Mangalyam thantuna nena..-7

"hello swapna" Vishali called out to her friend
"hey you are back??? how was the trip" Swapna asked excitedly hugging vishali
"it was awesome..." vishali gushed " 3 weeks of pure fun and u know how much i love to travel..i have to develope the photos once i do that i will show you all..kerala is an awesome place yaar"
"well all i always told u that" swapna replied . she was from kerala."when did u get back"
"yesterday night" vishali replied"have you seen shankar.."
"No come to think of it i have not seen him for almost a month" swapna replied "hey this is semester break who is gonna be foolish enough come here during holidays.." and then what she said hit her and she started laughing " other than me..well i had to still complete the assignment ..got an extension" she replied defensively.
"oh ok..anyways i came to check if the semester results have been posted" vishali replied
"not yet DPS told me it will be up day after tommorow" swapna added
"oh ok...since we are here anyways why dont we just get some tea from canteen" vishali said
"ok" swapna replied"let me go and submit this assignment first"

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Vishali called shankar once she got home and his mother picked up the phone
"hello mami(aunty)..vishali here..eppadi irrukel( how are you??"
"etho irrukondi ...(somehow surviving)"his mom replied and her voice sounded as if she was crying
"mami...are u ok??" vishali asked her
At that his mom started crying and vishali felt a sense of unease settle in her stomach
"mami enna acchu (what happened?) een azarel ( why are u crying?)"
when his mom started crying even more "iam comming over there mami" vishali said and kept the phone down
Vishali's mom taking in the tone of her daughter asked her " what's wrong??"
"i dont know i called shankar's place and his mom sounded very distraught..she was crying mom" vishali felt very upset at that and her mom decided to come with her too
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Vishali knocked on shankar's house door looked at her mom .she felt very apprehensive she had never seen shankar's mom cry in all the time she has known her. she was one of those people who always looked at positive side of things no matter what happened and fact that she was crying did not bode well.
Shankar's dad opened the door. He looked very gaunt and his eyes looked red rimmed
"hello mama..enna achhu??( what happened??)" vishali asked as her mom hurriedly went in to the house to talk to shankar's mom who was standing in the living room. on seeing vishali and her mom she started crying and vishali's mom hugged her started guiding her to kitchen.

"mama enna achu..( uncle what happened??) is everything ok.." vishali asked her tension showing in her voice.
"kanna periya thappu panniten naan ( dear i have made a very big mistake) ..never should have sent sudha to US or gotten her married to that scoundrel..." Shankar's dad suppressed a sob
" is sudha ok mama???" vishali nearly shrieked the question...but she was not paying any attention to it..right now things started looking very surreal to her
"ennoda kuzhandaioda vazkaiyai naane pazungathula thalliten( i have spoiled my own kid's life)" her dad wailed and at that point shankar walked in to the room supporting sudha.
when Vishali saw sudha she gasped she looked like she was dead...
"sudha..enna achu( what happened) how are you" vishali asked as she rushed to her side
But sudha did not say anything she was just staring at some thing in distance..
"she has been like this since yesterday...i wish she will cry" shankar said despair plain in his eyes
"will someone tell me what happened" vishali asked firmly
"i told u vishali..we will never get what we want..it is all about compromise for us" sudha replied in a quiet voice and that actually vishali a lot
"sudha .." vishali started but sudha kept talking
"divakar never wanted to marry me but was scared to say that to his parents. he liked another girl there and since she was of not the same caste he knew his parents will not agree so under parental pressure he agreed to marry me. once we got married he realised that i was not right for him and that he could not live without that other girl. so a week after we reached US he just left our house and never came back for about a week and after that this girl shravanti came and told me that my husband loves her and wants to live with her only..so he had moved in to her place..he did not even have courage to come and tell me that in person. i stayed alone in that house for another week before i could think. i then contacted one of friends relative there and with their help came back home" sudha said in a low monotous voice .
Vishali felt her world reel under her feet.."if i am feeling like this..how sudha must have felt in a new place without friends or family" vishali thought and tears started pouring down her eyes as she hugged sudha
"when did she come here" Vishali whispered
"two days back" shankar replied "her friends relative called us a week back with the news and we were trying since then to get her back here"
By then Vishali's mom walked in to the room with a tray of hot coffee with shankar's patti( grand mother) in tow bearing some biscuits.
For the first time vishali saw patti without a smile on her face . Vishali looked from shankar's patti to shankar's mom, dad ..she saw a family that looked so lost...it made vishali cry even more
"have you talked to his family" vishali asked
"yeah" shankar replied bitterly" we are very sorry..we never thought our son will do this..we will talk to our son..dont worry..as if my sister will go back to him after all this happened"
"i think i will lie down for a bit" sudha replied in her emotionless voice and started walking towards her room and vishali followed her to make sure that she was ok
once sudha was settled in her bed and vishali felt confident that she is ok she walked back in to the living room and walked to her mom.
" they have not eaten anything for 2 days..iam gonna cook something for them to eat and i have called your dad he will be here..."her mom said..
"do u want help amma( mom)" vishali asked
"its ok..u stay here and keep them company.." her mom replied and then impulsively she hugged her daughter and then wiping her eyes she walked in to the kitchen

Vishali then walked to shankar's mom and putting a hand around her shoulders she sat down and then she looked around at everyone around her and she saw that they all looked like they were all lost in their own thoughts..
The entire house was quite except for the sound of her mother cooking in kitchen ...

Mangalyam thantuna nena..-6

Vishali sat lost in her thoughts in the library an open book of Integral calculus was sitting in front of her but that was the last thing on her mind right now
"Does shankar feel the same way about me??" she thought and that had been the thought that had been going on in her mind since sudha's wedding a week back.
sometimes she felt that he did but sometimes she thought may be she was imagining it all...
" Vishali.... did you find the equation for problem 4??" Swapna asked and that brought Vishali back to reality
" No...let me look" vishali replied glumly
" really i know this is not the most exciting course that we have taken but i have never seen u this distracted.. what is up with you??" swapna asked with a little concern in her voice
" did not get a good night's sleep yaar feeling very sleepy now..and this is not helping the matter" vishali said gesturing to the book..
"oh...you want to continue tommorow??? u can rest today that way we can get better work done" Swapna said
"no yaar..lets complete it today..let me get some tea iam sure i will feel better " vishali replied"u want to come with me the canteen??"
" Dont feel like Tea..why dont u get some for yourself and hopefully by the time u come back i would have finished the problem" swapna said
"ok" vishali said and started walking towards the canteen and in the distance and she saw shankar walking towards her
" hey how are u?? whats up with you u did not return my calls??" he asked worried
" err.. was little busy" Vishali replied half heartedly. somehow suddenly being around him had made her nervous and she could not understand it
"anyways sudha and diavkar are leaving tommorow ..so we are having a little get together today evening..." shankar drawled
"hey i have stuff to submit tommorow ..it is that calculus class " vishali sighed" i dont think i can come yaar...but i will call sudha and talk to her"
"Is there something wrong vishali" shankar asked
" no...nothing iam just worried about the calculus exam.." Vishali said
"I know you too well to know that it is not what is worrying you..c'mon yaar we are friends..u can tell me" shankar insisted
" hey nothing at all..i have to get back to library swapna is waiting for me there...just came to get some tea and then i have to tackle the assignment.." vishali grimaced
Vishali entered the canteen with shankar in tow and found it to be empty she got her tea and as she turned to leave shankar caught her hand and vishali froze
" i have something to tell u ..." he said vishali felt her heart beating faster as she looked at shankar .she felt like her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth she wanted ask him what he was doing holding her hand in a public place but so many questions also flooded through her mind..that she was unable to form one comprehensible question
"hey Vishali..." swapna called from the entrance of the canteen and shankar hurriedly let go of her hand " you forgot your wallet" she said walking in to the canteen
" hey shankar" swapna smiled at him " when is your sister flying to US"
"Tommorow" shankar replied very curtly " vishali i have to go now all the best to u girls"
Shankar waved to them over his shoulder and walked out of the canteen
" what is eating him" swapna asked looking at vishali
" i dont know ..i guess he is feeling low because his sister is leaving..thanks for getting my wallet yaar..i did not even realize that it was not with me.." vishali replied " lets go and finish the assignment"
