To Love or Not To Love

Chapter14

It was her fourth day in New Delhi. Khushi was busy planning a shopping trip to Janpath with her buaji when she got a call from a certain Lavanya Kashyap.

"Hi Khushi, this is Lavanya Kashyap, ASR's current Business Developer".

Lavanya's introduction was followed by an awkward silence. What could Khushi tell her? I am sorry I took your boyfriend, who was never really your boyfriend but still kind of was? And I didn't really like him or want him to begin with? How confusing was the entire thing?

Noticing Khushi was unusually silent, buaji mouthed 'everything okay?' to which Khushi vigorously shook her head in affirmative. She was still trying to figure out how to address Lavanya when Lavanya prodded: "Khushi are you still there?"

"Yes", she mumbled.

"Good. I need to meet you today to hand over all the necessary documents and tell you about a few do's and don'ts regarding the position you are about to fill. What would be a good time to meet?"

Khushi thought hard about the question. "Never", screamed her brain. But the next words that tumbled out of her mouth sounded like "I can meet you around 2 pm near Janpath."

Lavanya rolled her eyes. Janpath was filled with street vendors selling colorful bric-a-bracs that didn't last two days. And all were out to cheat you with their prices unless of course, you were an expert in the art of bargaining. Only very middle-class people shopped at Janpath. ASR detested the sight of street markets. What work would Khushi have near Janpath and why would she want to meet me there? After all, ASR's "Business Developers", if they ever shopped in New Delhi, shopped only in South Ex.

Lavanya sighed. Khushi's shopping habits were really none of her business. Not when she had more important things to take care of. She didn't want to risk upsetting ASR's latest fancy. She knew of ASR's formidable temper and wanted to remain in his good books until she could get a decent reference that would help her move on in life.

So she chose her next words very carefully. "Why don't we meet in AR instead? I can have the conference room reserved between 2 and 3. I'll text you the address to AR in a bit. Does that sound okay?"

To Khushi, it sounded more than okay. She might hate Arnav Singh Raizada with every fiber of her existence, but working for AR was a dream she had cherished ever since she started her undergraduate program in Fashion Design from the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT).

As a correspondence student at NIFT, she had had the opportunity to follow and admire the work of some very creative Indian fashion designers. She had always marveled at their designs – most of which were a subtle blend of eastern vibrant patterns, motifs, and colors overlapping with traditional western patterns. It never came as a surprise that many of them worked for AR Designs, that is until she met the owner of AR, Arnav Singh Raizada herself.

Khushi's passion for clothes and colors could be traced to times when she didn't know how to string a sentence together perfectly. Even at the age of five, she was told, she would wrap differently colored dupattas of her Amma around her, pair them with her mother's jewelry that way too big for her tiny ears and pretend it was an ensemble creation. Her mother had a full-time job tidying up her wardrobe once Khushi was done with it.

The accident had changed everything. Khushi had virtually stopped smiling. She would do whatever was asked of her, but never showed any interest in anything, be it books, clothes, games or friends. An outsider would have categorized Khushi as a loner, but Shashi had seen through it all and realized that beneath that mild exterior, Khushi was a spirited girl, a force to be reckoned with. He encouraged her to dream and to follow her dreams, to do what she wanted to, what she was good at.

Khushi was 18 years old when Shashi felt she should take up a degree in law. Given her nature, Khushi had been unable to refuse. She had joined law school and was halfway through her second semester, when one day, Shashi suddenly discovered her tiny sketchbook, hidden beneath her pile of clothes. The book contained beautiful patterns of dresses, exquisitely designed and colored using pencil colors. On the right side of the design, the motifs on the sketch had been enlarged to display the intricacy of the design. Every pattern was accompanied with scraps of fabric that the dress would be sewn in. Intermittently, there were magazine cuttings of beautiful dresses with notes underneath on what Khushi had liked about the dress and what she would have done differently. Seeing all that amazing work, Shashi realized his daughter was a gifted designer. She had a passion for clothes and for designing them and he felt guilty for having pushed Khushi in a different direction. 

When Khushi came home that evening, Shashi had a long talk with her about the situation. He told her, he wanted her to follow her dreams and not those of her father. She was really talented and coupled with the right coaching and environment, she could really make it big in her chosen field. Before the end of the conversation, it was decided that Khushi would apply for the B.Des in Fashion Design from NIFT.

Garima had thrown a fit. She didn't have a problem with Khushi studying Fashion Design, but she would not let the girl live alone in New Delhi. "You know how these big cities are – I will always be worried for her safety. She is after all, still only a girl", Garima had tried to reason with Shashi. When Shashi had offered, Khushi could stay with Madhumati, Garima had looked crestfallen and said: "One day my angel will get married and leave me. That is unavoidable. But must that separation between me and Khushi be brought about so soon?"

Shashi had not been able to convince Garima otherwise. But he had managed to send a copy of Khushi's sketchbook along with her application to NIFT. One month later, the admission committee came back with an answer. Khushi was to receive a full scholarship for her degree and as a special exception; they would allow her to come to New Delhi just for her exams. She could complete her lecture notes and assignments from Lucknow.

Khushi was a hardworking girl and very soon, became the favorite of her teachers. Her assignment work was always outstanding. Her good nature won over all her peers. On Graduation Day, when Khushi was awarded the "Student of Year" no one was surprised.

*****

Lavanya was impatiently tapping her well-manicured index finger on the fiberglass work desk in front of her. She knew the girls ASR picked for his "Business Developers" were just pretty faces. They lacked the ability to think quickly and act on their feet. Khushi, so far, was the worst she had seen. It had been over a minute and yet this girl couldn't come up with an answer to Lavanya's simple yes or no question.

Trying extremely hard to remain polite, Lavanya cleared her throat and asked once again: "Khushi, will it be okay to meet at AR? Or would you rather meet somewhere else."

Khushi shook herself out of her reverie. ASR's words "You may never have to visit the office", came to haunt her. She couldn't let go of this opportunity to visit the place she had once dreamed of working at. She replied: "Of course Lavanyaji, it's perfectly okay with me. I will see you near the conference room of AR at sharp 2."

Lavanya paused, raising her eyebrows in question. Khushi had just called her Lavanyaji. What planet did this girl come from? Who addressed people with ji anymore? Adding ji to the name was a sign of respect. Knowing what Lavanya was to ASR, why would the girl want to address her with respect?

Suddenly Lavanya's brain was asking more questions than she had answers for. And so, for the first time ever, Lavanya was waiting to meet one of ASR's Business Developers. Something told her, this girl was different from the usual crop.