Sreedhar, Suman, Vaishu and Poorni were in Sudhir's car. Sudhir had come to take them by evening. He told them Goraj's men had already bought the moped and Sunny back. Sreedhar told Sudhir that Poorni and Vaishu came to know about his and Suman's secret. He also told he forgot to tell Sudhir that Suman's sister who came for Deepdan also managed to catch them.

" Sreedhar one way or the other everyone will have to know. I am also expecting they know it gradually. Because love and fear are two things that cannot be hidden for long. It will come out one way or the other. If Maa is comfortable with your alliance then we can say we have won 75% of the battle, Papa is only matter of time. Then comes Suman's father as I don't think her mother will have any problem. But her father will be a tough case but still I feel since Suman is the bahu of Varma family we can manage if Maa and Papa agree"

" No Bhaiyya I want Suman's father to bless us. If I had not wanted to take Kanyadan from her father, I could have eloped and married her. I just hope he understands me and gives his daughter to me happily" told Sreedhar.

" Very nice dream " told Suman " Still you feel Papa will relent"

" Suman that is his faith. His need of acceptance as your husband from your father. Who knows. Maybe it will happen. By the way Vaishu you are staying at our place today. I need to give you all certain answers after putting you all through such hardship. Stay in Sreedhar's room. I have told this to your nanu" told Sudhir

" No issues Sudhir Uncle. Just that I need to go to school tomorrow" told Vaishu

" But you don't need uniform Vaishu. We just need to check the model results right. It is study leave for us. I just hope we don't have to write second model"

" Why no second model " asked Suman

" Suman aunty if we get more than 70% for all subjects then we don't have to write second model. Poorni is afraid just like that. I am sure 4 of us are not going to need second model" told Vaishu

They reached home. Maheswari bought aarti and took aarti for all of them. Renu put kala teeka.

" What a mess you are looking. Go everyone. Have bath and come. Since Tilak has won MA elections we have prepared a small feast " told Maheswari.

Food was good with Poori, Methi Paratha, Vegetable Pulao, Malai Kofta, Baigan Bhartha, Kadai Paneer and then badam kheer and Gulab Jamun. Sreedhar, Vaishu, Poorni and Suman ate like anything. It was like they were eating after 3 days.

" Suman so you eat " teased Vindhya. Suman bit her lips but continued feasting on Methi Paratha and Malai Kofta. Maheswari laughed Suman eating like a kid. Maheswari knew Suman ate very less by habit. She encouraged Suman to eat.

Once the dinner was over, Sudhir asked everyone to assemble in the hall requesting Vindhya to take Aakash, Nami and Adwaith upstairs.

Maheswari looked at Sudhir. " Beta I have only one question. When you knew this much risk was involved in MA election why did you want Tilak to stand. How would Tilak have handled if something had gone wrong with Poorni or what we would have told to Suman's family if something happened to her. More importantly how would we have faced Vaishu's nanu if something had gone wrong. Did the power of MA Chairman mattered to such an extend for you to put the family in risk. That too my son who had never craved for power. Why Sudhir ?

" Maa to answer you I have to go 15 years back. The day dadu told me I cannot study further. The day I heard Dadu insulting Tilak Bhaiyya. I had accepted the decision Maa. Clearly accepted it. But what anyone didn't see was the fact that when I burned my admission letter and scholarship letter there was also a fire burning inside me. A fire against the system that has so brutally taken something very precious to me. My dreams. I vowed that under no circumstance I will allow this system to reach my kid brothers Murali and Sreedhar. If the system has to reach them, then it will have to cross Sudhir.

I had lived every moment bowing to the system wherever mattered to ensure the well being of Murali and Sreedhar and their dreams. I knew the double standards of the system when the case of Malati came. I took a stand but even then I knew I can take of Murali and Sreedhar and you, that's why Dadu had to yield to me. Because unlike Papa whose savings were linked with Dadu I had started a separate account in my name and parked my savings there. Over the years I have advised Tilak Bhaiyya to do the same and have asked Murali and Sreedhar also to follow the pattern. Reason is to ensure at no point no one can emotionally blackmail one in the name of family. Renu Bhabi is a joint account holder with Tilak Bhaiyya, and Vindhya is a joint holder to my account. Then we have a common account from where all business related transactions happen. You can call it dependant, yet independent kind of feeling. This doesn't break any family but if done correctly gives security to all against exploitation.

