**The Kite Festival**
Makar Sankranti, the time where winter started to ends and spring started to begins. The air was once again filled with rosy chill, and its fragrance began to spread. Every year, during this time Jaipur's Polo Ground hosts the Kite Festival. People from far and wide come to participate in this festival. The sky is adorned with colorful kites of various designs. Today was also no different. Children and adults alike were enjoying kite flying. Food stalls were also abundant, offering treats like sesame laddoos, sesame brittle, ghevar, and much more.
Virat was also at the Kite Festival today. His school holidays were in full swing, giving him plenty of free time. He was just 15 years old, but his father was already planning to send him to London for further studies. After flying kites for a long time, Virat headed towards the food stalls. He bought some snacks and as he turned to leave, he felt a tug on his shirt from behind. Startled, he looked back and saw a little girl.
she was helding A sugar candy in her one hand which she was breaking with her other hand and eating it. Virat ignored her and walked towards a bench a little distance away. But to his surprise, the girl followed and sat down next to him.
"Do you need something?" she asked in a hoarse voice.
The girl shook her head.
"Then why are you following me?"
"Because you're very cute," she replied with a smile. Even in the biting cold, Virat blushed. No one had ever complimented him like that before. Virat was the only son of Mr Yashraj Singh Tomar, the prominent hotelier of Rajasthan. Their family had once been part of the royal lineage. Slowly, the Royal era of Rajasthan faded away with time. And there's a time came when Yashraj Singh Tomar decided to venture into business to maintain their royal lifestyle. Their beautiful havelis were converted into tourist places and hotels, and now Tomar Saab was making millions from them.
Along with this, he had also started a chain of preserved food factories. Naturally, being his older son, Virat was the one responsible for managing all of this. Due to this, he felt immense pressure at such a young age. Although things like Rajputana royalty were no longer relevant, people still looked at him as a prince. All the servants and attendants in the haveli addressed him as the young master. Virat longed to play with them, but his mother and Queen Urmila always stopped him. According to them, it was not appropriate for the master's child to interact with the servants' children. He should only befriend those of his own status. But Virat never found anyone of equal standing. That's why he had no friends.
"Where are your mom and dad? Come, I'll take you to them," Virat said, rising from his seat.
"I don't know... I'm lost here." the girl replied absentmindedly, her shoulders slumping. Virat was surprised. She was lost in the fair, yet it didn't seem to bother her. Instead, she sat there, casually eating sugar candy?
"Aren't you scared? How will you go home now?"
"What's there to be scared of? I often get lost. Dont worry.. My mom and dad will find me again." The girl answered nonchalantly while munching on her sugar candy.
"Raji... Raji beta... What are you doing here? Your mom has been searching for you," a voice came from behind. Virat turned his attention to see Chef Sanjeev standing there. Sanjeev Vohra was an exceptional chef, and that's why Yashraj had entrusted him with the responsibility of the haveli's kitchen. It would not be wrong to say that Sanjeev's culinary skills were a significant reason behind the success of Yashraj's hotel business. Every guest who visited the hotel became a fan of the food he prepared, and they kept coming back for more. In the haveli, everyone affectionately called him "Maharaj Ji."
Sanjeev was surprised to see his daughter Rajshree sitting with Virat.
"Kunwar saa..." Sanjeev attempted to say something, but Virat quickly gestured for him to remain silent.
"Look... your dad is here. Now stay with him, else you'll get lost again."
"So what? If I get lost, I'll find you again." Raji said, smiling. "Dad... this is my friend. Can I go fly kites with him?"
Sanjeev didn't respond on her question. He knew that Virat didn't like making friends. Virat rarely spoke to anyone. But now, how could he explain this to his innocent daughter? Yet, in the next moment, he was surprised when Virat himself stepped forward, held Raji's hand, and led her back to the open field. He picked up a large bird-shaped kite and began helping Raji fly it.
Sanjeev stood there, smiling, watching them.
"Ohh..ho, you don't even know how to fly a kite," virat teased.
"Well, I'm trying..." Raji replied with a mock frown. They continued playing together for quite some time. That day, when Virat returned home, he was elated. For the first time in his life, he had found a friend. Gradually, their friendship deepened. Virat often took Raji to the riverside, where they would talk for hours. But he never revealed his true identity. Perhaps he feared that once she knew the truth, she would see him through the same lens as everyone else did. And their friendship will break just because of his social status. And he didn't want that.
