The stars in the sky laid awake.

Rustle of cold sea breeze caressing them.

They were restless since the weekend. For the second most important event in a Hindu ritual had arrived. They would bare witness to a night of emotions, music and joy.

Heck, even the sky stood still with bated breath, eager to peak in and see the most touted to be Sangeet of the decade. 

Both the families had come in full swing for the night and the one after this. Since Ranbir and Alia belonged to prominent power holding families, their parents and uncles went on to invite the whole of Bollywood! But for the reception that would take place next week in Mumbai.

For now it was just a gathering of close to hundred people, dearest to them. 

Karan had insisted to contribute something to the wedding of his dearest daughter. The families had already taken charge of basically leaving him with nothing much to do except attend. So they decided to hand him over the duties of Sangeet ceremony. Therefore Karan and his Dharma family with profound elation took upon themselves the solid rights of a true blue blooded cinematic Sangeet, dharma way of course.

The lawn of the hotel they stayed, sparkled like a fairy dripped in lights and glamour. Guests would walk in through a beautiful glass latern lit path from the staircase of the floor right up to the entrance of the ball room. Food stalls, DJ corner, additional dance floor and a massive bar counter were placed on either sides. Chairs were arranged in the middle just below the grand stage. Guests had started to fill in the seats. And to everyone's delight, the stage was something worth staring.

Soft lights illuminated the platform and threw its myriad colours even to the farthest corner of the hall that stood bedazzled. The setting was everything magical. More dreamier than the couple could ever wish for. Their family members had already arrived and so did the prolific guests.

Karan, parents, siblings of the couple, and the stars of the night - Ranbir and Alia were all outside the entrance, waiting to make an entry worth remembering. As per the choreographers instruction, the soon to be wedded pair along with their parents and siblings, were supposed to come down in a couple procession. The rehearsals for this entry was hilarious to begin with.

Samara and Pooja became each other's partners as they were left with no individual to pair. 

"Are we all ready ?"

Asked Sam loud enough for the procession behind her to hear. Giggling at her anticipation, the elders screamed together "Yes Captain! Lead the way." The little one held on to Pooja's hand, dressed in an adorable mini lehenga, waving at everyone. As they began to move in slow steps towards the main stage, 'Subhanallah' played its magic in the air.

Ranbir and Alia walked hand in hand, grinning ear to ear, the guests rose to applaud the procession. Loud cheers floated in the atmosphere as all eyes stood transfixed on the couple and their closed one's. If not for them, they wouldn't have walked the aisle this way. 

The parading crew settled in the first row beneath the stage as the lovebirds were made to sit in the middle.

"Give it up for Ranlia you all" Armaan's voice echoed inside the hall as he took the microphone in his hand. The industry friends of the duo, climbed the stage to begin the show. ""Namaste bhaiyyon aur beheno" Varun inched forward as the lights shone on him. "aur hamare chote nawaab Armaan" added Pari winking at Taimur giggling in his mumma's lap.

"Bade hi khushi aur garv ke saath aaj hum sab iss manch (stage) par khade hain " Ayan's eyes fell on the two halves that completed his soul.

"Mera bada bhai sabse anokha hai aur meri bhabhi heera hai." Aadar smiled in his words.

"Kal hum in dono ko shaadi ke bandhan mein baandhne jaa rahe hain aur iss waqt mujhse zyaada khush aur koyi nahi hoga!"

Alia clasped Ranbir's hand as they lovingly gazed at Varun. Her eyes already getting moist. "Tsk not now Aloo ! We'll give you ample of reasons to open your flood gate but shuruaat mein na rona shuru kar" warned Shraddha making the crowd chuckle. 

"Aur bhai tu bhi zara control mein haan ?" Sidharth nudged Varun lightly. 

"Our months of planning and dedication will finally be out for you all to see. RK, Aloo, you both are family and we really hope that our efforts would make this night and it's memories, ever so precious forever!" smiled Ayaan. Claps rang across the hall. Marking an onset to the madness.

"So without wasting time on faaltu bakwaas, let's bring on some dance" announced Adi.