But the real ugly face of the society I faced was when Nami was born. He saw Vindhya had come down. He looked her teary eyes. Maa it was the truth that I had wanted a son. But my daughter taught me much more valuable lessons about the society. From asking me to do foeticide, to put pressure on me to have second marriage, asking me to go to prostitute and to Thailand to get a boy child not a single day passed in my life when I was not teased or mocked for being the father of a girl. That too a single girl child. Many knows Vindhya cannot have another child and I know it hurts her more than me when people pass comments like " She is holding her husband, she is not allowing him to have a son etc etc.." . Even you had faced questions regarding my second marriage right Maa. Maheswari nodded in affirmation. More than half the ladies of the community had asked Maheswari to send Vindhya to her maayka with the baby girl and do a remarriage for Sudhir.

"The fire against the system burned harder in me Maa. Everyone expects loyalty from a woman. But why cant a man remain loyal to a woman whom he had vowed to protect for lifetime in front of the sacred fire. What is the problem if he only has a daughter. You have a child because someone gave his daughter to you. Without daughter there is no wife, there is no son. Then why mock for having a daughter, being satisfied for having a daughter. I had decided to stick to my values then also against the system. I love my wife, I love my daughter and system should not be poking its head into this much of my personal life and decide without a son I am inadequate.

Maa but Jagratha changed everything. Because till then it was my journey. But in Jagratha the system was not allowing me to mourn my brother who died at the young age of 25. The same brother whose dreams I had always wanted to protect. The system poked its head there and try to harm my sister. What I was supposed to do. Stand mute. This time Sreedhar was there to support me. We decided to face the system head on. What followed was the series of events which unravelled what all other injustices this system has done. Anu Bhabi, Poornima all victims of the system that take the blood of the innocents.

Even then I was only defending family Maa. But then you told one thing " The reason Murali died was because of me and Tilak Bhaiyya bowing in front of the system. Because Anu Bhabi was forced to be a widow, we have Suman in house as a widow. I couldn't take it Maa. I simply couldn't take it. I lighted the pyre of Murali with same hand with which I had tied his sehara". Tears were flowing from Sudhir's eyes.

" Maa you know Murali right, Tilak Bhaiyya, Papa, Sreedhar you all know how Murali was. He believed in system so much. He believed system is good and never questioned any of the rules, regulations. If the system he so much believed took his life Maa then I decided that system was not worth protecting, it had to go. So when the oppourtunity came for MA chairperson I grabbed it. My intention was , is to bring down the system that does injustice to innocents and protects the culprits.

And Suman, Sree, Vaishu, Vindhya, Poorni and her other 2 friends ready to help. Maa we make sacrifice to protect a system that gives us only pain. That punishes people like Anu Bhabi, Suman while criminals like Mahantji roam free. I only asked to make some sacrifice and take pain to bring a system where innocents will be protected and criminals will be punished. Pain and sacrifice is there in both cases Maa. The question is which path we want to choose. The path that protects criminals or the path that liberates innocents to stand up for themselves. I chose the second path. It is not any power craze Maa. But without wealth and power we cannot bring this bad system and its guardians down. Also Maa if we don't act now this system has it in the power to take away the dreams of next generation also. Should we allow that "

Maheswari looked around. Everyone was standing silent. She went ahead and patted Sudhir's shoulder. " Beta I am proud of you. Will always be proud of you. The family will always stand by you. Your Maa just wanted to know"

Sudhir smiled. Tilak and Sreedhar walked upto him and hugged him. Suman and Renu looked at Vindhya who was standing proud her eyes glistening.

Poorni and Vaishu didn't know what to say. But they were feeling overwhelmed by all that they have heard.

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