When I heard the honking of the car, I was sure Bondita and Batuk has come. I ran outside but was surprised to see another girl with them whose face was covered with a dupatta.

"Bondita ye kaun hain?" This was the first thing I asked her. She came to me and hugged me, not caring at we were outside the haveli with the driver, Batuk and that girl present there.

I looked at Batuk when she was still hugging me, "kya ho raha hain?"

"Ap andar chaliye fir bara te hain" saud Batuk. I welcomed the girl insude. "Tumlog batao ge kya huya hain?" I was scared because Bondita was crying, Batuk seemed serious to me. I rubbed off her tears and made her drink water, "pani piyo fir batao kya huya hain?"

She walked to that Girl and removed her Dupatta.

I looked at her with no expression and then smiled, "apka humare ghar mein swagat hain".

I was getting some kind of hint of what might have happened but when Bondita narrated me the whole thing too, I feared. Yes, I did. My hands trembled by the fact of how dreadful threat she was given.

I stood up from my place, "uski himmat kaise hui" with all my rage I opened the door but Bondita stopped me by holding my hand, "isiliye mein apko kuch nehi batati kyuki ap josh mein hosh kho baith te ho."

I cupped her face, which was supposed to be attacked and embraced her, caressing her hair.

Dada hugged her and I just looked at her face once. As soon as her head rested on his chest, she closed her eyes and a subtle curve crept on her face. His embrace pacified her immediately.

The level of comfort that she gets from him, I'll never be able to give her.

"Chale Bondita" said Mira.

Bondita held her shoulder, "tum sach mein taiyar ho na?"

She nodded her head.

Bondita turned to Dada and touched his feet all of a sudden. "Bondita kya kar rahi ho?'" he sounded irritated.

"Dar lag raha hain" she said softly.

Dada place his head on her hand, "tark tumhari sabse bari shastra hain to uthao apni awaz aur jeet kar ao ye jung."

Seeing them I felt like Krishna telling Arjun, "teerandazi tumhara sabse baara shastra hain to uthao apna gandibh aur jeet kar ao ye jung".

Dada has always been her motivation, her teacher, her confidence and her pride. It is easy to break ties with a husband but not with one's pride.

Honestly, I was preparing myself for a big storm that will be caused by dada and he himself will be destroyed in it.

Bihari carried the plates of Bundi while koyli was making small rounds of it. They were doing all the necessary preparations for Holi this year.

"Bihari sab taiyar to hain na" asked kaka who was supervising the work.

"Ji Malik meethaiya banne hi wale hain" replied Bihari.

"Accha sun sade Ladoo k upar kaju rakhna aur bhang wale k upar pista taki kisiko galti na ho samjha".

"Ji Malik" he wobbled his head.

"Sade mein kaju bhang wale mein pista, sade mein kaju bhang mein pista" he kept on murmuring under his breath to not forget but just then Koyli called him which broke his attention, "sade mein pista, bhang mein kaju" he murmured.

Outside sen babu's house, Sen Babu came out hearing the chaos followed by pishi, "kya ho raha hain yaha?"

Bondita eyed pishi in anger.

"Apke bete ne humare sath anyai kiya hain" said Bondita sternly after stepping forward. Mujhe prem prastab diya tha aur jab maine kaha hi mein vivahit hu, usne mujhe dhamki di".

"Ae ladki humara beta aisa nehi kar sakta" his pishi hissed at her.

"Sarla Kartik ko bahar bulao" said Sen Babu.

"Par Dada"

"Jo kaha hain wo karo!" Sen Babu shouted at his pishi.

This may seem normal now but 200 years from now, girls raising voices, going to the boy's house to complaint was not really a common thing so this attracted the crowd more. Anirudh was silently standing behind her, watching her fight for her right.

Kartik came out and shouted at Bondita, "tum jaisi jhooti ladki o se mujhe baat nehi karna".

Anirudh clutched his fist in anger but controlled himself because it was Bondita's fight.

"Tum ne dhamki di thi mujhe tehzaab se mera chehera jalane ki" she pointed her finger at him which was a bold move for a woman of that era to make.

"Saboot kiya hain?" He smirked.

"Mira!" Bondita called her and hearing the name he started sweating and getting nervous which was noticed by his father.

"Baba ye ladkiya jhoot bol rahi hain, inhe bass mujhe fasana hain" said Kartik to his father.

Mira slowly removed her dupatta, revealing her face. Few gasped, others shouted in horror, some of them closed their eyes, "apke bete ki kartoot" said Mira.

I was about to shout but Pati babu pressed my hand and stopped me.

"Baba ye jhooti..."

Before he could utter one more word his father slapped him hard in front of the whole village and pushed him to the ground in front of everyone.

"Da ap ye kya kar rahe hain, kuch anjaan ladkiyo k kehne pe ap apne bete ko marenge?" But his father ignored his pishi and started hitting him with Stick, "apna galti sudhar raha hu mein tujh jaise aulad ko paida karke".

I hugged Mira and patted her head while she cried.

"Dada chor dijiye ussey" his pishi tried to stop his father but Sen Babu continued to hit him. "Tere jaise aulad payda karke galti ki hain maine".

"Dada ap un jhooti ladkiyo...."

