PART 153
“Yeah, sure. So just take a right from there, and the first house is ours.. Yup, see you.”
Lakshman ended the call as he stood with others in the living room, dressed in the most elegant formals from tip to toe as they waited for the Pawan and the others to arrive.
“I hope you’re feeling comfortable here Jamshed Kaka,” Ram said as the man nodded. Being the punctual ex army man he was, he had arrived early to their delight.
“I am always comfortable son, and this happiness of your face makes me feel even better.”
“Shatrughan, have you handed over the documents?”
“Just go over the checklist once again.”
“Please ensure the security personnel must be Tier 10, officer.”
Urmila walked towards Lakshman, looking around at the sudden eruption of commands and actions and the burst of energy that had drove itself into the house that morning.
Lakshman looked up from his phone as he couldnt help but smile at her bright face. She mirrored his feelings, if not, being more excited for him than he was for himself. The innocence in her eyes made Lakshman want to just hold her hand and Run away from all the hustle to a quiet place, where he could spend all the Time he wanted with her.
“Did you see this?”
Lakshman was brought out of his ponderings as Urmila held up her phone in front of him, having opened up the webpage of a newspaper.
“Suryavanshi Brothers; Back to Business,” Lakshman read the headline aloud as his eyes ran over the article, and a picture attached of him and the others.
“Oh god,” he squirmed. “Why do they choose the worst possible pictures to post on articles?!”
Urmila chuckled as she took her phone back and smiled at his picture, naive and giddy.
“Aww, you look like a kid in this. How old are you in this picture?”
“I dont know,” he shook his shoulders. “Maybe 18 or 19.”
Urmila kept looking at the picture until Lakshman placed his palm over the screen and smirked.
“What? Its a nice picture,” she said.
“You have the live person standing in front of you, why are you looking at that hideous face?”
“You’re calling yourself hideous,” she replied as someone called to her and she walked away, leaving Lakshman smiling behind.
“Sir!”
Ram and Lakshman walked up to Pawan as he stood in front of them, a small smile on his face.
“Hope everything is good at home, Pawan.”
Pawan sighed a little, as he looked down.
“Yes, I mean… I just learned that.. 2 months ago, my mother passed away.”
Ram and Lakshman were taken aback by what he said, and the fact that, despite what he had just learnt, he was there, to come and stand by them in their joy.
“Pawan.. What are you Saying? Ho..How did this happen?”
“Actually Sir, she was already frailing as it is. Its, just because of complications at her age. My mother was a good woman, and so God gave her a peaceful death.”
He paused as he wiped a small tear.
“My only regret is that I couldnt be with her in her last breath, but Im sure, she must have forgiven me.”
Ram couldnt help but lunge ahead and hug him tightly. Pawan took a moment to compose himself, as he hugged Ram back.
Ram knew exactly what he, as a son, had felt in that very moment, and knew how much he needed love and peace now. He mentally chided himself for not checking on Pawan himself, lest he would not have asked him to be present today.
Ram broke the hug, still with Pawan’s hand in his.
“I am so sorry Pawan, I did not know about this. It was so foolish of me to force you to come down without knowing.. and for keeping you away in the first place..”
“No Sir, please.” Pawan said. “My mother always said, we should never repent over a peaceful death. She went when she had to, its not your fault or mine. I am sure, her blessings are always with us and she would have wanted me to come here today, irrespective of what had happened.”
“But why didnt you tell us earlier Pawan?” Lakshman asked softly.
“It took me a while itself to register the same Sir, and when I did, I thought, its best I didnt tell you. After all, all of us have come home after such a long time, and you all the longest. I did not want to worry you Sir, thats why.”
Ram shook his head slowly as he simply ran his mind over all the things Pawan had said just them, unknowingly drawing parallels between the Pawan in Vatika and now.
They seemed like very different people, but deep down, their hearts were just the same; pure and devoted.
“I will just say Pawan, Im sure, wherever she is, she will be proud of you.”
Pawan smiled as Ram smiled back.
