When one acts on instinct the purpose is not always clear, and everything in his life until now had a purpose to it. It had been a charted course of twenty odd years; his mother had made sure of that. Just past the age of ten he was sent to boarding school in Sanawar where he had spend eight years working hard, excelling in academics and sports.

Even his toys had been chosen carefully, to provoke intelligence and develop problem solving ability. His particular favourite had been the kind that fostered better understanding of spatial relationships. He was always building and modelling things, solving complex puzzles, and trying to mend broken appliances.

Making it to IIT was just natural progression for him, after graduating from there he would head to the US to do his MBA from a top business school. After gaining some experience he would then return to join his parents in the business which he would head some day. There was no room for error and lesser for choice.

He could not recall having broken any major rules nor given his parents reason to worry or to correct him. He had spent the greater part of his life away from home and even when he returned for holidays his parents were not always home, they had their priorities divided between their work and social lives. Relations had been cordial though, he had no complaints.

He had met Parth at school. They became friends in the first year and had been together ever since, even spending their holidays together. It was only natural for his sister Vidushi to have been attracted to Parth. The siblings had been very close to each other and to Vidushi, Parth was an extension of her brother, someone she could trust fully and confide into. He had given them his blessings without a second thought; he knew they were perfect for each other.

He had never been in a romantic relationship himself, he did not allow himself distractions unlike Parth who spent hours cooing pillow talk with his sister, making his loneliness even starker. Two years at IIT had been spent mechanically buried in books, except for his music through which he gave vent to his yearning.

That evening when the girl had approached him he had been mulling over the trajectory of his life, wondering if it had all been worth it. She has not introduced herself nor made any small talk nor tried to turn on her charm on him. She had simply asked him to accompany her for that one song and after that had retreated back into the shadows, leaving him wondering why. The girls who pursued him did so relentlessly like Ishika, leaving him wary of their desire of possession. This girl was different. She must have heard him play the guitar for his friends but had waited patiently in the wings until she found him in solitude to make her request and had then simply turned away without gushing over him.

He did not know what instinct drove him to look up the chords for her song over his phone and then join her during the performance. He had never walked away from a challenge but that was not why he had complied. There had been a pull in her voice; it had summoned him like a clarion call. She may not be a gifted singer but her voice had a raw appeal that seemed to be expressing a deep personal desire.

Just as he was gathering his thoughts his ears picked up a melodious strain. The girl next door was singing a Meera bhajan in Yaman Kalyan, a raag appropriate for evening, the words expressing Meera's love and devotion for her chosen lover Lord Krishna.

Mharo pranam banke bihari ji- My salutations to Banke Bihari (Lord Krishna)

Mor mukut madhyan tilak birajya- Adorned with a crown of peacock feathers and a tilak on the forehead

Kundal alkakari ji- Locks of hair hanging over the earrings

Adhar madhur dhar bansi bajawa- With his sweet lips he plays the flute he holds

Rijhirijhava braj naari ji- Playfully enticing the women of Brij

Ya chavi dekhya mohya Meera- This image captivates Meera

Mohan girivardhari ki- The image of the enticer who once carried the Govardhan mountain

Mharo pranam banke bihari ji- My salutations to Banke Bihari (Lord Krishna)

As Randhir listened to her song he was mesmerised. The purpose of this course deviation in life did not matter now, if she was going to be living here this was the only place he wanted to be in.

For your listening pleasure: