Taabindagi (Sequel Of Sharar)

Six

(She was a new student at my school, and when I saw her, I smiled, but she didn’t smile back, so rude! I decided I wouldn’t smile at her again. But then one day, we got paired for a project, and I realized she’s actually sweet. She just doesn’t smile much. Her parents divorced last summer; she lives with her mom, and her sister stays with their dad. She was pretty close to her...)

Nomi was sitting on the floor by now, exhausted.

"What's wrong with your sister?" Ehan demanded, looking at Shahnan, who could only shrug.

"Everything," Shahnan replied, leaning against the wall.

Both Rukhsar and Kulsoom stared blankly at Sharfa, momentarily forgetting the topic. Kulsoom was the first to shake herself back to reality.

"Dadi, main bas itna keh rahi thi, yeh naam achha hoga, lekin apke zamane mein, aaj ke zamane mein nahi... Kulsoom tried to explain, but Rukhsar cut her off.

(Dadi, I’m just saying, the name might’ve been nice in your time, but not in today’s world...)

"Humare zamane mein toh bohot kuch achha hota tha jo tum log ko bhi yaad rakhna chahiye. Humare zamane mein rishto ki aur mohabbat ki qadar hoti thi." Rukhsar was perhaps offended by the remark, as she kept glancing sharply at Sharfa and Kulsoom.

(A lot of things were so much better in our time, something you all should remember. In our time, we valued relationships and love.)

"Humari toh himmat nahi hoti thi jis sofe pe dadi baithi hain waha baithe, unke samne nazre niche karke hi rakhte the, aur maa baap se baad mein, sabse pehle dadi se har cheez mein ijazat lete the."

(We didn't dare to sit on the same sofa as our grandmother. We would keep our eyes down in front of her, and before asking our parents for anything, we would always ask our grandmother first.)

They couldn’t do anything without dadi's approval either. Kulsoom thought but didn’t say it.

"Aur ek tum log ho, na qadre. Kisi ke mohabbat ya ehsas ki fikar hi nahi."

(And then there’s you all, so ungrateful. You don’t care about anyone’s love or feelings.)

"Momo kuch bol kyu nahi rahi?" Eifa voiced Kulsoom’s question to Shahnan, but he just shook his head. He knew his sister well enough; she always let others speak first because once Sharfa started talking, she wouldn’t let anyone else speak.

(Why isn’t Momo saying anything?)

"Zamana badal gaya aur zamane ke sath sath tum log apna culture bhoolte ja rahe ho. Modern banne ke chakkar mein tum log yeh bhool gaye ho naam hote kaise hain. Insan ka naam aisa hona chahiye jiska matlab achha ho, kyuki naam ka insan ki shaksiyat pe asar hota hai."

(Times have changed, and along with them, you're forgetting your culture. In your pursuit of modernity, you've forgotten how names should be. A person's name should have a good meaning because it affects a person's personality.)

Kulsoom felt close to tears. She was now getting scolded for free, thanks to Sharfa, who was back to texting, a small smirk on her face.

"I agree. Mera name bhi toh meri dadi ne rakha hai, aur hum kabhi usko change karne ka soch bhi nahi sakte. I like my name." Sharfa said with a serene smile, looking so sincere that Rukhsar's stern expression softened immediately. She had been under the impression all along that Sharfa was the mastermind behind this little rebellion.

(I agree. My dadi chose my name too, and I’d never think of changing it. I like my name.)

"Aur issi liye hum yaha atey hain Hindi mein baat karte hain taki apne roots se connected rahe." Sharfa added with a bright smile.