“Now Sir, I request you, please dont worry yourself about me. I am absolutely fine. My cousins are taking care of everything at home for the time being. I think it is time for you all to leave, the media is really going wild outside.”
They nodded as Ram turned to see everyone, down and ready, Kraanti coming ahead and feeding everyone a small piece of Prasad.
“I did a special Puja today for you all,” she said handing the Prasad to Ram and the others.
“Thank you Maa,” he said. “Is everyone ready?”
Kraanti nodded as she called everyone to get ready to leave.
“No matter whatever the media asks or says, do not lose your composure it front of them,” she said. “And remember, it is a big day in our lives, so I want to see a big smile on your faces!”
All of them put up a bright smile as they walked to their designated cars.
“Bhaiyya, will you atleast tell us now what you’ve been thinking? “ Bharat asked.
Ram smiled as he opened the door to his car.
“Just a little while more, my brother.”
——————
‘As you all can see, a huge crowd has gathered in front of the gates of the Headquarters of the Ishvaku Group of Companies right here in the heart of the city, and headlining all articles and news topics since yesterday has been the return of the Suryavanshi Brothers back into the world of the highest magnates.’ The journalist pointed to the convoy of cars making its way through the crowd as people who had missed them for long gathered outside for a shake of the hands, while the majority gathered simply couldnt be bothered to think anything other than, for all these years, what were they doing?!
“Wow, I didnt expect this much of a crowd,” Siya said as she looked out the dark windows.
“Me neither,” Ram added smiling . “Seems like we’ll have a long day today.”
“Its so good to be back here, though.”
————————
“I request you all to please sit down! We mustn’t take any more time in beginning the press meet, please, I request you all to sit down!”
The crowd seemed to have gone wild, the elder members who’d known Ram and the others for long kept coming ahead and hugging them, talking to them whilst the new joinees jostled in the crowd for a sight of the man who was to be their new MD and about theyd heard of so much.
“Please!”
At Rams multiple requests, finally the crowd seemed to calm down and the huge auditorium fell silent.
“I think we should take the questions solely first, and then I will answer them all together.”
Ram and the others took seats at a long table arranged for a press meet, as the cannonballs of questions began.
“Why were you sent away?”
“Why did you accept the rumoured contract?”
“Where were you?”
“Is it true that Raghavan is dead?”
“Have you killed Raghavan?”
“Who will be new MD?”
Ram sighed at the continual loop of the same set of questions, again and again. But then, he had not expected anything else either. The eyes of the entire world on him, and they were thirsty for answers.
“Friends,” he began. “I will answer each question of yours, but not in detail today. I believe what has happened in the past, is best left there. But I know I owe you all some answers, so you can trust me on this, I will certainly give you a complete explanation.”
“I shall only answer the majority of your questions in a few words today. To begin with, No, we were not sent away by force, we were bound by an unfortunate contract and hence we did not want to tarnish the reputation of our family by breaking a word of law, and abided by it. For our stay, we were in a property my late mother Kaushalya Suryavanshi had left to me and my brother Lakshman in Manali. We lived there as commoners and spent our lives in a fairly regular manner.”
“Coming to your questions about Raghavan, I shall not comment on them now because they are somewhere involved with the security of the country and its people, and that is my first priority. I shall have a word with the Governor and Chief Commissioner before letting you know.”
“And coming to the fact as to who will be the new MD, I have an announcement to make.”
The eyes of everyone at the table turned to Ram as Siya softly smiled at him. Kraanti and Sumitra too waited anxiously as he began to speak again.
“I have decided to make a change in the way the Ishvaku Industries have been headed. Hence forth, I declare that there will be no one MD, but instead, A board of Directors.”
Certain members of the hall seemed to gasp while others still grasped what he’d said.
“From today, The Industries will be headed with utmost confidence and honesty by the most dedicated and trustworthy workers of this institution that I know of. This Board of directors shall comprise of Mr. Bharat Suryavanshi, Mr. Lakshman Suryavanshi and Mr. Shatrughan Suryavanshi and I, Ram Suryavanshi, and we will work together to ensure that the dreams and aspirations of my forefathers are fulfilled with the greatest care and commitment. We shall work under the guidance of Mrs. Kraanti Suryavanshi, thankful to her for her teachings and learning from her experiences.”
