Friday 20 November 2015

251. OS 13. Laad Governor and Afghan Jalebi (Part 18)





Link to my new short story: Taking Care of You


“I thought I was dreaming when I first saw you," he said.

 “How did you know it was me?” she asked. “I could have been anybody. A thief even.”

He smiled wearily. “I don’t know many thieves who would look at me with anxious eyes and then cry because I was sick,” he mumbled.

Is it possible for love to bloom, sight unseen? Juhi and Abhay are strangers who know each other better than they know themselves. One night changes the equation and the even tenor of their lives and puts all their doubts and fears to rest.


http://pothi.com/pothi/book/ebook-smita-ramachandran-taking-care-you



Link to my first e-novel; A Home for Meenakshi

http://pothi.com/pothi/book/ebook-smita-ramachandran-home-meenakshi

"I love the way you love, Meenu," he whispered, his eyes on hers. "Such loyalty, such passion..."

Meenakshi Sharma, an orphan, lives in Varanasi with her uncle, a chronic bachelor who wants her to become a professional musician. She unwillingly relocates to Delhi to study under a renowned musician for eight months. Staying for rent in the outhouse of the Agrawals, she meets Aditya Agrawal, an attractive young man brooding over the memories of his horrendous past. Pulled between her uncle's expectations of her and Aditya's love for her, Meenakshi struggles with her feelings. How can she disappoint her uncle who had devoted his entire life to her upbringing? How can she pretend to be blind to Aditya's feelings for her? A romance that moves between the alleys of the holy city of Varanasi and the modern city of Delhi.

A blog for my VMs:

http://smitarsvms.blogspot.in/



Dedicated to Supriya Sahasrabuddhe (Sups/ aniyathi). She wanted Mami and Payal to plot to bring A-K together. So here goes,





Part 18




“Khushiji, aap bait jayiye na?” the handsome boy invited. “Please sit down.”


Khushi sat down, frowning. So much tameez? Was he saving tameez in his bank locker?


“Khussi, this is Abhishek,” Sasi told her. “He is an engineer in the electricity department.”


Khushi folded her hands and muttered, “Namaste.” He was too clean shaven and too fair.


The boy did the same, smiling at her.


Khushi looked at his white teeth with disfavour. Why did he need the electricity department? All he had to do was smile and entire Varanasi would be filled with light.


“Maybe we could let them talk in private?” the boy’s father suggested.


“Ji, ji,” Garima replied. “Khussi,” she called. “Take Abhishek to the dining room and talk to him.”


Khushi got up and moved to the dining room.

Abhishek followed.


She motioned him to a chair and took a chair away from him. He was wearing a floral perfume. Khushi, who normally loved flowers, wrinkled her nose.


“Khushiji, I saw you at the market one day a month back. I decided then and there that you would be my amma’s bahu,” Abhishek said, smiling.


Khushi clenched a fist, wanting to knock down his teeth. He decided? Who was he to decide? What about her? Didn’t she have a say in whose bahu she was going to be? Khushi bit on her tongue to stop herself from being impolite to a guest.


“Khushiji, what is your educational qualification?” Abhishek asked, a smile on his face.


Khushi smiled. Never let it be said that she had scowled at the first boy who had reached her house to inspect her, she thought. “Are your parents willing to send their bahu out to work?” she asked easily.


“Err—no. We are orthodox, khandaani people, Khushiji,” Abhishek stammered.


“Acha? Then what will you do knowing my educational qualifications?” she asked, a smile still on her face. ‘Will you make a bharta of it and eat it?’ she asked silently. “Your bahu doesn’t have to be a postgraduate to wash dishes and roll rotis in your khandaani kitchen, does she?” she asked loudly.


“Err, no,” he muttered, flustered.


Khushi smiled at him, determined to be pleasant.


Abhishek smiled back at her, but the brightness of his smile was slightly dimmed by her determined cheerfulness.


“Khushiji, I earn a five-digit salary,” he claimed, proud of himself.


‘Good for you,’ Khushi thought. ‘As long as it is not 00000.’


“My amma is very careful about how we spend money,” he began.


