Chapter 13

MUMBAI

"Lights, Camera and . . . Action." There was pin drop silence on the floor except for two people - a man and a woman, who were professing their undying love to each other. Film Director Sameer Oberoi mentally gagged at the scene that was unfurling in front of him. This was not what he envisioned when he dreamed of becoming a director. He was so passionate about it that he had dropped out of his engineering course in the University of Alabama. His parents who were wealthy and well settled in the U.S., did not try to dissuade their son from chasing after the rainbow. In fact they couldn't care less, as they were busy trying to spread the Oberoi  name in all of America. Thus armed with a degree in direction from New York, he came to Mumbai, India hoping to create magic.

His first film was self-financed and based on an eco-feminist angle about the exploitation of woman and nature, which was a raging topic among scholars. It however did not fare at the box office. He had wondered why when the script was perfect, dialogues were right on and the young actress was an upcoming talent in the industry. The well experienced cameraman who he worked with furnished him with the news. If you want to survive in Bollywood, you need the big gun by your side. He had brushed aside the advice as he thought he didn't need anyone's support, when he had talent. He couldn't have been more wrong.

After several unsuccessful attempts to find a backer for his next project: a film about the slum dwellers and their hardships – which they said the audience had no interest in - he had almost given up his dream of directing movies. That was when he met him at one high profile party. He had so graciously agreed to fund the film. Sameer could finally breathe with relief – or so he thought!

At first he believed that it was the movie with the brilliant script that people liked. It was only later he came to know that the movie was a super hit only because of the name associated with it. It won awards because of that name and as a director he was forced to bend to the sheer force of that name. It was then Sameer realized that it didn't matter how great the script was, or how superb the director or special effects was, or how melodious the songs were. Bollywood revolved around this person and he literally ruled it. He was . . .

Suraj Pratap Singh

Actor. Producer. Director.

Royalty! Both in Bollywood and out.

Suraj had a falling out with one of his directors as a consequence he needed someone young and dynamic to fill in the post. It was unfortunate that he chose Sameer. Then came a plethora of clichéd movies, the same crap on and on and on, something that Sameer detested. Suraj played the lead role in all of them, he tweaked the script to his fancy and he decided the female lead. The director was but a mere puppet. Sameer pondered if he would ever direct a movie on his terms in Bollywood.

'Someday,'  he consoled himself.

The scene came to an end and so did Sameer's rumination.

"And . . . Cut it. And that's a wrap. For the final time. Pack up!" he shouted once again. The whole crew erupted in applause and cheered among themselves for finally finishing the work. Sameer got up from the director's inanimate chair and walked over to Suraj Singh who was flirting with the female lead.

'What a sight to see!' he exclaimed as he reached them.

"Sir, what fantastic acting. It was as though you were living the character," the director gushed. Suraj ignored the director, lifted his co-star's hand and brought it to his lips.

"You did a good job Sitara. Keep it up and you will touch the stars," he said smoothly.

The actress fluttered her fake eyelashes at the display, smiling coyly. "Thank you sir, I owe it all to you."

'And another one bites the dust,' Sameer sighed.

Suraj spoke in a mock serious tone. "You are always welcome Sitara. Why not celebrate this, we can have dinner at my hotel," he said trying to keep his eyes on her face rather than her generous buxom. The actress blushed agreeing readily as she retreated to her space in the corner.

Suraj watched her leave and smirked. Then turning toward the director he shrugged. "I don't believe in wasting resources." He started walking to his seat followed by Sameer.

"Of course sir, I understand perfectly," Sameer nodded his head. 'The b*****d'

As Suraj sat down, his makeup man hurried over for touch up. Another man came forward with an array of juices and dry fruits. The director talked about the movie, the dates for the press release and the promotion tours that they have to undertake before the release. Suraj's eyes went back to the actress who was looking at him now and then. He was going to have fun tonight.

THE FOUR SEASONS

The Maharaja Suite. . . A few hours later . . .

