Masoom Mohabbat Chapter 1

‘Amma thoda aur khelne dijiye na! Abhi toh shaam bhi nahi dhali’(Ma, let me play for some more time outside here, the sky hasn't even turned to dusk yet)! Said the young girl scouting over a small mound of mud in her front courtyard.

‘Isiliye toh keh rahi hoon andar aaja, Rabb ji ke meher hai ke safed doodh jaisa rang diya hai tujhe! Aur tu hai ke isse bahar khel kar gulab jamun ki tarah jala ne par tuli hai!’(That is why I am reminding you to come inside!With God's grace you have been blessed with a milky fair skin. But you here! constantly sitting outside, wanting to turn yourself into a brownie!) Said Jassi, with her hands bent on her waist looking over her unceremoniously tomboy daughter.

Gulab jamun, arre wah woh toh bohot mitha hota hai na?! (Brownie! oh wow.. that is so sweet and yum). The girl turned slightly over her knees speaking with a look of contemplation to her young mother.

 Suddenly bursting in peals of laughter the girl fell in the heap of mud she was digging with her bare hands, with the unearthed soil all over her hands and now her face she giggled  ‘Kya hua agar main jal gayi kamse kam jal kar meethi toh rahungi na Amma’(So what! if I tan and colour like a brownie I will atleast be sweet enough still right Ma!).

Jassi held her daughter’s hand and pulled her up whilst reprimanding her and dusting the soil off her daughter’s kameez, ‘Main tenu ghar wich aane ko keh rahi hoon aur tu Khayali mithayiyan banari hai!’(Here I have been calling you to come inside the house whereas you are imagining on baking yourself into a sweet dessert outside!).

Two men carrying a sack of rice on one shoulder and bag of grocery in another, walked through the rustic gates of the country house one of the men heard the ongoing conversation and said ‘Kya Jassi ji, maine toh khayali pilau suna hai yeh mithaiyan kaun bana raha hai?’(What's going on Jassi Ji?! Who is planning to bake themselves into a dessert here?) said Mohinder Jhatt Handa, the other who was a shop keeper’s help was sent with Mohinder to carry the loaded grocery to his house.

Picking up the ends of her long shawl and covering her head, Jassi replied to her husband with a tint of annoyance in her voice ‘Aur kaun! Ek hi toh nikammi aulad hai humari! Khad dekho taang se tambu hogaya lekin akhal abhi bhi ghutnoun main hi hai! (Who else?! We only have one sample piece of a daughter in this house! she is spiking up tall like a beanstalk but her brain is still as small as a pea!) Looking up in the sky she mumbled within ‘Rabb hi jaane kab badi hogi yeh’(Only God knows of what will become of her).

And there she goes again! ‘Geeetey I swear when you come home today I am going to teach you a lesson’ said Jassi ji as Geet made a run out of the gates with her small scarf flaring behind her, Shouting  ‘Baba ki kasam abhi Meer ko lekar aayi!( I swear, I will be back with Meer very soon)'.

Most evenings, Mohinder Jhatt Handa’s household would witness his wife berating his daughter Geet Handa whilst bringing her back from her daily antics either in the fields or in the front courtyard of the haweli.

Mohinder always felt that he was more blessed than his siblings in his family. They were all brothers, Palatial and mighty with sons to show off; always empathizing with him as if not having a son is worse than being childless.

But he knew better as being the youngest of his household, he was closest to his mother. His Bebbe (Punjabi term for mother) had always wished for daughters and on Geet’s birth she was the most happiest, her wisdom filled words still echoes in his ears ‘Khandaan da asli chiraag assi yeh kudi hai, nayi ummeed jagayegi tumhari aur Jassi ki zindagi main’(She is the real torchbearer of this family and will bring new hopes in both yours and Jassi's lives).

He now knew what his mother meant, his daughters were the coolness of his eyes and the raunaq (shine) of his house. He thanked his wife on their birthdays each year for bearing him such gifts of life, whilst she still sheds tears of shame for all the taunts that she bared on not giving birth to a son.

As he sat under the tap to wash the dirt and tiredness from a day’s work of overlooking the fields, his youngest daughter Roop swung her arms around his shoulders. 
He turned sideways to see his cute button nose two pigtailed little angel looking at him with a small smile on her face.  He gave her a kiss on her cheek and said ‘Kaisi hai meri nanni puttar, Didi ke saath aaj koi badmashi nahi ki tuney? (How is my little doll? you didn't go out with your sister to play today?)

Kya Baouji, Geet didi toh aaj kuch naya hi khel khel rahi thi, haathoun se mithi khodi aur keh rahi thi ke yahan phool ugenge naye naye rangoun ke. Mainu bhi phool banana tha par mithi toh bohot gandi thi toh main Meer didi ke yahaan chali gayi apni gudi ke saath. (No Daddy, Geet Di was playing a new sort of game in the dirt..she said new colourful flowers will soon bloom here.. I too wanted flowers but it was all too dirty! So I went to Meer's house instead with my doll).

