Astha was a Tulu Brahmin and she stayed at Chennai with her family. Astha had an elder brother who was settled in the US with his wife. She hailed from a middle class family and was a software developer. She was very creative and enjoyed singing in her free time. She was 29.
Amay lived in Bangalore. He was a Tamil Brahmin and was his parent's only son. He was a Business Analyst in a leading software company. He was also into theater during his free time. Amay also came from a simple and close knit family. He was 31.
Astha and Amay met each other a few months ago through a common friend. They had met just once, but decided to be in touch through whatsapp and facebook. After sometime, they started talking over the phone, and once they would start talking, they would continue for hours. Eventually they moved to Skyping each other almost daily.
Astha had gone to Bangalore to visit her friend Rashi one weekend and also met up with Amay during this visit. By then Amay was serious about Astha and he knew that she was the girl of his dreams.
He proposed to her that quiet sunday evening at a Chai Point outlet. There were no chocolates or big gifts, as that would become very cheesy. Amay got Astha two roses - one yellow rose and one red rose, and a ring. He remembered Astha tell him that it is important to be friends first in a relationship. The yellow rose signified friendship and the red signified love.
Amay also said the following lines to her:
"You complete me. You inspire me to become better in life. I am not perfect, but I will take care of you and love you forever. I'm bad at speeches, so to cut it short, ..will you marry me?"
Astha was a very sensitive and emotional girl and Amay's proposal made her cry of happiness. She said a "Yes" and he hugged her tight and kissed her forehead gently. She trembled out of emotion. He was 6 feet tall and she was just 5.2 feet. She looked tiny next to him, but his embrace comforted her. She felt like she belonged in his arms. She blushed and had a shy smile on her face. Her eyes still had tears. Astha had liked Amay since the first time they had met but she wasn't the kind of girl who would propose a guy. She was the shy kind, and so she never spoke to him about it.
Amay also said the following lines to her:
"You complete me. You inspire me to become better in life. I am not perfect, but I will take care of you and love you forever. I'm bad at speeches, so to cut it short, ..will you marry me?"
Astha was a very sensitive and emotional girl and Amay's proposal made her cry of happiness. She said a "Yes" and he hugged her tight and kissed her forehead gently. She trembled out of emotion. He was 6 feet tall and she was just 5.2 feet. She looked tiny next to him, but his embrace comforted her. She felt like she belonged in his arms. She blushed and had a shy smile on her face. Her eyes still had tears. Astha had liked Amay since the first time they had met but she wasn't the kind of girl who would propose a guy. She was the shy kind, and so she never spoke to him about it.
Astha had to return to Chennai that very night. Amay dropped her at the station. She was happy that Amay proposed but sad that she had to leave Bangalore. She wanted to be with him, and spend more time together. Long distance relationships can be difficult.
After a month, Amay and Astha decided to speak to their families about each other. They wanted to spend their lives together. The news came as a shock for both the families as they had no clue about the relationship. Amay came from a Tamil family and Astha was Tulu. This would be the first inter community relationship in their families.
When Astha's and Amay's families met for the first time, they got along quite well, though there was a certain amount of nervousness in both them.
The engagement happened in a simple way. Only the families and a few close friends were present. After spending some time with each other, the families realized that there were so many differences in their customs. She was Tulu and he was a Tamilian. The families had to communicate in Hindi and English.
In the midst of all the differences, there was something that connected both the families as well. It was their simplicity and goodness. It was their joy in the small things of life. And most of all it was the love between Astha and Amay. It was also the shy smile and dreamy eyes of Astha, and the happiness on Amay's face. These things were enough for the cultural differences to be wiped off.
The engagement happened in a simple way. Only the families and a few close friends were present. After spending some time with each other, the families realized that there were so many differences in their customs. She was Tulu and he was a Tamilian. The families had to communicate in Hindi and English.
In the midst of all the differences, there was something that connected both the families as well. It was their simplicity and goodness. It was their joy in the small things of life. And most of all it was the love between Astha and Amay. It was also the shy smile and dreamy eyes of Astha, and the happiness on Amay's face. These things were enough for the cultural differences to be wiped off.
After a lot of confusion, and new customs, Astha and Amay got married. They got married twice - one in the Tulu style and the other in the Tamil style. The guest list was kept small - families, close friends and some near and dear ones.
And that is the story of Astha and Amay.
-- The above post comes under the category 'Fiction'. Any feedback is welcome.
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