“Yeah. I thought I’ll drop you back and pick up his lunch, unless you’re going to take longer than that.”
“I don’t think so. If that’s the case, I’ll go with you and work from Chandru’s vanity van for the rest of the day.”
“That bad?” Vivek’s voice was a whisper as he placed the coffee cup on the table.
Ranjini shrugged. “That’s how I feel today.” She gave him a sudden smile that lit up her face, getting up from her chair. “I might think differently tomorrow.”
Vivek gave her a relieved smile. He had felt bad looking at her sad face, having missed Ranjini’s trademark grin. “Let’s go then. I’ll be seeing you periamma. Easwaran uncle, you keep CK’s tiffin box packed and ready. I’ll pick it up. There’s no need to send the driver.”
Easwaran nodded his acknowledgement to Vivek before addressing Ranjini. “What happened, child? You didn’t finish your breakfast. Didn’t you like it?” There was deep concern in his voice. He hadn’t missed the irritation between the women of the house.
Ranjini walked back towards the head cook. “It was perfect, uncle. It’s just that I wasn’t too hungry. I’m sorry.” She gave him a sweet smile that melted the long-term employee’s heart.
“No need to apologise. I’m going to make a special lunch for you and I promise that it’ll leave you licking your fingers,” said Easwaran, affection in his voice.
Maragadham’s eyes swung this way and that as she listened to the conversation between them, not liking one word of it. She felt as if she was losing control over all the workers when she eyed the puppy dog expression on Easwaran’s face.
“Easwaran, don’t you have work to do? My nephew isn’t paying you an exorbitant salary to stand around chatting,” she said bitingly, her eyes spitting flames.
Ranjini rolled her eyes once again at Vivek before making an about turn. “Bye periamma. I’m going shopping with Vivek. Chandru knows about it. Of course, you can always call him and check that out. You please get back to your precious job of running your employees’ lives.” She turned to wink at Vivek, her next words a whisper, “But definitely not mine.”
Maragadham glared at their backs as Vivek and Ranjini walked out of the house, obviously laughing at a shared joke. She promised to herself that she’d keep a watch over Chandrakanth’s wife and his PA. Her poor nephew was too innocent to realise that it might not be a wise move to let them spend too much time in each other’s company while he was working such long hours.
Ranjini wore her seat belt as she spoke to Vivek. “I want to purchase a sari at Nalli’s and then go to meet Urvashi amma. Will she have materials for making dresses?”
Vivek nodded his head. “She can produce stuff out of thin air. She has a number of patterns you can choose from. Or you can get something off the net and show it to her. She will procure the material and have it made within two days. You can also have your sari blouse made from her.”
“Oh, that’s awesome. Let me check out her designs first.” Ranjini wasn’t too much into fashionable clothes, but she was keen that Chandrakanth should feel proud of his wife, being such a famous star and all that.
Vivek was surprised as well as pleased when Ranjini purchased two saris in the span of half an hour. She knew what she liked and had an eye for colours, settling for one in gold with a thin strip of emerald green in the border, brocaded completely with golden zari. It came with a matching green blouse with a delicate zari border, going well with the sari. The other sari was in a shade of rusty orange with a dark maroon border and a maroon blouse. She paid the bill with the debit card that Chandrakanth had given her a few days ago.
They went to Urvashi amma’s factory—Ranjini refused to call it just a boutique since it was too huge an operation—that was set across the ground floor of a building in Kodambakkam near Liberty Park Hotel, across from Meenakshi College. The place was spread over 6000 sq. ft. with around three hundred plus staff.
Though addressed as ‘amma’, Urvashi was probably only in her mid-thirties. But it was considered respectful amongst the film folk she dealt with and she had accepted the title without protest. “Mrs. Chandrakanth, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” said Urvashi, a smile on her cheerful and chubby face, when Vivek introduced the two of them.
