The next morning Shravan woke up earlier than his usual time and took a shower
He then shook Drishti awake and she woke up after twenty minutes of protest.
They were to go directly to the temple ,so Shravan got ready in the kurta pyjama with a jacket Abhay handed over to him the day before.
He felt so uncomfortable in it ,but couldn't say a No when it was from Abhay's mother.
Drishti got out of the washroom in her bathrobe and stared at Shravan
"You are already dressed?? I thought we could go there and get ready" Drishti said
"There's no enough time for that. We have a one hour drive. The morning puja for us is organised for eight and it is to be done before breakfast"
"Yeah. I know" Drishti said sulkily not particularly liking the idea of puja before breakfast.
"We can take rest after that. The next puja is in the evening. Around five" Shravan passed on the knowledge he got from Abhay
"But I thought I could get ready with the help of Kiara bhabhi once we reach there. I don't know how to drape a saree"
"I will call Rajesh kaka and ask him to send aunty here to help you. Meanwhile get everything else ready" Shravan said and proceeded to inform Rajesh about the same
Then he opened his travel bag and cross checked whether he forgot anything.
"Why have you packed on these things? Are we staying over?? Nobody told me. I didn't pack my bag" Drishti panicked
"We are not staying over Drishti. These are the essentials I always carry with me while I travel. I think you should take a set of spare clothes with you ,in case of any necessaries" Shravan said
Drishti nodded and thrusted a pair of shorts and T into a duffel bag along with a pair of undergarments.
She then proceeded with blow drying her hair and getting her make up done, while waiting for aunty to come help her with the saree
Sharadha came in fifteen minutes later and helped Drishti to drape the saree
"You look very beautiful" Sharada commented warding off evil eyes
"Thankyou aunty" Drishti beamed.
She absolutely loves compliments
Shravan came in after the call and stared at Drishti in awe
She wore a red sari with zari embroidery. She left her hair loose, and it draped over her back. She was gorgeously attired, and Shravan could not resist; he stared at her.
Drishti sensed his eyes on her and looked at him
Their eyes locked in a gaze, and they stared at each other for a couple of minutes.
But their eye lock was interupted by a distinct cough from Sharadha
"I will take your leave now. Drive safe Shravan baba" with that she left their apartment
****
They reached the Shree Vaishno Maa temple in Bengaluru fiftneen minutes before the beginning of the puja
Vaishno Devi is the manifestation of hindu mother goddess.
Vaishnavi was formed from the combined energies of Kali, Lakshmi, and Saraswati
They found out the details regarding the darshan formalities and decided to walk the two kilometers to the shrine.
"Does breakfast include biscuits too??" Drishti asked sulkily
She is among the people who needs to eat something as soon as they wake up. And she has been awake for nearly two hours now and she is hungy as hell.
"You can have anything you want as soon as the puja is over Drishti" Abhay said pinching her cheeks out of habit
"Ouch!! That hurts. How many times do I have to say not to do it Abhi bhai" Drishti complained rubbing her cheeks and Abhay laughed until he realised his wife was staring at him angrily
Shravan too noticed Kiara stiffening at the easy rapport between Abhay and Drishti
"Let's not waste time. Come on" Shravan took hold of Drishti's hands and walked ahead
"Go slow man!! This is my first time wearing a saree. What if I trip and fall down??"
"You won't" Shravan said and kept walking
"Is there no ritual suggesting that the husband should carry the wife to the temple??" Drishti asked already tired of walking
First thing ,she's not a morning person
Second thing ,she didn't get breakfast as soon as she woke up
Third ,she is born lazy
"Really?? Where do you get these ideas from??" Shravan asked rolling his eyes
"I have seen in movies"
"This is not a movie. This is real life"
They watched several devotees walk – some in front of them, some behind and some beside them; families, couples and children – all of them heading to the same destination to pay their obeisance to the Goddess.
The pilgrimage to the Holy Shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi is considered to be one of the holiest pilgrimages, popularly known as the Mother who fulfills Her children’s wishes.
They arrived at the temple complex, and bought a pooja thali for the darshan.
Kiara put her pallu over her head in reverence as her mother in law had instructed to do, and Drishti followed suit ,though with a frown.
Both the couple were led to the sanctorum. There was a line of devotees who had come from far and wide, and they waited in line for their turn.
Finally, after patiently waiting for an hour, they were escorted inside the sanctorum for darshan.
Drishti closed her eyes in reverence and had a mental talk with Devi Maiya. Devi Maiya, why did you have to get me married like this?Please give me strength and wisdom and guide me; I do not know where we go from here. Also do not land me in anymore trouble until my parents comes back.
Shravan closed his eyes and asked for Devi Maiya’s guidance to do the right thing.
Both the couples bowed their head in reverence
Both the couples performed the rituals as instructed by the priest.Then they bent forward and touched the priest’s feet. After the blessings, they spent a few minutes in prayer.
They decided to relax in the temple outside the sanctorum for a few minutes and shared the prasad with each other before going for their breakfast
****
Agnihotri Mansion
Anjana Agnihotri paced to and fro in tension
"Anjana. Sit down. What is bothering you?? Raghu will reach in an hour. Did you forget that?"
"No ,I didn't. But I'm thinking about Drishti. Shouldn't we inform Vihaan and Divya about her wedding?? Drishti told me that she will talk when they come back from the vacation. But I don't feel it right" Anjana said
"If she was my daughter ,I would have definitely wanted to know" Niranjan said and Anjana made up her mind
"Drishti will be angry ,but this is the right thing to do"
Europe
Diya did a final check around the suit before leaving for the airport
Damini sulked at having to go back half way through the vacation
Vihaan made sure the jet is ready to take off anytime they want.
Diya's phone rang indicating an incoming call
"Its Anjana" Diya murmered before attending the call and moving out to the balcony ,followed by Vihaan
Vihaan saw the varying emotions on his wife's face listening to Anjana
"What happened??" Vihaan asked seeing the worry on her face
"Drishti got married"
"What???"
Diya passed on the information she got from Anjana onto her husband
"Did you say Shravan Maheswari??" Vihaan asked in disbelief. Why didn't he see that coming??
"Yeah. Anjana said he is a good guy"
"Good guy my foot. He trapped my daughter. How dare he??" Vihaan thundered
"Vihaan relax. What's the matter. Do you know him??"
"Do I know him?? Yes. He has been after me for a while now for D Love. He wants to build a resort there. When he realised I'm not going to sell ,he might have thought he could get his hands on the island through my daughter" Vihaan gritted his teeth.
SM groups ,an upcoming group of promising luxury resorts ,has been after him for a while for a buyout of the island that is so dear to him and his family
His NO might have wounded the ego of the young blood.
Vihaan smirked. If Maheswari thought he could get D Love through Drishti ,then he is in for a surprise
Even if Vihaan agreed to sell D Love ,Drishti would create a ruckus.
He can imagine Drishti lying down on the land challenging the bulldozer to go over her before breaking the land for the damn resort
"Don't come to any conclusions Vihaan. Let's go there and see what the situation is" Diya said
"Come on let's not waste time. Shravan Maheswari wanted a meeting with me. He is going to get that"