"Says the one who can't" grinned Shraddha in a giddy tone making Adi wither away dramatically. "Oh pleaseeeee, we'll see who can and cannot dance" he replied.

"Now since both of them are a part of us, we could not do a proper Sangeet war since they have almost similar set of loved one's except close family members" explained Rohit (dhawan) as 'oh no's' buzzed around.

"Ayan told me a week back on how hard it would be for him to take part from both his aloo and bir's side. It would tire his teeny weeny soul ! After all he's just a little chocolate pudding" wheezed Arjun as the crowd roared loud. 

"But do not worry, we've got this covered. Instead of a competition, we'll have some spectacular performances by both the families and friends. It's going to be a whole lot of fun. So shouldn't we begin ?" asked Akash (ambani) and the audience agreed with a loud 'Yes.'

"Let's begin the partaaaaaayyyyyy" screamed the crowd on the stage as it lit up with colours, ready to explode. 

[Ranbir's POV]

I couldn't believe my luck.

Tried blinking countless time to make sure this was happening.

A forlorn dream locked away in some corner of my heart would finally bloom into the most exquisite reality of mine.

She was real.

And so was her hand tenderly locked in mine.

Never knew that the one who took my breath away on the first day of shoot and the one who raced my heart with her shy smile many moons before, would become my everything these many years later.

From the moment I laid my eyes on her, cliche or not, she became my dream. Took me a while to process that information and to fully accept what my heart wanted. 

Tomorrow, we will solidify our union in front of the world. 

Well, they'll get to see our exclusive pictures an hour later we become officially one. 

My jaan sat next to me looking nothing less than a fairy come alive. She carried an unmistakable aura of elegance and beauty, pride of love shone in her eyes. With every ritual we completed, her beauty sparkled even more. My mind still cannot take in the absolute reality that this woman is mine to cherish, to hold and to love, forever. 

Our friends and families ran for the arrangements tirelessly since the past few months. They created a fantasy we could never imagine. Every corner of the hall and the hotel stood like a dew on a leaf. We were so proud of their efforts. It was all managed by our mum's and they smashed it.

"Gosh they are so cute" cooed Alia as her eyes flickered with yellow spotlight reflected from the stage. The first performance was from my parents who wore matching outfits. I have always loved my parents together, be it in movies or in life. Forever a fan of their togetherness and the chemistry that they bring forth. 

Tonight they were going to perform for us and it tingled my heart. It has been their (and my daadi's) longest dream to see me settled with my own family. I was finally crossing that threshold and going by their faces, I knew I had made them extra proud. My father picked up the mic from the floor and spoke.

"Dekho bhai iss umar mein yeh sab kar raha hoon toh bas tum dono ke liye! Ranbir aur meri beti Alia, this is for you both. Mummy and I love you both dearly. Since hamari hone waali bahu loves this song way too much, we'd love to dedicate this to her and our son. May your life be full of colours and may you both always be lively like us, and kabhi kabar jhagad bhi lena, not like us!" he whispered the last part getting a naughty look from my mother.

The lights threw a warm tone on my parents as the we sat back in anticipation. It had been a while since the iconic couple had performed again. Papa and Mummy faced each other with a smile that went back to the times when they created this iconic number. 

Nodding their heads in sync with the music, they began to conquer. 

Ek main aur ek tu

Dono miley is tarah

The crowd whistled at the song. This was an iconic Rishi - Neetu number that had won hearts across the nation. Alia's eyes widened at what she saw. She held my hand and looked at me. I myself was shocked. It was my favourite as well. Of course dad loved Alia more. 

"I can't believe they're dancing on this. This was when I fell in love with papa! He's the best with expressions." She giggled without looking at me and I chuckled at her apparent guts. She just told Rishi Kapoor's son that his father was better than him without bawling an eye. 

Well, that's the woman I get to marry. 

Ek main aur ek tu

Dono miley is tarah 

Aur jo tan man

Me ho raha hai

Yeh toh hona hi tha

Their moves could put a youngster to shame. They still carried that old world charm, grace and their signature playful vibe. Mom kept playing her part of being annoyed with dad's pranks when in reality she loved it more than he'll ever know. I laughed when she blushed at him trying to pinch her cheeks.