Time passed, and the day drew near when Virat's holidays would end. In just two days, he was scheduled to leave for London.
"So, you'll be leaving tomorrow? When will you come back?" Raji asked sadly, throwing pebbles into the river.
"Don't worry... whenever you miss me, just give me a call. We can still talk on the phone," Virat said, attempting to cheer her up with a light-hearted smile.
"But I have no phone. I'm still very young. Mama doesn't let me use the phone."
"Oh, no problem! You can keep my phone. Whenever you miss me, just give me a call." Virat quickly took out his phone from his pocket and handed it to her. Seeing this, Raji's eyes sparkled. Virat saved his number in her speed dial so that she could easily talk to him. After chatting for a while, Virat finally bid her farewell with a heavy heart and left for the haveli. Raji happily skipped back home. When she reached her house, she was surprised to find the door already open. She felt a sense of unease when she stepped inside.
Inside the room, Raji froze in shock. Her parents were both sitting on their knees on the floor. In front of them stood several people dressed in black. Their faces were hidden behind masks, making it impossible to recognize anyone. The man at the forefront had a gun pointed at both of them.
"I don't understand What wrong have we done? We only did what we were told. So why are we being punished?" Meena pleaded, joining her hands in front of them.
"Please I request you. You can do whatever you want with me... but don't harm my family. I beg you," Sanjeev said, bowing before them.
"Mama... Papa... who are these people?" Raji asked, her frightened eyes scanning everyone. Her voice caught everyone's attention, and they turned toward the door.
"Your daughter's fate is unfortunate, Maharaj Ji. Earlier, I might have spared her, but now that she has seen everything with her own eyes, she must die alongside you." Saying this, the man swiftly grabbed Raji's hand.
"Raji... run, my child... run from here... and never come back." Hearing her mother's words, Raji struggled with all her might to free her hand from the man's grip. But for a little girl like her, fighting with such a large man was impossible. At last, when she couldn't think of anything else, she bit into the man's hand with her teeth so badly that a large part of his flesh was completely removed from his hand.
"Ahh!" The man screamed in pain and jerked his hand away. Due to this sudden movement, Raji's hand got entangled with the pearl bracelet he was wearing, and it slipped off her wrist.
"Raji, run!" Sanjeev shouted loudly, and Raji immediately sprinted towards the exit.
"What do you both think? She can save her life just by running away from us? No one has ever escaped my hands alive. She, too, must die," the man said angrily, pressing the gun against Sanjeev's forehead.
"Set fire to this entire house. Everything here should be turn into ashes." With these words, he adjusted his suit and quickly left. Raji was panting heavily. She was hiding behind a wall a little distance away. But when she saw her home engulfed in flames, tears streamed down her face. She couldn't comprehend how she would live without her parents.
"The phone..." Raji immediately took out her phone and dialed the number that Virat had saved for her. After a few rings, Virat answered the call.
"Hey... you called me so soon. Are you missing me that much?" Virat's voice echoed from the other end.
Before Raji could respond, all the people who were searching for her, came to the site.
"There's the girl... catch her." Someone shouted.
Seeing them approach, Raji panicked even more. virat frowned after hearing these voices over the phone
"Raji, what's happening there?" he pressed the phone to his ear. However, there was no sound coming from the other end. He immediately turned on the GPS on his phone, and Raji's live location started appearing on it. Based on what he had heard, he concluded that Raji was in trouble. He urgently instructed the driver to speed up and head towards that location. Virat prayed that everything would be alright. Meanwhile, Raji ran towards the jungle to escape. The group of men was also chasing her, closing in on her position.
"Where did the girl go? Can't you catch even a little child?" Their leader shouted at them.
"Boss, she's so small. We don't know which corner she's hiding in. Just let me get my hands on her, and I'll finish her right there,"
Rajashree was hiding behind a tree which was far from them. The men's conversation filled her with intense fear. She struggled to control her breath, crouching low. But perhaps luck was not on her side. Just then, her phone started to ring. Virat was calling her and the deserted area echoed with the loud ringtone. Hearing the phone, everyone's attention snapped towards it.
