“They don’t speak properly for EIGHT YEARS?”

Karthik shook his head. Arun looked at his grandson with worry.

“Well, they were just living their lives. There wasn’t really that much to talk about.”

Aarush blinked.

“Did anything interesting happen during that time at all?”

“Oh, I and Gracy started dating,” said Karthik. “Amit-anna and my sister-in-law moved to San Diego, and Rani and Elena adopted Tippy.”

Aarush grinned.

“Tippy! He’s so cute, I love him!”

“The name was Elena’s idea,” said Karthik. “She loves dogs, so when they got him she named him ‘Tipton’, a reference to an old Disney show called The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. ‘Tippy’ is short for that.”

“What type of dog is he?” asked Aarush. “I don’t think anyone ever clearly told me.”

“Chihuahua-dalmatian mix,” said Arun, chuckling. “And because of that he’s a little hyper, barks a lot, and is distrustful of others, but somehow he liked you immediately. I found that interesting.”

“I’m just that pure,” said Aarush, smirking. “Wait, how old is he again?”

“15,” said Arun. “The same age as you, actually.”

“Oh, so Tippy was also born in 2023?”

“Correct.”

Arun cleared his throat.

“Do you want to hear about something interesting that happened before you were born?”

Aarush nodded.

“Tell me, Thatha.”

*******

Arun Shivaram sat on the sofa watching a cricket match on TV. It was a hot, lazy sort of day, and he’d closed the curtains to try and block the heat out. Sandhya and Ravi were in the kitchen, wiping down the countertops.

Sitting on the other end of the sofa was Aditi, trying to browse Agent Provocateur on Instagram but seemed to be somewhat restless and fidgety.

“Maama,” whined Aditi. “I can’t seem to focus on this also now!”

Arun turned to his daughter-in-law and chuckled.

“You’re five months pregnant. That restlessness is normal at this stage, don’t worry.”

Aditi finally threw her phone down.

“Ravvu!! Get me some water no please?”

In the kitchen, Sandhya gave Ravi a little nudge with her elbow and smirked.

“Go serve your wife.”

His expression completely neutral, Ravi walked out of the kitchen and handed Aditi a Tupperware bottle of water.

“Thank you Ravvu, love you!” said Aditi, making a little kissing sound which Ravi didn't notice. Arun switched off the TV.

“So where are you both at with names?”

Ravi looked at him cluelessly. Aditi giggled.

“You know I was thinking of names earlier today!”

“Oh interesting,” said Arun. “Tell me.”

“So I was thinking if it’s a girl she should be called ‘Zaara’, and ‘Kiaan’ if it’s a boy. I want it to be a girl, but I’m okay with either! What do you think, Ravvu?”

“Yeah they’re alright I guess,” said Ravi, shrugging his shoulders. “How did you come up with these?”

“These names are trending right now,” said Aditi, proudly. “I saw it on Insta.”

Ravi simply nodded while Arun tried to suppress his laughter. Then suddenly Sandhya marched into the sitting room, still holding a towel.

“You’re going to name my grandchild WHAT…?”

“Kiaan if it’s a boy, and Zaara if it’s a girl,” said Ravi. Sandhya shook her head.

“No, I don’t like those names. They sound Muslim.”

“Aa, but–” said Aditi. Ravi held up his hand.

“What do you suggest then, Mom?”

“You should call it ‘Bhaskari’ if it’s a girl, or ‘Aarush’ if it’s a boy.”

“Bhaskari??” said Aditi, grossed out. “Chee!!”

“What ‘chee’? It’s from the Vedas!”

Aditi was shaking her head, while Ravi kept turning back and forth between his wife and mother. Arun simply watched, waiting to see where this would go.

“Wait, yeah,” said Ravi. “Mom’s right, those names sound too Muslim. And what’s wrong with ‘Bhaskari’? I think it’s fine.”

Aditi looked up at him in confusion. Sandhya gave a stiff nod with a neutral expression, though Arun could tell she was taking a victory lap in her head.

“Okay Ravi,” said Aditi, disappointed. “We’ll use Amma’s suggestions only.”

“Cool,” said Ravi. He and Sandhya went back into the kitchen while Aditi stared at them, suddenly feeling a huge weight on her chest.

*******

“‘Kiaan’…” whispered Aarush. “My name could’ve been ‘Kiaan’...”

“Or ‘Bhaskari’!” said Karthik, laughing. “Lucky you weren’t born a girl!”

“Y-yeah,” said Aarush. He seemed to be a little low-mood.

“What happened, ma?” asked Arun. Aarush looked up at his grandfather with a pained expression.

“Avva picked my name, not Mum! If Mum had her way then I could’ve been ‘Kiaan’ but… she didn’t…”

Arun nodded, understanding his pain.

“If it helps this was the exact point in time where your Mum started to change. I think experiencing something like this made her more self-aware.”

“Means she stopped being so dumb after this,” said Karthik.

“That’s… fine, I guess,” said Aarush. “But I just didn’t think Avva’s problems, whatever they are, would even go as far as me.”