“She is a tightfisted hag,’ Khushi translated silently.


“She keeps track of our spending,” he said, wiping sweat off his face.


‘He gives his monthly salary to her,’ Khushi understood.


“After our shaadi, that will continue,” he said, looking uncomfortable.


Khushi’s smile widened. “I have no problem with that, Abhishekji,” she remarked. “After all, it is your salary, your mother and your shaadi.”


“Ji?” he asked, perplexed.


“But you may have issues later on,” Khushi informed him charitably.


“Ji?” he asked.


“Ji,” she enlightened him, smiling all the way. “No girl wants to marry a man she thinks is spineless.”


“What?” he asked in shock.


“Every girl wants a man for her husband, not an amma’s boy. Baaki aap ki zindagi he. It is your life. You decide,” she said, a big smile on her face. “Shall we join the others?”


“Err—Khushiji, are you sure you don’t want to ask me anything? Matlab about girlfriends and things like that?” he asked nervously.


Khushi smiled widely. “Ji nahi. Aapki girlfriends aap ko aur aapki ammaji ko mubaarak ho. Let’s go.”





                                             ***





After the boy and his family left, Sasi asked Khushi, “Bitiya, did you like him?”


“No, babuji,” Khushi replied simply.



“Why not?” buaji asked. “Ladka was very handsome, wasn’t he, Nandkisore?”


“He was too handsome, buaji,” Khushi replied.


“Too handsome?” Garima asked in astonishment. "Aisa bhi kuch hovat he, jiji?"


“No hair on his face and his foolish smile, uuuggghhh,” Khushi grumbled.


“Hein? You want a bearded cross sanyasi?” buaji asked.


“Not clean shaven, not bearded. Something in between,” Khushi declared, seeing the stubble she wanted clearly in her mind. “Cross akhdoo chalega. I can’t tolerate someone who smiles all the time like an idiot.”


Buaji, Garima and Sasi stared at Khushi.


“He was tall,” buaji tried to find his good points.


“Too tall. I am not looking for a ladder to pluck mangoes from the tree,” Khushi said.


“You want to marry a short man?” Garima asked, her eyes wide.


“No. A man who isn’t short or tall, but something in between. He should be just a head taller than me,” Khushi said, sipping her tea.


“He was dressed well,” Garima tried to interest Khushi.


“Uuuggghhh,” Khushi made her distaste clear. “Pink shirt. Will any mard wear a pink shirt? A real man wears only black or brown. Or even dark and light blue. White bhi. Not pink. That Abhishek looked like an oleander tree in bloom!”


“Uh?” Garima asked.


“He smelled like one too. Floral scent. Will any mard wear floral scent? Is he a ladki? Men wear musky fragrances, sandalwood scents,” Khushi replied. She could smell the perfume as she spoke.


“He had attractive eyes,” Garima inserted quietly.


“I don’t like light eyes on men, babuji. They are alright on ladies, but on men, uugghhh. Men’s eyes should be black or brown. Sach kahein to, bilkul like chocolate. I should feel like eating them when I see them,” Khushi said, a small smile on her face.


Garima looked at buaji. “She wants to eat the groom, jiji?" she asked in shock.


“Chatori kahin ki,” buaji condemned Khushi’s indiscriminate eating habits.


“And his hair was too long. Does he think he is a girl? And his nose was not sharp enough. His voice was too sweet. Does he think he is a koel? A real man’s voice should be husky, authoritative. And his shoulders, poochiye hi mat,” Khushi said, shaking her head.


“Kaa hua? Didn’t he have shoulders?” Garima asked anxiously.


“He had shoulders, amma, if you can call them that. How can a man’s body be so thin? A real man is lean, with muscled shoulders and arms. Aap hi kahiye, babuji. What if I fall? He has to lift me, doesn’t he? How can he lift me with weak shoulders?” she asked reasonably.


“He was well-mannered,” Sasi said slowly, leaving Abhishek’s shoulders to the boy.


“Too well-mannered,” Khushi condemned the groom. “Is he the Nawab of Awadh to say pehle aap, pehle aap? Lagta tha he had looted the bank of politeness and kept all of it in his pocket, leaving nothing for others.”


