That's The Way We Met Part 6

The garden in front of the guest house was not clearly visible due to the heavy fog that engulfed the city. It was a sight to behold, one which I never saw in Mumbai. People were jogging in the garden-some by themselves, some with their spouses, and some with their pets for company. I sipped the tea looking at the row of houses in front of us. Mohit and Sonam were still sleeping. After their late night lovemaking session, they might have ended up sleeping late. Riya was still in same clothes that she wore last night. The sun rays made her skin glow.

We went inside. Mohit and Sonam were awake and discussing something on the dining table. We joined them in the conversation. I saw that both of them were looking serious. We all looked at another, waiting for someone to break the ice.

'Sonam is going to tell her parents that she loves me and wants to get engaged to me,' said Mohit.

'What the f.u.c.k! Are you serious? Oh my G.o.d! I can't believe it,' I shouted at the top of my lungs.

'That's amazing,' said Riya hugging Sonam 'That's amazing? Are you mad? That is way better than amazing! That's mighty awesome! I am so happy for you guys,' I shouted again.

Mohit was stunned to see our reaction. Maybe he didn't expect it coming. We all made him understand that we knew they would ultimately end up marrying but did not think it would happen so soon. Both Riya and I told them to go ahead with their decision. All four of us came together for a group hug after which we went to our respective rooms to get dressed. We wanted to wear something sophisticated as we were going to meet Sonam's parents.

Mohit wore a crisp white s.h.i.+rt with black jeans. He looked smart and was clearly dressed to impress. Both the girls took special care and wore traditional outfits, thinking that would help form the right impression in front of Sonam's parents. Once dressed, we took the Metro to her parent's house which was located near AIIMS hospital in South Delhi. We boarded the Metro from Nehru Place and changed the metro line from Central Secretariat to take the line headed towards Huda City Centre, our stop being AIIMS.

I could see Mohit was getting increasingly nervous as we reached the apartment.

'Mohit, will you please relax? They won't kill you. Sonam has already given a hint to her parents about you. Moreover, her parents are not orthodox or narrow minded. She has told them that you live in Ahmedabad are work in Mumbai,' I said patting his back.

He tried to remain cool but the cold sweat on his brow spoke about his nervousness. Riya kept teasing him until we rang the bell and entered with house. A beautiful looking, middle-aged lady clad in a saree opened the door for us. I presumed she was Sonam's Mom from the way she ran up to her daughter and hugged her. Their house was huge and very well furnished. They seemed quite affluent. We sat on the sofa in the living room.

Soon Sonam's Mom emerged from the kitchen with gla.s.ses of juice on a tray which she coaxed us to take. Sonam introduced all of us one by one to her Mom. We exchanged greetings and she went into the kitchen to supervise the household ch.o.r.es and prepare something for us to eat.

My eyes kept searching for Sonam's Dad but I couldn't spot him anywhere. So I asked Sonam where he was.

'He is upstairs getting ready to go for work. He has asked us to make ourselves comfortable and that he will come down in sometime.' I am sure Sonam's words must have increased Mohit's heartbeats. I had never experienced such a situation except when I was drunk and had to leave Riya home. I always feared getting caught by her father and getting criticized for my act of insensitivity.

Her Mom came with pakoras in a plate.

'Is her Dad strict?' I whispered in Riya's ears. She just gave me a stern look. 'I simply asked because if he is, Mohit is screwed today,' I giggled.

'Beta, please eat some. I have made these especially for you. They are Sonam's favourite,' said Sonam's Mom handing me a plate of steaming hot pakoras. She came and sat on the chair next to the sofa.

'Aunty, it's lovely. I wish I could get such yummy homemade pakoras in Mumbai,' said Riya.

'You can come here anytime you feel like eating them. You don't get such pakoras in Mumbai?' asked her Mom.

'No. We don't. But the awesome chaat in Mumbai makes up for it,' said Mohit.

'I know. We call them golgappas. You should try the chole bhature in Delhi. You all will love it,' Sonam's Mom suggested.