"The sound is coming from over there. Let's go check." The leader shouted, and seeing them approach, Raji trembled in fear. She had no idea how she would escape this situation.
In the darkness, Raji couldn't see clearly, and she accidentally collided with a rock, stumbling and falling down a slope. Ahead lay a steep hillside. She continued to slide downward, her panic growing. Just before she could fall further, her hand caught hold of a tree branch, preventing her from plummeting. The group of men had also reached the spot.
"There she is... but how do we catch her now? It's a deep ravine below." One of them said, sounding frustrated.
"Why bother catching her? Let's just send her over to her parents." Saying this, the leader aimed his gun at Raji.
Raji started trembling badly with fear. There was no way to escape now. Even if she manage to escape the bullet from their gun, she wouldn't be able to save herself for so long using this branch of the tree. Her grip on it was already slipping.
"Boss... someone is coming..." Suddenly, with the loud sound of the car's horn, the headlights' illumination made them all alert.
"Leave this girl... we'll deal with her later. For now, let's get out of here before anyone sees us." Their leader said, putting his gun back in his pocket, and they all hurriedly fled from there.
Virat checked the GPS location. It was right here, but there was no sign of Raji. When nothing else came to mind, he shouted with his all strength, "Raji... where are you?"
"I'm here..." A faint voice came and without wasting a moment, he ran in the direction of the voice. But what he saw in front of him left him stunned.
"Raji, don't be afraid... I'll save you." He tried to reassure her. But the truth was that seeing her in such a dangerous situation had unnerved him as well.
"Raji, give me your hand... I'll pull you up." Virat extended his hand towards her. Raji attempted to grab it, but she couldn't reach that far. Finally, with the driver's help, Virat decided to descend a little down the slope. Holding the driver's hand, he climbed down. He then reached out his other hand towards Raji, saying, "Give me your hand. Trust me... nothing will happen to you."
Upon hearing this, a smile appeared on Raji's face. She reached out her hand towards him, but due to this movement, the weak branch she was holding onto snapped, and in the next moment, something happened that Virat hadn't even imagined. Raji's hand slipped from his grasp, and before his eyes, she disappeared into the dark abyss below.
"Rajiiiiiiiii..." A sharp scream escaped Virat's mouth, and he stood up, drenched in sweat. His entire body was trembling.
Fifteen years had passed since that incident, yet it haunted him like a terrifying dream. Virat wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead, trying to control his ragged breaths. His phone kept ringing incessantly. He glanced at the screen—it was his mother calling.
"Hello, good morning, Mom… How did you call me so early in the morning?" He tried to normalize his voice.
"Did you have another bad dream son?" Urmila Devi's concerned voice came from the other end.
"Mom, how do you always understand my problems so easily." Despite himself, a smile crept onto Virat's face.
"Well, here is a good news for you. I've found a permanent solution for your problem."
"What do you mean? What kind of solution?"
"What I mean is I've found a beautiful girl for you. Now i just need of your approval. Look son i want you to get married as soon as possible." Urmila Devi said, smiling. Indeed, in India, there's only one solution for every problem—arrange a marriage.
"Mom, can you please explain how my marriage is related to my bad dreams? I've told you before—I don't want to get married right now."
"I knew you'd say that. So I've found the girl of your choice."
Upon hearing Urmila Devi's words, Virat's hands and feet felt numb.
"Which girl are you talking about?"
"Rajshree... Wasn't that the girl's name? We've already traced her. It was a little difficult, but for my son, i can do anything."
"Mom, you are not joking … right? Did you really found Raji?" Virat was still unsure.
"Do you doubt your mother's capabilities?"
"Ofcourse not Mom... thats why I always say you're the best. I love you so much." Virat fell back on the bed, overwhelmed with happiness.
"So when are you coming home?"
"I don't know, Mom. As soon as my work here is done, I'll be back. It might take a week or may be a month." Virat replied with a hint of disappointment.
"Alright, we'll wait for you. Take care." Urmila Devi disconnected the call.
Virat pulled up a childhood picture of Raji on his phone and gazed at it, still smiling.
"Finally… I found you. I thought I had lost you forever. I don't know after so many years if you'll still recognize me or not. But I am very sure of one thing... as soon as I see you, I'll recognize you immediately. Just wait for me."