Shaadi ke din subah saat bajkar baarah minute par Sana ke phone mein teen alarms, sattar unread messages aur ek voice note tha jisme Pandit Ramswaroop keh rahe the, “Ghabraane ki koi baat nahi hai, bas Kanpur wali bus galat marriage hall pahunch gayi hai.”
Sana ne voice note dobara suna.
“Bas?” usne khaali kamre se poocha.
Agla voice note Chirag ka tha. Peeche logon ka shor.
“Sana, tension nahi. City mein ‘Shagun Vatika’ do hain. Rinku ne map mein doosra select kar diya. Hum bus ghumwa rahe. Panditji attendance le rahe. Sameer ko mat batana abhi, woh sehra mein panic karega.”
Teesra Sameer ka message:
SAMEER: Hum bilkul calm hain.
SAMEER: Waise Kanpur bus dikh nahi rahi.
SAMEER: Rinku phone kyun nahi utha raha?
SAMEER: IMPORTANT BAAT BHI HAI. MILNA HAI.
Sana ne forehead par haath rakha. Mehak room mein safety pins ka box lekar aayi. “Kya hua?”
“Bus wrong hall. Sameer ko important baat. DJ ne playlist ka reply nahi kiya. Aur meri left earring missing.”
Mehak ne ek-ek item count kiya. “Earring makeup pouch ke side pocket. Bus Chirag handle kar raha. DJ ko main call karti. Sameer ki important baat?”
“Shaadi ke din jo aadmi capital letters mein important bole, usse darr lagta hai.”
Shanti Devi bina knock kiye andar aayiं. “Neeche ek scooter teen minute se khada hai. Ladka helmet mein hai. Tumhare ghar ka?”
Mehak ne khidki se dekha. “Flower vendor.”
“Helmet utaar kyun nahi raha?”
“Aunty, phool suspect nahi hote.”
“Aajkal sab hote.” Shanti Devi ne Sana ko dekha aur expression naram hua. “Nazar na lage. Par phone chhod do, warna photo mein dulhan nahi, call-centre lagegi.”
Sana phone chhodna chahti thi. Wedding control sheet uske bina chhodne ko taiyaar nahi thi.
Pichhli raat tak bhi sheet ne sabko nachaya tha.
Mehendi/haldi ka small home function Shanti Devi ke courtyard mein hua, kyunki unhone pehle “noise bilkul nahi” kaha aur phir khud plastic chairs arrange karwa diं. Noor Chikan ki do colleagues aayiं. Aastha Diagnostics se Neha ne shift ke baad join kiya. Zafar Chacha ek large tea container bhejkar khud closing ke baad aaye.
Sana ke haath mein mehendi lag rahi thi aur phone table par vibrate kar raha tha. Sameer ne group mein fifteen messages bheje—sherwani button, sehra colour, bus confirmation, shoes polish, ring pouch.
Mehak ne phone उठाकर type kiya: “Bride unavailable. System maintenance.”
Sameer: “Emergency contact?”
Mehak: “Pandit Ramswaroop.”
Sameer ne uske baad koi message nahi kiya.
Kusum Ji songs ke beech bhi vendors check kar rahi thiं. Unhone mehendi artist ki receipt dekhi aur boliं, “Advance minus hua?”
Artist ne kaha, “Ji.”
“Likha nahi.”
Sana, dono haath wet, aankhen bandh karke boli, “Kusum Ji, aaj ek ghanta accounts bandh.”
“Kal double charge hua to?”
“Kal lad lenge.”
Yeh sentence Sana ke liye unusual tha—future risk ko ek raat ke liye future mein rehne dena. Mehak ne uske shoulder par chin rakhi. “Nervous?”
“Haan.”
“Sameer?”
“Usse nahi. Change se. Kal se har routine mein ek aur aadmi.”
“Aap log rules bana chuke.”
“Rules follow bhi karne honge.”
Chacha Zafar paas baithe the. “Beta, shaadi mein rule aur chai ek jaise. Bana kar chhod doge to thande. Roz garam karne padte.”
Sana ne hansi. “Chacha, aap har baat chai par kyun khatam karte?”
“Hum wahi bechte hain. Philosophy free hai.”
Kusum Ji ne ek old wedding song shuru kiya. Shanti Devi ne pehle volume kam karwaya, phir chorus sabse loud gaya. Mehak ne video banaya—public posting ke liye nahi, Sana ke liye. Clip ke corner mein Zafar Chacha clap kar rahe, Neha off-beat, Kusum Ji lyrics correct, Shanti Devi surveillance bhoolkar dance.
