Rani retreated to her room, collapsed on the bed, and opened her phone. Looking at Rakesh's photo, she wept. "I didn't want this for you. I didn't know you would fall. It never crossed my mind that such an accident could happen. If I had known, I would never have left you. I can't live without you. I only came away for a few days... I would have come back the moment you called. I never imagined you would go so far away. How will I live the rest of my life? Father and Mother wouldn't even let me see you one last time. They don't understand that I truly love you."
In her despair, she felt that if the person she loved was no longer in this world, she shouldn't be either. She picked up a pair of sharp scissors nearby and was about to cut her wrist when her two aunts rushed in and grabbed her hand.
The Aunts: "What are you doing? Have you lost your mind? What happened is for the best. You didn't do anything. It was just his time to die. Listen, he's dead, and now you are free. We'll find a good boy for you to marry. That boy's arrogance to think he could marry our Rani—it serves him right that he's gone!"
Rani turned on them with a fury they had never seen.
Rani: "I am warning you—do not say a single bad word about Rakesh in front of me! This happened because of you. I should have listened to my heart instead of you. I should have kicked both of you out the day you came to his house. Because I listened to you, I lost the most valuable person in my life forever. I've become a villain in the eyes of my own parents."
She pointed to the door. "Get out of this room. Right now! And don't you ever try to speak to me again. If you do, it will be very bad for you. I told you to go!"
Stunned and defensive, the aunts muttered, "We only wanted what was best for you... fine, we're leaving."
The White Saree of Penance
For the next month, the final rites and mourning continued at Rakesh's house. At Rani's home, the Shraddha (funeral rituals) were also performed, as she was Rakesh's lawfully wedded wife. Rani did not return to Rakesh's house, but she never for a moment forgot him.
In Hindu tradition, a married woman and a widow wear different attire; traditionally, a widow wears a plain white saree. Though few follow these strict customs in the modern age, to Rani, Rakesh was her world. She decided that for the rest of her life, she would wear only white. Despite the protests of her family, she remained firm.
Rani stopped going out. She spent most of her time sitting in silence in her room. She barely spoke. She would sit before a photograph of Rakesh, lost in thought for hours. She barely ate, and the neglect began to take a toll on her health. Ten months after Rakesh's death, her condition became critical. The doctor warned that if this continued, Rani's life would be in danger and suggested a change of scenery—a trip to a place of natural beauty.