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Vishali woke up and found that the sun was already up bright and shining..her eyes felt grainy from lack of sleep" damn the calculus assignment" she thought it had taken lot longer than she anticipated "s*** i have to call sudha" Vishali bounded out of her bed and called sudha
" hello can i talk to sudha" she said to the voice on the other line who turned out to be divakar
" sudha is taking shower..may i know who is this calling" He asked
" this is vishali..we met at your wedding" vishali replied hesitantly..he did not seem all that friendly to her
" i will ask her to give you a call later" he said curtly and hung up the phone
" yaruma phone la(who was on the phone??)" vishali's dad asked her
" i called Sudha at her Inlaws place pa" Vishali replied giving him a quick hug and peck on the cheek
by the time Vishali got ready she still had not gotten a call from sudha ..so she called again and this time sudha came on the phone
" hello Mrs. divakar eppadi irrukenga??( hello mrs divakar how are you??)" Vishali asked teasingly
" Alive " sudha replied and she sounded like she had been crying
" hey enna acchu??( what happened??) u sound like u have been crying?" vishali asked with concern
"onnum illai ( nothing) just feeling bad that iam gonna be leaving today" sudha replied in a subdued voice
" hey dont worry yaar we will never let you miss us all...u can always call and talk to us whenever you want and shankar will be comming there to study too soon..send me emails regulary and we can chat ..it will be like we close to each other" Vishali tried to console her
" i know..i have to go now vishali people have come to see us off..if u can it will be nice to meet u before i leave" She said
" i will try .." vishali promised " bye take care"
Vishali then hurried out of home feeling a little sad" why is it tht girls have to leave everything behind when they get married...well iam not gonna be like that..shankar is gonna come and stay her with my parents" and that thought made vishali blush .
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Vishali parked her scooty in the parking lot and hurried to the terminal hoping she was not late
it was almost 6pm in the evening and her lab had gotten cancelled and so she decided to go to the airport to meet sudha. she had decided on the whim but now as she neared the terminal and saw lot of people milling about she realized that it might be difficult to locate sudha just when she was about to give up she saw shankar's dad and patti and came running towards them
" hello mama, patti" She said taking deep breath's because of her running
" Sudha onnoda friend ( your friend) " shankar's appa hollered
"hey" sudha smiled " i did not expect that you will come" smile seemed very genuine and she looked very haggard and her face was tear stained
" Did u think i will let go of you without even saying..Bye" vishali said hugging sudha
Tears trembled at the corner of her eyes " dont worry sudha everything will be fine..email me whenever u can ok..u know me i online most of the evenings..we can fix a time to chat..ok" vishali said
Sudha just nodded her
" sudha we have to go now" divakar said
" ok da kannama ( darling) take care" patti said and surrounded by her family she walked towards the terminal and soon was out of vishali's sight
"poor girl she has never been away from her mom and dad for even a day since she was kid and now she is flying all the way across the world.." patti said wiping her tears
" dont worry patti ..she will be fine" Vishali replied and put an hand around patti's shoulder and saw shankar hugging his mom who was crying a lot.
when she looked towards sudha's inlaws they are seemed to be a little tense and worried " well they must be feeling sad too.." Vishali thought

