ARSHI FF:"TERI MERI KAHANI"-(SEASON 1)- Chapter 2 Pg3 (UPDATED) - Page 2

thank you so much for your wonderful comments. I was quite apprehensive about my writing. Your post did give me enough confidence to go on. Am posting the update soon

Originally posted by: ssttuuttii

Wow! It's a period story 😃. Or is that only for the beginning?

What ever it maybe, the Prologue had me interested but the Chapter 1 takes the cake. It's mind blowing! ⭐️

There's so much happening in this chapter. You have laid out a very good base for the upcoming tale.

The family dynamics are very clear. Even though Khushi's father has outdated beliefs, there is some warmth. Despite of the restrictions, Khushi does have a loving family. That's what makes it very real. There's no unnecessary suppression, apart from the "women belong to the kitchen" mindset. It's quite common to come across such households even in real life.

And Khushi has wonderful friends. I liked their bonding and hope that they make an appearance again in the story later.

Coming to the climax, to be honest, I'm kind of glad that Khushi got kidnapped 😆. And that's because I'm sure you will give her a better fate than what she would have while being married to Chandan. Please do so... okay? 😆

She won't come back home for years?? So what is going to happen to her? And where is she living for all these years? Are we going to jump directly to the present now?

Lots of questions here. You have left quite a cliffhanger. Hope to get an update soon 😳.

Love,

Stuti

ETA : Okay, it just struck me from the title that Teri Meri Kahani is that movie with 3 different time periods or something... right? And since you have named this Season one, are we going to see something like that? Different seasons and different timelines? Seems quite interesting if that is true 😃.

Thank you for your wonderful comments. updating soon.. you really motivated me to write sooner.

P.s:Its not from Teri meri Kahani. I Have divided it into seasons to adjust the timeline. It may go 2 years ahead in the second season and may be another 5years. No separation on the cards

Originally posted by: -Dil-

Loved the beginning!👍

You are a very good author my friend. I'm sure now you can lay all your doubts to rest!😄

That was an auspicious start to what I'm pretty sure is going to be one epic story...Please continue soon..

Thanks girl. It means a lot coming from you!!

Originally posted by: Veenapain

Loved prologue. Nice story. Please continue

Thank you. Updating now

Originally posted by: Uzii

Fabulous story Khushi’s kidnapped but who would do that they seem very simple people.

Thank you so much . Updating soon

Originally posted by: AparnaRenu

It has been years since I read something here!!! And this was an awesome beginning. I'm already invested in the story!!

thank you so much😊

Originally posted by: tinkertoesreads

What a start! An introduction to Khushi and we dive right in. I like the way you have setup the story, etched out the characters so we are very clear on Khushi's background, where she comes from and what her upbringing has been. For a second there I thought that Khushi would rebel and run away from this life she didn't want, but then that's thought probably didn't even enter her head, conditioned as she is obey her elders. I did not expect the kidnap though, not by a long shot. Who and why? Someone with a grudge against her family? Stalker? What does the future have in store for poor Khushi? There is no way to keep this under wraps considering its her wedding day...

Brilliant start, you've definitely got me hooked!

you will know soon. Thank you for your comments

Originally posted by: Annasabu

Nice work. Can you arrange the update in small paragraphs so that to increase readability?.It may work for young turks to read easily but for us, the old gen it is a bit tiresome. Pls consider.

Thanks and love🤗

Anna

Thank you.Will surely do that from the third chapter. I have already written the second one 😊

Chapter 2: Ek ladke ki kahani(His Story)

May 7, 1989, Sunday

14114 Link Express: DEHRADUN TO ALLAHABAD JUNCTION

7:00 am: BHARWARI STATION

The train was running late by 22 minutes as it came to a halt at platform no 2 and would be departing the platform precisely 2 minutes later. The travelers started scurrying across the crowded platform to find their respective coaches,the vendors at the tea stall started having a busy time so early in the morning pouring out tea and coolies in red uniforms carried heavy bundles of luggages on their heads to be deposited on the train in time . With all the regular hustle bustle around , the train started to depart as the guard whistled and waved the green flag. Arnav Singh Raizada woke up to the sound of the engine whistling as it exited the Bharwari platform. Arnav was making this journey from Dehradun to Allahabad junction .

