We fit ourselves and our bags into the auto. I sat in the middle, with Ananya on
my right and my mother on the left.
‘All set for Minti’s wedding?’ I said.
‘What a boy Minti is going to marry!’ my mother said.
‘Really? Is he good?’ I said.
‘Oh yes, so good-looking. White as milk,’ my mother said, ‘and guess the
budget of the wedding?’
I shrugged.
‘Rajji mama is spending five lakh on the parties alone. Plus they have a big
surprise gift for the boy for the sagan.’
‘What’s the boy’s name?’ I said.
Ananya didn’t participate in the conversation. She turned her face to the
scenery outside. Her hair blew in the breeze and a few strands caressed my face.
‘I forget his real name, but everybody calls him Duke.’
‘Duke? Like British royalty duke?’ I said.
‘Yes, he is an engineer from a donation college. Now he works in Escorts
Software. And his parents are so nice,’ my mother said. ‘Every occasion they
have met your mama-ji, they bring something for me. They’ve already given me
three saris.’
‘Amazing,’ I said.
‘You should see how they give respect. The boy touches my feet every time he
meets me.’
I nodded. I wanted to end the topic. But my mother was in full form. ‘I asked
Rajji mama why he is spending so much. You know what he said?’
‘What?’
‘He said “didi, where do you get good boys these days?” So, I said, if Duke is
getting this, what will Krish get?’
I kept quiet. My mother continued anyway. ‘He said if Duke’s budget is five
lakhs, yours should be ten lakhs, gifts separate.’
nora
(Nora)
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