“Hello Urvashi amma. Chandrakanth told me that you were the best person for getting my clothes done, perfectly and in time.”
Urvashi laughed, pleasure on her face as she accepted the compliment. “I do my best. Let’s go into my office.”
“You go on Ranjini. You don’t want me underfoot,” said Vivek, settling on a sofa outside to chat with some of the workers there.
Ranjini nodded before following in Urvashi’s wake and was impressed as she eyed the stylish AC cabin with a long work table in the centre, a swivelling chair on one side and two visitors’ chairs on the other. “Can I get you something to drink?” Urvashi asked solicitously, waving Ranjini into a chair.
Sitting down, Ranjini said, “I’d like some water please.”
“But of course.” Urvashi poured water from a bottle into a glass before offering it to Ranjini. “Maybe some coffee or tea? Or something cold, if you prefer?”
Ranjini drank the water thirstily, shaking her head. “Maybe later.”
“Okay. Now tell me how I can help you.” Urvashi sat down on her chair.
“Chandrakanth and I are planning our wedding reception the coming Saturday. I’m still not sure if I’m wearing a sari or a dress. I bought two saris from Nalli’s today.” She took the sari boxes out of the shopping bag and placed them on the table. “I’ll need the blouses made for these too.”
Urvashi nodded, opening the boxes one by one, eyeing the saris appreciatively. “They both look lovely and will suit you really well.”
Colour flared up Ranjini’s cheeks at the designer’s wholesome compliment. “Thank you,” she said, a shy smile on her face.
“I can show you some patterns for blouses. But before that, do you have an idea of what you are looking for in a dress?”
“Maybe a ghagra choli, North Indian style. What do you think?”
Urvashi nodded. “That’s definitely an idea. Tell me something. Have you tried wearing bold colours ever? The gold and orange you have chosen are safe with your skin tone. But you’ll really stand out in, say, a brilliant shade of pink or red.” She got up from her chair and opened a drawer to search for a couple of minutes before pulling out two rolls of silk materials in the colours she had mentioned. “Come along.” She guided Ranjini over to a full length mirror before draping the materials over her one by one. “See what I mean?”
Ranjini stared into the mirror, awed at how the pink shade made her brown skin glow brighter than ever. She also liked the red one, but not as much as the pink. “I like the pink,” she said decisively.
Urvashi nodded again, a wide smile on her face, pleased with her client’s choice. Her mind was abuzz with ideas. Ranjini was young, tall, slim and busty as well, making for a perfect model. It would be a joy to make clothes for her. “Perfect. Now let’s check out some of the designs.” Urvashi pulled out two thick design books from another drawer and placed them on the table. She flipped through one and turned it towards Ranjini to show her the design she had in mind.
Ranjini stared in wonder at the pencil sketch on the left half of the page. It was duplicated and filled with colours on the right side. Palazzo pants and a long top with full sleeves looked perfect to her. “I like this.”
Urvashi laughed. “Don’t you want to see more designs?” she asked.
“I’m sure you showed me the best one first.” Ranjini challenged the other woman with a raised brow. When Urvashi nodded, she continued with a smile, “Then why bother with the rest? Anyway, you obviously understand colours and designs way better than I do. So I’ll go with your advice. Let’s go with this one, okay?”
Urvashi nodded. “Perfect. I’ll get the tailor master to take your measurements for the dress as well as the blouses. D
o you want to check out some blouse designs?”
Ranjini looked at Urvashi, wrinkling her nose. “Will you think I’m an idiot if I leave it up to you? I love to wear beautiful clothes, but it’s too much of a hassle to wrap my head around designs and all that. I...”
Urvashi nodded again, pleased. “Let me handle them. I promise you that you’ll like them.”
Ranjini got up. “I’m so glad. Will you mind if I call you just Urvashi? Amma seems too formal. And you must call me Ranjini.”
“Please do,” said Urvashi, liking her new client more and more. “That ‘amma’ tag is helpful in this industry,” she grimaced, “to maintain the right kind of distance and garner respect in a man’s world.”