I was about to say something when her Dad came downstairs. He had a grey mop of neatly combed hair. He was wearing a Lacoste t-s.h.i.+rt with denim jeans. He seemed pretty down to earth, nothing like the Hitler I had imagined him to be. He welcomed all of us and hugged Sonam. He glanced at Mohit as if sizing him up to see if the boy was worth his daughter.

'So are you guys enjoying Delhi?' he asked us.

We all nodded in agreement.

'Did you visit India gate?' It has become quite popular with youngsters after making an appearance in some Bollywood movies,' her Dad said making himself comfortable on the sofa.

'We have decided to go there tomorrow. We were too tired yesterday,' said Mohit, mustering some courage to speak in front of his 'probable' father-in-law.

Mohit then faced some basic rapid-fire questions that Indian families ask before giving their daughter away in marriage.

'I know today's generation does not like their parents to select a partner for them. They are too independent to care about such trivialities. I believe that times are changing and we as elders should adapt accordingly. So in short, we are open to the thought of you asking for our daughter's hand in marriage. If Sonam is happy with you, then we won't mind having you as our son-in-law,' her father said.

Sonam hugged her father tightly after which he got up and patted Mohit's back.

'I know that I am too young to say this in front of you, sir, but I will always try and keep Sonam happy to the best of my ability. We love each other and I am glad to have finally met you. I admit I was a little nervous at first, but you and Aunty have made me feel very comfortable and have welcomed me with open arms into your family. I am lucky to have a father-in-law like you,' said Mohit.

I smirked at how well he was sugar-coating the father.

Her Dad shook Mohit's hands and had a brief conversation with him in one corner. From his mannerisms, he seemed like a thorough gentleman. Meanwhile, we sat at the dining table and ate the lunch that Aunty had painstakingly prepared for us. We decided to leave without Sonam as she wanted to spend a little more time with her family.

Mohit took the blessings of her parents after which Riya and I touched his feet. Our actions made him realize we were a couple and he blessed us saying may we have a happy future together. I was amazed at how accurate his guess was. I realized that it is not easy hiding such stuff from elders. They have this innate ability to see through all our lies.

We reached our guest house by the metro. We brought a bottle of Champagne to celebrate. Riya didn't drink but she did not stop us either, as the cause for the celebration was huge. Sonam was almost engaged to Mohit!

By the time we finished our drinks, Sonam arrived and went straight to hug Mohit after which both kissed each other pa.s.sionately in front of us.

'Sonam gets engaged to Mohit. Hip Hip Hurray!' we shouted.

I was so happy for them. They loved each other pa.s.sionately. Two lives were soon going to embark on a new journey. I hoped that their engagement date got fixed soon and their love could have a fairy-tale start. I looked at Riya and saw that she had tears in her eyes. I knew what it meant. I kissed her tears away and told her I can't wait to share the same happiness with her.

'Let's go to Connaught Place for dinner. It is so lively in the evening,' said Sonam.

'Okay. Let's freshen up and move,' said Riya.

We left our guest house and reached the Nehru Place Metro station. From there, we boarded the train going to Rajiv Chowk, with a change of line at Central Secretariat. CP was crowded as we had expected, with a mix of corporate folks and youngsters. The place reminded me of Hiranandani Gardens in Mumbai. It was a lively place with many restaurants and food chains.

We went walking to Palika Bazaar first. It was an underground market with numerous cafes and eateries. The whole market was fully air-conditioned. We entered from Gate no. 1, which was the main gate to the market. It had a wonderful garden above, which made the place look even more beautiful. Couples were seen enjoying themselves in the garden.

We did not purchase anything much, just did a bit of window shopping. There were around four hundred shops closely huddled together in the underground market. We could not help but occasionally glance at the beautiful girls who were shopping there. No wonder Sonam and Riya kept giving us an 'I-will-kill-you' look. But deep down they knew it was all done in good jest. Sometimes, especially when you are in a different city, boys should be allowed to have a liitle bit of fun.