Suraj looked at the sleeping woman next to him and smiled in satisfaction. He was thoroughly spent pleasing himself. She got her share of pleasure too, he noted as he recalled her screaming and writhing under him. He searched for his boxers and found them lying on the ground. After donning it he walked out of the bedroom, closing the door behind him. He slumped down on the plush sofa, flexed his muscles, and reached for a packet of Marlborough, then decided against it. He needed something stronger, he smirked as he had few more rounds to go. Getting up swiftly he fixed himself a drink from the drink cabinet installed in one corner. He took his drink to the balcony - which provided a spectacular view of Mumbai. He took a sip of the whiskey instantly feeling refreshed.

Sitara was easy, too damn easy. She was a fresh rose for the picking and picked he did. He had first seen her at the EIFFA  after party when she had accompanied a well known producer. One look and he knew that she was going to be the producer's dessert for the night. In fact he felt sorry for her as he pictured her lissome figure under the pudgy man. Finding her alone by the drinks table, he ambled to her introducing himself, or rather charming her. She knew who he was, her face betraying shock at the attention he gave her. She could also see the jealous looks from other women at the party. She thought she was special and he knew exactly what was going on in her mind.

He gave a short education on the variety of wines and champagne, offered her a Pinot Noir, and subtly suggested that she could do better than the obese producer. She had jumped at once at the opportunity telling him in clear words that she could leave the producer if another would give her all she wanted.

'Bloody small town girl!'  he sneered. She was a pretty thing, he told himself. He approved of the hourglass figure and ample breasts. If she thought that he would have a way with her that very night, she was wrong. He struck when people least expected.

Suraj wasn't disappointed with her at all. He was her first and he liked it that way. His body hardened. Time for round two.

He drained the glass of its contents while walking back to the hall from the balcony. Just then his phone rang and he almost walked past, but something made him stop midway. He glanced at the screen stiffening at the number displayed. He answered it immediately.

"What?" he rasped.

"Khamma Ghani Hukum. The rose has bloomed." The single sentence exploded something within him. He stared at the phone in his hand for a long time, his body quivering with ire and lust. His blood boiled to a point that he needed release. He looked toward the direction of the bedroom.

Release!

He strode into the bedroom stripped off his underwear, climbed into the bed and on top of her. Sitara moaned in her sleep as she felt a weight on her body. At first she thought that she was dreaming then as the fact registered in the brain her eyes fluttered open. She could sense anger radiating from him.

"Suraj?" She frowned at first but then smiled as she felt something hard pressed against her abdomen.

'Filthy commoner, how dare she take my name.' He had to punish her for her blunder. His mouth crushed hers cruelly. She stifled a cry as his hands roved roughly on her body. She was confused by his actions but she didn't dare object.

His entry was hard and fast. Sitara cried in pain as he rocked her, his mouth never leaving hers. She tried to push him off her, but his strong hands pinned hers above her head. His release came rapidly after which he lifted himself off her.

"Get dressed. My driver will take you to your hotel." Sitara pursed her lips not wanting to leave.

"When will I see you again?" she whined. Her voice grated on his nerves, but he controlled the urge to kick her out as he decided that he would require her services later on.

"I will call you. Leave now." Without a second glance he left her. She dressed up quickly leaving immediately after with a wistful look at his direction.

Suraj didn't care. His mind was now occupied with the news he had heard.

The rose has bloomed.

He was waiting to hear it for a long, long time; the rose was ripe for the plucking. He dialed a number. "I am leaving on some work tomorrow and will be back in a week." He hung up not waiting to hear the reply from the director.

The next call was to his secretary. "I need the car to take me to the airport early morning," he ordered. "Meet me at the airport with the tickets. I am going home."  His secretary shivered at the cold tone.

**************************************

THE JAYPORE PALACE

Nandini lay awake in the dark twisting a strand of her hair, biting the inside of her cheek, listening to Michael Bolton's 'Said I loved you, but I lied.' The air was sultry, but she had decided against the air conditioner. Instead she had opened the windows, drawing apart the curtains through which the faint light of the moon filtered in.

