Who will marry her?
Sarita’s parents were hell worried. Well, why wouldn’t they be? She is their only child. She is 40 and single. Not that they have not got any suitable match. They had got plenty of alliances. However, just after the first meeting, the families of the prospective grooms would call back and say, ‘Your daughter is lovely but somehow things would not work here. I am sure she will get someone wonderful. However, our son would not be the best match for her.’
With dark circles underneath her eyes, Sarita stood in front of the mirror. She combed her long strands of oiled hair. She parted her hair perfectly and made a neat braid. She then applied a moisturiser on her face and hands and then put a tiny black bindi on her forehead. She applied some vaseline petroleum jelly on her lips. She looked at her nose in the mirror. There were some black heads. Those were always there and then her wheatish complexion and the black heads made a wonderful combination to make her look more haggard and worn out.
Her mom screamed from the kitchen, ‘ I have kept your lunch box on the dining table. Please go to the beauty parlour while coming back from work. Tomorrow, we have two families of suitors coming in. One family is coming in the morning, the other in the evening. It’s a Sunday. You should be able to stay home tomorrow.’ Sarita replied nonchalantly, ‘Hmm. I will be home.’ Sarita’s mom came out of the kitchen, and said affectionately, ‘I know sweetheart. You want to get married. You too have a dream of settling down, having a family of your own. I and your dad have been trying our best to get a suitable match for you all these years.’ Before her mom could say anything more, Sarita replied, ‘Mom, let us not discuss this please. No one is at fault here. You and dad mean the world to me. You are trying your best. You guys have been trying to get me married since I was 28. If every single guy is rejecting me, there has to be some reason behind it. Sad part is, we don’t know why.’ Sarita’s mom replied solemnly, ‘Like every mom, I want my daughter to be happy. Once I and your dad are no longer in this world, you will be all alone. We don’t want this to happen. I am sure, tomorrow, we will have some good news.’ ‘Hmm’, said Sarita and then she grabbed her lunch box, put it in her huge black tote bag, took the umbrella from the shelf near the dining table and then stepped out of her home.
Sunday was here. The guests were about to arrive in another hour. Sarita’s mom made ‘pooris’, ‘chick peas curry’, ‘Carrot Halwa’, ‘Besan Laddoos’, ‘Red sauce pasta’, ‘Veg noodles’ and a jar of fresh orange juice. Sarita’s mom gave Sarita a pink cotton saree. With the heat building up, wearing silk saree was not easy. Sarita draped the saree perfectly. Her slender built made her look elegant in the saree. Her mom said, ‘Wear some lipstick girl and stick a coloured bindi on your forehead.’ Sarita smiled and replied, ‘ Mom, if somebody likes me, they will like me the way I am. I am not going to wear lipstick every single day. Let them meet me this way.’ Sarita’s mom said, ‘ Is there a way to make you understand? Nevermind. Once the guests come, serve the food well.’ Sarita replied solemnly, ‘ Yes.’
The guests arrived. The prospective groom was around 42 years old. He was separated from his wife 4 years ago. He does not have kids. He was managing a family business and was doing well in life. His parents, his elder sister, her husband, and kids, all of them were here today, to meet Sarita. Lanky and bashful Sarita came to meet the family. She was holding a tray of sweets and juice. The boy kept on staring at Sarita. It seemed he liked her. The boy’s mom looked at Sarita right from Sarita’s forehead to Sarita’s toes. She did not seem to be disappointed with Sarita at all. The families talked. Sarita answered all the questions the family asked. The boy constantly looked at her. Sarita’s mom saw that. She was confident that this time, this alliance will work out for sure.
Lunch was served. Everyone enjoyed the meal. When the boy’s family was about to leave, the boy’s mother hugged Sarita’s mother warmly and said, ‘We will get back to you today evening itself.’ The warm hug made Sarita’s mom feel positive. She knew that this alliance will work out.
In the evening, another family was about to meet Sarita. Sarita’s mom was less stressed now because she knew that the family which had come in the morning will definitely say ‘yes’ to this alliance.
At around 6:00 p.m., Sarita’s mom received a call. She eagerly received it. It was from the mom of the boy who had come to meet Sarita today in the morning. Sarita’s mom was all smiles initially. After one minute she hanged up the phone and sat down on the sofa sulking. Sarita’s dad, who was reading the newspaper, knew what could be the reason. Sarita’s mom said with a heavy heart, ‘They rejected the proposal. The worst part is, they never said the reason. How am I supposed to know what the reason is. Damn.’ Sarita heard her mother. Sarita’s dad looked at Sarita. Sarita walked away to her room in a daze. She knew she had to get ready again for the next family who will be coming by 7 pm.
Well, Sarita knew what she had to do. All she had to do was, meet the prospective mother in law before they left her home and tell her the truth that, she had a strong connection with the planet ‘Mars’ also known as ‘Mangal’. The moment she said that, the prospective groom’s mom would immediately interpret the term as ‘manglik’. A ‘Manglik’ girl will be a threat to the boy she marries. Hence, all the moms of prospective grooms rejected alliance with Sarita.
Sarita never lied. She told everyone the truth. Indeed she had a strong connection with ‘mangal’. She was a senior scientist. At this point, she was working on a probable trip to ‘mangal’ aka ‘mars’. She might be going there soon. Her dad knew that and hence he supported his daughter when she said she never wanted to get married. However, Sarita’s mom would never agree and hence both dad and daughter joined hands in making ‘Mangal’ their weapon to save Sarita from the institution of marriage.
