Marrying for love- Part 1

 

1989, India

Indu eagerly sat by the phone, waiting desperately for it to ring, even though it was eleven pm, well past her usual bedtime. It was the first Saturday of the month, the day Meenal her sister, called from Edinburgh. Given how expensive it was to call overseas, Meenal called only once a month. The conversations were hurried, with Indu bagging the first spot so as to have the maximum time with Meenal. Her mother then said her hello hurriedly, keeping an eagle eye on the clock so as to not exceed the strictly allocated time for the overseas phone call, thereby managing the budget.

Indu always hoped Meenal would call a few minutes early, before their mother came to wait by the phone, so that she could speak for a few extra minutes with her. She sorely missed her sister.  Being brought up by extremely strict and traditional parents, they had been each other’s confidantes. They were only two years apart in age, with Meenal now twenty seven being the older one.

In her mother’s opinion, and in that of her extended family, Meenal was already well past her expiration date, and if this carried on she would soon be an old maid of thirty whom no one would want to marry. Somehow the extended family, consisting of their uncles, grandparents, and aunts had a say in every single thing Indu and Meenal did, since Shanti was a single mother and a widow.

Growing up, the sisters had hated the phone calls to and from the relatives. They had hated the way their mother always went along with what the relatives said. Just because she didn’t have a husband, did it mean she couldn’t make any decisions on her own? It wasn’t like she was dependent on them for anything! She had a decent job as a school teacher and their father’s life insurance policy took care of the rest.

Indu spotted her mother coming out of her bedroom. Why wasn’t Meenal calling? If there was something important she wanted to share, how could she freely discuss it with their mother hanging on to every word?

Trrrrriiiinnng!

The ring of the phone jarred Indu out of her thoughts.

“Hi Meenu!” she said eagerly. “How are you? You really made me wait this time! Quick! Tell me what you wanted to say!”

Then in a hushed whisper she added, “I can spot Ma coming this way.”

“I am coming home, Indu!”

Indu stood up suddenly, nearly pulling out the cord. “What?!?”

“Yes! And the thing I wanted to talk about? I am bringing it along. Or rather, him.”

Indu could hear the smile in Meenal’s voice. Had she heard it correctly? More importantly, had she interpreted it correctly?? But before she could question Meenal any further, their mother took the phone away from her.

“Meenal, how are you? You called later than usual, didn’t you? I grew so tired of staying up, I almost fell asleep. You must think of others as well, not just yourself.”

Indu clenched her teeth in frustration. Was it really essential to add the last bit to sentence?

Before Meenal could reply, her mother ploughed on.

“You remember Prasad Uncle? They were our neighbours back in Delhi? Their son is living in London. Go meet him next Saturday. The horoscopes are also matching. What? What do you mean you are coming home? How can you come home now? What about the flight ticket? Who will pay for the ticket?”

Indu could only guess what Meenal said as their mother responded.

“Bringing a friend along? What’s all this? Have you given up your studies? You know how hard I have had to work to put you through the foreign university?”

“Ma, she is there on full scholarship!” Indu could not control her temper. It was always like this, the conversations were never complete without bringing up how much Meenal’s education was costing them, how Meenal could have graduated from anywhere in India and landed a decent job in a bank, but instead she had gone to Edinburgh to study computers- something that had no ‘scope’.

Her mother shushed her, trying to get more details from Meenal. “You will be here on Monday??? Hello?? Hello???”

In a huff, Shanti hung up the phone. “This girl is the absolute limit! How can she suddenly come here on such a short notice? Has she no care about how much it will cost?”

“You know Meenu works in the computer lab at her university. You know they pay her a stipend. When has she ever asked you to pay for her flight ticket?” Indu was seething with anger.

“Don’t take that tone with me. There are other expenses involved.”

Indu had always wondered what these other expenses were.

“And what does she mean she’s getting a friend along? A boy nonetheless! Oh dear Lord, I am feeling faint! I think my blood pressure just shot up!”

“You don’t have high blood pressure!” Indu thought if she clenched her teeth any harder, they would stick permanently.

“Don’t talk back! It is high time that you got married. Then all this back-talking will stop, once you go to your in-laws house.”

“I am not getting married till I complete my post graduation.” Indu sounded mutinous, but her mother, Shanti, carried on as if she didn’t hear her.

“But first, I hope Meenal gets married! She has gone off to Edinburgh of all places! That too, alone! We know what people do in foreign countries. People will always wonder if she has had a boyfriend there! If you get married before she does, people will say all sorts of things! They will begin to wonder why she isn’t getting married, what is wrong with her!”

“Ma, who are all these people? Why do you care so much?”

But she obviously didn’t hear her again. “This girl will be the death of me! I will call your grandmother tomorrow and ask her if she can set up any matches while Meenal is here. We have to make use of her coming here so suddenly. I won’t let her go back this time without getting engaged. Your Komal Auntie was saying how everyone in the family is saying that Meenal is the oldest unmarried girl in her family!”

Indu couldn’t take it anymore! She missed Meenal terribly. She was the one who had kept her sane or rather they had kept each other sane. Aaaaaaah. It was so frustrating! And if she had interpreted Meenal’s cryptic message correctly, she was bringing her boyfriend home! Indu could only imagine the kind of hell that would break loose!

Though she personally put no store into such things, she just hoped that he belonged to their caste. An inter-caste marriage meant instant ostracization from their family. Not that she would mind it one bit, but Shanti would become more difficult than ever to deal with. There was a good chance that Meenal would be disowned.

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!

Indu screamed into the pillow. The minute she finished her post-graduation, she would be out of there, preferably unmarried. She had never had a chance to really live on her own. She envied Meenal, living by herself, not having to deal with the constant nagging from their mother and the extended family day in and day out. But she supposed Meenal had made it happen. She was ballsy and headstrong and wasn’t afraid to go out and get what she wanted. Indu was a bit shy, and worried far too much about upsetting everyone, or that’s what Meenal constantly told her.

It wasn’t like Meenal or Indu didn’t love Shanti, they did, but it was also true that their mother was extremely hard to get along with. Both the daughters had a very contentious relationship with their mother, but it was especially true of Meenal. Indu kind of got where their mother was coming from, even though she did not agree with it.

The sisters had been each others’ emotional support growing up. At times like these, it was really, really difficult to deal with stuff on her own. She sure as hell hoped that Meenal stayed for a few days; though if she brought home a boyfriend who was from a different caste, she wouldn’t even be staying the night.

There was nothing to do but wait it out. Monday couldn’t come soon enough.