Hyderabad,
There stood a huge mansion-like house, almost resembling a palace. Several tall, heavily built goons stood outside, each busy with their own tasks. With every step they took, dust rose from the ground.
A taxi came to a stop in front of the house. A girl stepped out of it and looked at the mansion with a bright smile. Her eyes sparkled as she stared at the house, as though she had never seen anything so magnificent in her life.
A woman stepped out of the same taxi, followed by a man. The man paid the taxi driver, who began counting the money.
The man looked at the house in front of him, and just looking at it was enough to make him break into a sweat.
After counting the money, the taxi driver looked at him and said, "Be careful, bhau. Everyone I've dropped off here has never come back alive."
With that, the taxi driver drove away.
The man had already been terrified, and the driver's words only made things worse. His legs were trembling.
The girl turned around, looked at him, and said excitedly, "Papa, come on!"
The man took a deep breath.
This man was Alok Mishra, a middle-class man. Despite being from a middle-class family, he always fulfilled his daughter's every demand and gave in to every one of her stubborn wishes.
Even today, if he was standing here, it was because of his daughter's insistence.
Alok's wife, Amrita, was in much the same condition as her husband, or perhaps even worse.
Their daughter, Aparna, was the only one who was extremely excited about entering the house.
Alok's trembling feet slowly took the first step toward the mansion.
Only he knew how difficult it had been for him to take that first step.
The three of them began walking forward. The moment the goons noticed them, they all started staring at them suspiciously.
Alok lifted his eyes once, but he didn't have the courage to look up again. He simply kept walking.
As they reached the entrance, they came across a man standing at the door with a mouthful of paan.
He looked the three of them up and down before asking, "Who do you want to meet, brother?"
Alok somehow managed to control his fear and replied, "W-We want to meet the big boss."
The man asked again, "Why?"
At that question, Alok fell silent for a moment.
These people were incredibly wealthy, and on top of that, they were gangsters. How was he supposed to tell them that he had come here to ask for his daughter's hand in marriage?
After thinking carefully, Alok replied, "We... we have some very important business with him."
The man stared at Alok intently.
After watching him for a while, he said, "If you go inside looking this nervous, you won't make it back out alive."
Alok immediately began sweating even more from fear.
He muttered to himself, "My child... out of all the people in this world, was this the kind of family you found to fall in love with? What kind of people are these? They talk about killing people at the slightest thing."
The man finally let them enter.
The three of them stepped inside.
From the inside, the house looked nothing less than a glass palace.
Aparna, however, had completely forgotten her fear. She began looking around the house in awe.
Covering her mouth with her hand, she exclaimed happily, "Wow! It's so beautiful!"
There were several servants inside, all busy with their respective work.
One of the men approached them and asked, "Who are you here to meet?"
Alok replied, "We want to meet Sherkhan Sahib."
The man nodded and said, "Please have a seat. I'll go and call him."
He walked away.
Aparna immediately hurried over and sat down on the sofa. She wasn't even the slightest bit afraid that she was currently sitting inside the home of people who didn't behave like ordinary human beings.
Killing people was their profession.
Alok and Amrita, however, sat down on the sofa as well, trembling with fear.
Inside a room,
A man was lying on the bed without clothes while a woman sat beside him, massaging his back with oil. His eyes were closed.
Just then, the man from downstairs knocked on the door before entering.
The woman turned around and looked at him, while the man continued lying there with his eyes closed.
The man lowered his head respectfully and said, "Malik, some people have come to meet you."
The man lying on the bed was none other than Sherkhan Shergill, while the woman sitting beside him was his wife, Jaishree Shergill.
Hearing the man's words, Sherkhan opened his eyes.
Jaishree picked up the bowl of oil and moved away. Sherkhan sat up on the bed.
Jaishree handed him his clothes, and Sherkhan took them and put them on.
Sherkhan walked ahead, with the man following closely behind him.
Hearing Sherkhan's approaching footsteps, Alok and Amrita looked toward the staircase.
A tall, broad-shouldered man with a thick, prominent moustache appeared. From his appearance alone, it was obvious that he was extremely wealthy.
The moment they saw him, Alok and Amrita immediately stood up.
Aparna, however, remained seated.
Sherkhan sat down on the large sofa in front of them and looked at the three of them.
Alok and Amrita greeted him with a "Namaste."
Sherkhan's gaze then fell on Aparna.
When Amrita realized that her daughter was still sitting, she immediately looked at Aparna and gestured with her eyes for her to stand.
