The Runaway bride

                          The Runaway bride

Love marriage is still a big proscribed in most of the Indian families. And for centuries there generation have mated with the partner chosen by their elders and so the same heritage is carried in their kids and then their kids.

This would be very difficult to digest for the western part of the hemisphere that we Indians do arrange marriage. But as the time is changing, some families have become flexible for the choices of their kids, even if it is the inter-caste marriage, but few strict to their age old family tradition and from them are born the fables of great revolts.

 The war of love is sometimes fought openly with pump of adrenalin, ending mostly in bloody debacles, but there are few smart ones who know the great battles can only be won by keeping their cards close to their chest and only revealing when the time is appropriate. Strike when the iron is hot, but before that keep the heat on.

Prologue

“Oh, my god. She speaks so fast”, is the first thing that you notice when you first meet this seemingly innocent girl. Lean lithe, 5’3” stature and high cheek bones.

The girl is one of the three siblings, having one elder sister and one younger brother. She has a very strict father and very docile mother who always take side of her husband irrespective of the fact weather he is correct or erroneous. And this has been very frustrating for her since the childhood as her life have been shadowed under her father magnanimous image and if she sometimes wanted to revolt, no one in the whole big family took her side. She was brought up feeling the loneliness.

It was only when she reached the college that for the first time she could breathe the fresh air, away from her home and enjoying independence as she enrolled herself for the hostel facility. But her void of loneliness was only filled when she fell in love with the boy of Neighbourhood College. Things started with as a fling on facebook and gradually thing became serious and now both became madly and deeply in love with each other.

 The good time flies away very fast and so their college days ended and it was time to face the real life. The boy was a Marathi Brahmin and native of Mumbai. After completing his studies he joined his father business. The girl on other hand was a Sharma Brahmin of Delhi who according to her father could only marry in her own caste Brahmin and no one else.  Girl stayed in Delhi but long distance love continued.

Unfortunately the boy’s father died due to heart attack and since being the only son the whole responsibility of the family dropped on his shoulder. It took some time for him to get out of the shock and settle himself and he did in a mature manner, proving his credentials to be a good and responsible husband material, which every parent would want for their daughter. The girl choice for his future groom was not at all off beam.

The hell broke loose on the young couple when the girl’s elder sister got married and his father started groom hunting for her in his own caste. But our girl is smart and good in combat strategy and started to make the iron hot, really very hot. All she did was run, run and run.

RUN, RUN AND RUN

The girl was a MBA and she opted for the job away from home. She went to Shimla first, then to Calcutta, followed by Orissa, Mumbai and finally Punjab. She got opportunity to come back to Delhi but she never opt it and made the strategy to be away from home as returning home will fuel his father groom hunting in the fast and furious gear.

One time after many months when she came home, her father took her by complete surprise. The very next day of her arrival she had a rendezvous with boy chosen by his father according to his golden standards. She couldn’t believe and when the feeling finally sink in she maintained her calm and came up with a backup plan.

Next day when the boy along with his family showed up at their door, the girl was in best of her behavior. When after the initial greetings the girl got the private time with the boy, she came in her true colors. She asked the boy, whether she was serious about the marriage stuff, because she is kinda believer of the live – in relationship things, no commitment only fun.

She also asked him whether or not he is ambitious to get settle out abroad, because she is and in case if the family posed any hurdle in her dream plan when the opportunity strikes her door, she would leave the family not her dream.

The boy was petrified to his spine. His pupils were dilated and his jaw dropped. Soon the boy and girl’s mother joined them and the girl returned in her decent family oriented type. The boy was confused what was happening. The girl appeared to be one man circus driving him crazy. They left and the girl was relieved.

The things didn’t work up of course and the bride ran way. There was one more such boy girl meeting took place, the boy was in the government job and was the denizen of Gujarat. The boy volunteered to meet the girl where she was putting up in case she couldn’t come home because of her strict job norms of no casual leave.

That time the girl was in Punjab and the boy from Gujarat made an excursion to the green fields of Punjab. The dad wasn’t giving up so was his girl, after all she inherited obstinacy from his father.

The boy met the girl; the first look deciphered him to be rustic and nerd. Definitely she wasn’t going to spend her life with him. She didn’t give the boy prospect to talk a word and started bragging about her, the fables about her bad habits like smoking, drinking, night outs with boys in bars and discs, etc etc, which in her whole life never ever tried.

Finally, she asked the boy whether he wants to marry her, he can, but she can’t be one man girl ever. So in case he is comfortable with her having flings after marriage he should then only say yes to her father, and in case he refuses it would be fine for her, but should never ever reveal what she told him about her life to anyone or she would ask her ex- boyfriend who happen to be a goon to deal with him.

In the whole boy- girl meeting the boy didn’t utter a single word and left perspiring and palpating.

On other hand girl’s father was restless why on the earth he couldn’t find a suitable match for her. The boy- girl meeting was getting too much for the girl, she couldn’t take anymore and therefore she designed a way out. She stared to bribe her younger brother that whenever their dad ask him to e-mail her profile to the so called dad found suitable match for her, he would make sure it never ever leaves their mile box.

She fetched out one fourth of her salary to tie up the deal.

Her father is confused what’s happening, why the wedding bells are not ringing for her daughter. He is running from pillar to post with the horoscope of his girl to different renowned astrologers of Delhi, doing charity and visiting holy places and pilgrimages, just to get the blessings of different demi-gods to fulfill his one and only wish.

The girl is busy making the iron hot, hotter and hottest, the process goes on till it’s ready to strike. But till then heat it up.

PERSONALITY TRAITS OF GIRL

Wits – the outer corner of eyes pointing upwards, broad forehead, broad chin

Obstinacy – chin pointing forward

Secretive – small eyes

Observation – well marked supra-cillary ridges

Imitation/ thespian qualities – nose pointing downwards, wide distance between the perpendicular lines running from nose to upper lip

Amative/qualities being in love – fullness and moisture of center of upper lip

Lack of hospitality – sucked in cheeks

Optimistic, hopeful – broad and well formed nasal septum

LAST MINUTE addition

This morning, very this morning I came to know that one of my good friend is getting married and instead of being happy, I am really sad, in fact pissed off, because she is not marrying the man of her dreams because of the same age old inter-caste taboo, but instead a boy which her parents choose for her. Though he in every worldly statistics is better than the man she chose for herself but he is not the love of her life. She is giving in for the wishes of her parents at the same time popping in anti –depressant drugs.

So, I really don’t know whether the protagonist girl is doing right or wrong fooling around with her father to get the love of her life. My conscientiousness fails to decide, so I don’t really know.

       

MORAL

Whatever happens, there is always going to be a reason,

Sometimes it’s end happy, sometimes it’s treason.