Ranjini nodded her head, able to sympathise with the designer. “You must come for the reception of course. I’m sure you’ll get an invite, but accept this as my personal invitation.”
Urvashi was touched. “Of course Ranjini. Thank you. And I think we should add a few more garments to your wardrobe. As the superstar’s wife, you’ll be attending film premieres and award functions. What say?”
Ranjini gave Urvashi a dazed look. It was obvious that the designer was not making the suggestion for the sake of increasing her business. And she was right! Ranjini would need a lot more formal clothes. But she wanted to talk to her husband first, before placing an order. After all, it was Chandrakanth’s money that she would be spending. While Ranjini made a decent amount herself, her budget didn’t stretch to cover super-expensive, formal clothes. “Shall I confirm with you tomorrow?” she asked Urvashi.
“Sure. We can even do it after the reception. So, would you have time to come for a fitting the day after tomorrow? Or I can bring your clothes over,” offered Urvashi.
“Can I give you a call? I can come over if I don’t have too many things lined up.” The two women exchanged numbers and chatted for a few more minutes as Urvashi asked what Ranjini did, when they were interrupted suddenly as another woman barged into the cabin.
“Urvashi amma, how are you?” The woman called out loudly in a pseudo cheerful voice, her eyes on Ranjini. “Oh, I didn’t know you had company.”
Seeing Urvashi’s perturbed expression, Ranjini turned to see who had walked in. She recognised her as a small time actress doing bit roles, though she couldn’t recall her name.
Not left with a choice, Urvashi got up and introduced the two of them. “Ranjini, this is Mridula, an actress. And Mridula, this is Mrs. Ranjini Chandrakanth.”
Mridula stood a few feet away, running her eyes from the top of Ranjini’s head to the tips of her toes. “Oh, you are the one CK married in such a hurry! I never thought he was the marrying kind.” Her expression turned nasty even as her voice turned shriller. “Or did you hold a gun to his head because he got you pregnant, maybe?”
“Will you shut up Mridula?” Urvashi snarled at the newcomer, coming out from behind her desk to stand next to Ranjini. “How dare you insult the superstar’s bride?”
Ranjini looked from one woman to the other, not uttering a word since she couldn’t understand what had brought on Mridula’s attack on her. She was even more startled when she saw Vivek standing at the door when she heard him ask her, “Are you ready to leave, Ranjini?” He sure had a strange expression on his face as if he had desperately tried to avoid such a situation.
“In a minute,” said Ranjini.
Her answer was drowned by Mridula’s raised voice. Giving Vivek a disparaging look, she said, “Oh! So you still escort CK’s women around? What a pathetic life!” She answered her own question immediately. “But of course, as if you have a choice. If you didn’t listen to him, you’d be out on the streets within seconds.” Her lip curled in disgust as she painted a black picture of Chandrakanth.
Ranjini stared at Mridula, without showing any expression on her face, her arms folded against her body. “You were saying?” she prompted the other woman.
“I wonder what CK saw in you.” Mridula continued to insult Ranjini, a ferocious expression on her face. “What do you have that I don’t?” She was screaming by now.
“Hmm. Shouldn’t you be asking Chandrakanth these questions instead of talking to me? I can’t speak for him. And well, if you want to know what I saw in him, then maybe I can give you my honest opinion.” There was mild sarcasm in Ranjini’s voice as she wondered if the woman was her husband’s ex-lover or girlfriend, though she hadn’t read any gossip about the two of them. Oh yeah, she had read a lot of those surrounding Chandrakanth. He was, after all, a superstar and an extremely handsome one at that.
“Don’t worry. I’ll do just that. I will ask CK how you managed to trap him into marrying you. I never thought he was foolish. But I am not so sure now.”