Understanding her mother's signal, Aparna stood up and greeted Sherkhan with a "Namaste."
Sherkhan extended his hand and said, "Please, sit."
Hearing him, all three of them sat down.
Sherkhan crossed one leg over the other and said, "Go on."
Looking at Sherkhan, Alok had practically lost his ability to speak. He didn't have the courage to say a word. His tongue simply refused to cooperate.
Seeing her father remain silent, Aparna spoke up herself.
"Uncle, Vikram and I love each other, and we want to get married."
Sherkhan's eyes immediately shifted toward Aparna.
At the same time, Alok and Amrita also looked at their daughter.
Their daughter never hesitated before saying whatever was on her mind.
It was as though she wasn't afraid of anything at all.
Sherkhan now looked at Alok.
Alok was terrified by his daughter's boldness. He looked at Sherkhan with frightened eyes.
The moment he met Sherkhan's intimidating gaze, his lips began trembling.
He nodded nervously and stammered, "Y-Yes... that's right. W-We have come to ask for our daughter's hand in marriage."
Sherkhan turned toward the man standing beside him and said, "Call everyone."
Within a few moments, the entire family gathered in the hall.
Sherkhan was the head of the household, and everyone knew that his word was final in that house.
Present in the hall were Sherkhan's wife, Jaishree, his mother, Shakuntala, his sister, Shraddha, and Shraddha's two sons, Vikram and Raj.
Shraddha's husband had passed away, so she lived there with her sons.
Everyone looked at Sherkhan and then at the three strangers sitting on the sofa, confusion evident on their faces.
Their stares made Alok and Amrita even more nervous.
Meanwhile, the moment Aparna's eyes landed on Vikram, she smiled and even waved a small "Hi" at him.
But Vikram's face clearly showed how frightened he was.
He slowly lifted his head and looked toward Sherkhan.
After all, no one in that house dared to go against Sherkhan.
Sherkhan looked at Vikram and said, "They claim that Vikram and their daughter are in love with each other."
The moment he said that, everyone's gaze shifted toward Aparna.
Vikram, meanwhile, lowered his head.
Shraddha stared intently at Aparna.
Sherkhan turned his attention to Vikram and asked, "Vikram, is this true?"
Hearing Sherkhan's voice, Vikram began trembling.
Slowly, he nodded in confirmation.
Sherkhan glared at him and said, "Don't you have a tongue, Vikram?"
Hearing him, Vikram stammered, "Y-Yes, Maama ji... I-I love Aparna."
Shraddha was looking at Vikram. It was quite obvious from her expression that she wasn't happy at all after hearing her son's confession.
Shakuntala took a deep breath and said, "Well, at least someone in this house is finally getting married."
She then began talking to Aparna, asking her about herself. She also asked Alok and Amrita several questions, like where they lived, who all were in their family, and so on.
Gradually, Alok and Amrita began to feel a little more comfortable in the house.
Jaishree brought water, tea, and some snacks for the three of them.
From Alok and Amrita's appearance alone, it was obvious that they belonged to a middle-class family.
But when Shraddha heard them say it themselves, she didn't like it one bit.
She absolutely did not want her son to marry a middle-class girl.
Everyone's behavior was actually quite pleasant, and even Sherkhan wasn't behaving badly. It was just that his appearance was intimidating enough to frighten anyone.
Shraddha asked, "What does your daughter do?"
Alok replied, "She is an air hostess."
Shraddha immediately said, "You mean a waiter?"
The moment she said that, Sherkhan immediately called out, "Shraddha."
It was obvious that Shraddha was deliberately trying to insult Aparna.
Aparna immediately said, "No, Aunty. I'm an air hostess. You know, the girls who guide passengers, look after them, and provide services to them on an airplane. That's what I do."
Shraddha instantly replied, "Yes, so what exactly did I say wrong? You go around serving food to people there. It's basically the same as being a waiter."
This time, Sherkhan spoke in a slightly stern voice.
"Shraddha, keep your mouth shut."
Shraddha immediately fell silent.
Aparna was furious. Shraddha was insulting her profession, and Aparna wanted to say a lot in response.
But Amrita grabbed her hand and stopped her.
Alok and Amrita didn't like it either, but they chose to remain silent.
Looking at the three of them, Shakuntala said, "Please don't take it to heart. She's a little... not quite right in the head."
Shraddha looked at her mother in disbelief.