‘Oh toh aaj tuney Meer didi ko tang kiya si,’ (Oh so you went to play rather annoy your Meer Di today) he said as he washed his face with the cold water under the tap.

‘Bauji, yeh lijiye, aap ka touliya’ (Daddy, here is your towel) Geet stood with her hand held out with a towel for her father. ‘Aaj aapne bohot der kardi khetoun main bohot kaam tha kya?’ (You took longer than usual in the fields today, is there a lot of work?).

Haan ji Puttar, bas kuch baat karni thi bajju waale zameendaar sahib se, toh wahi der hogayi, Tu kahan se aayi hai, Meer ko lekar aana tha na’ (Yes my dear, I had some things to discuss with the other landlords.  where have you been, why didn't you bring Meer back with you?).

Haan ji Bauji, gayi toh thi, Meer ko laney, uske saath jalebbiyan khaani thi par uske yahan koi log aaye they, Daiijaan boli ke Meer ka Gudda aya hai’(Haan that is why I had gone, I thought we will eat jalebis together but she had guests over. Daijaan said Meer's prince charming has come) Geet said with confusion laced in her voice.
‘Bauji, meri guddi ko toh koi gudda nahi mila, yeh Daijaan ko Meer ke liye itna wadda gudda kahaan se mila hoga?’ Mainu toh dekhne bhi nahi mila, yeh chutki mujhe kheech kar le aayi, ussey bhook lagi thi humesha ki tarha (Bauji, I didn't even find a prince for my little doll how did Daijaan find such a big prince for Meer?! And I didn't even get to see him coz this little pinch-button dragged me back home..she was hungry as usual).

Jassi ji heard their conversation from the kitchen as she sat there making rotis for the evening meal, and burst out laughing, saying ‘Hayye meri lajjo, woh gudda aur koi nahi balke tera hone waala Jijja hai, Meer ka pati, kya kehten hai unki urdi zaban main Qawand!’ (Oh my innocent daughter, that's not a prince but your brother in law to be! Meer's husband ..umm they have a word for a it in their Urdu language Partner!).

‘Aur sun Preeti thode aur jalebiyan tal dena Meer beti ko aaj zyaada pasand ayenge’ (Oh Pretti, please fry some more jalebis, Meer would love eating them more today!) Jassi ji instructed the house-help sitting with her in the kitchen as she was walked out towards her husband.

‘Meri Gal sunno Sardar ji, aaj khanne ke baat Praaji se milkar toh aaye, Meer ka rokka hone ko hai, thodi mubarakan karde’(Sardar ji is an endearement for a wife to call her husband with) (Let's go over tonight to Meer's house, she is to be engaged we should wish them congratulations), said Jassi ji, with all the excitement twinkling in her eyes  as if it’s her own daughter’s marriage that has been fixed. Well, it might as well be, Meer’s mother and Jassi’s childhood friend died as Meer had just begun to say the word ‘Ma’,ever since Jassi ji adopted Meer as her own daughter. Every summer Meer’s grandmother would visit them, and Geet then belonged to Daiijaan more than even Meer.

The three young girls Meer, Geet and Roop were hardly ever seen apart, Jassi ji admired Meer for her sensibility, despite just being 18 years old, she knew every craft of the house from cooking, sewing to making mud patches and most importantly in Jassi ji’s eyes she knew when and what to speak and how to wear the chunni on her head and how to keep her eyes down infront of elders: all credit to Jassi ji of course.

On the other hand, was her chalta phirta tufaan (walking disaster), at 15 years Geet schooled by the same Mother Matron Jassi ji! and all those very useful household chores homed in on keeping the shy coy habits, she still didn’t know the difference between adrak and lassan (ginger and garlic)! Chunni and bindi (accessories and jewelries)!! All of Geet’s energy and mind was either in her books, building something in the backyard (In Jassi ji’s mind it was rather bringing mayhem to the house) or spending time with Meer’s Daijaan, her Nan.

But Jassi ji never gave up, she knew which key to turn when she needed Geet to learn, listen or NOT do something! Geet: fiercely thoughtful of others, more intelligent than she knew she was and was an unimaginable emotional fool… hence sometimes a twist of the ear would work and others those big fat crocodile tears.

Roop her youngest, was as best a baby lamb, forever stuck either by her mother or her Geet didi’s side. Timid and innocent at 10 years old, her few interest were the night time stories by her Bauji, Geet’s new inventions and her biggest love: food. If it wasn’t for her short height and tiny hands, she’d shove Jassi ji outta kitchen and cook everything under the roof herself. For now she satisfies herself with following her mother like a shadow in the rasoi and giving points to her favourite handis of curries.

And this is the humble abode of Mohinder Jhatt Handa, with old world customs and simple traditions, life of ups and downs filled with the laughter of his daughters and hopes of a better future for them. 

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Note: To keep to the roots of this story, I have kept some conversations in its mother tongue. However, as the story progresses I will be moving the conversations to as much in English language as I can. This is to make it easier for readers and also myself! However, I have edited and added translations to all dialogues in English for the Non-hindi readers. I wouldn't want to deter anyone away from reading here!