AdiYa TS: O Re Pia

Part 1

"Zoya, aaj meri sagai hai. You have to dance!

"Deepti, dance? Tum jaanti ho na humne dance karna kabse choda hua hai? College ke baad se kabhi nahi kiya. Hum dance kaise kar sakte hain Zoya whispered to her friend.

"Main kuch nahi Jaanti. Adi! Tum hi kaho na isse! She has to dance, yaar, come on! Zo tum meri best friend ho, meri baat nahi taal sakti Deepti whined at Adi and Zoya.

"Deepti! Zoya aur Dance? Tum kyu apne engagement function ko bigaadna chahti ho? Isse dance vance kahan aata hai? Aditya replied playfully.

"Do Not Tell Me! Zoya is a champion dancer. Kabhi dance karte huye nahi dekha isse tumne? Seriously? Deepti looked at Adi with wide eyes, while Zoya stood a little flushed at the side. True, she had been an ace dancer in her college days, trained in classical dance since she was 11. But she hadn't danced since, and it had been almost 10 years. God knows if she still remembered anything!

"Zoya, jaanti hun tum kya soch rahi ho. Lekin jo talent tumhaare paas hai na, vo gap ki vajah se khatam nahi ho sakta. Ek baar Dance floor pe jaa to sahi, phir tujhe pata lagega main kya keh rahi hun. Deepti tried to convince Zoya.

Zoya looked at Deepti with pleading eyes, but Deepti only had determination and reassurance in hers. Sighing deeply, Zoya resigned. Deepti was her closest friend since college and had been ever since. Even with every twist and turn that took place in Zoya's life, Deepti had been a constant throughout. Zoya knew that if there was one thing that Deepti was, was adamant, and so she would eventually have to get on the dance floor.

"Acha theek hai, lekin hum dance kaunse gaane par karein? Zoya asked Deepti, who smiled with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Vo tu mujh par chodh de, Deepti replied, and left to find the DJ and get the song on the list. Zoya made her way to the middle of the dance floor just as Deepti stopped the music and announced on the mike for everyone to step off the dance floor. Aditya stood at the side, looking with extreme interest. He had not known that Zoya could dance, let alone that she was a trained one. This was a very interesting moment for him and he did not want to miss one moment of it.

"May I have your attention ladies and gentlemen, this is your Bride speaking! Hey, Hi, Hi, haan you can stop talking now. Yellow suit wali aunty, aap bhi! Apni bahu ki chugli 5 minute baad kar lena. Maa maine bola tha itne logon ko mat bulao. No offence to anyone that I don't know. The people who know me will know better than to take anything I say too seriously, Deepti teased.

Adi chuckled at Deepti's little monologue. Apart from her being a client of ZOSH, and Zoya's best friend, she had become close to Adi to while they were planning her wedding. He liked the girl, she was nice, playful and free-spirited, with a Bindaas attitude, which Adi admired. He often mused how Deepti and Zoya were best friends, with being so different from each other, but overtime, had come to know that while they might be poles apart externally, their views, ideologies and morals, intrinsically were very similar. With Deepti's introduction to their chapters, Adi and Zoya's relationship had taken a very significant turn, with Adi understanding Zoya at a deeper level now.

"Right! So, now, I have a VERY special treat for you, in the form of my Bestie Zoya, who will dance. College ke dinon mein Zoya was the QUEEN of dance jo kahin kho gayi thi, and ab ye meri responsibility hai ke main her Royal Highness ko vapas laun. You see, ye bhool gayi hai lekin mujhe yaad hai ke humne college mein ek pact banaya tha, jahan inki shaadi par main aur meri shaadi par ye dance kareingi. Uss time to madam ne bahut confidently keh diya tha k haan okay, kyunki isko pata tha k main dance nahi kar sakti. Lekin Zo, aaj aayi na unth pahaad ke neeche. So here is presenting, ZOYA!

A round of applause sounded all around as the attention was unanimously brought towards the beautiful girl who stood on the dance floor. Lights dimmed, and a single spotlight shone on Zoya, giving her an angelic glow around her frame. Soft music started playing, and recognising the song, Zoya's eyes snapped to her best friend, who blinked in reassurance. Zoya shut her eyes and took a deep breath, feeling the music, and letting her instincts take over. And then, she let go.