Lakshman, Bharat and Shatrughan stared at Ram agape, quick enough to come back to their present senses as Ram looked at him and smiled. Urmila and Shruti turned red from barely containing a squeal while Maanvi took a deep breath.
Would a mere ‘thank you’ to all that was there in the heavens be enough, for the love they shared? Was their bond really like those of fellow brothers theyd see around them? No, it was definitely something, celestial. It was a prized possession, a gift that they perhaps through their good deeds had earned. Yet for Ram, it was nothing more than a duty, a way of sharing all that he had with those who were his own. It was as if to say, ‘Your Love is the only gift I want to win.’
“I will also add that the Seerdhwaj women, our better halves, shall also accompany us in this position and commitment in their own way as much as possible, as none of this today would have been possible without their help and support.”
Sunaina grasped Janaks hand tightly as they sat on the front row of the audience, looking up at her children with beaming pride.
“I am so proud of them,” she said.
“These children are Gods most beautiful blessing to me,” Janak added.
“All those who have worked with us are equal holders of Ishvaku’s worth, I must remind that to everyone.” Ram continued. “It is your perseverance that has brought us to this position today, and hence, all of us will always be at your disposal.”
Sumit came a little ahead as the crowd clapped and whispered something in Rams ear.
“I think we are short on time today, so I shall conclude the announcements of the day here itself. We need to complete certain formalities of signing in as well, and hence have to take leave for now and attend to work.”
“Any further questions…… No? Okay then, thank you everyone for your cooperation and patience. We will get back to you soon. Have a good day.”
———————
“Go ahead, Bharat, sign the papers.”
Bharat looked at the papers and then back at his brothers.
“Bhaiyya are you sure you want to do this?”
Ram laughed while Lakshman and Shatrughan too seemed to carry the same question.
“Are you all doubting yourself?” Ram asked.
“No Bhaiyya,” Bharat said. “Its not that. We will do whatever we are to do with complete dedication. But Bhaiyya…”
“No ifs and Buts,” Ram said. “I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking about what will I do then, what will be my special status.”
“I need you all to realise Bharat, I dont want any special status. I want to work with you all, because I know, that if we work together, we will do what I could never do alone and we can fulfil the dreams Dad had for us.”
Tears of happiness were on the brink of his eyes, as Bharat nodded quietly and signed the papers, followed by the others. The private MD cabin housing only the closest associates and family erupted in joy as the brothers hugged each other and took the elders’ blessings.
“Excellent decision Ram,” one of the elder managers said.
“Thank you sir, but this was just the most practical. It will be better this way for both us and the company.”
“We want a party!” Another said as the room erupted in laughter.
“Sure, sure. We will host a party very soon. And you all have to come!”
“The 3 remaining rooms are being renovated, they will take a week. Till then, you all will have to adjust in this cabin, Im sorry.” Sumit said.
“Thats absolutely fine, no harm in being together for the first week, we’ll get some experience working around Bhaiyya too.” Lakshman said.
“Ram, theres another problem as well.”
They turned they heads towards Siya in question as she quietly walked up to the wall, dressed with the images of their ancestors.
“We also need a few more photo frames,” she said as they began to laugh.
——————
“Remind me to always thank you for being in my life if I ever forget,” Ram whispered to Siya as the others talked amongst themselves.
Siya nodded sarcastically as she let out a laugh.
“Im glad we were on the same page,” she said. “Im so happy, seeing everyone happy. Its weird, how I draw all my happiness from them so easily.”
“Thats the thing with love you know, when you share love, it only multiplies.”
——————————
EEEEE :)
Next Part : PARTAY!!! :P (Brings Flashbacks to the first Time they met *heart eyes emoji*)
P.s. Just encountered someone named Jamshed so I thought lets give a shoutout to our own man lol :)
Anupamaa
Cricket
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