[mausam]

PART 2

Abhi tak to maine isee english main likha hain....par mujhe kai logon ne kaha isee hindi main likhu to jitna maine english main type kiya hain utna main post karti hooon baki ka hindi main karungi....

“Try to pick up some cooking,”Pooja’s friend tried to tell her but she was on cloud nine, too wrapped in her dreams to care. Cushioned in the comfortable cocoon of a dream world, they left for the honeymoon.

But all honeymoons end at some time and so did’s pooja’s. IT was time for her to set her new home. The first thought that struck on her return was: What will I feed my husband?

Unable to decide what to do, she began leafing through through the pages of a magazine. Her eyes were arrested by an advertisement for a ready-to-eat product : If you’re not a good cook, don’t despair. Try our range of ready-to-eat products. It’s easy, just heat and serve and earn the love of your husband, for life. Our range includes pullao, tikkas, gobhi…………..

Poojas let out a yelp of happiness as she jumped up and rushed out.

Rahul shouted in surprise, “Hey where r you off to?.

I” ll be back in a few minutes. I am off to get your dinner,”she shouted back.

She entered the nearest supermarket and walked purposefully towars the array of packages, bottles and tins of ready-to-eat products lined on the shelves. An endless vriety greeted her eyes. There were ready-mix packets of gulabjamuns, sambhar, rasam, pillao, chickens cutlets and tikkas, breakfast cereals, soups and whole lot of other things. She laughed gleefully as she heaped her shopping basket and ran back home.

Rahul has never seen so many varieties of packages, tin and bottles in his life. Although the purchases has burnt a big hole in his packet, he was too excited with his new wife to care.

He followed his wife to the kitchen and watched her as she procedded to prepare their meal, following the directions given on the packages and tin. Soon a delicious aroma began to emanate from the kitchen and rahul began to feel hungry.

“The wonders of the scientific age,” he sang as he took his place at the table. “Who could have thought that food could be cooked so easily? Had I known, I would have never agreed to marry. I would have just bought thoise packages and tins and bottles and prepared my own meals,”he teased pooja.

“The chicken is fantastic,” he remarked.

Pooja smiled happily as she heaped his plate with muttar pullao.

“Who says one cannot get along without the knowledge of cooking?”she thought.

She was blissfully unaware of the problems that lay ahead, but just then things were fine. Breakfasts were a variety of sandwiches made with cheese spreads, mayonnaise , peanut butter and many other fillings that pooja has picked up from the shelves of the supermarket.

The lovelorn couple spent their days on the array of tins, bottles and packages.”So far, so good,”J

All the good things come to an an end at some time or the other. Soon rahul’s leave was over and he had to rejoin the work.

“Darling, my leave is over. I fell like having something other than the tinned stuff for my dinner. Please try cooking something fresh today. I am fed up with ready-to-eat foods,” remarked rahul as he got ready for the office.............

Pooja realized that she would have to start proper cooking; she still didn’t have the slightest idea of how to go about it. She went out and bought a few cook books and some fresh vegetables.

“Today I”ll try making peas pullao and dum aloo’” she thought as she leafed through the recipe books,”these looks quite simple.’

But she had never imagined that cooking could be so complicated. By the time she had finished chopping the potatoes: almost all her fingers were decorated with bandages She kept rushing out of the kitchen to apply burnol every few minutes and tears streamed streamed down her face as she kept struggling with onions.

“Whoever invented cooking?” she grumbled,wiping her eyes.”why couldn’t man be content eating raw foods as his ancestors did?”

The kitchen was a total mess and utensils were oiled up in a sink. After a hectic 3 hours in the kitchen, Pooja heaved a sigh of relief. She had followed the recipes to each comma and full stop. The dum aloo looked tempting as she poured it into the serving bowl. The muttar pullao also looked delicious and smelt heavenly. She put a few red roses in the vase and placed it on the dining table.

Satisfied, she went in for a bath to wash away the sweat and grime. She emerged 10 mins later, dressed in a fresh pink salwaar suit and brushed her short hairs into a curl. She was applying a bindi when the doorbell rang.

Rahul pure din ki thakan se chur ghar main daakhil hua.....

“kitna kaam jama ho gaya hain itne dino ki chutti ki wajeh se ab mujhe bahut kaam karna padega ”rahul ne badbadake kaha.....

“chai ?” pooja ne pucha ek badi si cutie si smile ke saath.....

“nahin dear.....main aaj bahut thaka hua hoon...aaj jaldi khana laga do...mujhe so jaana hain jaldi."

“koi baat nahin....khana taiyyar hain jaanu....tum fresh ho jaao main khana lagati hoon....

POOJA kitchen main soup lene gayi jisko usne packet se banaya tha...baaki saari cheeze usnein banayi thi soup ko chodke....rahul ne bade hosh se soup piya.....

“wow kitna badhiya soup hain itna accha soup maine apni zindagi main nahin piya ,”rahul pooja ki tarif karte huve bolta hain .pooja khishi se chamak uthti hain rahul ke muh se apne liye tarif sunkar.....{agge age aur tarife hogi}.

Rahul ne ek niwala pullao ka apne muh mein rakha aur dusre hi pal usne sab thuk diya.

“yeh kya hain ? yeh muttar itne patthar jaise kyun hain ? tum kaise soch sakti ho ki main isse khau ,mere muh main hathode thodi na hain!”

“par maine to kitaab ke hisaab se banaya hain,” pooja ne kaha

"yeh koi joke hain kya?"" rahul gusse se bola.


"jaanu, main tumhe kitab dikha sakti hu..yeh dekho recipe, mai.......


"kisko tumhari book dekhni hain?...mujhe sirf khana chahiye..tum apni kitaab apne paas rakho."


agla part baad mein...........