Arnav Singh Raizada, the name spoke volumes. A man of many hats, Raizada was born in an affluent family whose riches could put many states to shame . Arnav’s father Mr Raghuveer Singh Raizada , a descendant of the royal lineage of Dehradun, still a major part of UP in 1989 amassed unmatched wealth by building mills, exporting litchi and Basmati rice and investing in tourism. A man with a vision for the future,his businesses resulted in him taking frequent travels to various destinations. On one such tour , he met his wife Mrs Sampada Raizada (nee:Sampada Suryanarayan Singh) a beautiful ,well groomed daughter of the then ruling MP of Pratapgarh UP.The two met during a party dinner hosted by her father who was a business acquaintance. Both fell head over heels in love, unaware that Sampada was promised to Mr. Shivraj Thakur an aspiring politician from Allahabad. Suryanarayan Singh, Arnav’s maternal grandfather never broke a promise and Sampada being the obliging daughter that she was would never go against her father. Raghuveer couldnot imagine living a life without Sampada. In a drunken stupor, he met Shivraj Thakur a day prior to his wedding with Sampada.Thakur, a cunning and a devious man took this to his advantage asking Raghuveer to meet him once sober. On the day of his wedding to Sampada, he decided not to marry her and got Raghuveer and Sampada married instead. This made him a hero in the eyes of many and got him many followers any complete support from Surya Narayan Singh’s party. A hero on the outside , a villian on the inside. What they did not know about was the deal he struck Sampada’s father Suryanarayan Singh who gave him a permanent party ticket from Allahabad and made him what he was today. Thakur did not stop at that. Just before the wedding, he made a deal with Raghuveer , asking him to return the favour in time of need. The job/act was not specified. Raghuveer desperate on marrying Sampada had agreed without giving it a second thought..He pledged to do whatever Shivraj asked.Though Shivraj never demanded anything from Raghuveer during his time, little did he know that this deal would come to haunt his only son for years to come.A deal that would upturn the lives of two beautiful souls.

As Raghuveer and Sampada settled into marital bliss travelling and exploring life, Raghuveer expanded his business further and Sampada his partner focused on educating and empowering women.She was a woman of fierce temperament and strong heart. Their son , Arnav Singh Raizada was born a few years later. Arnav was a beautiful amalgamation of his parents best characteristics. He was strong, bold, brilliant, adventurous,caring , sensitive and little too handsome . They couldn’t have asked for a better son. Arnav was simply good at everything. A class topper, a scouts head, a star badminton player, a national swimming champion and an amazing orator. A charmer that he was , girls wood swoon all over him. Despite all the attention he got and the luxuries he grew up with,Arnav never fooled around with grades and women. His parents imbibed in him from the very beginning to be grateful for the privileges he had, to build an identity of his own , to respect every human being be rich or poor and to treat women equally. Arnav’s family was a cocoon of bliss. and an envious sight for many. It was in October 1979 when Arnav went on to do engineering from IIT Delhi that things fell apart. Arnav Singh Raizada’s world shook to the core . Raghuveer and Sampada and driven all the way down to Delhi from Dehradun to celebrate Arnav’s 18th birthday. His birthday fell on a Sunday and the family spent the entire day together shopping, eating and sightseeing in Delhi. Arnav so missed having his parents around and so did his parents. A promise was made that they would visit their once a month and spend the weekend together and Arnav would travel whenever possible. Dinner was done and after the customary hugs and kisses , Raizadas bid goodbye having had to get back to Dun via road by morning for their business meetings. As Arnav woke up to a beautiful Monday morning and got to his classes , he was summoned by the Dean at 3 P.M to receive the most horrible news of his life. His parents were killed in a car crash at 4 am in the morning.Arnav was in Shock and failed to utter even a single word for months to come.He left for Doon to perform the final rites and walked back home. Home wasn’t home anymore with the loss of his parents creating a void in his heart and his life. Arnav became engrossed in studies to forget the pain and gradually overcame his grief . But the tragedy had changed him completely. He hardly laughed. barely spoke and never liked to be around people.He kept his promise to his parents and excelled in academics.An IIT gold medalist , Arnav went on to get his masters from the prestigious London School of Economics and graduate summa cum laude and received his degree from the Queen of England. His parents would have been proud.He also got a diploma in Food Science and English Literature. With so many lauerls, Arnav unlike most if his peers decided to get back to India.He wanted to make a difference and continue where his parents had left it all. They same time heals everything. It wasn’t true for Arnav.Six years had gone by and nothing had changed . Everything and Everybody in Doon reminded him of his parents. His parents had achieved so much goodwill over the years that Arnav had a tough task ahead to match upto them . And he was all alone. It was all thanks to his father’s friend and Raizada industries operations head , Mr Kalpesh Gupta,an honorable man, a trusted friend and a loyal employee, the company had a smooth run while Arnav studied.With Arnav ready to take over the reins , Kalpesh had given Arnav an open hearted welcome, made him understand how the company worked, introduced him to the nitty gritty of business while he watched over him. Arnav with his brilliance,skill and business ethics had revived the family business to its full glory over the next 24 months.Arnav expanded his business to restaurants and fashion.He believed in the phrase “Clothes maketh the man” . Arnav was always impeccably dressed and had a fine taste in clothes. A devilishly handsome, lean ,athletic 6 foot tall Arnav with chiseled jaw line was every woman’s dream man.And now at 29, Arnav Singh Raizada was the most sought after bachelor in Dehradoon.