Buaji was stumped. “O sanka devi, you want to marry a badtameez man, Nandkisore?”


“No, buaji. My groom shouldn’t be badtameez. Nor should he be the epitome of politeness. Bade bore hote hein aise ladke. I want something in between. A man who is badtameez to others and full of tameez to me, except when his dil dances to Badtameez dil when he sets eyes on me,” Khushi said, her hands clasped to her chest.





“Hai Re Nandkisore!”


“He Devi Maiyya!”


“Bilkul pagla gayi he, sasuri.”


“Haan, jiji. Kaa hoga iska?”


Sasi alone sat silent, looking at his daughter with new eyes.



Buaji said, “Khushi’s lucky babuji, take a diya from the pooja room and go out in search of a groom for your beloved, picky daughter. Maybe you will find him in a hundred years, Nandkisore.”


Sasi smiled.


“He should be neither tall nor short,” Garima said, a false smile on her face.


“Not fair or dark,” buaji added.


“Neither bald nor long-haired. No beard, not clean shaven. With a nose that is neither too long nor short,” Garima said. "Take a tape with you to measure the length, Payaliya's father."





“Dairy Milk eyes that make your daughter hungry, Nandkisore.”


“Is there any specification for his ears, Khussi?” Garima teased. "Their shape, their length, their curve?"


Khushi scowled at them.


“Muscled shoulders, muscled arms,” Garima added. "Don't forget the shoulders, Payaliya's babuji, jo kuch bhi ho jaaye."


“Try an akhada or gym first, Sasi babua,” buaji suggested.


“A man who doesn’t wear pink, only black, brown, blue and white,” Garima said.


“Who is angry with everyone except Khussi and wears only musk or sandalwood scent,” buaji added.


“Has a husky voice,” Garima added.


“The voice is very important, babuji. No compromise on that. And I want a man who has a spine, a backbone. Abhishekji is still attached to his amma’s pallu,” Khushi added.


“And he should dance to badtameez dil song,” buaji said, tying a red cloth around her forehead. She could feel a humdinger of a headache coming on.


Sasi sat back, his amused eyes studying Khushi. “Beta,” he asked quietly. “Have you seen someone you like?”




Khushi was jolted out of her complacence.

She swallowed hard.


“No, babuji,” she replied softly. “My ideal man doesn’t exist. Matlab, he lives only in my dreams.”


She left the room hoping that they hadn’t seen the tears in her eyes.





                                      ***






“Where were you?” asked many voices as ASR and Akash walked in at eleven at night.


ASR and Akash stared at their militant family.


“Chotey, tum bhi na!” Anjali said, furious and hurt. “You are good for nothing.”




“What the!” ASR frowned, furious and confused at the same time.


“Nannav, aaj tumhara band, baaja and baarat--all bajegaa,” NK said sadly, shaking his head in sympathy.


“Kya hua, mate?” Akash asked softly. “We were working, striking a deal.”


“You sit hugging your deal, your phones switched off,” nani told them. “There Khussi is getting married.”





“What the!” ASR exclaimed.


“Nannav, no tension, no tension. Saas andar lo and bahar phenko,” NK tried to calm him. “You don’t want to marry. I understand.”


“Shut up, NK,” ASR bit out.


“Have you made up your mind, Chotey?” Anjali asked, her eyes red with tears and fury. “Or do you need more time? Like another three years?”


“All boyjj are not slow like you, Arnav bitwaa. A boy went to see Khussi today. We have been trying their phoone for hours, lekin koi udhaa nahi raha he“ mami said looking at the clock. “Payaliya, call Garima again. Phind out bhat happened. Did Khussi say yes?”


“Yes, saasumma,” Payal replied, taking her phone.


All looked anxiously at her.






ASR could feel something thumping in his chest region. Panic spread like poison in his veins, leaving him weak and light-headed.


Payal held the phone to her ear for a few seconds and then said, “The line is busy. Ab bhi.”


“He Devi Maiyya,” nani whispered.


“Call Khussi again,” mami said urgently.


“Yes,” Payal said. She tried Khushi’s phone again but to no avail.