After that we went to the Dilli Darbar restaurant for dinner. The ambience of the restaurant was unlike any other restaurant we had been to before. Since happy hours got over by 7 pm, we didn't call for drinks as we had come in after that. For the main course, we opted for kadhai chicken with tandoori roti-a recommendation by Sonam who had visited the place before. She wasn't wrong either. It was simply delicious.

'I am in love with Delhi. If I get a chance to settle in Delhi, I won't think twice,' I said while going for a second helping of the chicken.

Riya took the serving spoon from my hand and kept it on the table. 'I know why you want to live in Delhi. So that you can gorge on kadhai chicken and add to your already expanding waistline,' she chided.

'No. I am serious. Mumbai people have so many misconceptions about Delhi. But being here, I can safely say that Delhi is really a pleasant city with nice people.'

We finished our dinner and left the place. It was getting increasingly cold. We reached our guest house and headed towards our bedrooms. Sonam and Mohit closed the door of their room. Riya and I cuddled togehter to keep ourselves warm. She dozed off in no time. I kept staring at her eyes and lips, kissing both gently. Soon I fell asleep. It had been two days since our arrival in Delhi and we loved every moment of it.

Earlier I believed that love was only a fable. Then quietly Riya came into my life and turned it into a reality. Our Delhi trip was turning out to be one h.e.l.l of a dream.

The following day, we got up early as we had decided to go sightseeing around Delhi's famous spots. Sonam had taken permission to use her elder brother's jeep from her parents. Since he was currently out of town, Mohit agreed to drive the jeep around Delhi.

We left our guest house early feeling the chill of the morning breeze. Mumbaikars find it difficult to get accustomed to Delhi's winter. We had dressed sensibly for the weather in woollen jackets and scarves. The journey in the open jeep added to the thrill.

As we drove around Delhi streets from outer Ring Road to August Kranti Marg, we felt ourselves braving the winter winds. I could see the imposing structure of Qutub Minar from faraway. After parking our vehicle near the monument, we bought the entry ticket and entered the Qutab complex through the magnificent Alai Darwaza. I was fascinated with its architectural design. The heritage structure is said to be the tallest brick minaret in the world. The complex also housed a madarsa (school), graves, and mosques on either side of the gateway. The building made me think of ancient times when the Mughals would live here. The garden added to the beauty of the place. We clicked hundreds of photographs. I got attracted to the 'wish granting' iron pole in the courtyard of the Qutub minar. It was fenced with iron bars.

'It is believed that if you can encircle the pillar with hands behind your back and ask for a wish, your wish is bound to be fulfilled,' said Sonam.

'This is amazing. I wish it was not fenced. I would have wished for something for sure,' I said. 'The garden is the best part of this place. It's looking beautiful in the early morning fog.'

'Don't forget foreigners,' Mohit added as we sat on the rocks in the courtyard of Qutub.

'I don't like foreigners much. Have you seen how they come in the shabbiest clothes to India, like our country doesn't deserve any better?' I said.

We spent some time enjoying in the garden, clicked a few photographs around the area, and admired the overall beauty of the place.

Then we headed from August Kranti Marg towards Mahatma Gandhi Marg on our way to the Humayun Tomb. Driving on Delhi streets in an open jeep was overall a thrilling experience. It took us a little less than half an hour to reach the spot. We parked our car and bought the entry tickets. It was a huge tomb set in a beautiful, peaceful garden, which I simply loved to the extreme. It was constructed of red sandstone and marble. As we walked in, we saw a notice board outside the gate with the name 'Char Bagh Garden' which had a huge fountain in the centre. This added to the beauty of the tomb.

'Sonam, was Taj Mahal built first or was it the Humayun tomb?' I asked.

'Humayun was Akbar's father, you idiot. Go and take some history lessons,' she shouted at me.

'Oh. I am sorry. I am weak in history,' I said smiling while the others laughed at me.

'Don't worry; I belong to your category. My knowledge of Indian history sucks too,' Mohit laughed. Sonam looked at him angrily but Mohit hugged her and kissed her forehead.

