Pahalgam in autumn was a painting of gold and green, but the film unit was a splash of chaotic color. Trucks, cables, and shouting crew members covered the meadow by the Lidder River.
Rajendra watched from a distance. He'd flown in for two days. The official reason: to oversee the first major song shoot. The real reason: to make sure the "rival producer" didn't cause problems.
Shanti was there too. She stood wrapped in a thick Kashmiri shawl, talking to the local production manager. She pointed at a clipboard, then at the line of ponies meant to carry equipment. Her voice was calm but left no room for argument. She was handling logistics, and she was good at it.
She walked over to him, her cheeks pink from the cold. "The pony contractor just tried to double the price. Claimed the horses are 'artistic' and need extra feed."
"And?"
"I told him we'd use trucks and make his ponies into a background scene for free. He changed his mind." She smiled. A real, proud smile.
"You're scary," Rajendra said.
"Good. You need scary people."
The shoot was for the song where the hero sees the heroine for the first time. Salman Khan, looking young and eager in a bright sweater, stood by the river. Madhuri Dixit, in a flowing pink pheran, was being adjusted by a stylist. The director, Prakash Mehra, shouted through a megaphone.
"Places! We lose the light in three hours! Move!"
The first problem was small. A generator sputtered and died. Then a box of special camera lenses went missing.
Ganesh found Rajendra. "Bhai, the generator's fuel line was cut. Clean cut. The lens box was under a tarp. The guard says he turned away for five minutes to get tea."
"Sabotage," Rajendra said.
"The rival's men. They want to delay us. Make us waste money."
Rajendra thought. Using MAKA's muscle here was risky. This was Kashmir. Army patrols. Local tensions. He needed a softer touch.
He found the local police sub-inspector, a man named Farooq. They were already paying him to keep things smooth.
"Inspector Sahib," Rajendra said. "Some people are trying to ruin this project. The project that brings money to your valley. The Tourism Ministry in Delhi is watching."
He didn't need to say more. He added another wad of rupees to the man's hand. "Maybe extra patrols near our equipment tonight? And a talk with any local boys who are taking bad advice from outsiders?"
Inspector Farooq pocketed the money with a smooth motion. "These troublemakers will be taught a lesson, sahib. Your art will not be disturbed."
The next morning, the missing lens box was back. The generator was fixed. The shoot went ahead.
That evening, the unit huddled around a bonfire. The air was freezing, but the fire was warm. Rajendra stood a little apart. Shanti came over with two steel cups of hot kahwa.
"Here. To stop your teeth from chattering."
He took the cup. "You fixed things today."
"You fixed the inspector. I just handled the ponies."
"It's a team," he said.
They stood in silence, watching the flames. The mountains were huge and dark around them.
"Sometimes," Shanti said quietly, "this feels real. Building something. Not just sitting in my father's office, watching his ship sail."
"This is real," Rajendra said. "The cold is real. The ponies are real. The people trying to stop us are real."
"And us?" she asked, not looking at him.
"We're the ones who didn't get stopped."
She glanced at him then, and for a second, the firelight was in her eyes. Then she looked back at the flames.
The next day, they shot the song. Salman fumbled a line. Madhuri laughed. The director yelled "Cut!" but he was smiling. The chemistry was there. It was working.
As they packed to leave, Prakash Mehra clapped Rajendra on the back. "We have something special, Shakuniya-ji. I can feel it."
On the flight back to Mumbai, Shanti fell asleep in the seat next to him, her head tilting toward his shoulder. He didn't move.
He looked out the window at the clouds below. The mountains were behind them. The city, with all its mess and opportunity, lay ahead.
He had won this round. But the fight was never over. It just changed locations.