In the evening, Shree is preparing food for everyone. Meanwhile, her aunt's daughter, her cousin Juhi, is relaxing on the sofa, casually cleaning her nails with her legs crossed.
Shree's heavyset aunt is sitting beside Juhi, calmly peeling and eating an orange.
Shree's uncle is reading the newspaper. Suddenly, their neighbor, Kalavati, bursts in and exclaims, "Oh Kumud, you won't believe the amazing news I have! If you hear it, you'll want to sign your entire property over to me right now!"
Kumud, eating an orange, replies, "Oh Kalavati, we're practically millionaires, aren't we? You must think I have an estate worth lakhs. All we have is this house, and I'm not about to give that away. So, just tell me what you came for and leave—there's nothing you're getting here."
Kalavati replies, "I've come with a marriage proposal for your daughter."
At the mention of a marriage proposal, everyone turns their gaze towards Kalavati. Juhi, waving her hands dismissively and shouting, says, "Auntie, arrange a proposal for your own daughter. Don't you dare bring up a marriage proposal for me. I'm not getting married now; I want to become an actress first."
Kalavati interjects, "Oh, I'm not talking about you."
Kumud asks, "Then who are you talking about?"
Kalavati responds, "I'm talking about your niece, Shree."
Hearing that there's a proposal for Shree, everyone starts looking at each other's faces.
Kalavati continues, "Shree was at the temple early in the morning singing bhajans, right? Well, one of my acquaintances saw her and was so impressed that they want to discuss a wedding this very month."
Kumud, startled, says, "What? This month?"
Kalavati responds, "Yes, absolutely. But to be honest, I made it clear that Shree comes from a poor family and can't bring much with her. But they aren't asking for any dowry. So if you find this acceptable, I can move forward with the talks."
Uncle responds, "But, dear sister, who is the boy? Where does he live? What does he do? Please, tell us something."
Kalavati says, "Oh yes, I nearly forgot to tell you! The boy is the only son of a father who has an import-export business, and he's involved in the business too. And look, I even brought his picture."
Kalavati places a photo on the table, showing a simple-looking young man named Vivek in a casual outfit of pants and a T-shirt. He looked like a decent guy from a respectable family.
Juhi, however, is more interested in the car behind him in the photo. Seeing it brings a sudden sparkle to her eyes.
Uncle takes the photo and says to Kalavati, "Alright, I'll keep this picture and show it to Shree. If she approves, we'll proceed with the talks."
Kalavati leaves, and in the kitchen, Shree, who has overheard everything, feels anxious. She doesn't want to marry right now—she wants to achieve something for herself first. She's spent her life listening to her aunt's taunts and has no identity of her own. She always wore Juhi's hand-me-down clothes and studied in a government school, though Juhi, despite going to private school, didn't achieve much. In contrast, Shree won multiple awards and scholarships in school.
That night, after dinner, everyone went to their rooms. Uncle quietly goes to Shree's room and asks her, "What's wrong, dear? Haven't you fallen asleep yet?"
Shree replies, "You haven't slept either, have you, uncle?"
Uncle says, "I couldn't sleep because today I realized that my daughter has grown up. She's now old enough for marriage proposals."
Shree sits by her uncle's knees, and he strokes her head, saying, "You must have overheard everything."
Tears well up in Shree's eyes, and she says, "Why the rush, uncle? I know I'm a burden, but can't you wait a few more years?"
Outside, Kumud overhears everything. She feels happy that they wouldn't have to pay dowry for Shree's marriage and also that she'd leave the house quickly, reducing their financial burden.
However, hearing the conversation inside, she worries that Shree might convince her uncle to refuse the proposal. She quickly enters and, sweetening her words, says to Shree, "What are you saying? Who understands our financial situation better than you? Look at how expensive your uncle's medicines have become. Juhi also wants to start her modeling career. I'm withering away thinking about all of you. It's fortunate that they aren't asking for dowry; otherwise, we'd be completely ruined. The boy seems decent, so why make your uncle's health suffer over a wedding decision? Just say yes."
Uncle, slightly angry, tells Kumud, "If she doesn't want to marry, then it won't happen. No one will force my daughter."
Shree looks up at her aunt, who's glaring at her angrily. She thinks, "If I look at it another way, they're right. I am a burden to them. What difference does it make if I marry now or later? My uncle is always worrying about me. And what if another proposal demands dowry, which would stress him even more? No, I won't let my selfishness cause him harm."
Shree quickly holds her uncle's hand and says, "I'm ready."
Hearing this, Kumud's eyes gleam with joy. Uncle places his hand lovingly on Shree's and says, "No, dear, if you don't want to marry, just say so. We won't force you."
Kumud, worried that Shree might change her mind, jumps in, saying, "Juhi's father, what are you saying? She herself agreed to the marriage; everything's in front of you. No one forced her."
Shree affirms, "Yes, uncle, no one forced me. I'm saying yes of my own will."
Hearing this, Uncle smiles and strokes Shree's head before leaving her room.
Meanwhile, in Bhagy's office, he's once again on the night shift, as usual, sketching a watch design.
Bhagy designs only occasionally, but when he does, his creations are very rare and incredibly expensive, as he designs only for select clients.
Rahul walks in and asks, "What are you working on?"
Bhagy, while sketching, replies, "Nothing much. You know that hero, Arnav Mukherjee? He's marrying his foreign girlfriend, and I'm designing a wedding gift for him."
Rahul picks up a sketch and says, "Spending so much time designing gifts for others—maybe think about designing something for yourself someday."
Bhagy puts down the paper and says, "What do you mean?"
Rahul says, "I mean, you didn't answer my question from this morning."
Bhagy asks, "Which question?"
Rahul says, "About marriage."
Bhagy replies, "Rahul, we've discussed this before. You know I'm afraid of relationships. I'm carefree now because I have nothing to lose. And please, no more talk on this topic."
Rahul says, "You can lie to everyone, but not to me. The very fact that you have nothing to lose bothers you the most. You've gained fame and wealth—what's the use of it all? Don't you ever want someone to wait for you at home, to ask how your day was?"
Bhagy replies, "Well, you ask me that."
Frustrated, Rahul stands up and says, "Talking to you is pointless. Do whatever you want; I won't say another word to you."
Rahul leaves the room angrily, and Bhagy calls after him, "At least hear me out!"
After Rahul leaves, Bhagy closes his eyes and massages his temples, muttering, "How do I make him understand?" Suddenly, Shree's face appears in his mind.
Bhagy quickly opens his eyes and mutters, "Why does that girl's face keep coming to my mind? She wasn't even that beautiful." He shakes his head and goes back to work.
On the other side, Kumud goes to Juhi's room. Seeing her mother enter, Juhi says angrily, "So you convinced that jinx to agree to the marriage. Everyone only cares about Shree; no one cares about me. She's got such a good proposal, and everyone is running after her, while I'm still unmarried."
Kumud replies, "My dear, why are you saying that? You yourself said you didn't want to marry yet, that you wanted to model and become an actress."
Juhi says, "I can do all that after marriage too. Didn't you see how big that guy's house is and how grand his car is?"
Kumud says, "But the proposal is for Shree."
Juhi, angry, says, "I thought you, at least, would be on my side, but now I realize you're also on Shree's side. No one's on my side."
Kumud, putting her hand on Juhi's head, says, "Oh my dear, why would you say that? I'm always with you. If you liked that boy, you should've told me—I'd have fixed the proposal for you."
Juhi, excitedly, says, "Oh, Mom, he's decent looking, and did you see the size of his car?"
Both mother and daughter start daydreaming, imagining the