Back to the present:Arnav woke with a start as the engine whistled away. Though an early riser by habit, our hero had barely slept a wink being not used to closed compact spaces. And the first ac coach did not help ease the matters either.Though Arnav mostly travelled by road or Air, he decided to take the link express which had begun operations only a week ago. His only memory of train travels were him accompanying his grandfather and mother from Lucknow to Pratapgarh as a child. His grandfather had succumbed to illness a year after his daughter’s death.Arnav had never travelled beyond Pratapgarh and this was going to be his first time in Allahabad. Two nights ago, Arnav had received a call from Mr Shivraj Thakur, MP of Allahabad who had summoned him to Allahabad immediately. Arnav had immediately recognized the caller and was prepared to return the favour. Arnav knew of what had transpired between his parents and the MP and became aware of the deal when he found his father’s diary in his study when he landed from the UK. He had expected Shivraj to demand assests or cash flow for the upcoming elections. Shivraj had surprised Arnav by summoning him to Allahabad for a job he had in mind. The details and the directives would be discussed in Allahabad. Arnav never took orders from anyone. He was the boss with over 2000 employees working under his direct order. So when Shivraj ordered him, Arnav wasn’t willing to oblige.But deep down Arnav knew that Shivraj was instrumental in his parents being together and his father was deeply indebted to the man. His father would have kept his word and he would do soout of love for his father. And so Arnav embarked on this train journey on 6th of May, 1989 , where began the journey of a lifetime.

