peers and the unofficial counselor dealing with teacher student troubles.

Things were smooth for a while, but when after three months the girl and the boy were still sitting together, teacher began to smell a rat there. How can the boy like him, after completing the tenure of his retribution still insist on sitting with the girl which matches him in no sense at all and on other hand the genetically rustic girl is suddenly showing the colors of rainbow. She started to spy on the boy and the girl.

To her utter surprise they eat together, roam together and laughed a lot. All the signs and symptoms were pointing towards a love affair. Oh god, she thought, what have she done, she bereft the school from a roguish boy and the rustic bhenji and replaced it with the nineties Romeo and Juliet. She went into self criticizing mode. How couldn’t she see it coming? She tried hard to separate them, but nothing seemed to be working and this increased her frustration and lamentation and agonize her soul with fire of redemption.   

When the things became out of control and she couldn’t take it anymore, she thought to atone her sins.

ATONEMENT

The teacher took the address of the girl from the school records and personally went to meet her parents and told them that their sweet and good girl is crossing a limit and is dating a guy from the school. The parents were shocked, the girl was called and she was asked in front of the teacher. Hearing what the elders have to say, at first she became shocked but still after couple of minutes was able to answer with her newly found confidence.

The girl's folks called the meeting with the boy's folks in the presence of teacher  and the girl and the boy. They both kept saying only one thing, but the elders didn’t listen to them and finally it was decided as soon as they both complete their graduation the will be married to each other. It was the final verdict.

The teacher was satisfied with her atonement procedure and the parents were happy to seal the match preventing any embarrassment in the future.

No one listened to the boy and the girl who kept saying they were just best pals and nothing else. None of them harbored any amorous feeling for each other, but when the verdict was finally laid they didn’t even have any objections and with the blessing of both families’ elders they started officially dating. They were the couple by default.

EPILOGUE

They got married after completing their graduation. The boy opened jewellery shop and is doing good in his business. The girl is a perfect house maker. They are blessed with three kids, two daughters and one son. And they living happily there after.

MORAL

The ways of god are extraordinary,

Be happy and don’t worry.