The kajal in her eyes sparkled, and the happiness melodiously moved to her lips. She blushed, embracing the glow on her dusky face. The astral prophecy, rephrased. The distance shrank. Nilanjana’s quietest prayers were blossoming into reality.
Months ago, a heavy numbness enveloped Nilanjana against the suffocating marriage pressure from her mother and enmeshed relatives.
“Too demanding for your age and looks…” Her mother’s words felt like a dagger piercing her soul.
Her profound sacrifices were overshadowed by shallow judgments about her age and appearance. Her kindness went entirely unacknowledged.
She carried the financial burden all by herself after her father’s demise. She was an ATM card for them.
And suddenly, the sacrifices were recast as sin; her choices, rebellion.
Deep down, Nilanjana discerned no man would ever love her the way she desired. A teardrop fell as she stared at her father’s picture.
Her endless thoughts and the constant void were pierced by the phone’s ringing at 1 a.m.
Nilanjana walked to pick up the call. The faint hum of the dial tone vanished as Niranjan’s warm voice touched her ears like a soothing breeze.
“Hello, kaka! It’s me, Niranjan!”
Gulzar sahab’s song played in the background.
It was love at first voice for her.
“Nilanjana!” She stammered ecstatically in disbelief at her instant response.
A pause followed.
“Gulzar sahab sprinkles magic with his words,” Her soft voice broke the silence.
“And Lataji’s voice creates a celestial atmosphere,” Niranjan expressed hesitantly.
His voice awakened a deep resonance within her; a sudden resurrection for Nilanjana’s broken soul. Music gently transformed the saga of inanity into sacred devotion.
Some days the stillness of the night accompanied silence with melodies.
“Your heartbeat glorifies my quietest nights.” A sudden blush warmed her cheeks at Niranjan’s words.
“A stranger discerns my silence so well.”
Nilanjana felt desired.
The wounds bestowed by her own family healed with his calming voice. Finally, someone was there to listen and understand her perspective.
“Love at first ring?” Her family called her delusional. They dismissed Niranjan’s existence with a laugh. A desperate spinster starving for attention. Only the cadence of Niranjan’s voice kept her anchored through this toughest trial.
Only Niranjan mattered to her.
Niranjan was eager to meet her, but an unsaid dilemma scared him.
“I don’t wish to lose you!” There was a sadness in his voice.
Nilanjana consoled him.
“This was destined! Trust me, please.” Nilanjana’s words of consolation gave him hope to fight his inhibitions.
He arrived.
She rushed to have a glimpse of him.
The sarcastic noises around faded into tranquillity. Her eyes met his. She was bewitched under the cosmic spell.
“Nilanjana, you still?” She hushed him gently; her eyes sparkled.
“Still what? Till eternity, Niranjan, I am yours!” She knelt gracefully before his wheelchair.
The enchanted realm fell at peace; everything disappeared.
In the profound solitude, two broken souls entwined forever.
A misdial?
A cosmic glitch?
A perfect mistake that led to eternal solace.