“We have been trying to get hold of you all day, Chotey,” Anjali said. “Our bags are packed. So is yours. Mohan and Kishen have been waiting all day to take us to Lucknow.”




ASR drew in a deep breath. “Payal, you can try calling your family later. Come on, let’s go to Lucknow.”


A glad cry rose from the Raizadas.


“Chotey!”


“Hamre Arnav bitwaa!”


“Bhai!”


NK alone stopped Arnav. “Nannav, why are you going to Lucknow?” he asked seriously.


“To marry Khushi,” Arnav replied.


A loud cheer went up from the Raizadas.


“You are sure?” NK asked, wondering what would happen to Lavanya and Lisa and other girls with names beginning with L.


“Very sure,” Arnav said.


“What if Khushiji has decided to marry the guy she met today?” NK asked.




“I will change her mind,” Arnav asserted.


“Good luck,” NK wished. “You will need it.”







Darlings, latest pic of IPKKND Jashn episodes.

yeh lo,







68 comments:

  1. MUUUUUUUUUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Thank you thank you thank you. I know I've been a pest, nag, irritant, nuisance, pain in the neck etc. about the update.

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    1. That's the right definition of an eager reader. Tumhe haq he--mujhpe.

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  2. So its Khushi who has denied the proposal but ASR is jittery...

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  3. Mind blowing update Smita. This was way beyond my expectations for a next update. You are Awesome darling. Now I can resume working peacefully

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    1. Thandak pad gayi? Next episode is going to something out of the ordinary.

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    2. Cant wait to get more and more of ur stories , ab phir kal tak wait karna hoga waisey aj hi nahi hosanti ik aur update

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  4. Khushi is so cute loved the way she rejected the boy and funally arnav ki bati jali

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  5. Wow so super update..... I was biting my nails all along from yesterday night after reading the update. Even though my heart was happy that ipk ek jashan is going to be shown from nov 24th, I was on the edge abt this particular story.. hoo god am finally exhaling. Leaving my breath out.
    I was laughingly like anything when kushi was describing her man.. she doesn't want him but yeah want some one like him mari she was describing,
    So sashi is gona look for a groom now.. and he is doubtful that his daughter is seeing some one.. brilliant...
    Here this side was wtill more awesome. U call to kushi latrr come lets go to lucknow no.... hahahaha someone is desperate haan?? Great..
    And one line about the last chapter I love the most which is "kushi is predictably unpredictable and consistently inconsistent"..... wha wha wha wat a line smita..nloving your updates.
    Cant wait to see arnav and kushi back on hot star after 3 long years with their 3 years after marriage... even though its going to be 10 10 min episodes available on hot star but 9 episodes are going to be for 90 min., can live for the rest of my life..
    Seri u continue soon..

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  6. Awwww!!!!! Khushi is brilliant!!!! Aahhh, I'm so, so happy! You are very, absolutely right, Khushi, you definitely don't need a spineless boy in pink shirt with floral fragnance!!! Yeeess!! It's fantactic turn!
    And yes, real fun will begin when ASR & Co arrive to break Khushi's marriage=)))))))))

    Thank you very much, Smitaji for this just wonderful chapter!=)

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    1. Comment etait votre entrevue? (Hope that's correct)

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    2. I successfully passed the first step of competition, that is one step down and two to go, for the next two weeks=)
      It's very nice of you to ask me about this ^_^

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  7. Couldn't stop laughing... Loved it!

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  8. Abhishek is go, went, gone and good riddance too !
    You've captured "the Khushi" - the adorable mix of innocence and maturity, of naivete and astuteness - the Khushi we saw at the beginning of the show. Loved Khushi's interpretation of "Abhishek speak

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  9. now it is khushi tym to harass Arnav...i loved the update...coz now Arnv is not her sapno ki raajkumar.....he need to mold into that role...but i think shashi sniffed the smoke already...Buaji and Garima already note down all features and it will match perfectly to Arnv.....lol I think khushi will defntly refuse the proposal......but she will accept it after Arnav ki wooing khushi stages...and clear all misunderstanding between them...

