Pronunciation of Vennela : It has 3 syllables as given below,

Ven(when)-ne(not ni)-la 

It's an uncommon Telugu name which means moonlight. 

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"Vennela wake up. It's 5.30." Shambhavi woke her up.

"But the Vratam starts at 10 am." Vennela said groggily.

"You need at least 2 hours to get ready. Now get up and brush your teeth. Where's your toothbrush?" Shambhavi searched for Vennela's toothbrush in her bag. Archana smiled at her apologetically before turning to her mother, "Amma, let her sleep. She doesn't need 2 hours to get ready. She is a natural beauty."

"She is. But we'll be posting the pictures on social media. Everything should be maintained as per Devaraju family standards" said Shambhavi firmly.

Vennela wondered if the woman thought of anything other than Devaraju family's reputation. She got up from the bed yawning and started brushing her teeth.

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"Rudy let me go. I have to take bath." Amar requested. 

"No. You have to tell me everything. You seem to be gloomy and sad since your return from the walk. What happened in the garden?" Anirudh was blocking the entrance to the bathroom.

"I told you. It's nothing. Move aside now."

"If you don't tell me, I won't let you in." Anirudh said firmly.

"Fine. This is not the only bathroom in the house. I'll take bath in some other room" said Amar and walked towards the door to exit the room but Anirudh was faster. Now he was blocking the main door of the bedroom.

"I won't let you go until you tell me everything." Anirudh was panting.

"Rudy, at times you forget that you are my brother and start behaving like a typical Indian girlfriend. Alright, I will tell you. But close the door."

They sat down on the floor. Amar told him everything that happened the previous day. "She was disheartened because of me. She left before I could console her."

"Seeing Lasya's name must have saddened her. Can't blame her. I would feel jealous too if I were her" said Anirudh.

"It didn't look like jealousy. It was something else. There is something more to it. I can feel it when she talks to me. Like she's going through a lot of pain and is trying to hide it from me." 

"You are overthinking. It's nothing. She just needs to get used to the idea of being your wife. Once the initial shock wears off, she will be fine." Anirudh spoke thoughtfully.

"Let's hope so" said Amar who was still unconvinced.

"Now go and get ready. I have a lot of work." Anirudh left. 

He was supervising the arrangements when Shruthi arrived with Rishi-Raj. The twins were arguing with her. "Why did you write your name first on the card?" Raj questioned her. "Our names come first according to alphabetical order"said Rishi. 

"Hello Shruthi. Hi boys. What are you arguing about?" asked Anirudh.

"We brought the newly-weds a beautiful gift. I've written my name first on the card because I'm the elder one. They want their names written before mine." Shruthi pointed at the twins.

"A gift? Where is it?" Anirudh couldn't find any gift in their hands.

"We have parked it outside. It's a vintage car. Vennu akka has a thing for vintage vehicles" said Shruthi.

"Really? That's great. Amar anna loves racer motorbikes and cars and vadina likes vintage vehicles. They make a great pair" said Anirudh. Shruthi nodded in agreement.

"Hey Shruthi. Good morning." Archana greeted Shruthi. "Nice hairstyle. Your hair looks longer than yesterday."

"It's hair attachment. I styled it myself watching a YouTube video."

"Hello! We helped you" said Rishi.

"Give us some credit too" said Raj.

Shruthi ignored them and left with Archana discussing trendy hairstyles. Rishi-Raj helped Anirudh with his work. The guests started arriving. 

Amar sat in the place reserved for him and waited for Vennela. He was determined to make her believe that she is not a replacement for Lasya. He wanted to make her feel special. His train of thoughts were interrupted when he saw Vennela in the first floor, walking slowly as instructed by the videographer. She was wearing an emerald green saree. He looked in awe as she descended the staircase and walked towards him.

She smiled at Amar and sat beside him. "Thanks for the flowers."

"Thank you for smiling." Amar replied. 

The Pandit started the pooja. Anirudh sat beside Shruthi and spoke to her carefully so that no one can hear, "Shruthi, your attached hair or extension, whatever it is- it's coming off."

"What!" She checked it. "Oh no! What should I do now?"

