Sapno Ka Shaher

Having you!

It was 9:45 at night. The rush in the 'Sea Queen' society was soothed by now. There were some people having their night walk. Dhondu, the guard, too was settled down in his position after his dinner. The smooth rustling of the leaves of the garden trees was carried by the calm March breeze. A peaceful song 'yeh raate, yeh mausam, nadi ka kinara...' was playing on the radio in a house.

The silence of the night was broken by someone's hurried steps. A guy walked down the steps of the C wing and rushed to the J wing, taking long strides.

Naina was pacing in the hall. She had been waiting for Sameer since evening. They hadn't seen each other for a long time during the day as he was busy with his acting class and then he had directly gone to Nirmala Aunty's house upon Preeti's insistence to have dinner with them. She wasn't even sure whether he remembered their last night discussion when he had visited for dinner yesterday.

The leaky roof of their bedroom had been a big problem for them. The flooring of the flat above them, which was the reason behind leakage, and the repairing of their bedroom roof needed almost one month of fixing. This meant people living there, i.e. Naina, Papa and Sameer had to shift in one room, which was an awkward situation for the people of society. A question was raised by the visitors, who had supposedly come for the help, as how the three people living here would manage. They had expressed their concern about the uncomfortable situation of a young guy staying with a married woman and her father under one roof. After a debate, they concluded that Sameer would stay in Nimalaji's house, till the roof is repaired. Sameer and Naina shared a glance. They had to stay away from each other just because of the societal norms. What was the problem if a guy stayed with a father-daughter duo in the same room? It was a matter of just sleeping at night, as they were anyway living together since they came. Was it such a big deal for other people, that they literally passed an order to make an arrangement for Sameer?

J101, their home, was the only solace for them. The place where they can be truthful to one another. Even Rakesh papa had to handle on many fronts considering Sameer's career and this was the place where they would be in their true form of relations. Sameer was spared from calling 'Uncleji' to Rakesh papa... Rakesh didn't have to treat him as 'mere dost ka beta'. Sameer and Naina wouldn't need to behave as just acquaintances. This was the place where they were one family. And now the decisions taken by the people of the society, who didn't even bother to seek consent of the people involved in it, had created even bigger walls for Sameer, Naina and Rakesh papa to conquer.

They had to agree to the glaring eyes of Vanita, the secretary of the society, because they were very much aware of her vigilance. But that meant Sameer and Naina had to stay apart. That meant they couldn't just sleep peacefully in each other's arms. That meant they couldn't talk and share their day's routine... or the new happenings at Sameer's acting class... or his auditions... or how Naina was progressing in her studies... or just be themselves... the husband-wife...

They would hardly get a chance to talk to each other properly. Sameer would usually come for breakfast, as he always wanted to bless his morning by seeing his beautiful wife. Also, the varied discussions with Rakesh papa about the Mumbai city over the chai, were becoming interesting day by day. But he would not get a chance to talk to Naina that much. Though he would help her in the kitchen to spend as much time with her, he couldn't get his wife for him. Sometimes, even sneaking a kiss would be so difficult due to the omnipresent Papa and the workers. And after his acting class, he would come back, have dinner, talk to Naina as much as possible, but he still would have to leave again to Preeti's house with a heavy heart.

They wondered why the Dream City Mumbai, who supposedly has a big heart, was so cruel to them since they had come over. Was it a crime to dream big? Was it so difficult to accept people as they presented themselves? Was the reputation of society really at stake if an unmarried guy stayed with a married woman and her father, having shared the family relations with each other? They couldn't comprehend how to call it a 'sapno ka shaher' with such narrow minded people living here.