Jiya Dhadak Dhadak Jaaye!!

As I am listening to the song "Jiya Dhadak Dhadak Jaaye", I am reminded of a bus journey from Hyderabad to Amravati.

It was the 13th of December 2006 - I got married on that very day. A marriage in India, is a huge affair .... in my house ditto. I was in India 2 months before the wedding and so was a part of all the preparations, all the festivity, all the arrangements, all the tensions and apprehensions. To put it in a nut shell, I had a great time. Being the youngest in the family, I was the pampered one... always got my way no matter what. It was hard to believe that the girl who still waited for chocolate treats from her dad was going to get married. Personally it never sunk in to me as to what a big thing it was.

Everybody in the family was very happy. It was two months of gold jewellery and kanjeevaram sarees shopping. Thats all my world revolved around for those few weeks... My granny gave me a massage everyday so that the bride should look totally relaxed and beautiful on the day of the wedding.

Relatives started pouring in ... the celebrations began a week before the actual wedding. So many traditions, ceremonies to be followed. So many aunts and uncles.. cousins...grannies... all of them took precious time out of their busy lives to just be a part of the wedding. All of them ready to give me advice on everything... how to behave with mil ... how to talk, not-to-talk in the sasural... :D

Finally the D - day arrived and marriage was over. Months of preparations, planning, working was all put to an end in a day. It was all over in a single day. And now the time came for me to leave to my husbands place - Amravati. We were going in a bus to Amravati... after the teary good-byes I finally boarded the bus. I was with a busful of strangers..... I was leaving behind my family and was going to a new house. I had a very weird feeling that I was in hyderabad but was not going to my house. The highway to Amravati passed from right outside my house ... but I couldnt get out of the bus and go home.

Then a movie started playing in the bus - I could see my life flashing in front of my eyes. I wanted to get out of the bus and get on to familiar territory with my family rather than be in the bus and share awkward silences with new people.
I had mixed emotions - wondering whether I should be happy that I got married or sad that I am leaving my home, my city, my people behind. My heart was beating hard - and I did not know the reason why... and then I heard the song playing "Jiya dhadak dhadak jaaye" in the movie. That song will always bring back memories of that journey back to me. All the apprehension, all the fear and all the sadness that I felt that night. In some way or the other the song has become special and close to my heart.