Mangalyam thantuna nena..-5

The Wedding hall was bustling with people comming in and going out. The hall entrance had an elaborate Kollam( rangoli) in arisi mavu (Rice flour)
"patti must have been incharge of that " vishali thought smiling to herself. she had come for the viradham ( pre wedding ceremony in all Brahmin marriage) along with her parents.
on entering the hall she noticed both the bride and the groom,s family were chanting matra's .
on seeing vishali shankar a huge smile and came to greet her
" hello mama ,mami vangao ( come in uncle and aunty)" he said very formally.
Vishali smiled mischieviously at him " enna ( what) u wont give the invite for me"
"well vishali madam do come in " he said with a mock bow vishali's parents laughed along with her
" ennapa shankar akkaku kalyanama ( what shankar you sister is getting married today)" vishali's mom asked him . Vishali's parents were very fond of shankar and it was very evident in the way her mom and dad talked to him now.
By that time shankar's mom came over to greet them too and she needed some grown up help and both her parents went to help her.
" i thought you will comming in a saree today" shankar said
" well i dont want to wear it everyday ..u know the effect comes when worn on special occasions" vishali replied putting on false air and then burst out laughing " well i will wear saree for the wedding and reception" she replied seriously
" anyways amma has selected a saree for you ...for our wedding..errr i mean for sudha's wedding" shankar colored furiously..he could not believe he said that
Vishali colored too " oh that is sweet of her she did not have to..." she replied half heartedly and then both of them fell silent and thankfully patti came looking for her and asked vishali to sit with sudha during the ceremony to give her company
During the entire ceremony vishali kept thinking about shankar and about their future they both have never talked about them.. they had always been happy to be friends and have never discussed things beyond that...but somehow being in a wedding today made vishali wonder about her's
" this is foolish " she thought but everytime she looked up at shankar and their eyes met she blushed becos she could almost the same thoughts going through his head.
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The wedding was early next morning but before that there was Unjal( swing) ceremony which was a occasion for much good natured ribbing of both the bride and the groom. Sudha looked resplendant in her dark green kanchiveram silk saree . Her long black hair was braided with a jasmine and rose flowers interwined in the braid. she was decked with all the tradition jewellery like netti chutti( ornament on head) to uddiyanam( gold chain around the waist) she really looked like an angel to the vishali.
All around her people were dressed in their finest with tons of jewellery. Vishali looked very nice in her Red color silk saree that shankar's mom had bought for her. Many people actually told her she looked very beautiful that made her blush .
She kept looking out for shankar but he was very busy and was running all around the hall and she was little disappointed that he did not compliment her ...even though she understood that he had to work.
The wedding ceremony itself was very interesting with matras being chanted and with it the siginificance of the ceremony hit her
Durning kanya dhanam ( giving away of the bride) the significance of the matras brought tears to her eyes. she was with sudha through out the ceremony and as she saw divakar very religiously repeating all the mantras and all the small smiles that he gave sudha actually put vishali's mind to rest becos the way things have been before the wedding .
" may be things do get better after getting married.." vishali thought and at that moment she caught sight of shankar comming towards the stage and their eyes met and Vishali blushed ..
Shankar came and stood next to her and translated the mantra for her
"She standeth here, pure before the holy fire, as one blessed with boons of a good mind, a healthy body, life-long companionship of her husband ( Sumangali Bhagyam ) and children with long life. She standeth as one who is avowed to stand by her husband virtuously. Be she tied with this red-grass rope, to the sacrament of marriage"
And as her father offered Sudha's Hand to her husband and recited the mantra shankar stealthily caught her hand and translated the matra for her
"I offer ye my daughter, a maiden virtuous, good-natured, very wise, decked with ornaments to the best of my ability-; that she shall guard the Dharma, Wealth, and Love! "
Vishali was very confused and felt flushed and happy at the same time but she did not pull away he hand either and when he actually let go of her hand she actually felt a twinge of sadness
" well i cant expect him to stand here holding my hand" she thought
after kanya dhanam( giving away of the girl) came the mangalya dharam and the groom tied the mangalyam ( mangal sutra) to the matra
" magalyam thantuna nena mama jeevana hetuna ( with this sacres thread i accept you as my wife..)....." as the pandits recited these mantras Vishali felt like two souls were meshed together for this life
and then came Pani ghrahanam ( holding hands) and Saptha padhi ( seven steps) and as all mantras were uttered Vishali thought that she could actually see Sudha and Divakar actually becoming married.
Vishali suddenly felt the process no longer seemed like a ritual but a profound age old process of uniting two people in the sacred bond for eternity"..atleast for this life.. may be becos i am in love and that is why it all makes sense" the thought creeped up on her and the thought shocked her and with that came the some doubts as to whether shankar felt the same about her......