Arnav reached Allahabad junction at 9 am on a Sunday morning. An ambassador car was waiting for him with the driver Mahesh Yadav ,a short bald guy in his 50’s in a uniform. As Mahesh drove through the streets of Allahabad, he gave Arnav a running commentary about the good and bad in the city. With the elections up, the city was crammed with hoardings and live size posters of politicians. Mahesh went on to describe the political scenario and how each politician worked for his own benefit. And after about an hour’s drive, Arnav was dropped at Shivraj’s guest house.Arnav freshened up and got ready to meet Shivraj ,who was to arrive at Lunch. Shivraj thakur, a man in his late sixties wearing a dhoti kurta arrived at 1:30pm and headed towards the dining area. Arnav was summoned to have luncheon with him.Though any other man of his age would be flustered by Shivraj’s presence and the aura around him, Arnav seemed immune. He had encountered many such politicians during his grandfather’s golden rule and had even dined with the prime minister of the country as a child. So this would affect him the very least.Pleasantries exchanged, both sat down for lunch while Shivraj reminisced the early years of his political career under the able guidance of Suryanarayan Singh.He then went on to enquire about Arnav’s parents and came straight to the point Arnav was waiting for without much dilly dallying. Shivraj wanted to call in a favour his father had promised. As Arnav listened, Shivraj explained to him the current political scenario, his standing in the party and the plan for the future. His image had weakened over time due to his illhealth and the opposite party was cashing on his weakness. He wanted to come back stronger in this elections as this was final chance. But there was one hitch. The opposite party was planning to give a ticket to its office secretary , Mr Kashinath Tripathi. Kashinath was a respectable man who had done most of the ground work and was quite popular among the masses.The constituency being populated majorly by Brahmins and a sponsorship alliance deal he had cracked with APC made him a sure shot winner. His win would mean the end of Shivraj’s career.So Shivraj had come up with a plan to destroy Kashinath ‘s career without any fingers pointing at him .This is where Arnav came into play. Kashinath’s daughter was to marry APC ‘s heir the coming thursday. And all Arnav had to do was kidnap her and stop the alliance from happening. Arnav was dumbfounded was an understatement and out of sheer curiosity he asked what would happen to the girl once she got kidnapped. Another shock was in store for him when Shivraj said he could have his way with the girl and then dump her. Arnav gave him an earful and decided to walk out of the meeting and take the next train back to his home town.As he turned around, Shivraj reminded of the promise his father had made in the past and he wouldnot be here if not for him. His emotional blackmail caught on to Arnav who decided to go on with the plan. Of all things Arnav was, he had one negative quality or a quality that put him in trouble. He was impulsive.In the spur of the moment Arnav made up his mind. He wanted to be free of all the shackles of his past and he wanted to fulfil his father’s pledge. And in that moment, he was trapped forever.He justified his conscience by deciding not to harm the girl in anyway and to drop her back home safely once her wedding date elapsed. And as he put his plan in motion with the assistance of Mahesh Yadav, he was unaware of the repercussions this incident would have on his life and his conscience.Would Arnav be able to forgive himself for what he did? Only time would tell.

Arnav did not know anything about Khushi and he had very little time to find out. From what he gathered in the coming two days, Khushi was a chirpy 22year old beautiful girl who was brilliant in studies and had a way with people.She seemed to make friends wherever she went and helped people in need. And was pleasantly surprised to know her results announced a day earlier. In a parallel universe,on any other day, Arnav would have been curious to meet her and strike up a conversation. But today he had something else planned. It was Khushi’s mehendi. He had only a day and half to finish his job.Mahesh was to arrange for a rope, plaster, a knife , 2 black hooded masks a loaded gun and a 4 wheeler(with no plates). As he strolled around Tripathi Niwas in the mid afternoon he could see that the wedding festivities were in full swing. As people were ushering in and out of the house congratulating the parents of the bride to be, Arnav started to feel sick in the stomach and was having second thoughts about the entire plan. He was ruining someone’s best made plans. He was snatching away a girl’s dream and the most important day in her life .What was he to do ?He reminded himself that no harm would come to Khushi. He would keep her safe. And as he waited for an opportunity, he saw three girls come out to the patio with mehendi on their hands. Two of them bid goodbye to the girl dressed in a green pink lehenga with gold jhumki’s .And one of the girl’s yelled her name. It was Khushi. Standing and waving from her patio. As pretty as a picture. Arnav had come across many beautiful women in the past but this one seemed to surpass all in the beauty arena. And through his research he knew she had brains too. Khushi was his forbidden fruit. After gawking for a while, he collected his thoughts as the car’s horn blared and he overheard the girl in the car yelling about their outing tomorrow and asking Khushi to be ready at 10 am sharp. And then and there Arnav had found his window of opportunity. With a plan in mind, he went on to check on Mahesh about the chore he had given him.

The night seemed darker and murkier than usual. Arnav tossed and turned in his bed trying to get some sleep. He had a big day ahead and was about to commit a crime for the first time. Unable to sleep, he got out of the bed and started pacing around.He so wished his father was around to get him out of this mess.Was he doing the right thing? Would his father have agreed to doing this to return the favour? Would his mother let his dad commit to this? Was he trying to do this to absolve himself for not being there at the time of his parents death? What would his grandfather say? Would he be respected if people of Dehradun knew what he was upto? Would Khushi ever forgive him? Would….. wait .. what??? What the hell??... why was he thinking about how Khushi would feel??Why should he care? Wait ….did he care?And with that thought he decided he definitely needed to see a shrink.