Shakuntala gave her a stern look, and Shraddha immediately shut up.
Sherkhan continued observing the three of them carefully.
Jaishree walked over and whispered something into Sherkhan's ear.
Alok and Amrita immediately became nervous.
Jaishree stepped aside.
Sherkhan finally gave them his answer.
"We accept the proposal."
Hearing this, Alok and Amrita felt a wave of relief wash over them, while Aparna became extremely happy.
But then Sherkhan suddenly added, "However, we have one condition."
The three of them exchanged confused looks.
Alok nervously asked, "W-What condition?"
Sherkhan looked at them and said, "We want our son, Vikrant, to marry your younger daughter."
The moment Alok and Amrita heard those words, it felt as though the ground had disappeared beneath their feet.
They had agreed to Aparna's marriage with Vikram partly because he was an engineer and seemed like a simple, decent, well-mannered young man.
But Vikrant?
Vikrant was the biggest gangster in the entire city.
People trembled at the mere mention of his name.
Everyone in that house obeyed Sherkhan.
But there was only one person who didn't.
Vikrant.
He didn't even listen to his own father.
Every single person living in this city knew the name Vikrant Shergill.
ever wanted Vikram to marry Aparna in the first place.
After hearing Sherkhan's words, Alok and Amrita were completely stunned. Neither of them could find the words to speak.
After struggling for a moment, Alok finally said, "B-But our younger daughter is only nineteen years old."
Sherkhan replied calmly, "We want to get our elder son, Vikrant, married first. Only after that will Vikram's marriage take place. If you don't agree to this condition, then that's fine. You can wait until Vikrant gets married."
Aparna had heard Vikram mention several times that many marriage proposals had come for Vikrant, but none of them lasted after the families met him.
Worried about their daughters, the parents of the girls always backed out.
Which made one thing very clear.
Vikrant would probably never get married.
Aparna looked at Vikram.
She wanted to marry him. She was twenty-five, and she wanted to get married now.
If she didn't get married now, then when would she?
Thinking about it, Aparna glanced at her father and said, "Papa, please say yes. Anu is mature enough anyway, and we have to get her married someday."
Alok didn't want his daughter to marry a gangster under any circumstances.
But Aparna was being a little selfish when it came to her own happiness. When it was about her, she was willing to risk almost anything.
After remaining silent for a while, Alok finally said, "Alright. We'll meet again after your elder son gets married."
Alok folded his hands respectfully as he stood up.
Amrita also folded her hands and greeted everyone with a "Namaste."
The happiness that had been shining on Aparna's face when she arrived had completely disappeared, replaced by sadness.
And it wasn't just Aparna.
Vikram's face had also fallen.
He, too, wanted to marry the woman he loved, Aparna, and spend the rest of his life with her.
But apart from the two of them, there was someone else whose face had fallen even more.
Jaishree.
She looked deeply disappointed.
Alok and Amrita left the house with Aparna.
The moment they were gone, Shraddha breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, she had never wanted Vikram to marry Aparna in the first place.
held her a little tighter in his arms.
Jaishree had already gone to their room.
A little later, Sherkhan entered the room as well and found her standing by the window. Seeing her there, he walked toward her.
He stopped beside Jaishree and looked at her face.
Tears were streaming down her cheeks.
Jaishree said softly, "I don't think our son will ever get married in this lifetime."
Sherkhan simply looked at his wife.
Jaishree turned toward him and said through her tears, "What are we even asking God for? Just one thing... that our son changes. That someone comes into his life, someone who can show him the right path. But the moment people hear his name, they don't even want to enter his life, let alone become a part of this family."
Sherkhan gently wiped away her tears and pulled her into his chest.
He said reassuringly, "Don't worry. Someone will definitely come into his life."
Jaishree immediately looked up at him.
"But when? He's already twenty-eight. I'm beginning to lose hope. No one's parents want their daughter to marry our son. And why? Because he's a gangster."
Sherkhan tried to make her understand.
"We got married too, didn't we? Even though I was a gangster myself. You chose to stay with me. In the same way, there must be some girl out there who will be willing to spend her life with our son."
Jaishree lifted her head and looked at Sherkhan.
"That's because you practically scared me into marrying you."
Sherkhan gave her a sharp glare.
Jaishree leaned against his chest and added softly, "Although... that's a different matter. You eventually became someone I really liked."
Hearing her words, Sherkhan smiled and held her a little tighter in his arms.
I hope you all like my story.
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