Nandini sighed at the lyrics of the song. She loved Mich Bolton's songs, apparently this one was sort of mocking her.

"You are the candle, love's the flame

A fire that burns through wind and rain

Shine your light on this heart of mine

Till the end of time

You came to me like the dawn through the night

Just shinin' like the sun

Out of my dreams and into my life

You are the one, you are the one"

Reaching for the remote beside her, she quickly turned it off. Love was not her cup of tea – for now. Thinking of love, she was immediately reminded of a message on her phone that was still unanswered.

Joshua Brian Hartford.

She had to reply sooner or later. The more sooner the better, her conscience told her. She sat up and switched on the bed lamp. Taking her phone from the bedside table, she opened the message and re-read wondering if she had made a mistake in deciphering it. Nope, she hadn't!

She sighed yet again leaning against the headboard she mused. When had this happened? They just had dinner few times, does that automatically give men a reason to start expecting anything from women? She contemplated on the call, but she knew she had to make it.

The phone rang for a long time, finally Josh answered.

"If you hadn't called me today, I would have gone to the police. Bethany was going over the top you know. I calmed her down somehow, but you got to call her from wherever you are. But . . . where are you?"  Josh stopped speaking when he realized that Nandini was silent the whole time.

"Nandini, are you alright? Where are you?" he pressed on.

"I am absolutely fine Josh. You needn't worry about me. I – I am in India."

"India???". Josh could not mask the surprise from his voice. "Why did you leave to India all of a sudden. Wait . . . that is impossible Nandini. We just met last morning didn't we?"

"Yeah well . . . I had to leave due to a family emergency. I didn't have time to let you know." 'How could I Josh when I was tensed as hell.'

"Oh! Is it okay now?" Josh sounded unsure and embarrassed to ask the next question. "Do you . . . require any monetary assistance?"

Nandini smiled on hearing the words. 'He was really, really sweet.'

"No Josh, there is no monetary emergency. Its just that my father had something important to discuss with me," she said wryly recalling the conversation.

"He couldn't discuss it over the phone. He had to call you to India for that! Then it must be something terribly important." After some moments, he prodded. "What is it?"

Nandini shook her head. "Leave all that. What did you mean by the message that you sent earlier, about a date and stuff?" She waited with bated breath for the reply hoping she had made a mistake.

Josh's voice faltered ever so slightly but he recovered quickly. "Don't you understand by what I mean? If you want me to put it into words I will. Nandini I . . ."

Nandini's heart sank as she had a fair idea on what he was going to say. Before he could make it awkward for both of them, she stopped him in his tracks.

"Josh . . . please! I – I didn't know how you felt till today," she sighed heavily recalling Abhimanyu's words at Vilaspore. "I cannot see you as anything other than a friend. We . . . we come from different worlds Josh."

"Are you worried about what my father is going to say? Because I don't care Nandini. I really like you. It doesn't matter what your background is, I can manage everything."

This wasn't going as planned. Nandini knew that Josh was relentless. He was brilliant, kindhearted, caring and would have been a possible boyfriend material if she could just convince her heart. As her brother implied, she had gone into hiding, but what was she hiding from, she never knew. There was a sense of inexplicable fear every time she was alone. College saved her from losing her sanity. Friends like Josh and Bethany, who were genuine to the core helped her course through. She never ever told them about her background, she didn't have to. Only once had they asked about her family and that too as it was Christmas break. She could be herself with them without her title and her status creating problems.

At this moment however, she felt that she had to reveal the truth to him about who she was. Josh needed hard facts, proofs and she just knew how to provide him that.

"Are you in front of your laptop? When he asked how she guessed, she simply said. "What would a tech savvy guy be doing?"

Josh laughed. "I think you are dodging from the point."

"Nope, I am actually answering your question. Go to the search engine," she said.

Josh complied not knowing what she was trying to prove. "Yep, I'm in."