O re pia, haaye, o re pia; O re pia, haaye, o re pia
O re pia, haaye, o re pia; O re pia, haaye, o re pia
Udhne laga kyun, man baawra re,
aaya kahan se, ye haunsla re,
O re pia, o re pia, haaye...

Feeling the rhythms of the song as if her own heartbeat, Zoya moved her body along with the lyrics in the routine that she had mastered a decade ago. This was her favourite song to dance to, and Deepti's favourite performance of Zoya's. Her body gracefully moved from one step to another, it was as if she was enchanted by the music. But she wasn't the only one enchanted, for one of the spectators felt equally trapped with the music and the woman who danced to the tunes of it

Taana baana taana baana
Bunti hawa, haye, bunti hawa,
Boonde bhi to aayein nahi, baaz yahan, haaye
Saazish mein shaamil saara jahan hai, har zarre zarre ki ye ilteja hai,
O re pia, o re pia, haaye, o re pia, haaye, o re pia

Adi had never seen Zoya move so freely! It was as if she had left her own body, as if her soul had escaped and was now moving on the dance floor like a gust of wind. He could see, feel and experience the difference between the Zoya he saw everyday and the Zoya on the dance floor at that moment. He could see the restraints that every day-Zoya had imposed on herself. The boundaries, the control she had set. It was as if she was a prisoner in her daily life, who had been set free on this 12 X 12 dance floor. The grace that she moved her body with, the poise, the confidence that overflowed out of her. If this Zoya appeared in front of anyone in a daily life situation, she could ruin the confidence of others without even trying. So, who was the real Zoya? The one who he saw every day or this powerful, strength magnet he was witnessing at the moment?

Nazrein bolein duniya tole, dil ki zubaan haaye, dil ki zabaan
Ishq maange, ishq chahe, koi toofaan, haaye
Chalna aahiste, ishq naya hai, pehla ye vaada humne kiya hai,
O re pia, haaye, o re pia, haaye, o re pia,
Pia, re pia.

Zoya reconnected with her old self on that dance floor. It had been so long, she had felt like she had disconnected with herself over all these years, lost that part of her and then finally found herself today. She let go of her past, her scars, her sorrows, her worries and everything that held her back. On that dancefloor, the society, her family, her dead-husband, her shortcomings, the questions she was trying to answer, nothing mattered. It was her and her dance. A song close to her heart, and a routine she was perfect at. A routine she knew she was perfect at. This was one thing no one could take from her. No one could come and say "Zoya, you were inadequate. No one could challenge this. This was whole. This was complete. This was hers. And boy she took full advantage of that. She danced.

Nange pairon pe angaaron, chalti rahi, haaye, chalti rahi.
Lagta hai ke gairon mein main palti rahi, haaye,
Le chal vahan jo, mulk tera hai,
jaahil zamaana dushman mera hai
o re pia, haaye, o re pia, haaye, o re pia, haaye,
o re pia, haaye, o re pia, haaye, o re pia

It's said that dance is the most powerful form of expression, especially for those who cannot say the reason for their pain, or even admit the fact that they are in pain, out loud. And three people in that hall experiences the truth in this statement for themselves in those 5 minutes- Zoya, the expresser, Aditya, the receiver, and Deepti, the witness. While two of them had been through the pain, faced it first-hand, the third had seen her once-upon-a-time extremely lively and chirpy friend lose her spark and be reduced to a lifeless, emotionless mortal. Through that dance, Deepti saw a glimpse of the Zoya Siddiqui that she had become friends with. There was a glimpse of that spark, that electricity that Zoya had once possessed, that was now buried deep inside her, struggling to come out, but unable to overcome the 16 thousand barriers Zoya had put up. She saw Zoya let go of herself, and her pain, even though for just an instant, and live. She saw the real Zoya crying out for help. To be saved from the pain, the sorrow the world had gifted her. And that gave her hope. Hope that maybe, her friend could be brought back. That there was a chance of bringing back happiness into the life of Zoya Siddiqui. And Deepti knew just how to do that. Aditya Hooda.