“Yeah,” said Arun. “But not only did your Mum start getting smarter, but she also started getting a little more… ‘gutsy’, I would say. I mean, it definitely took guts for her to persuade Ravi to let them move out of our house.”

“Oh yeah, we moved to our apartment when I was still a baby, right? How did Avva even allow that?”

Arun smiled.

“With compromise.”

*******

Arun Shivaram yawned as he headed upstairs for the night. As he passed Ravi’s room he could hear a rather loud discussion happening.

“… no, Ravi. I think it’s better for both me and the baby.”

“How? Don’t you think it’s good that we have extra support? If we move out then you’re gonna have to do a LOT more work around the house! Cooking, taking care of Aarush–”

“You’re also there to take care of him Ravi, you’re his father. And I can handle the extra work.”

“You barely know how to cook.”

“I can learn.”

“What about your weird sleep patterns?”

“I’ll adjust.”

“And your Instagram habit?”

“I haven’t opened Insta in weeks.”

A short silence followed, punctuated by baby Aarush cooing.

“You’re really serious about this, Aditi?”

“Yes. I’m very serious.”

Arun heard stomping.

“Mom won’t agree.”

“You never know unless you ask, Ravi.”

Ravi exhaled.

“Okay fine, I’ll ask her tomorrow. But don’t say I didn’t warn you if she gets mad.”

Arun stepped away from the door, a little proud but fearful for his daughter-in-law.


The next morning Ravi came downstairs to have breakfast before leaving for work. Sandhya was making dosas while Arun was doing his morning prayers.

“Hey Mom,” said Ravi, taking a plate. Sandhya piled dosas on it.

“So, uh…”

Ravi cleared his throat. Arun was chanting the Shiva Tandava Stotram in the prayer room.

“What happened?” asked Sandhya. Ravi couldn't seem to look his mother in the eyes.

“Well, Aditi and I were talking last night, and, um… we decided it might be better if… we… uh… m-moved to our own place.”

Sandhya looked confused.

“Why do you want to move?”

“We just thought that it might be better for the baby,” said Ravi. “Aditi said that having our own space will, uh, ‘help Aarush grow’.”

Sandhya nodded slowly.

“I understand.”

“Wait, really?”

“I think I told you right?” said Sandhya, smiling. “I grew up in a big joint family? And I hated not having my own space. There was no privacy only.”

“Oh yeah, right.”

Sandhya turned back to the stove.

“So fine then, move to your own place. But, I have one condition.”

“What’s that?”

Ravi stared at Sandhya in apprehension.

“Wherever it is you move, it should be nearby only.”

*******

“Plot twist,” said Aarush. Karthik laughed.

“The three of you moved out a few months later,” said Arun. “But Ravi kept his promise, as I'm sure you guessed. Your apartment is only a ten-minute walk from our house.”

“Didn’t Mum say anything about that?”

Arun shook his head.

“No, she didn’t. I feel she saw it as a compromise, and realized it won’t get better than this.”

“That’s too sad,” said Aarush. “But I think for the first time I’m seeing Mum clearly.”

“It’s always jarring when that happens, isn’t it?” said Karthik. Aarush nodded.

“She’s a fighter.”

“Just like Rani,” said Arun. Suddenly Karthik clapped.

“OH, speaking of which, do you remember what happened with her in July 2024?”

Arun laughed.

“Of course, how could I forget?”

“What happened with Rani-attha?” asked Aarush, confusingly.

“Her magazine debut, of course!” exclaimed Arun. “In July 2024 a famous actress appeared on the cover of Vogue… wearing one of Rani’s designs!”

“Your grandfather bragged about it to anyone who’d listen for weeks,” said Karthik, laughing.

“Hey come on Karthik, I was so proud of my daughter!”

Aarush stared at the two men. He felt a little left out.

“I’ve never seen it…”

“Ah, that’s because Ravi’s an idiot,” said Karthik. This time Aarush didn’t protest.

Arun pulled out his phone and loaded up the image. He then handed it to Aarush.

“Here.”

Aarush looked at the cover for a good minute. 

“Rani-attha designed the outfit?”

“She did.”

Aarush smiled, then handed the phone back to his grandfather.

“I think I like it.”

Arun’s smile became sadder as he pocketed his phone.

“Unfortunately her mother didn’t think so.”

“Of course,” said Karthik, rolling his eyes. Arun continued.

“If anyone asked her about the magazine cover, she’d simply shrug her shoulders and say ‘I don’t read Vogue’.”

“And Dad?” asked Aarush.

“Your Dad toh, forget it,” said Arun. “Aditi managed to get a copy, and it seems when she showed it to him he just said ‘okay’ and walked off.”

“Your Mum at least texted Rani to congratulate her,” said Karthik. “She sent a picture of her copy also. I remember Rani was very happy about that.”

“Actually,” said Arun. “Aditi might still have that copy somewhere. You can ask her when we get home.”

“Oh cool, I’ll ask her then,” said Aarush. “So… what happens next?”

“My wedding, in 2029,” said Karthik. “The last time Rani went to India.”

“She even brought Elena that time,” said Arun. “I think you might remember this Aarush, you were six.”

Aarush smiled fondly.

“Yeah, I remember some of it.”