"Okay now type Jaypore royals. That would be J A Y P O R E." Josh's eyebrows scrunched in confusion. 'What was she going at? ' he thought to himself.

He typed in the exact words and waited. "This is a page of some royal family."

"Go to the gallery on your left side. Just look at the pictures, and don't forget to read the caption below. I'll hold . . ." Nandini got up from the bed still holding the phone to her ears and poured herself a glass of water from the jug.

Josh on the other hand started looking at the pictures in the gallery, still confused as to why he was doing this. The first few pictures were of a huge palace, its interiors, outdoor, then came the picture of a dashing young man in some traditional attire. He had a rope of pearls hanging on his neck and he was holding a sword. He read the caption below. 'So he was prince!'  Josh exclaimed and he continued to the next picture. Now the young man was standing with a beautiful young girl. She too was dressed traditionally. He then looked at the caption, then looked again and yet again. This time his eyes grew wide. He rubbed them a couple of times unable to believe what he was seeing.

Nandini replaced the glass by the jug then went back and sat cross legged on the bed. She took in a deep breath before speaking.

"Josh, you there?"

Silence.

"Tell me I am dreaming Nandini. Just tell me that I am going to wake up any second now and we are going to be hanging out at the cafe just like any other day."

"You are not dreaming Josh."

"A-are you really a princess?" he blurted out.

"Yes, though my country does not recognize royalty anymore, but it doesn't mean that we cease to be what we are. My father is the current king of Jaypore and my brother is the Yuvraj or the crown prince, the heir to the defunct throne."

Absolute silence followed Nandini's explanation. While Josh was going over every single detail about Nandini, the latter was trying to ease the gawky situation.

"I am still the same me Josh. It doesn't change anything."

"Is that why you are refusing to consider us? Because I don't belong in your circle?"

Nandini winced slightly. "Did I ever give you such an impression?"

Josh shook his head. "Then why are you pushing us away. Why don't you give us a chance?"

Nandini smiled sadly at his words. "There can never be an us Josh. Even though I try, I cant see you as anything other than my friend." And also because my heart is lost. "You mean a lot to me, you and Bethany. Though I request you to keep this from her, I will tell her myself. I cant thank you guys enough for being there when I was down."

"Well – its not necessary." Josh's voice was clipped. Nandini knew he was upset, but she couldn't reveal the real reason for her refusal now, could she?

"There is something else isn't it?" He spoke after a moment.

Nandini closed her eyes. He was so damn perceptive! There was no point in hiding this. If she did not reveal the reason, he might continue to harbor feelings toward her making it impossible for him to move on.

"When I was born, my father and his friend – who happens to be another king – made a sort of arrangement; to join two royal houses by matrimony. As per that, I am supposed to marry the king's son. I cannot cancel it, nor can he and nor will our parents. My destiny is tied to him, whether I want it or not."

"What???"  There was a loud thump from the other end. "You've got to be kidding me! This is utterly unheard of! You are too young to get married Nandini."

Nandini ran her fingers through her hair. "Its not completely unheard of and it's not like I am going to get married tomorrow. We will get engaged later this year and then . . ."  her voice trailed away.

"Do you love him?" Nandini went still, the question caught her off guard.

Did she love him? Did she?

"I don't know"

"Does he love you?"

Nandini knew the answer to that question well very.

'We will have no bond, no union . . . and no love between us'

"I don't know," she replied not wanting to dwell on the other aspect of her twisted life.

Josh breathed out heavily. "I am sorry for what you are going through. But, I will still fight for you, till you tell me that you love him. The day you tell me that, I will back off."

"Josh, no, listen to me . . ." she pleaded.

"I have to go, don't worry Bethany won't hear anything from me, but I suggest that you fill in on her."

"Josh, I . . ." The line went dead. Oh boy!, things were surely spiralling out of control. There were lots of things on her check list that needed to be done soon. Josh was last on the list. She will deal with him when the time comes.