"All the rooms in the first floor are empty. Just go and adjust it." He took her to the first floor hiding her from the guests.

"Thank you. Please call Rishi-Raj. They will help me fix it." She requested him.

He nodded and went in search of the twins. They were sitting in a corner, engaged in a serious debate. "Let's ignite smoke bombs. All the guests will run away." said Rishi.

"No no. There are a lot of kids in the hall. We don't want to hurt them. The best option is to mix salt in a sweet dish" said Raj.

"Right. Let's get salt packets from a nearby store." said Rishi. "Hey Rudy! Come and join us" he added on seeing Anirudh.

"Boys. I understand your enthusiasm to make the function interesting. But trust me. You don't want to get on the wrong side of my mother. Drop this idea. Shruthi needs you. She's in the first floor third room to the right." He sent them and returned to his original seat in the hall only to find an abandoned bracelet which belonged to Shruthi. He climbed the stairs again to return it. As he approached the room he heard angry voices of Shruthi and the twins.

"Stop these childish games. Do you think you can have your revenge just by annoying her? I hate her too. But she is Vennu akka's aunt-in-law. We can't ruin our ties with her in-laws. I forbid you from mixing anything in the food" said Shruthi.

"But we want to see her punished. Don't forget. She's the one responsible for akka's misery" said one of the twins.

"Why didn't you inform us? Forget it. It's our fault. We were busy searching for Lasya akka. We didn't know what was happening at home. Had we been present we wouldn't have let that woman blackmail her into marrying him" said the second one.

"It's not your fault. Don't blame yoursel-- Anirudh!!" She exclaimed on seeing him standing by the door.

"What are you talking about? Who blackmailed whom?" asked Anirudh.

Shruthi hesitated. She didn't want to mess things up. But Rishi-Raj who had no such inhibitions explained how his mother threatened them stating a clause from the agreement. Anirudh was shocked. He left quietly without uttering a word. "Please don't do anything stupid." Shruthi tried to stop him. He ignored her.

He went straight to his mother's room and unlocked her laptop. He thought for a while for password and typed Amar2103, Amar's name followed by the date and month of his birth. It opened. He always asked his mother not to set such easy passwords. But today, this habit of hers proved to be a boon. He opened the folder in which his mother saved soft copies of all legal documents. His heart was pounding as he read the agreement of the business deal. The last clause in the statement clearly stated that KrisDev has a right to cancel the business deal with Dhanunjaya company if the wedding between Amar Pratap Devaraju and Prakash Dhanunjaya's daughter doesn't take place.

'So this is how amma threatened the Dhanunjayas. And this is why Vennela vadina is unhappy with this marriage. How can amma be so selfish?'

---***---

"Time for a traditional fun game. Let's see who would win. Vennela or Amar" announced Janaki. Everyone gathered around. Janaki explained the game. "This huge silver bowl will be filled with milk. A few pebbles and a gold ring will be thrown inside. The newly wedded couple will search for the ring by dipping a single hand in the milk. The one who finds the ring is believed to dominate the married life."

"Really grandma? So, the other person will be submissive for the rest of their lives?" asked Archana.

"Don't take it seriously. This is just for fun. No matter who wins the game, it's always the wives who dominate and husbands have to be submissive." Janaki answered making everyone laugh.

Amar and Vennela sat facing each other with the bowl placed in between them. Everyone in the hall were cheering either the bride or the groom except Anirudh who was uncharacteristically silent.

Janaki dropped the ring. Amar dipped his hand at once. "Come on akka." Shruthi screamed. Vennela inserted her hand.

Amar found the ring. He almost retrieved it when Vennela's hand came in contact with his hand. He quickly made up his mind and did the only thing he thought was correct. He tapped her hand with his fingers and made her hold the ring along with him. Together they held the ring up for everyone to see.

"They found it together. What is the meaning of this, grandma? Who won the game?" asked Archana.

"This is a very rare outcome in this game. It means that no one is superior or inferior in this marriage. Amar and Vennela are perfect for each other. They will be together forever." Janaki explained.

Everyone present in the hall applauded for the couple. Amar looked at his grandmother who gave him a knowing smile. 

He glanced at his wife. She was looking at him with a gleam of happiness in her eyes.

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