Page 31 of 12 Years
‘Let’s do the Salman to Shah Rukh walk, shall we?’ she said.
Bandstand was full of walkers and strollers even this late in the night. Payal walked close to me, her bare arm occasionally grazing my shirt sleeve. Halfway through our walk, when we passed a bhutta seller, we stopped to buy one.
‘I love this,’ Payal said, taking a bite of the bhutta before passing it to me as we continued walking on the promenade. It felt more intimate than Aer. Every now and then, our fingers touched.
‘You have a brother, right? You told me about him that day,’ I said.
‘Yes. Vansh. According to my parents, he can do no wrong,’ Payal said.
‘What do you mean?’
‘He never did well in studies, not that my parents cared. Dad wants him to come help in the factory, but Vansh doesn’t want to work hard. He prefers hanging out with his friends and playing video games. And yet …’
‘And yet what?’
‘He’s the son. I’m the daughter.’
We reached Shah Rukh’s home, Mannat. Quite a few people stood outside, taking pictures and hoping to catch a glimpse of the superstar perhaps. I held Payal’s hand in mine as we crossed the road and turned around to walk back.
‘Was it hard? The divorce?’ she said, edging closer.
‘Changed everything. I lost my home and my life in the US. Most of my wealth too.’
‘I mean, was it hard for you emotionally?’
I turned sideways to look at her. ‘Nobody has ever asked me that.’
‘You don’t have to tell me if it’s too personal.’
‘No, it’s okay. It was difficult emotionally,’ I continued. ‘Finding out that she was involved with someone else, that too since before our marriage. But she still chose to marry me. In a sense, she fooled me from the start.’
‘Why did she marry you? Why not the person you said she was with?’
‘The rakhi brother? That guy’s family had a higher status than Raashi’s. His parents said no. You know how Indian families are.’
She nodded. ‘And what made you get married?’
‘I didn’t know any better. It was the logical next step according to the tick-markers.’
‘Tick … what? Who?’
‘Well, I have a theory. All the people around us, who judge us and tell us how to live, they are tick-markers. If we do what they say, they give us their approval—tick marks,’ I said, making tick marks in the air.
‘Interesting concept.’
‘It’s a trap. But like most people, I fell right into it. Tried to live up to others’ expectations and lost myself in the process.’
‘Are you okay now?’ Payal said.
‘Yes, I’m much better. Honestly, though, I’ve lost faith in the whole institution of marriage.’
‘That’s not surprising. You’ve really been hurt,’ Payal said, looking into my eyes.
I remained quiet. She held my hand and squeezed it.
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to make our outing all serious,’ I said finally.
‘It’s fine. I’m always happy to listen to people’s stories.’
