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And then…
Just as Jai was about to apply sindoor in Sanjana's hair parting, she suddenly stopped him and said, "Wait, Jai."
Everyone present at the wedding looked at each other in surprise and started whispering amongst themselves.
Ignoring the murmurs, Sanjana calmly said to Jai, "It's a tradition in our family that the sindoor must come from the bride's maternal home."
Jai, in a quiet voice, replied, "Sanjana, you could have told me this earlier."
Sanjana gently held her ear and said with a soft smile, "I'm sorry! I got so caught up in the excitement of the wedding, I completely forgot."
Jai smiled and said, "It's okay." Then he took the sindoor sent from Sanjana's maternal home and filled her parting.
The priest announced, "With this, the wedding is complete. From today, you are husband and wife."
The crowd erupted in joy, showering them with flower petals.
The priest then instructed, "Seek blessings from your elders."
Jai and Sanjana bowed down to touch the feet of all the elders and received their blessings.
With teary eyes, Romil and Jhankana bid farewell to their beloved daughter, Sanjana. And thus, her bidaai took place.
At the Singhania Villa…
Jai's aunt, Divya Sahay, performed the welcoming aarti for the newlyweds, marking Sanjana's official grihapravesh. Among the guests was Jai's step-aunt, Deepali Singhal.
Jai's grandfather had married twice—his first wife gave birth to Digvijay, and the second wife had Dhananjay and Deepali.
Digvijay's childhood was filled with hardship. His stepmother was cruel and eventually manipulated things so that he was thrown out of the house. At the time, he had only completed his 10th grade. Selling newspapers, he funded his further education and later completed an MBA. He eventually landed a job at a company where the owner, Jagmohan Lalwani, was deeply impressed by his work. It was Digvijay who helped that company reach unimaginable heights.
Jai's grandfather had wanted his younger son, Dhananjay, to marry Jagmohan's daughter, Mitali. But at the last moment, Mitali rejected Dhananjay and chose Digvijay instead, despite him being just a junior employee in her father's company. Secretly, even Jagmohan admired his daughter's choice.
Since then, Jai's grandfather and uncle Dhananjay began harboring even deeper resentment toward Digvijay.
Deepali, though she pretends to love Jai, does so only for appearances.
Divya, Jai's aunt, is Jagmohan's younger daughter. She married an NRI businessman in a love marriage.
After participating in all the post-wedding rituals, both Jai and Sanjana looked completely exhausted. Looking at their tired faces, Deepali joked, "Divya ji, look at Jai and your daughter-in-law! They were blooming roses this morning, and now they look like wilted flowers. Let's wrap this up now!"
Divya's daughter, Hansika, giggled and added, "Yes, Deepali aunty! Then she started singing in a playful tone, mimicking a famous Bollywood song – 'Jai bhai, bhabhi ka deewana… Mummy, in dono ko karo yahan se ravana… Nahi to bhai ko padega bhabhi ko jagana!'"
She ended the tease by winking at Jai.
Jai, pretending to scold her with a smile, said, "You just wait, Hansika. I'll get you back tomorrow!"
Divya laughed and said, "Hansika beta, take your bhabhi to her bedroom. Poor thing must be tired from all the rituals."
Hansika giggled, "Okay, Mom!" and escorted Sanjana to the bedroom.
Later, Divya pulled Jai aside. Jai, a little irritated, said, "Maasi, your rituals just never end! At this rate, you'll never get to be a grandma!"
Divya gasped and playfully hit his arm, "Shameless boy! No manners at all, speaking like that in front of me!"
Jai grinned, "Maasi, those who act shy, invite bad luck!" And off he went, leaving Divya staring after him, mouth open.
She muttered to herself, "These kids nowadays! They talk about anything and everything without a hint of shame." Shaking her head, she walked to her room.
As Jai walked toward the bedroom, he noticed Hansika standing by the door, smiling mischievously.
Seeing her grin, Jai said, "Why are you showing so many teeth? Are you out of toothpaste?"
Hansika made a face and replied, "Nope! I'm not out of toothpaste—but seems like you're out of good mood!"
As she turned to run, Jai caught her hand and gently asked, "My dear sister, who's going to give me the key to the room?"
Hansika clutched the key tightly in one hand and extended the other, "Where's my gift, brother?"
Jai, smiling, handed her a black credit card and said, "Here you go. Now disappear like Mr. India!"
Hansika frowned, "Seriously, bhai? I don't need your card—I have like 2,000 of these." Saying this, she returned the card to him.
Now getting a little annoyed, Jai asked, "So what do you want?"
Hansika, grinning at the gate, shouted, "I want a toothpaste company!"
Jai, shocked, said, "What? But I don't even own a toothpaste company! How can I give you something I don't have? Pick another one of my companies."
But Hansika firmly shook her head, "Nope! I only want a toothpaste company. If you don't have one, start one. Only then will I let you enter bhabhi's room!"