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  10. This got a big smile on my face..
    Just loved it..I totally support khushi when she said about spineless men..
    N finally finally our arnav bitwa is getting married..
    Yipeee..

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  11. Omg love the update.... Please update next part soon...

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  12. Omg love the update.... Please update next part soon...

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  13. Once again a very perceptive Sashi Gupta! He suspects / knows that his daughter has got someone on her mind.
    So Khushi has Arnav on her mind - amazing how much she has noticed about him without spending any time with him or talking to him.
    That comment about the shoulders - brought to mind all those RABBA VEY scenes where he catches her in time.
    Now I can finish the rest of my work in peace.

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  14. There is one more pic to similar to the above one with slight change. I don know how to upload it here

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    1. Link post kar yahan. i will post the pic

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    2. Sry I have the pic only, u hav posted it too.. the second one only I was talking about

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  15. thank you, thank you, thank you. waw! what an update, loved it; waw khushi. eager about what will come next?

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  16. Haye nice update c'mon arnav bitwa fly to your khushi phast:) very thank you for the new pics

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  17. How could she like Abhishek. She was comparing him to our hero.

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  18. I was laughing like crazy during reading, thank you so much for this update

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  19. Smitaji, you've posted the promo pics. Thank you. My cup runneth over.

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  20. Well let's see how Arnav will win khushi even though he already has ;) he just doesn't know that!

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  21. A big Mmmmmmmmuuuuuuuuaaaaaaahhhhhhhh for you Smita.... Arnav bhaiya aur Sanka devi ki jai ho!

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  22. Oh boy Smita dear!!! Loved the update
    "To marry Khushi " that was the best part
    Though the explanation Khushi gave of her dream man was awesome
    Subconsciously she was describing her Laad Governor and her family enjoying it

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  23. wow mind blowing update loved it can't wait for next part thank you.......ameena671

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  24. Omg ahhahaha loved this so damn much
    Somehow I want khushis family to realise that Arnav matches all of khushis specifications when Raizada's ask for her rishta
    Can he try and woo her before and after marriage

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  25. No... I am not going to read other comments first.... I am going to have my say first... Coz I think the feeling is going to be universal... in which case I will hesitate to repeat what has been said already.... And I need to say this.

    First of all I could hug you... No... No COULD about it.... I am sending hugs and kisses and more hugs and more kisses your way... THIS IS THE BEST CHAPTER EVER! Hands down any story... This Chapter was the best!

    Finally I like this Khushi... She had been a silent spectator so far.... and now all of a sudden she blossoms into this colorful, multi-dimensional character... Late bloomer but she gets the prize... Her inner monologue was just hysterical... God she grew a spine in a single leap.... There are so many things inside me, trying to get expressed right now... that everything is getting jammed up. LOL!

    She was taking no prisoners... burning boats... burning bridges... all of a sudden giving voice to all the feelings that have been inside her from the first moment she met her Laad Governor.

    Hamme nahin pata tha woh Arnav ko itna kareeb se notice karti hai...

    To this point in the story, it was all Arnav... And now it is KHUSHI... She is not waiting to be rescued... And I loved how you have made her family... Your Shashi is always such a wonderful character... HE KNOWS! He put his finger on it right away. Loved the way Amma and Buaji teased her without putting any pressure.

    There were so many fav lines for me in this chapter... But as they say, you had me with hello! So from the very beginning I fell in love... but here where she draws Arnav's mental portrait... takes the cake...

    “Not clean shaven, not bearded. Something in between,” Khushi declared, seeing the stubble she wanted clearly in her mind. “Cross akhdoo chalega. I can’t tolerate someone who smiles all the time like an idiot.”

    The minute Guptas open the door to Raizadas, they are going to know exactly what or rather who Khushi was talking about!

    Did I mention that I loved this chapter... No? Yeah... I didn't think so... So here it is... I loved... loved this chapter... I love this Khushi... I love that she has acknowledged all her feelings... however hopeless they might seem. Yeah! Just loved it!

    P.S. Oh this thought of NK's

    “You are sure?” NK asked, wondering what would happen to Lavanya and Lisa and other girls with names beginning with L.

