The palace was quite and calm as if it was resting after a long night, and it needed to rest. The wedding chaos after going on for weeks finally settled. The bride was brought to her home and as per the traditions and beliefs of elder people she was not only wedded to the groom but also to the palace and only death can part her from this palace. It was late in the night and there was pin drop silence around the palace, if you roam through the palace at this point of time it can creep you down your spine and amaze you simultaneously. It was a beautiful palace with ancient jhoomar hanging from the ceilings, these showpieces were made entirely of glass and were magnificent and beautiful. The corners of the palace were glowing with those scented candles and were adoring the palace with their spell. There was something about this palace, it was more famous then the people living here. People around the village used to say that this palace doesn’t need to be protected, it is capable of protecting itself. But these were just the stories, no one knew the actual truth behind these stories and nothing ever happened here which would raise people’s suspicion.
It was a new morning after the long night for nandini. It was all a new environment for her. That newly wed 18year old girl first time away from her home, unaware of people’s expectations and more than that it was not easy for her to accept someone as her husband who was of same age as her father. This was a very common tradition in early India for parents to marry their young daughters to someone double of their age and it was not easy responsibility to get married at such younger age to someone who is not even of their age and thus resulting in lack of companionship. Nandini,…… Nandini,….. Its already 6am for how long you plan to sleep, you’re not in your parents home anymore and we won’t tolerate you nuisance here, said bindiya( nandini’s sister in law) The door opened with a loud sound from moving the bolt as these palace doors were pretty heavy and difficult to open. Nandini opened the door and she was standing on the other side of it. She was pulchritudinous (divine), her long hair touching her waist were wet with water droplets falling from them drop by drop. She was barely able to manage the veil on her wet hair making it impossible for her to hold it on position
and her newly soaked legs in Awalta (red liquid used by Hindu women to soak their feet as sign of prosperity and to increase the beauty of newly wed woman) were leaving a mark on the floor. Her kamarbandh (waistband) was making a jingling sound as she was passing across the hallway, filling the corridors of the palace with its sound.. Nandini was so beautiful that people can pause their breath just for a glimpse of her. She had a smile which can stop wars. Nandini, how long are you gonna take everyone is waiting for you at the pooja, her mother in law almost screamed. Nandini panicked and almost started running with the pooja thali and this made her kamarbandh and anklets jingle even louder and filled the entire palace with her sound. Nandine came running to the pooja hall which was adorned by glittering red clothes and the essence was all around the hall. Nandini this is your first day in the palace and you are already late, do you realize for how long we are standing, her mother in law bashed at her. I’m sorry, nandini stumbled with her words and started the pooja and everyone else joined. While doing Aarti her veil was distracting her to hold it on position. After the pooja ended Nandini touched feet of her in laws and was moving to give
everyone prasad (sweets which is given after Pooja) when her mother in law called her, “what is this Nandini, why are you not touching your husband’s feet? You don’t need his blessings ?” Nandini was trying to understand that why she had to touch his husband’s feet, her mother never used to do this. But she didn’t say a word and bent to touch his feet, he smiled and went away, but his smile was not very pleasant, it was more of pride and was more of as a symbol of his superiority over her. She didn’t say a word but this almost caused a tear from her eyes. Everyone left the hall and she was standing there alone, after sitting there for a while she calmed herself and tried to forget the horrific things that her husband did to her last night. It was difficult but she convinced herself that this was her fate now and she was supposed to live with it. She was lost in her thoughts when suddenly she felt someone gazing at her, as if someone’s eyes was piercing through her soul, Nandini became uncomfortable and started looking around the hall but there was no one. She thought to herself that may be she was putting a lot of pressure over her imagination and she might be assuming. Just then she heard a sound of someone writing something on the wall she immediately turned to look and she almost screamed AAAAAAAAAA………. She saw something written on the wall with blood it read “ Mahal mein wapasiMubarak ho Rajkumari” (meaning – welcome to the palace princess).