They were my world, my ideals and I wanted a family, a wife of my own as well and now when I look at my future sitting next to me, I can totally see us dancing like this many years later, perhaps at our son or daughter's sangeet, dancing to our numbers. 

Bolo bolo bolo shhhh .....

They had reached towards the end and by now we were all clapping our hands, tapping our foot and singling along as our parents owned the stage. I had clasped my hand with daadi who sat in her whellchair next to me. She was pretty emotional seeing mom and dad being so cheerful on stage. She must be missing daada ji. I side hugged her and rubbed her shoulders gently. 

With my other hand tucked in Alia's, we watched papa and mummy point at us and have the biggest grins on their faces as they lip synced the finale part. 

Ek main aur ek tu

Dono miley is tarah

Ek main aur ek tu

Dono miley is tarah

Aur jo tan man me ho raha hai

"Yeh toh hona hi tha," we chorused together and at that moment, we truly felt like it was all meant to happen. The universe, our fate, destiny, every single path lead us ultimately to each other. We blushed and clapped for our parent's beautiful performance. 

They came down the stage to hug us. We touched their feet and all four of us had an emotional moment as a family. "I hope it wasn't embarrassing," laughed mummy as Alia shook her head wildly, almost looking like she's gonna cry. "Nooo, you were fantabulous. Both of you. Just the way it was and it'll always be. Thank you. Means everything to us." She stole my words and my parents kissed our forehead. 

Before they left to take their seat next to us, Alia held my father's hand and whispered "But Papa you will always be my favourite hero. Your expressions, that masti, nok jhok na, koi nahi kar sakta. Not even your son." What happened next is my father bursting into the most loudest laughter we've ever heard from him and my mother dragging him to their seat. 

Up next was a duet couple performance straight from another set of parents but Alia's. And we cheered for them loudly. Curtains rose to reveal them glowing like the moon somewhere above us. They chose the song 'Maahi ve' and I unvoluntarily chuckled at their selection! 

They were new to this but were smooth in their moves. I could see Shaheen, Pooja and Rahul clapping for them with as much vigour. Meanwhile Alia had her mouth hung open, again. "This is just not happening! I mean if someone had told me this five years back that my father would actually dance in front of an audience this huge, I would have hammered their head. Look at him ohmygoshhh! He's doing this for us!" her eyes started getting moist and I grinned at my father in law. They had put their soul into making us feel this blessed.

Chanda Meri Chanda Tujhe Kaise Mein Yeh Samjhaoon

Mujhe Lagti Hai Tu Kitni Pyaari Re

Khushiyan Jitni Hai Sab Dhoondh Ke Laoon

Teri Doli Ke Sang Kar Do Sari Re 

Soni maa came down from the stage to cup her daughter's cheeks as they shared a heartwarming moment. And in a flash Shaheen, Pooja and Rahul joined them on stage. The mood was getting better. And to think we've just begun had my heart pumping. 

With the song coming to an end, the thumps had begun to take a toll on everyone.

Everybody Sing Soni Soni Aaja Mahi Ve

Jind Maahi Ve Soni Soni Aaja Mahi Ve

Everybody Sing Soni Soni Aaja Mahi Ve

Each time the word 'Soni' came, the whistles went across the roof since it was my mom in law's name! We chorused it together and suddenly it felt like we were in some desi concert. The song came to a grand end and we clapped thunderously for their brilliant performance. Alia rushed to them halfway and hugged them. I did the same and we were all proud of what they've done. 

"That was beyond amazing," grinned Alia as she gazed at her father. "Thank you papa. You really are a rockstar. Few hours back you weren't going to so this and now I think you've stole the show." I said with sincerity. "Thank you beta. Itna toh main tum dono ke liye kar sakta hoon. Bas khush raho." We shared another beautiful family hug and I thanked heaven for bringing them all into my life. 

Curtains fell and our new hosts Varun and Karan took on their position. "Must say I'm impressed by you Bhatt saheb. You nailed the show for me" smiled Karan as we cheered for dad.  "So whose next ?" asked VD.

