Chapter 5:- Knowing You...

Too excited to meet him....when will her wait end? 

(Flashback)

After a lot of re-takes and shooting, the department finally finished shooting for the day. Our next scene would be by the lake, where Ajabde was supposed to perform her pooja. Not a very hectic day, but the main objective for the day was meeting the different departments. It was astonishing to see the involvement of so many people behind one show, or specifically a single scene.

Jannat had returned to her vanity room as she was feeling very “tired’. Sometimes I feel she is pretty dramatic. But then again, she is very sweet at heart.

Just then I saw Faisal walking to his vanity room. Some friends of his were chit-chatting with him as well. I thought of introducing myself to him and started walking towards him too. But then I stopped. Somehow, this little voice in me warned me from moving any further. What if he feels awkward? What if he feels that I am crossing the limit? After all, this is just my first day at shoot here. But wait, when did I start thinking about these things? Wasn’t I the carefree one? I was so jumbled up with my thoughts that I wanted a break. I turned around and went in my room. Maybe I was exhausted too.

After freshening up and removing my makeup I felt so relaxed and calm. Frankly speaking, makeup is a lot to carry. I slumped on my bed in my room and closed my eyes. The first day of shoot and so many memories already! I took a deep breath and  inhaled everything around me; the air freshener in my room, the scent of make up, my deodorant, and the moist atmosphere. This was so different to what I normally experienced! It felt like a totally unknown world to me. My eyes jerked open as I heard the knock on the door. 6:52 pm. I gathered myself as I walked up to the door.

“Hello, these are some snacks sent by the team. We have a recreation hall here as well, so you can come if you want to.” said a person from the set crew.

“Thank you!” were the only words I could get out of my mouth. I was so hungry and exhausted, that I had to fumble over my words. I took in the package of snacks and shut the door behind me.

After eating a bunch of junk food and a sandwich, I was energized. Recreation center. Maybe I might be able to make some friends here. I wasn’t sure about Faisal…but there were other people as well, right?

Noise buzzed as the door opened to the largely filled hall. Everyone was back in their casuals. Although the exhaustion, yet people were so eager to meet everyone. I had asked Jannat if she wanted to join in, but she preferred some rest, so she said she would catch up later. I slowly walked in when someone called me

“Hey, Ajabde!” I frowned, not used to being called by this name. Not yet!

“I am your mom-well, your on-screen maa!” she smiled warmly as I smiled back.

“Hello Aunty, my name is Roshni.”

“It’s lovely to see you here, I didn’t get a chance to meet you earlier. The production department were talking about Ajabde’s role but they hadn’t finalized on anything till a few days ago.” She explained. At least I had my ‘mom’ to talk to.

“Yeah Aunty, this is my first day here.” I answered, giving a slight laugh.

“Oh wow, so how was it?”

“Well, I love it here. Apart from the fact that I don’t really know anyone!” I replied with a blank face.

“Oh, so this is the problem… Come with me, I will introduce you to all the ‘Ranis’ of Mewar!” she announced with pride before giving a short laugh.

I willingly went with her, to meet my ‘family’.

Truthfully, I am glad that I came here. Now I know people whom I can talk to. There is Rajshree di who plays the role of Pratap’s Ranima, Maharani Jaiwanta bai. Then there was the sweet and bubbly Sajja baiji, or Divyalakshmi di, and the wicked-minded but amazingly friendly Aashka di a.k.a Dheerbaiji. The most common thing I heard from everyone was Faisal Khan. I was surprised to see that he had made a place in everyone’s hearts. They showed me his dance videos… and I have to admit, he was absolutely brilliant at dancing. No wonder he won the trophy for DID lil’masters 2. What was I thinking when I considered myself to be a qualified dancer?!  Aashka di complimented him to be very passionate and focused in acting to which everyone agreed.

Now I badly wanted to meet him, I really did. It seemed as if Aashka di read my mind.

“Faisal, come here, I want to introduce you to someone!” she screamed as my eyes grew wide in horror. I was excited yet anxious. He turned as he gave a wide smile.

“Coming Aashu di!” he responded as I cleared my throat and turned to look at him. He was here, the person I wanted to meet. My heartbeat increased as he came towards us. And finally, he was here!