Royally yours

71. Haldi

Daksh

After the mehendi and energetic sangeet yesterday, today is our Haldi which I am looking forward to. Even though Dadi sa and her grandmother suggested doing the ritual separately, I was adamant about having it together and this time, my Jaan too supported me saying she wanted this. When they didn't seem to bulge she promised her grandmother to follow their orders and have a separate haldi ceremony before our Telugu wedding and that did the magic as both the parties compromised to fulfill each other's wishes.

I got dressed in a vibrant yellow kurta and set my hair before walking out of my room tying my golden bracelet around my wrist. I talked to the guests for a while and Maa sa asked me to sit on my seat which was in the shape of a lotus with vibrant flower garlands hanging behind it from the decorated white and yellow satin clothes that were tied to the poles holding the roof while a few patterns were adorned in the back of the seats.

The chairs for guests were white in color with three couches facing to the center where a small table covered with a yellow tablecloth on top of which yellow flowers lay. The chairs were decorated with cushions of yellow and white with different patterns on them. The tents above the tables were also yellow in color with different patterns adorning them and strings of yellow and white flowers hanging down from the edges.

Large tumblers filled with water were kept around the fountain and along the paths with flowers floating on them. There was also a swing with many cloth-made flowers hanging from all sides of it while the swing itself was wound with natural green leaves and yellow flowers. 

The path that led from the gates to the garden was decorated with beautiful arches of bright yellow marigolds and a peacock made of yellow flowers and green leaves stood at the entrance with its tail spread across adding more beauty to the decor. 

As I took a seat on one of the stools placed in the middle of a lotus-looking tub, I heard soft music playing indicating her presence. As I snapped my head in that direction, my breath hitched as I saw my angel walking toward me and all the grand decor seemed to fade in front of her charming presence. I felt myself drawn towards her akin to the sunflowers that follow the sun's direction. 

She was dressed in a simple yellow lehenga with some of her hair set into a clutcher with a few flowers adorning them while most of her hair was left to flow in the air making her look more ethereal and unrealistic. She was wearing floral jewelry and I wondered how lucky those flowers became as soon as they touched her body. Her brightness added glory to the flowers as the white and yellow flowers with a touch of pink petals adorned her proudly as a testimony of her pure and soft heart and her being soft is not her weakness but one of her greatest strengths which I adore a lot.

As she was made to sit next to me, Abhi and Rakshit held a cloth between us like a curtain chuckling. I glared at them and that made them shut up. First, Maa sa followed by others applied haldi on me and the same haldi was passed over to Chaitra's side. Her parents followed by others applied Haldi to her after which both the parties shifted sides and her family applied Haldi to me while mine applied to her.

"Now can I apply Haldi to her?" I asked my grandmother giving her my best innocent look that work on her like magic making her melt like a puddle. My cousins seemed to realize it and decided to pour water on my plan by pushing Maa sa to the front.

"No beta. You cannot apply haldi to your bride," Maa sa declared making me sulk internally while mine and her cousins giggled at me. I looked at Chaitra who was already looking at me through the transparent cloth with a soft smile. 

"Now that's not fair, Maa Sa. If she is being adorned with the haldi of my name then why not from my hands?" I put forth my question acting stubbornly and once again glanced at my Jaan who must have turned pink under the layers of haldi covering her cheeks.