"People pretty close," replied Karan. 

"Only they are here anyway in this hall. The rest are all lurking on social media for some leaked image/video from us." Varun's reply made us chortle. 

"Lucky us" yelled Bebo and we giggled. 

"Mummy and Papa section is over. But we now have some very thick friends that go back long in time. A bunch of youngsters who are close to our star couple tonight. Not all of them are from the movie industry but they are certainly Ranbir and Alia's strong pillars. Please put your hands together for them." Karan and Vd left the stage and we kept guessing who it could be. 

Appeared a bunch of familiar faces that we both loved to death. 

Ayan, Akash and Shloka, Isha and Anant, Rohit and Jhanvi, Binoy (Gandhi) and Nidhi, all of Alia's girlfriends/childhood friends and their partners/husbands, Abhishek Varman and some more of Dharma directors. 

This was an epic turn out. 

"What is this! All of them are gonna dance now ? I am getting nervous for Abhi, Rohit and Ayan. The rest will manage." Alia was right though. I myself had a mini heart attack seeing some of my less socializing friends all together put up on stage. But we were proved wrong. 

They outdid themselves in a fusion number with top blockbuster songs. We were both sitting on our seat's edge, watching each of our friends dancing their heart out, shedding their fears. Ayan went a little high at some point and we just wanted to crush that little kid in our arms. All of them in fact, for being so thoughtful and for agreeing to do this.

"Abhi has never looked more good," cheered Alia from the loud music enveleoping us. "They are all good." I said, stressing on them all for a reason. As kiddish as it may sound, I just wasn't comfortable seeing her obvious admiration for him and vice - versa. At one point he did had feelings for her which she being the weirdo, couldn't recognize and I don't think he has ever moved on. 

Turning her head towards me, she kissed my cheek in one go. I faced her in surprise. "Your cute when your jello. Stay the same baby. Oh sorry, future hubby." My eyes naturally hit up every time she calls me her husband and I guess it has the same effect on her as well. 

As she caught herself busy talking to a friend of hers, I leant in to plant a kiss on her cheek in return. She gasped and I giggled looking sideways. 

'''''''''''''''''''''''

NOTE : Okay a big fat confession ahead - 

I feel I suck at writing dance sequences cause the way I see them like you see in movies, people, lip syncing, everyone around, there's just too many elements in a song, like a movie maker would see. So it's relatively harder for me to pen it all down. I have patiently tried my level best in attempting most of them (few turned our amazing) in my other book 'Dreams Woven Beautifully (DWB)'. 

And owing to that and the fact that I had to reconstruct wedding/sangeet moments once again in my head (have done it for 2-3 books in a row now), made me do a lil jugaad. So most of the sequences, dialogues, scenes, performances (except Neetu-Rishi/other specific people close to Ranlia) are all copy pasted from my other book on Sidlia (DWB). Those sequences I believe I nailed it but they were in a diff ship context. 

This has a mutual female interest Alia but the groom is diff (ugh my head is messy) so ofc I'll incorporate those specific details but the rest of them will be copied from that book. I just don't have the energy to do all of this again. But I do have a a separate vision for some very particular moments that I always wanted for Ranlia, so ya. 

I hope that's okay. I just wanted to be as honest with y'all as possible. As a writer you can't cheat your readers and I certainly don't want to do that you guys. Also Alia's Sangeet dress is also similar to what I put up in DWB - you can have imagine your choice of dress. 

More detailed thoughts/moments/facts related to their Sangeet-wedding etc will be shared on my fc page as in whenever the wedding will begin. So for now this should do :P More parts will come so ya stay tuned. 

I terribly miss Rishi ji, Rajiv ji and Krishna ji way too much while I pen this down. Must be super hard for the family, especially Neetu ji to do all of this without her pillar. I wanted them to dance on Ek Main, coz it blew my mind away when I first saw it few years back! I was rooting for them to perform this on the real sangeet and :( 

But in this alternative world, they were all present, they danced, enjoyed and had a ball of a time. That's how I'm gonna remember them. 

Love,

Jemi :)