Mangalyam thantuna nena..-4

Vishali woke with a start to realize that she had fallen asleep in the middle of her math lecture . she rubbed her eyes greatful the professor DPS had not seen her snoozing he had a very nasty way of pouring water over the student to wake them.
she stifled a Yawn again and thought " i cant wait for this semester to end.."
Atleast i get to go shopping today evening " the thought perked her up .
Sudha's wedding was only 2 weeks away and she had promised her that she will go shopping with her.
Vishali was still surprised at the speed at which the wedding this is proceeding for sudha" but then i have never been so personally involved in the process may be this is how it is really done"
Vishali mused " still it had been just mere 2 months since the entire process had started and already they are getting married. sudha actually was starting to feel some prewedding jitters " shankar had told her as much but he had not elaborated on that matter.
" well i will talk to her this evening i will know what it is" Vishali thought pursuing her lips " watever it was shankar seemed very unhappy about it..if only this boring class got over"
"Vishali" professor DPS voice seemed to break her out of her reverie " can u solve this differential equation" he said
" god he had noticed i was asleep " vishali thought frantically as she started walking to the board " now what was he talking about..."
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" hey why the glum face" shankar asked when he joined her outside the class
" well i feel asleep in the class and Prof DPS made a do a problem on the board just when i got up and it was such a disaster i could not even remember which chapter we were in.." vishali replied glumly
" well forget about it yaar things like this happen" shankar said and that surprised Vishali it was not like him to give up a chance to poke fun at her
" are you ok" she asked him
" just a little worried about sudha and things at home. with only 2 weeks left amma and appa are busy with all the wedding preparations ..u know his parents always want to add one thing or the other after the arrangements were made"
Vishali had heard about these little requests that seem to be popping up from divakar's parents " what do u they want now??" vishali asked
"a light music troupe for the reception..u know all his friends might like it" shankar replied a little heatedly " there are only 2 weeks left and where will we find one??"
" hey relax ...did sudha talk to divakar about this??" vishali asked
" well that is what started the other problem divakar had not called for weeks and so amma casually asked his mom about it and then next day divakar called so sudha talked to him about these requests of his parents and all that guy said was to do as his parents asked and then after 10 mins he just hung up that was about 2 weeks back ..and then i guess he told this to his mom who called sudha and lectured her about ettiquettes of an tamil brahmin girl who is about to be married . sudha was crying the whole of the weekend and amma consoled her and told her that once she got married things will change as she will not be staying with her inlaws but in america."
Vishali felt bad for sudha and also for the fact that she had not talked to her in a week's time.." well i can rectify that today" she thought
" iam going to your house only want a lift" she asked
" no yaar i have a class in another hour i will come and meet you after that" shankar replied and said good bye to her
Vishali got on her scooty and reached shankar's house sudha was waiting for her and got on her bike not before vishali snagged some mysore pakku from shankar's patti and hugged her.
they both started towards the market centre to get some bangles first
Sudha seemed very quiet during the ride
" not the behaviour i expected from a about to be married girl" vishali said trying to make a conversation with her
" dont feel like one " sudha replied
" you know what lets first go and have some lassi and then we can do our shopping" vishali said and stopped at the nearest ice cream parlour
" hey sudha what is really up yaar" vishali asked her once they had given the orders
" i dont know vishali..i dont know if things are going wrong or something is wrong with me. u know when i thought about marraige i always was resigned to the fact it will be an arranged marriage and that it will take people to warm up to each other. i understand all that but i some how feel like divakar is feeling anything towards me there does not seem to be even a mild curiousity as to what iam doing or what i want. i dont know sometimes i feel like that but other times i feel like iam imagining it" sudha stopped looking about hesistatingly
vishali did not know what to say in response so " hey it will be ok .i think it is becos u guys have not seen each other may as ur mom says things will be better after u got married"
Vishali smiled at sudha encouragingly " now lets finish the lassi and then we can go and do some good shopping "
Sudha smiled back at her and nodded her assent.

