Peace, maybe. Or the beginning of it.
‘I will be,’ I said.
And for the first time in a long while, I actually believed it.
Epilogue
Six Months Later
Ananya
I took a sip of my chai.Ah. My eyes slid shut. It was not quite like Maa’s, but I was getting close.
The Mumbai skyline was bathed in a soft gold light, making its usual chaos appear serene. I’d seen countless sunsets from Jai’s apartment, and each time, they took my breath away. Jai sat on the chair next to me, tracing lazy circles on my feet that rested on his knees as he read one of our suppliers’ contracts.
Despite this perfect set-up, I was unable to enjoy it. I put the cup down and groaned. ‘Why is this so hard?’
For the past six months, Jai and I had poured our hearts and souls into our venture.
Jai’s insights into everything business-related proved invaluable. There was so much to starting your own fashion house – from getting investors to setting up a factory to planning a launch party – that I had no idea about.
Jai funded most of the seed investment himself. The only other investors in the company were Harish uncle and Arjun. I also contributed a small amount from my steadily growing stream of gigs,much to Jai’s protests (I wanted to bring something to the table beyond my design skills). Retaining a controlling share of the company and having trusted investors was incredibly important to him because only that could protect his vision for the company and its soul.
We saw eye-to-eye on almost everything. The only things we couldn’t settle on were the company name and the guest list for the launch party.
We’d registered the business under the name Advaya. It meant one of a kind and was a mix of both our names. But we no longer resonated with it, and if we wanted to change it, we had to do so before we sent out the invites.
‘What is?’
‘ChatGPT is useless. I can’t find a single name I like.’
‘I had an idea.’ He took a sip of his chai and put the cup down. ‘We should name it Ananya Tripathi.’
I opened my mouth to protest, but he raised a hand.
‘Before you say anything, just hear me out,’ he said. ‘Our vision for this company is to give artisans the recognition they deserve. And you are the heart and soul of this company, Ananya. If we don’t even start with givingyouthe credit you deserve, then we might as well be like any other fashion house.’
‘You deserve credit too, Jai. I’ve been able to focus on designing and creating the outfitsbecauseyou’re taking care of the business side. We’re equal partners, and both of us deserve to have our names on the door.’
‘Partnership doesn’t mean symmetry. You are the face of what we’re building, and the name should reflect that,’ he murmured. ‘Ananya Tripathi is perfect for us.’
I should’ve argued more. But hearing my name from his lips, spoken like a promise, and that soft yet determined look on his face, filled me with a brightness and ease.
‘Okay,’ I whispered. ‘Ananya Tripathi, it is.’
He pressed a soft, melting kiss to my lips before handing me my notepad. ‘Now let’s finalise the guest list.’
We were inviting 150 people, out of which 20 would be friends and family. We split that number down the middle between us.
‘Yeah, about that ...’ I bit down on my lip. ‘Can I please invite more people? Even if I just invite my close family and Rhea, it’s going to be twelve people. There is no way I can bring this number down to ten.’
‘I’m not close to my extended family. I can take them off the list. The only people I care about being there are my friends and Harish uncle. With my family, we’re six people,’ Jai said, slipping into problem-solving mode.
‘And are you sure you’re okay with so few guests of your own?’ I asked. It was unfair, but if he offered it, he meant it.
‘Absolutely.’
‘Thank you.’ I blew him a kiss. ‘Oh, and um, Rekha called earlier when you were in the shower. Asked if I could make her a sari for the event. She wanted to support us and thought the launch would be the perfect time to do it.’
