Deepti reached the venue on time but was nervous.
How will I face other men who are willing to marry me?
She was given a number badge and a table number at the registration counter. She wore her badge and went to the assigned table. A man was already seated there, wearing her lucky number 9. She was not ready to talk. He was tall, dark and handsome—but she thought he was too tall for her 5-foot-1 frame and that he would look like 6 feet beside her.
As the evening wore on, she met other men as well, most of whom were divorced. As she talked to each of them, she realized why their wives must have left them. That tall, dark and handsome guy’s story, however, was intriguing. He was also divorced, though his first was a love marriage. He sounded reasonable to her, and she was curious to know why he was single. Other than him, she did not find any of the other men attractive.
A couple of days later, she found a marriage proposal from the tall, dark and handsome man in her mailbox. She studied his profile. He was a deserving candidate—he had a job with a handsome salary, had his own house and was a fitness freak to boot! He had already registered himself for the ‘Ironman’ race. She remembered her high-school crush, Milind Soman, who was the only Ironman she had known so far.
His name was Ravi Kulkarni. They decided to talk on the phone. When Deepti called Ravi, he was going to Ooty for an ultramarathon, which she found quite impressive. Her first question was whether he would be ready to accept her son. He said yes. That was the only condition she had. She was hesitant to ask about his divorce. He sensed this and clarified that his ex-father-in-law was against their marriage from the start and had somehow convinced his daughter to divorce him a couple of years after their marriage. Ravi spoke reasonably on the phone as well. They decided to meet a month later.
Two months before their wedding . . .
She went alone to meet him. They had decided to have lunch together. During lunch, they shared the expectations they had from each other. His expectation was to have his own child from her. Deepti agreed, thinking it was a fair expectation.
She asked him, ‘What will you do if your ex wants to come back into your life?’
A smile appeared on his face. He said to her, ‘I was in love with her. But the way she behaved with me and my parents, I would never accept her again.’
They got along well and decided to marry in court.
Deepti was on cloud nine, reliving the bygone era of talking for hours on the phone. She was so happy. They talked for hours at night. They talked about their past, their likes, their dislikes, and so on.
One month before their wedding . . .
One day, Ravi came to meet Deepti. They were talking and laughing, but Ravi seemed restless. Deepti had parked her car on an empty road. She wanted some quiet time with him. Every place they went to was crowded. She was saying something when, all of sudden, he grabbed her hands, pulled her into his arms and pressed his lips against hers. She got butterflies in her stomach. Immediately, she pulled herself back from his arms into the driving seat. She had not expected this. They remained quiet for some time. She was not angry. In fact, she had quite enjoyed the romantic moment.
Twenty days before their wedding . . .
As the days passed, the length of their talks got shorter and shorter. She found it strange. In her previous marriage, the talks had increased with each passing day. As time passed, Ravi became merely a passive listener during their phone calls. He would ask Deepti to talk, but she could not find any subject to talk about on some days. She sensed something was not right.
A day before their wedding . . .
Deepti was waiting for her mehendi artist when she got a message from Ravi’s cousin. His cousin wanted to tell her something. Puzzled, Deepti started reading.
His ex-wife was a good person. She was close to me. They got separated because they wanted different things in life. He suffered a lot due to his blunt and straightforward nature. You have to teach him how to behave with kids. He doesn’t have experience with kids. I suggest you find some common interest so that you can spend quality time with each other. Initially, keep your finances separate.
Deepti kept reading the text messages. She was perplexed.
Is he the right person or have I taken this decision in a hurry? she thought. How bad could he be?
The mehendi artist entered. Her chain of thought broke.
On their honeymoon . . .
Deepti and Ravi had decided to go to Shimla and Kullu–Manali for their honeymoon. Their honeymoon was unlike any other couples’ honeymoon. It was more like a family trip, because they were yet to understand each other. The situation got even more challenging when Deepti decided to take her son, Shourya, along. Throughout the trip, she was occupied with her son. Ravi was annoyed by Shourya’s mischiefs and irritated since he did not get enough time with Deepti alone. But he masked his feelings and focused, instead, on trying to build memories with her.
Ravi knew that Deepti used to be a sportsperson. He managed to persuade her to try out the adventure sports in Manali. To their surprise, she completed them all with ease, compared with other participants, including Ravi. It was then that she remembered the outspoken, mischievous and adventurous Deepti, who had been lost somewhere all those years due to family commitments. She told Ravi how happy she was that day and expressed her gratitude to him for encouraging her to try the sports.
On their way back to the hotel, Ravi said to her, ‘You’ll find it strange, but I’m not like other husbands who put loads of expectations on their wives—whether it be preparing a nice hot breakfast every morning or satisfying me in bed. I will never put any restriction or compulsion on you for family commitments. However, I’ve developed a set of goals based on my hobbies that I passionately want to fulfil in due course of time. I also encourage you to develop some hobbies that make you happy as well. We are two different people; it is important for us to have separate interests. I don’t want you to ignore your interests for me.’
One month after their wedding . . .
He stopped calling her in the afternoons from office. Romantic messages were out of the question. His Ironman race was around the corner and training was on in full swing. Due to this, he would often come home late. Even his weekends were reserved for training. Deepti was disappointed their honeymoon phase had ended so soon. Her husband had no time for her, even though his reason was genuine. The Ironman race was one of the reasons she had accepted his proposal. Though her husband had no time for her, she was free to do anything she wanted. She started socializing with the people of her society and exploring the new city, where she had shifted after her second marriage. Ravi and Deepti were both immersed in their own worlds. But they had amazing nights together. Their chemistry in bed was undeniable. She realized that for passionate lovemaking, love was not necessary.
While Deepti enjoyed her life as an individual, she missed the kind of family life she had had in her first marriage. Her first husband and she had so many common interests that they did not have any individual interests. It was hard for her to come to terms with this new marriage. Yet, she worked hard to keep herself busy and portrayed herself as an independent woman in front of him. She didn’t want to show him that she needed him in the marriage, more than anything else. Soon, ego clashes became the most common reason for their daily fights. During one such fight, he warned her: ‘This marriage was just an adjustment for me. Do not try to pull me into it.’