Alarm rang at 6:00 am dot indicating these thoughts of a muddled mind were to be put on hold as it was time for action. He showered but did not shave,wore his jeans and printed button up shirt he had bought from the roadside store as a cover for not getting caught. His imported leather shoes were discarded for the paragon chappals. This day couldnot go wrong.He went down, quietly had his breakfast while sipping coffee and slipped out of the guest house. Mahesh drove him to the secluded area in town where the white Omni was parked next to a tiny dilapidated abandoned house about 20 miles from Tripathi Niwas. Khushi would be housed here for the next 36 hours. Mahesh had arranged a small bed , a chair , a water filter and a standing fan. This would keep her comfortable.He would sleep in the Omni tonight keeping a watch over her through the window. It was a perfect plan.And so its execution began

As Khushi drove out with her friends to the temple, he followed her in the Omni with Mahesh by his side.He took to the steering wheel wanting to be in control. He could hear the girls singing songs in the car and began humming the same tune too. The irony of the situation was not lost on him.Unable to find a vulnerable spot on the way to the temple, he decided to wait . The girls stepped out to head to the temple while he hoped to have a look at Khushi and was disappointed as she was facing in the opposite direction unaware of his presence..He admonished himself, and cleared his mind of all the inane thoughts and blamed it on lack of sleep.He turned to his left and could see Mahesh fidgeting in a state of panic by the passenger seat . He could deduce that Mahesh was petrified. And so was he. As conflicting thoughts clouded his mind he decide to leave this to fate by tossing a coin.If heads: he would go on with the plan and tails: he would discard the whole idea and pack his bags and go home. And there he tossed the coin in the same moment our girl , our happiness was praying for ‘a caring and a loving husband and may be a little handsome too’.What would Khushi’s deity do in such a situation? Think…Think…She decided she needed to intervene. And what did she do? She gave Khushi what she asked for.And bam…the result was out. It was ‘HEADS’. No more confusion. Arnav had to go ahead as planned and so he waited for his dear Khushi … wait.. only Khushi....NO DEAR ......to finish her golgappas with her friends. As she hopped in the car to go back home, Arnav too prayed a silent prayer to complete what he intended to do and turned his Omni around to continue with his mission.Arnav was losing time not able to find a single secluded spot. While he was figuring out his options, the ambassador ahead of him took a turn into the narrow abandoned alley and there he got his chance. He immediately sped ahead of the ambassador and turned to bring it into a halt.And once that was done, both the men wore masks, with Mahesh pointing his gun and Arnav stepping out to grab Khushi, clamp her mouth to prevent her from screaming and carried her to the Dicky. He tied her hands and legs carefully not to bruise her, while she clawed him with her mehendi clad nails.The woman was fierce was what he thought as he put a plaster on her mouth and uttered his first words to her, an apology “I am sorry ”.He closed the dicky and immediately ran to the driver’s seat to start his vehicle before Mahesh lost his nerve. As he turned the vehicle, he opened the passenger door of his front seat and waited for Mahesh to jump in and drove away to the screams of her friends…

Res

Caught up with some work. Will read the chapter and comment later in the night.

Edited :

Wow! Arnav's background story is awesome as well. I have no clue why you were doubtful of your writing skills... you write so wonderfully ⭐️.

And I like the Indian touches to your writing with Paragon chappals and all. I'm somehow never able to add such elements in my writing 🙈😂.

Back to the chapter. Arnav and his parents had the dream life and so, crisis had to occur. Felt really sad when he lost his parents and turned into a quite and serious guy. I hope this changes in the future with Khushi around.

I can understand why his father would make a promise during the time of their marriage. After all, Shviraj seemed like a good man at that time. Amd no one would think that he can ask for a kidnapping in return... and that too 30+ years down the lane.

But Arnav agreeing to this plan didn't make much sense. It wasn't like a written deal or something which could result in legal trouble. Anyway kidnapping utself would be a much bigger crime 😆.

But I guess the deity had to do something about Khushi's wishes... so granted it in this form 😆.

Waiting to see what happens next. If he had planned to drop Khushi to her home after the wedding, what happened to prevent this?

Also, his daughter being kidnapped on the day of her wedding wouldn't really make a bad impression of Kashinath, would it? How was he supposed to know or stop it? Infact, if used in the right way, this could help in gaining more support by blaming the rivals (which was true in this case). 🤔

I hope you update the next chapter soon as well 😳.

Love,

Stuti