    Are you for real? How do you come up with this kind of subtle muted humor.... Another one of my all time fave lines...

    Thank you for this chapter.... Definitely worth the wait... Definitely!

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    1. All hugs and kisses accepted with pleasure. Acha? Aap ko pata nahi tha ki woh Arnavji ko itne kareeb se notice karti he? Love your use of the dialogue from one of my fav scenes in the serial. Life is all about choices, preferably informed choices. Now Khushi is going to dictate how her life should be.

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    2. Seriously Jhansi ki Rani ban gayi aik dum se.... Chutti kar di uss hero ki... And the way she gives in and describes the man of her choice... my heart melted.
      This 180 degree turn that you took in the story... I did not see coming... And that is what I love about your stories... They are all feel good... but the path to the destination has unexpected turns... I repeat this chapter will be my favorite forever...

      Till you one up it, of course!

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  26. beautiful chapter..loved their latest photos

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  27. Wow fantastic you always make me smile with your reading...loved it finally!!! He's SURE that he wants to merry her

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  28. I am waiting for the confrontation between khushie and the lad governor ,let's see what is going to happen. ,you really spiced thinks up for all of us ,

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  29. At last he is going, that was so funny Khushi describing Arnav :-) last pics of Arshi were so good!!!!

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  30. Khushi describing Arnav in Sanki style.. loved it.. I thot Sashi would have understood her.. nice update.. waiting for Arnav to reach lucknow..

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  32. I just loved tgis update. .arnav now very sure so now ball is in khushi's court. ...I guess on seeing arnav again sasiji will definitely come to know who is khushi 's ideal man..as he is a very understanding and intelligent father...lovely update. .thanks for updating

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  33. wow this is just awesome .... and khushi's wants towards her future groom is so hilarious ................... ahhh ASR almost had his heart attack listening khushi marrying some one ,....... cont soon smita ............................... its always good to read ur updates to relax .............

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  34. haha.. its like ASR's tail is on fire now.. Hurry kareka padi nandkishore.. :p

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  35. Wonder what would be ASRs reaction upon finding out Khushi's perfect mans description.

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  36. Since kushi had made her up mind to say yes I thought she would agree and ASR has to try hard to make it no. Now since dhe said no only she hss to say yes to Asr which man hi man mein she has alresdy has said. Abhi ASR ko kitne papad bel na padega. Let him do this. Kushi dont agree fast. Oyherwise he will not realise your worth. Hatsoff smita. You have hooked all of us.

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  37. What a difference one chapter makes.

    I was anxious, couldn't concentrate on anything completely until Khushi sent Abhishek packing. (Hubby threw up his hands in despair and started praying to DM, I assume, to give his wife good sense - yeah, like that's going to happen!!)

    After this update there was this sense of peace and well being and I found that I could complete all my work. I mean your stories always lift my mood and have the happily ever after; Still I find I can't sit back and relax. Now that doesn't make any sense, I know, but there you have it. I can only attribute it to your skills as a writer. You always manage to draw me into the story and I can literally feel all the emotions your characters feel. At the end of the story I feel like I've been practising for the olympics with Usain Bolt. (Panting and breathless)

    But I don't mind going through this workout .Please continue writing and I'll continue to pester you for updates, he he!! God bless you and yours Smitaji.

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  38. Awesome r update Smitaji. I wasn't able to sleep and like how ASR was affected all I could think was what Khushi is going to say to the proposal. Now, that she nailed it perfectly....I am at peace. Thanks DM and my sweet Khushi.
    Smitaji - you just seem to excel yourself with every update! Wonderful!!
    I used to condemn my kids about using electronics, but with this OS I am the one glued to my iPad! Lol!
    Waiting more eagerly for the next update!

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  39. Omg. Kaha hein updatewa. Pleej.

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  40. Me wAiting plz update karo na and plz updTe long this one plz plz

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  41. Khushi's list of requirements for her honewala husband.........Sasi got the point......that his daughter liked somebody............ASR is coming Khushi..........

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  42. Poor Raizadas. Their nerves were shattered today. Arnav will definitely make her change her mind 😂😂😂

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