Eye of the Storm (Swaragini FF)

Chapter 5

Annapurna sat on her bed. She was the reflection of concentration right now. From her childhood days, she had always be disciplined about each and every action of hers and now she was utilizing her core strengths as she dealt with what faced her family. For the past few weeks, she had been taking some time out every afternoon to evaluate the winds, decipher the delicate changes in their nature and evaluating her actions against what she saw. She had extracted the promises that she felt were necessary to address the situation effectively, but she wasn't someone to sit by and hope for the best. No, she had been actively monitoring the situation, checking if the promises were being actioned and checking if they were having the desired effect. She was a realist though and knew that each small change needed time to take effect and to yield the result she needed. She was willing for time to play its course – provided she didn't feel her plans were getting derailed.

She had been observing the four youngsters closely. They were after all at the core of this change that she was seeing. She had seen what was obvious but also the subtle changes. She had seen Sanskar and Swara spending less time vs what they used to spend before. She had been thankful in part to the opportunity that Sanskar had encountered in his business, for this. It served more purposes than one. While she was happy for his successes and wished more for him, she was happy about the restricted time he had with Swara. What she didn't like however was that Sanskar was still spending some concrete time with Swara alone which meant he wasn't spending as much time with his family. She knew she wasn't the only one who noticed it. She had heard Sujata mutter about it on more than just a few occasions as well. Sujata had even taken to dragging him out to spend some time with his family the last couple of days before he went on his business trip.

She had also seen Swara spend more and more time with Laksh, accompanied by Ragini. Every day Ragini would make a new excuse to pull Swara along with her as she went out with Laksh. While she did not like Ragini, she had to give the girl some credit for coming up with innovative excuses each day. This again had not gone unnoticed by Sujata or for that matter Parineeta, but for different reason. They had been left, on some recent occasions, to do the chores that were meant to be shared by everyone and it hadn't left a good taste in their mouth. While these meetings did run long, she hadn't missed seeing the dull expression on Laksh's face after these meetings as he dropped both the sisters home, nor did she miss the despondent look on Laksh's face even when he was surrounded by his family. Sanskar being away on business trip, too didn't have a significant impact on the changed dynamics at the dinner table, around Laksh. She hoped that this would change soon – she had faith in it changing soon.

As she looked back, what had surprised her was Sujata. Sujata had come to her yesterday morning with her doubts and observations about Swara, Ragini and Laksh and something being fishy there. What has surprised her wasn't that Sujata has observed this, but that she has taken such a long time to observe it.

When Annapurna had been married into the Maheshwari household, her mother in law had taken her under her tutelage and told her some valuable insights. First of those was to understand that as the eldest daughter in law, it would in future, be her responsibility to hold the family together. The entire family and every member in it, belonged to her and were her responsibility the moment they stepped into this house. She had great respect for her mother in law and her lessons has stayed with her long after she passed away.

When Sujata was married to Ram, she had added Sujata to the list of relations in the family that belonged to her. Sujata had always been someone who was ambitious to have her own position and power in the household. She was also over the top sometimes. She had good observation skills but her impulsive nature meant that she was likely to jump the gun more often than not, and hurt the very people that she cared about. While Annapurna knew her flaws, she also knew that Sujata was someone really good at heart and once someone made a place in her heart, she would go any lengths for them. She had seen Sujata fight on her behalf on one occasion early into her married life and had been touched by her feelings.

Annapurna, however, also knew that Sujata's ambitious streak needed to be managed well for the sake of her family. Sujata didn't always understand her brother in law Ram and was likely to act in ways that were rash and prone to disrupt the family. Annapurna had been the eldest of four children. As such, she has been expected to oversee her siblings and keep them happy in a joint family where she was also the eldest among her cousins. Very early in her life, she had learnt to understand the people around her and how to optimally manage the relationships. That had helped helped her as she took on the role of the matriarch for the family.

She had noticed what Sujata has failed to and that was the dynamics that both brothers – her husband and her brother in law Ram, shared. To the casual observer Ram would come across as submissive brother who didn't have any thought or say in any matters – business or family. To everyone he was the powerless silent observer. But the reality was a bit different – as it many times is. Both brothers had an unsaid silent code between them – one that even she didn't formally have a insider track on. But her observation skills hadn't lied to her about what she saw, and she knew it.

What people around did know was that Ram would not publically – even in front of family – ever question or oppose her husband. Equally, her husband would never question or doubt or reprimand his brother's thoughts in public. It wasn't fear of conflict but great love and respect that drove them to behave this way. Their oppositions, debates – and she knew they had them – were only meant for their ears and no one else's – not even their wives. In public, the two brothers had their silent signals or looks that conveyed their views to the other – privately.

Sujata never saw this or understood it. While Sujata loved her husband, she also saw him as powerless and that brought even more ambition in her – to fight not just for her place in the household, but also that of her husband and children. Annapurna had to deal with her sensitively to maintain the balance in the family. She would indulge her at times, letting her win and then there were times when she would subtly divert her desires to what was appropriate for the sanctity of the family – making Sujata believe that she always wanted it. Then there were times when she would be the elder sister that she had been since her childhood, lovingly reprimanding her younger sister for her wrong choices.

When Sujata had come to her yesterday with her doubts and her suggestion that they follow the Swara, Ragini and Laksh to really see what they were up to, she had agreed. While she has been drawing her inferences from what she saw in their interactions at the house, she knew it would, for once, also be valuable to see their interactions when they felt they were alone.

So they had followed the three as they went to a park. They hid behind the bushes that were at some distance to the benches on which the kids sat. Laksh and Swara sat together on one bench and Ragini on the other. Sujata had been anxious seeing this and was ready to confront the three, questioning why it was her daughter-in-law Swara who was sitting on the same bench with her brother in law – instead of his wife. Sanskar and Swara might be getting divorced, but wasn't she still married to her son, Sujata complained. And this was what she was doing behind her son's back, while he was away for work, she asked. Annapurna had to calm her down a bit and ask her not jump to conclusions – even if they were the right ones. Truth be told, in her mind, Annapurna had been shaking her head at Sujata's reactions. Only Sujata could do everything to not have a Bengali daughter in law and then feel offended when the same Bengali daughter in law was with someone else – someone who Sujata herself had once recommended she be with.

As she recollected Laksh's interaction with Swara, she couldn't help but notice the distances between them – not just physical but emotional. Laksh has been intermittently talking to Swara and she had been barely responding. There had been a time when they sat there in silence before Laksh got a call and they all left the park. It was this meeting that Annapurna had been playing in her mind over and over again for the past few minutes – looking for the nuances in their reactions – trying to judge if what she saw was what was really the case of was this a fiction of her mind. Her next course of action depended on her interpreting the situations and the winds correctly. 

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