Sonam took us to the spot where the Kurbaan Movie song-Shukran Allah-was shot and the garden where they both sat together. Riya and I clicked some snaps of the place, sitting in a pose similar to Saif and Kareena with our arms around each other. We moved upstairs towards the tomb. The regal looking grave was surrounded by rooms. The grave of Emperor Humayun was located in the central room of the tomb. When we came outside, we saw many parrots flying around the white marbled dome of the tomb.

'It is said that these parrots are reincarnations of those people who couldn't complete their wishes before dying,' said Sonam smiling.

I didn't know whether she really believed it or not. I didn't dare ask her again as I was afraid she would narrate one of her many haunted stories. Before leaving, I turned back to look at the tomb once again so that its beautiful image stayed with me.

Next we drove from Mathura road to Chawri Bazaar next and reached our destination within an hour. Riya slept for some time in the jeep, keeping her head on my shoulders. Everyone was hungry and wanted something to eat.

As soon as we entered the Chandni Chowk area, I felt as if I had been ushered into a different city or a different world altogether. It was extremely crowded, and to make matters worse, the lanes were pretty narrow.

We went to eat paranthas at the famous 'Gali paranthe wali'. The first shop was Pandit Devi Daval's. All the shops had photographs of luminaries like Nehru, Indira Gandhi, and even Ranbir Kapoor dining at the shop. We tried rabdi parantha and badaam parantha, both made in pure ghee. Mohit and I managed to gobble down two each, but the girls could not eat beyond one since they found the paranthas too oily. We walked on the streets and saw another famous shop-Jalebi waala'. Although our stomach was full beyond capacity, we could not resist sampling a few.

'You better not put on weight,' Riya shouted at me.

I loved how she scolded me for my eating habits. It only reaffirmed my belief on how much she cared about me. I was a big lover of junk food while she hated it. I forced her to take a bite of my jalebis and she surprisingly liked it.

We then decided to go to Jama Masjid but Mohit wanted to eat more. This time we decided to try Kareem's Restaurant. Once seated, we called for chicken biryani. The service was good but I didn't like the food at all. I felt we should have ordered for a curry item or something else with plain rice instead. Biryani was a bad choice. It was not as spicy as I had expected it to be and did not look well prepared.

To overcome the bad taste of the biryani, we made our way to 'The Ghantewala Halwai'.

'The trip to Chandni Chowk wouldn't have been complete if we had missed this one,' I said to Riya.

'So true. I love this Halwa. It's delicious,' she said eating a spoonful of the sohan halwa we ordered at the halwai shop.

All of us stood gazing at the shop's interiors. It looked ancient. I asked Sonam if she knew how old it was.

'It is one of the oldest sweet shops, not just in Chandni Chowk but in the whole country, having served Mughal emperors and present-day politicians alike. I don't know precisely how old, but I can tell you that the present owner is a seventh generation guy,' she said. We were shocked at the good condition it was in.

Sonam then told us how the shop got its unusual name. In the Mughal days, the shop had a school located next to it where the bell would go off at regular intervals. And the great Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar, who was residing in Red Fort at that time, would call for sweets from the 'ghante ke neeche' shop.

'Incredible!' exclaimed Mohit.

I had heard many people call Chandni Chowk a down market and tacky place. However, I loved the experience of trying different dishes and felt that it was definitely an experience worth remembering.

It was late evening and the sun was about to set when we decided to head towards India Gate and Rajpath.

Before this, I had seen Rajpath only on news channels covering the Republic Day parade there every year. It was one h.e.l.l of an experience driving an open jeep on that road. Not even for a second did I feel that I was in India. It was well maintained and well constructed.

As we drove near India Gate, we all stood up in the jeep and gave a warm salute to the Indian soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country-taking the movie Rang De Basanti as our inspiration. We felt so proud of being an Indian at that moment.

