"Ma, I cannot find my leather jacket."
"Jigar, stop whining like a teenager," Naina shouted from across the room to show her displeasure.
"Whatever! I still can't understand why does our kaajermashi bother with my stuff." I shouted loud enough for her to turn deaf.
"It's Mumbai and not Manali, let me remind you."
"It is Mumbai; I don't want to be a fashion faux, so I am being sure."
"You should hire a stylist if you're so fashion conscious."
"I will, once I start minting money. I am leaving no stones unturned." I smirked at her.
She got all emotional at my declaration of my ambition.
"Don't you go down the 90s lane ma? Save that for Appu." I hated her emotional drama which was good but eerie and downright tacky.
"Did you keep the house keys?" She has asked this question for the fiftieth time in half an hour.
"Yes, and I would very much prefer to stay at a rented apartment in Lokhandwala..."
"But I wouldn't want it any other way." She countered me immediately.
"You are staying at Malabar Hill; that would be a much-needed respite from the glitz and glamour, and the everyday nitty-gritty of work and party. You will thank me later.."
However much I wished to argue and tell her 'talk to my hand' phrase, I had to be respectful and civil, before I left. Appu had been the most no-nonsense in her farewell and was happy to have someone leaving the nest. It also meant she had a place to go outside the confines of a very familiar city, whenever she needed an escape.
It wasn't a tear-jerking farewell or such. I mean how far is Mumbai? A two-hour flight? Ma could have flown in whenever she wished to see me. Appu I knew wouldn't make that much of an effort. And Jaideep, I knew, was soon going to be permanent trouble in life for days to come.
Ma insisted I stay at my grandfather's house in Mumbai. He used to stay there when he was working in the Hindi film industry. He made his journey back home to dabble in regional cinema, post his retirement. There was more to this story than I knew but I refrained from learning more. Ma would not divulge the exact details and the tabloids would have a far juicier story to tell. So staying away from the truth was a much safer choice.
This apartment, however, was also my mother's refuge in the 90s when she started as an actress. She had been so successful and was earning pretty well but she never invested it in a property. She had nothing of her own. Everything she owned or was using was passed on to her by my grandfather. The woman went all gaga about women independence and women empowerment, but when it came to her own financial independence, she had none. She was working now too, of course in the Bhansali Production House and she made enough for her survival.
I knew she had multiple offers to revive her career but she wasn't interested. I don't know what was stopping her. At least she would get a break from the toxicity of Jaideep once in a while. But it wasn't my place to do something about it.
The ride from home to the airport was pretty lousy and I had nothing interesting to keep me occupied. I wasn't a reader and I was not interested in watching content on any of my devices. The first-class lounge at Kolkata was just not qualified to be called first-class. It was as boring as the people around. My flight was uninteresting. Maybe it would become more interesting when I would become somebody. So, I chose my sleep over the meal served and was woken up by an air hostess when it was time to land.
It was two in the morning and Mumbai was dancing in all its glory to the music of life. I loved this city for its vibrancy. The ride home was quick. The apartment had been cleaned by the caretaker well. I had no energy to look for things in the house. I hit the bed in the first bedroom that I found. The bed seemed appealing and I was out into la-la land in no time.
_x_x_x_x_x_x
I woke up groggy but refreshed. A glass of fresh juice was kept at the bedside table. I drank it thirstily and went out to look for the caretaker.
"Namaste," Shiraz was quick in greeting. The short and lanky man had been around since the hay days of my grandfather and my mother swore by his loyalty.
"Shiraz, I need a quick breakfast and a good lunch." He hesitated for some moments but quickly cut to the chase and pointed towards the clock for me. I panicked after checking out the time.
"Good Lord, I slept a straight twelve hours. I looked for my cellphone in a hurry to check on ma. But before I could do that the nagging ringtone intended that I had a phone call to attend to.
"Hello, uncle,"
"Where are you? I have been waiting for you in the office since morning. I thought the first thing you would do on reaching here is meet me. Or is it the girlfriend?"
"Umm...I would have met you had my morning been as early as nine. I just woke up."
Uncle was laughing on the other side. He couldn't hold his laughter and it took him a while to speak again. "You've got hit by the industry bug already." He was quick to give me the invite.
"Well, see me tonight at the poster launch party at St Regis. And get your girlfriend. I don't want you to miss it for anything."
I smiled smugly. The man was quick and the best I had chosen to start my career with. After a leisurely lunch, I decided to check on my look for the party. It was my first and I couldn't get the look wrong. I was representing my grandfather's lineage and my mother's name. I had the huge task of living up to their name. I was both freaking nervous and excited.
It was already six and I still hadn't got my final look. The jeans and T-shirt looked too casual and the shirt and pants looked too formal. The denim jacket screamed elegance but felt out of the place for the occasion. Finally, I decided to go for a solid coloured plain shirt with rolled-up sleeves, a pair of loose dark jeans, converse and slicked back hairstyle for some snazzy effect. It took me two hours to create this perfect look. I knew I would have to hire a stylist soon to avoid wasting precious time on such mundane and trivial things, yet the most important for the industry.
The best part of the day was yet to come. I was excited to see a surprised Abhi gasping for air, in this new avatar in Mumbai. I had planned to surprise her outside her office. Although I was prepared for all her nagging and cursing for not informing her and taking her by surprise, I could not contain my excitement to see various emotions flitting across her face. This is the best thing to happen to us in weeks and these few weeks have made me realise how much I miss her and how important she is in my life.