Raat ke end par Sana ki aunt ne ek small jewellery pouch diya. “Emergency mein kaam.”
Sana ne kaha, “Main sambhal ke rakhungi.”
“Business mein mat laga dena,” aunt ne half-joke kiya.
Sana ne answer diya, “Bina dono ke decision ke kuch nahi lagega.”
Us waqt rule easy laga. Agle din email aana tha.
***
Kanpur wali mini-bus ke andar Pandit Ramswaroop ne passengers ko do categories mein baant diya tha: jinhe washroom chahiye aur jinhe chai. Dono categories overlapping thiं.
Rinku front seat par driver ko action-film urgency de raha tha. “Bhaiya, agle U-turn par handbrake—”
“Chup baith,” Chirag ne kaha. “Tere chakkar mein wrong hall aaye.”
“Map wrong tha.”
“Map mein Shagun Vatika, Alambagh dala. Humein Kaiserbagh side jaana.”
“Naam same kaahe rakhte?”
Pushpa peeche se boliं, “Naam same hai to board padhna band kar doge?”
Panditji ne old bill ke back par names tick kiye. “Thirty-eight nikle the. Thirty-eight hain. Koi lost nahi. Isko success maano.”
Tinku ne poocha, “Breakfast packet extra hai?”
“Tum do kha chuke,” Pushpa boliं.
“Ek attendance se pehle tha.”
Bus correct hall ki lane mein pahunche tak ninety minutes late thi, par baraat ka formal time abhi door. Chirag ne relief ki saans li. Gate par Inspector Bachchu Singh casual kurta mein khade the. Sameer ne unhe wedding invite diya tha; woh guest bhi the, lekin lane mein wrong parking dekhte hi duty mode on ho gaya.
“Bus corner pe lagwao,” unhone driver se kaha. “Gate block nahi.”
Rinku bola, “Inspector saab, hero entry ke liye bus saamne—”
“Tumhari hero entry impound ho jayegi.”
Chirag ne Bachchu Singh ko salute jaisa namaste kiya. “Bus recovered.”
“Shaadi abhi shuru bhi nahi hui aur tum log missing vehicle case le aaye.”
***
Community hall modest tha—cream walls, maroon chairs, temporary flower arch aur stage par gold cloth. Sana ke budget cuts ke baad flower wall nahi thi. Uski jagah local florist ne strings aur green leaves se simple backdrop banaya tha, jo photo mein surprisingly achha lag raha tha.
Problem number two DJ tha.
Mehak ne sound check ke liye file chalwayi. Speakers se soft wedding song ke badle gym remix phata: “Bhaag—bhaag—bhaag!”
Kusum Ji ne dono kaan band kiye. “Yeh shaadi hai ya police raid?”
DJ boy ne laptop dekha. “Madam wrong pen drive aa gayi.”
“Correct?”
“Boss la rahe.”
“Kab?”
“Bas aa rahe.”
Mehak ne Sameer wala spreadsheet tone adopt kiya. “Time?”
“Ek ghanta.”
Kusum Ji boliं, “Written mein lo.”
Mehak ne alternative phone playlist aur aux cable arrange ki. “Boss aaye tab switch. Tab tak volume low.”
Problem number three vendor duplicate charge. Kusum Ji ne decorator invoice mein “stage carpet” do baar pakda. Decorator bola ek entry labour hai. Kusum Ji ne line item description padhkar uski handwriting ka bhi character analysis kar diya. Charge cut hua.
Problem number four shoes the—abhi missing nahi, lekin Tinku un par suspicious interest se nazar rakh raha tha kyunki cousins ne joota-chhupai plan mein use recruit karna chaha aur payment samose mein offer ki.
“Cash plus samosa,” Tinku ne negotiate kiya.
“Tum groom-side ho,” Chirag bola.
“Employment opportunities side-neutral hoti hain.”
***
Sameer hall ke chhote side room mein cream sherwani pehne mirror ke saamne khada tha. Pehli baar uska outfit fluorescent nahi tha. Isliye shayad nervousness zyada clearly dikh rahi thi.
Uske phone par courier programme ka email open tha:
PROVISIONAL PARTNER APPROVAL — DEPOSIT DEADLINE: FIVE BUSINESS DAYS.
Agreement mil gaya tha. Deposit aur setup amount wedding-gift envelopes se aasani se nikal sakta tha—agar gifts expected aaye, agar household setup ignore karein, agar Sana se pooche bina decision le.