In the whirlwind world of Indian cinema, where dreams collide and hearts entwine, two souls from opposite ends of the country find themselves entangled in a love story destined to defy all odds.
Meet Dhruv Kapoor, the charismatic heartthrob of Bolly...
"Guruji, what can these symbols mean?" Ram asked to Guru Markhandeya, explaining what he saw.
"A lot of meaning can be put to this. But the general meaning is that it represents two energies; masculine and feminine." Markhandeya explained.
"So, does this mean that it requires a male and female to open the door?" Ram asked.
"I think so, yes." Markhandeya replied.
"Is there anyone who will know about this tunnel in detail? Someone whom we can get on our side?" Ram asked.
"There is one, but I'm not sure if she'll take our side." Guru Markhandeya said.
"Who?"
"The queen of Satavahana, Vidhurak's wife, Avantika." Markhandeya said.
"Where is Maharani Avantika now?" Ram asked.
"You'll have to ask that to your woman." Markhandeya said.
"My woman?" Ram asked.
"The woman whom you wanted to give the blueprint to." Markhandeya said.
"Ah, she's not my woman. S-She's just.. a woman." Ram argued, a little embarrassed by what his guruji said.
"Well can you give me a name so that I don't need to call her your woman the next time?" Markhandeya asked.
"Her name is Yashasvini." Ram said. He didn't want to lie to his guruji.
He already has lied a little and didn't want to lie further. He doubted if Markhandeya would recognize the name so he just told her original name.
"Anyways, then maybe I'll just ask her about Maharani Avantika." Ram said.
"Yuvraj (Crown prince)." Markhandeya called out.
"Yes guruji?" Ram asked.
"Does she know?" He asked.
Ram took a few seconds and caught up with his context.
"Not yet." Ram replied.
"Tell it to her before it's too late, or else you'll regret it." Markhandeya adviced.
Ram took the advice and went back home. But in the back of his mind, he had something else.
She's from my enemy kingdom. If I tell her the truth, she'll resent me and even if I don't, she'll still resent me when she finds out. Us having any relationship was forbidden anyways. It's better if we part ways after conquering Satavahana.
Despite his mind saying that, he still felt the guilt of not telling the truth. She deserved to know it.
When Ram stepped inside the house when he opened the door, Yashasvini came running towards him and tripped over something, falling right into Ram's arms. Her face was at his chest. She looked up at him and he looked down at her. They kept looking at each other for a few seconds. Ram's heart skipped a beat.
Dhrithiman, who was eating a roti walking around, dropped the roti when he saw Ram and Yashasvini standing like that.
"Did I miss something?" Dhrithiman asked.
Both of the turned to Dhrithiman and moved away from each other.
"N-no, it was an a-accident." Yashasvini stuttered.
Ram looked at her silently and looked away.
"Anyways! I found the meaning of the sun and the moon, though I'm not so sure." Yashasvini said cheerfully with a broad smile on her face.
"What is it?" Ram asked. He couldn't help but smile seeing her face when she said that.
"So, I saw a play in the market today. I remembered a hindu myth after looking at it."
Ram nodded and listened attentively.
"It is said that the sun and the moon represent masculine and feminine energy. Whenever Lord Shiva used to perform the tandav, both the energies come together to witness it. So if a dance is performed by both the energies, I think it can probably open the door of the tunnel." Yashasvini concluded.
Ram listened and got lost in deep thought after hearing her concept.
"But I don't understand one thing." Ram said.
Yashasvini turned towards him.
"Why would a tunnel have such a peculiar way of entry? What if he needs to use the tunnel urgently? Then he'll need a feminine energy for it. But why is it so that the king himself alone cannot open it?" Ram asked.
"Well only the person who knows about this tunnel well can answer our questions." Yashasvini said.
"Maharani Avantika might know. But we need to know what kind of a person she is and if she'll support us." Ram said.
Yashasvini's face brightened.
"Yes, I've seen Maharani Avantika. She lives in a different room, far away from the king's room. She is a kind woman. Vidhurak seems to be ill treating her, and she seems fed up with his infatuation for women. She's a strong yet soft woman by heart." Yashasvini explained.
"Then we should try talking to her." Ram said.
Yashasvini nodded in agreement.
"I'll talk to her when I find her the next time. I'll get her on our side somehow and get the details."
The next morning, when she went as usual to work, Yashasvini went to Avantika's room. The guards didn't ask anything because Avantika allowed Yashasvini to come in.
"So.. I heard that you're the king's new concubine." The queen said. She didn't seem very upset. It seemed like she was cheering Yashasvini up.
Yashasvini was clearly surprised by the queen's reaction.
"Ah, no Maharani. That is false information." Yashasvini said laughing awkwardly.
"I'd like to talk to you in private Maharaniji." Yashasvini said.
Avantika waved her hand, signaling all the workers in the room to leave at once.
"Let me go first." Avantika said.
Yashasvini nodded humbly to the queen's order.
"To begin with, I know that you are the king's new concubine. You're way too beautiful. That's what the king wants. I don't know whether to feel happy for pity the previous concubine." Avantika said rather rashly now.
"The previous concubine?" Yashasvini asked.
"A girl called Anagha. I pity that girl. She didn't like him and all he did was push himself upon her. As his wife, he never gave attention to me and frankly, I don't want it either. Here's a piece of advice. Don't get involved with him, or you're going to ruin your life." Avantika said stepping closer to Yashasvini.
"Maharaniji, I have something to reveal to you."
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To be continued... -------------------------- Guys please vote and comment on the how you felt about the chapter. Thank you for reading!