Mangalyam thantuna nena..-3

Shankar came back to their table with 2 steaming cups of masala tea..Vishali looked up from her notes and smiled closing the book.
“ I did not think u will be coming here before tomorrow” she quipped
“well see I can still surprise you “ shankar retorted “ the line was way to long ..” he said
“ so how is Sudha I have not talked to her for weeks” vishali said
‘you know she is busy shopping and all “ shankar said
“ well most of the time iam sure she is on phone”Vishali said taking a sip of masala tea
“Hmmm.. Masala tea from the canteen is the best “
“ well not exactly u know time difference between US and India and all and anyways he did send an email to her sometime last week telling her he is working on something so he is very busy” shankar replied
“ Oh.” Vishali said
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Vishali entered the small community hall adjusting her Saree ..she had worn a pink chiffon saree with little chikken work on her blouse.
" you are late.." shankar's dad hollered at her from other end of the hall and smiled at her
"sorry mama(uncle) " vishali replied sheepishly
" Sudha is in back room towards the left trying to get ready..i think her amma is trying to help her but u know we are oldtimers ...we dont know the happenings of new generation.." Shankar's dad winked at her
" let me go and help her then mama.." vishali started to move towards the room
" i think we need to talk to your parents about getting married too...u never realize how much your girl has grown up until u see her in a saree..u are looking very beautiful today.." shankar's dad said
Vishali blushed and said a "thanks mama" shyly
Shankar's dad then saw someone he knew entering the hall and went to talk to them and Vishali walked to Sudha's room in the hall
The place looked very festive what with all the mav illai ( mango tree leaves) and thoranam ( not sure what it is)..also some artifical potted plants were strategically aligned making it look actually a little garish vishali thought
"where is shankar..???" vishali thought as she opened the door to the room and saw sudha arguing with her mother about her hairstyle
" amma i dont want to keep kunjalam( hair adornment) in my hair.." she protested and seeing Vishali her face lit up.." vishali please tell her na.."
Both Shankar's amma and patti saw her
"enn kannae pattudum neenakaren.. podaivaila enna naana irruka paaru..(i think i myself will give her an evil eye..she looks so beautiful in saree..) " shankar's patti said looking at Vishali
Vishali blushed and then said " well today is Sudha's day paati i think she should dress as she likes..and mami( aunty) kunjalam is so old time.."
"thanks.." sudha said hugging her and shankar's amma Beamed at both the girls and then
" serima nee vandutae .( ok u are here now) dress as u girls like.."
Both of them giggled and Vishali started helping in tying sudha's peacock blue saree
" it is his fav color.." sudha said
" oh i c...starting to impress your hubby already.." vishali teased her..
"well anyways he wont be here ..so it does not matter.." sudha replied her face a little downcast" it is just for our in laws u know...our only son is getting married..we want it to be a occasion to remember...i was not enthu for it vishali getting decked like a doll and standing in front of everyone so all his relatives can look at me and pass comments..but u have do it for customs.."
"if it is custom's i think you guys could have had a small ceremony now and then a grand one later when u and divakar are together..." vishali said
Sudha rolled her eyes and said " wait till u are in my position then u will know whatever u say will have no weight ..atleast if you disagree.."
" i will be honest all this grandeur when both the guy and girl are not interested..that seems like such a waste to me..." vishali said adjusting the pleats of sudha's saree
" well all divakar said when he called me a week back that too was whatever his parents wanted.." sudha said" amma and appa want this to be grand too u know..sometimes you are helpless in these things...i feel so bad that becos of me my parents have to waste so much money.." tears brimmed in Sudha's eyes
" Appa had to sell our ancentral land for my wedding..he says that he wants it to be a grand affait..but i can see it is his parents who want it...and everytime i bring out the expenses both my parents sush me by saying that you are our only daughter and we dont mind doing it for you...it breaks my heart to see them both sitting and working out expenses..we are only middle class people vishali...i feel like such a burden to them.."
" hey Sudha comon yaar today is day of your engagement ..u should be the beaming bride there and believe me things will be fine..i think you are just having some pre wedding jitters that is all...things will all be ok..." vishali smiled trying to cheer up her friend even though in her heart vishali felt exactly as sudha did
" seri(ok) no more crying iam gonna start with you eye makeup now we are getting late ok" vishali forced more cheerfulness in to her voice and started earnestly beautifying her friend
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"appa i withdrew the amount you asked me to" shankar said passing the leather pouch with money in it..
he was worried that his appa had broken their saving's account but did not want say anything to spoil the mood.
"seri da kanna ( ok dear boy) go and see if all our guests have coffee and here comes the grooms family..let me go and greet them "he said moving to the entrance
Shankar went and talked to the caterers and after making sure that everything was going good he went to Sudha's room and after knocking on the door he heard " enter" and knew that vishali was there and was very surprised to see vishali in a saree
"wow yaaru intha mami?? ( who is this aunty..?)" he asked in his mocking voice indicating vishali
Vishali threw the comb she was using to set sudha's hair at him and said " may be we need to get your eye's checked along with your brain.."
Sudha laughed along with Vishali at shankar
" anyways came to tell you that Groom's family is here so get ready soon.." Shankar said but was still looking at Vishali with open admiration
" just 2 more mins she will be ready " vishali said getting her hair set in the right way" there you are all set.." Vishali beamed " you look so pretty..iam sure if divakar was here he would be drooling.."
Sudha smiled at her compliment " i think i should go and say hello to my In laws now.." at that moment her sister in law came in with couple of her friends and took sudha out to introduce her to her relatives and other family friends
Vishali straightened her hair and saw that shankar was still there.." you really look very pretty today" shankar said very hesitatingly
" if you are making fun of me..i will hit you with my sandals" vishali said turning to look at him
" no iam serious ..you were always beautiful but today you look radiant" he said earnestly
Somehow hearing shankar say that made Vishali Blush even more
" you both are here" shankar's mom came bustling in" the ceremony is about to begin ...let's go"
She said
vishali gave shankar a very special smile and walked out with his mom..shankar sighed and then followed them both out.