"Chup!" Sen Babu shouted back at his sister, "asal gunhegar Kartik nehi tum ho. Tumhare bharose chori thi Sudha(kartik's mother) apne bete ko aur lad pyar dekar tumne ek darinda banaya hain ussey".

He held his son's collar and pushed him to Bondita's feet. "Tumhara junhegar, aisa saza do ki zindagi bhar yaad rakhe".

Bondita, without thinking twice, slapped him hard.

I could see rage and anguish dripping from her eyes when she placed the slap.

I looked at her with pride in my eyes. Bondita always impresses me with her attitude be it fighting the pandits or fighting in the court, her aura of bravery is unpredictable.

The crowd threw stones at Kartik but his father didn't stop them. Indeed he is a man who knows junhegar beta nehi, junhegar hi hota hain.

Sen Babu joined his hands in front of both of them, "mujhe maaf kar do".

"Kaka ap aisa maat kahiye" said Mira, "apne jo kiya wo to mere sagey pita ne bhi nehi kiya tha aur wo hain mujhpe yaakein".

Bondita looked at me and gave a smile of satisfaction.

Kartik never thought this would happen because women don't raise their voice but he had no idea kiske sath pala para hain, meri Bondita k sath.

Meri Bondita sabse alag!

I asked Batuk to go with Mira to Shantiniketan. He left with her immediately after all these got over.

"Himmat to dekho ladki ki...ladkiyo ko aisa bartav shobha bhala" few women whispered which was enough to upset her.

How come these people see fault in her instead of the boy.

"Wahi to...arrey jane deta, paraya mard pe hath uthane ki kya zarrorat thi" said another. "Chote malik to lagam dena chahiye apne patni pe".

"Meri patni- meri patni hain koi dariyay ghora nehi ki mein lagam du uspe. Bondita is shorter than me so she looked up at me with a smile and teary eyes.

People may bad mouth Bondita for her attitude but I don't care neither did she.

I really feel good whenever he supports me against everyone and calls me his patni. I always want him beside me, till my last breath. Shayad pati k tarha nehi bas sath ho yahi kafi hain. Apko is janam mein to pa nehi saka, asha hain agle janam mein pa lungi. Positive hi sochti hu mein humesha.

To show that he is with me, he held my hands firmly, locking our fingers together.

I don't blow my own trumpet, never, khudki tarif karna is not my cup of tea par ek chiz keh sakti hu, jitna pyar mein unse karti hu, jitna samman mein unka karti hu utna koi nehi kar payega.

We walked through the market when he suddenly asked me to wait. He went away but after a while came back with kulfi.

"Mere liye?" I said merrily.

"Nehi parosi k liye" he teased me.

I laughed and we both had a kulfi celebrating a mini victory. "Hum sath ho to har chunauti par kar sakte hain" he said.

She was smiling and having kulfi suddenly she looked at me and laughed, "apke chehere pe kulfi laga gaya" she started laughing.

I touched my cheeks, "kaha?"

"Udhar"

"Kaha Bondita" I was irritated too much.

"Rukiye" she kept her kulfi aside. Bondita was shorter than me. She rose on her toes and with her pallu she wiped off the kulfi from my face.

After we reached home, I engaged myself in holi preparation. Sampoorna didi never does any work.

I did all the work with help of Koyli didi and Bhari kaka and made a beautiful rangoli. "Bahu rani ji bohot sundar bana hain" Koyli didi praised me. Suddenly Sampoorna didi came from nowhere and walked on my rangoli but pretended as if she was innocent, "emma Bondita yakein kar maine dekhi nehi".

"Itna bara rangoli apko dikha nehi?"

"Shotti Bondita nehi dikha, kaise bikhar gaya sara rang dekh na, kahi tere Zindagi se bhi aise hi sara rang na bikhar jay" she giggled.

"Ap sharp de rahe hain Choti malkin ko?" said Koyli didi.

"Tum apna kaam karo" saying this, she went away.

"Shytan ki khala, shaytan ki nani" Bhari kaka murmured. "Koi baat nehi kaka, in bikhre huye rango ko samet k dobara khoobsurat rangoli babana ata hain mujhe".

It was a late night. I don't know why but I saw a very bad dream. A dream worst than a nightmare.

I saw the exact scene of this morning where pati babu was holding my hand but suddenly he left my hand and started walking away.

I cried, "pati babu ap mujhe chorke maat jaiye". I shouted, "ap apna vaada nehi tod sakte, Pati Babu!"

I woke up with a jerk and realized myself sweating and breathing heavily. I looked out of the window here daylight has already started to peep inside.

Maa humesha kehti thi, subah ka dapna sach ho jata hain.

I ran to the study and sighed a relief seeing him sleeping peacefully. Without making any noise, I sat beside him and started caressing his hair, "hey maa dugga ap dekhna ki ye sapna kabhi na sach ho".

Bondita fell down with the table, breaking all things and then started laughing like a kid, "apko kya laga mujhe dur bhej denge to mein apko bhul jayungi". She stood up with support and jumped on the bed, standing on it she said loudly, "heera Ranjha ko bhul sakti hain, laila Majnu ko bhul sakti hain par Bondita Anirudh ko, na na na, kabhi nehi bhul sakti".

"Bondita sambhalo apne apko".

She jumped down, wrapped her hands around my neck and pressed her nose with mine, "ap kyu nehi dete mujhe".

"K..kya?" I asked hesitantly.

"Patni ka hak"