Ranjini held back her clenched fist, fighting the temptation to punch the woman on her face. Better to get her facts together before getting into a catfight, she decided. She turned away abruptly to shake Urvashi’s hand, a small smile on her face. “I’ll call you Urvashi. I’m really looking forward to what you’re going to come up with.” She waved to the designer as she stepped through the door, happy to have made at least one new friend in Chennai.
“I’m really sorry about that Ranjini,” said Vivek as they drove off in the direction of home. “I tried my best to stop Mridula from barging in. But...”
“But why? You shouldn’t have bothered. This meeting had to happen sometime, right? That woman’s crazy about Chandru. I’m sure you can see that.” Ranjini looked in front of her, not meeting Vivek’s eyes.
“Please don’t believe whatever she said. Chandrakanth didn’t...”
Ranjini shook her head, turning to look at him now. “Don’t, Vivek. I’d rather you didn’t say anything. I’ll talk to Chandru about it.”
She didn’t notice the worried looks that Vivek kept giving her throughout their drive back. It was a good thing that it didn’t last very long. Ranjini got off, thanking Vivek, her earlier suggestion of accompanying him to Chandrakanth’s vanity van totally forgotten or at least that was the impression she gave Vivek.
Ranjini was glad not to run into Maragadham on her way up to the first floor, getting immersed into her work immediately, pushing away the questions that had risen in her mind to the background. She felt lighter when Ludo cuddled on a rug that was close to her feet, going to sleep there, his furry body pressed against her leg.
13
The extremely sensitive Chandrakanth sensed that everything wasn’t hunky dory with his domestic life the moment he crossed the threshold of his home that night. It was past eleven and his aunt was nowhere around, which was what he had expected. But where was Ranjini? His wife had been at the door to greet him every night over the past week and though he hadn’t said anything about it, he had been overjoyed by her enthusiastic welcome.
There was a heavy frown on his face when he ran his gaze up the stairs as if he would find his answer there. He took the stairs two at a time to reach the landing and then walked over to the room on the right hand side corner that his wife had converted into her office. Pushing the door open, he strode in, wondering if she was probably on a work call and was startled at first, and then irritated when he saw her playing spider solitaire on her laptop. What the fuck!
“Ranju!”
She turned slowly in her swivel chair as if reluctant to leave her game midway and gave him a cool look. “Hello!”
“What’s wrong?” Chandrakanth’s voice was a soft growl as he reached her in a couple of strides.
“Huh! Nothing. Why?” Ranjini gave a shrug.
Placing his large hands on her slender shoulders, Chandrakanth pulled her up from her chair and shook her lightly. “Come on, out with it. What happened?”
Unfortunately for Chandrakanth, Vivek hadn’t had the opportunity to tell him about Mridula’s exchange of words with Ranjini as the star had been too busy shooting for his next movie. Chandrakanth was genuinely flummoxed by his wife’s indifferent behaviour. Where was the adoring woman he had le
ft back on his bed that very morning?
“Now why would you think that something was wrong?” Ranjini placed a forefinger on her chin, giving him a blank look.
But Chandrakanth caught the tremors that shook her slight body as he pulled her closer. She was obviously upset about something and his shouting at her or shaking her up wasn’t helping the issue. Pulling her resisting body closer to his own, Chandrakanth pressed his lips to her forehead, saying, “You are upset, Ranju. Did periamma say something?” Even as he asked the question, Chandrakanth realised that there had been no WhatsApp messages from his wife since the afternoon. Usually, she kept sending him something or the other—personal messages or forwards that she thought he would like or just emoticons. There had been none from that afternoon, not since her shopping trip. So, he correctly concluded that it probably wasn’t his aunt who had disturbed her.
“Your periamma has a lot to say all the time. But I don’t give a damn. She has no influence over my life.” Ranjini spoke rapidly, glaring at him with her huge charcoal eyes, even as she tried to pull out of his arms.
Scorpio Superstar (Written in the Stars Book 1) Page 9