The entire boulevard was lined with cars and other vehicles. The whole of Delhi seemed to have converged in the emerald lawns of India gate. Vendors were the centre of attraction, selling a gamut of things from chuskis to chaat. We walked near the lawns where monkeys performed in front of an eager crowd and children blew up soap bubbles.

'Should I get you an ice cream?' I asked Riya.

She agreed and held my hand tightly as the cold breeze enveloped us. Mohit and Sonam had chaat while we ate ice cream. We sat on the cool lawns licking ice cream and playing a bit of football. The fountains nearby were lit up with coloured lights, making the place seem magical.

We next went to the Amar Jawan Jyoti, which is a burning shrine under the arch of India Gate built to remind the citizens of the soldiers who bravely gave their own lives to uphold the country's honour. We clicked photographs around it. As a new bride looks resplendent when adorned with jewellery, so did India Gate look adorned with yellow lights. I thought about how India Gate was fast becoming the most popular destination to start a campaign, raise awareness against an issue, or protest against government atrocities. It had witnessed quite a few candlelight marches in the past decade alone.

'It's so beautiful here. Such a feeling of serenity and calmness,' I said to Riya while we were sitting in the lawns.

'You make me complete,' said Riya pulling my cheeks and making a complete mess of my hair. I smiled at her.

Mohit and Sonam were roaming around the lawns, hand in hand, while we sat reclined in each other's arms.

We had to reach our guest house and pack our bags for our next destination, so we decided to leave for the guest house shortly.

Mesmerizing Ma.n.a.li.

Day 1: Here and there.

We packed our luggage and headed towards ISBT in an autorickshaw. Leaving Delhi seemed difficult, but we were consoled by the fact that on our return journey from Ma.n.a.li, we would eventually have to make a brief stopover at Delhi. Riya and I were in a different autorickshaw which was right behind Sonam and Mohit's. The cold breeze forced Riya to come closer to me. She hugged me and kept her head on my shoulders as we drove towards ISBT. I looked at her eyes and planted a kiss on her lips. It was a gentle kiss, but it still had the burning flame of love. All the way till ISBT, she held on to my hand tightly.

'Jaan, we have reached the bus station. Get up,' I said patting her back as she slept with her head on my shoulders. We got down and headed for the ISBT station. Once there, we kept our luggage on a nearby bench. The person in charge informed us that the last bus to Ma.n.a.li had already left and that we were late. We had no option but to go by another bus which would drop us at Mandi. From Mandi we would have to take another bus to Ma.n.a.li, which is less than hundred kilometres away.

We bought tickets and took our seats. It got increasingly cold as we pa.s.sed through NH 21. Our bus crossed Kurukshetra and halted briefly at Chandigarh where we had supper.

We were cold to the bone by the time we reached Mandi the next morning. We could hardly stand on our feet and were s.h.i.+vering like h.e.l.l. Riya and Sonam had wisely worn woollen overcoats and head caps, so they were able to stand the morning chill. Seeing us s.h.i.+ver in the cold, they made fun of us for not having worn woollens. We boarded a bus going to Ma.n.a.li and were off in sometime.

Driving through the winding roads of Himachal Pradesh, we could see snow-capped hilltops from our bus window. It was then that I realized why places like Kashmir and Ma.n.a.li were called heaven on earth. The view was delightful. We drove along the banks river Beas, while I hummed the the song, 'Behti hawa sa tha woh' from the movie 3 Idiots.

As we got down from the bus, we experienced the first snowfall of our lives. Riya pulled her overcoat closer for warmth and dusted off the snowflakes on her nose. Mohit and I picked up our luggage and went to look for a nice, moderately-priced hotel. We ultimately singled out one for honeymoon couples and booked two rooms. The receptionist handed us the keys while the hotel service boy escorted us to our rooms.

Once in, we walked straight towards the window. The view of the city from our room was breathtaking. The resort was ideally located in the heart of the small town with a breathtaking view of the snow-capped Himalayas. The room felt quaint and personal, with wooden flooring and a fireplace to keep us warm. But the balcony facing the valley was definitely its best feature. We stood in the balcony looking at the town.