Several days have passed. Krishna appears running for Bijju with a bowl in his hand yelling his name.
Krishna: Bijju! Bijju!
Bijju's mother: What is it, Krishna dear?
Krishna: Mai, look, Ma made curd for Bijju.
Bijju's mother: Wah! Very nice of her.
Krishna: This will help him heal faster. Where is he?
Bijju's mother: (Calls) Bijju! Bijju! Look, Krishna brought something for you.
Bijju: (drawing something on the cast, leaves it and runs outside) Really! What is it?
Krishna: (Raises the bowl) Look, I brought curd for you.
Bijju: (Smiles) I want some.
Krishna: It is all for you. Come, sit here. I will feed you.
Bijju: (Sits before him)
Krishna: (Feed him with a spoon)
Bijju: (Gulps) It is not sour.
Krishna: Of course not, Ma put jaggery in it. When I told her things made from milk will help you heal faster, she made this.
Bijju: Umm, it is very good.
Krishna: I will bring it for you daily until you get better.
Abha and Bijju's mother were watching all this standing together at a distance.
Bijju's mother: Look at them, if any stranger saw them, they would think they were brothers.
Abha: Cause they are brothers. He is your son too. He calls you Mai, remember.
Note - Mai is another term for mother in Hindi language.
Bijju's mother: (Smiles) He is my son, just born to you.
Abha: And Bijju is mine, born to you.
Both laugh.
Bijju's mother: Where is your daughter though? I always see her with the boys.
Abha: What should I say? The boys build her a swing by the riverside. She keeps playing there all the time.
Bijju's mother: They built a swing!?
Abha: You don't know. Why, though? Bijju brought one of your old sarees to wrap the ropes with.
Bijju's mother: Oh! So that's what he took it for.
Abha: Krishna! Bijju! Go see what Rani is doing by the riverside.
Krishna: Ok. (Goes and hands over the bowl to Abha) Come Bijju. We should hang out by the riverside too.
Bijju: Coming (wears a shirt and follows him).
Rani was swinging on the swing with the little children jumping around waiting for their chance. Rani got down and let a child climb the swing while she pushed from behind. Krishna and Bijju appear out of the crops fields.
Krishna: Look, she is still on the swing.
Bijju: She is enjoying it for what it was made.
Krishna: You did not properly swing yourself on that, did you?
Bijju: (raises his plastered hand) How can I? It is hard to maintain balance with just one hand.
Krishna: Don't worry, I will give you the push.
Bijju: Don't push very hard then, or I might launch into the sky.
Krishna: We will keep the launch on hold until the cast is off of your hand.
Bijju: That would be better, brother. Haha.
Krishna: Oye! Move, everybody. It is time for us to take the swing. You all come back later.
The children back off.
Rani: Came to cause trouble!
Krishna: You are the one causing trouble. Ma says that you have built yourself a house here, spending all day here.
Rani: You made it for me, didn't you?
Krishna: So, you will monopolise it. Move it, Bijju is going to swing. Come Bijju, take your throne.
Bijju: Watch it, king is on the way.
Rani: Broken king! (Laughs).
Krishna: A king is a king, broken or not.
Bijju: (Sits) You hear that, now push minister Krishna.
Krishna: (pushes) As you command my king.
Rani and other children laugh.
Time passed. Bijju's hand recovered and the cast was undone. The children grew along with the crops in their field each year. The seasons changed, quickly. The field cycled through emptiness to greenery then again to emptiness. Every year the boys went to the capital along with Nana and Bijju's father to deliver the harvest. And everytime Krishna would sit in the park enjoying the view while Bijju sat beside him. The simple girl was now not a little girl anymore but a beautiful young lady searching for her Krishna. She sweeps through the giant grasses following a pleasant flute music. As the riverside came into view, she could see Krishna sitting under the tree with the swing, playing the flute while the cows grazed peacefully around him enjoying the music. Rani approached him with a smile on her face. She leans on the tree silently listening to him play. Krishna continued playing as a visible string of music flowed out of the flute towards the river.
Krishna: (Stops playing) I know you are here, Radhe.
Rani: Oh! How do you always know?
Krishna: (Looks back, smiles) I do cause I am your Krishna.
Rani: (Smiles) Yes, you are. Now, come, Baba sent me to call you back home.
Krishna: (Stands) What for?
Rani: The city fair of course.
Krishna: Oh! It is already that time of the year, I see.
Rani: We never missed a single one.
Krishna: And we will not miss this one either, yes, yes, I know.
Rani: (Annoyed) Why? Do you not wanna go?
Krishna: Do you not wanna go?
Rani: Of course, I want to.
Krishna: Then I want to too. I can go anywhere for you.
Rani: You say it like you don't do anything for yourself. It's like I am forcing you.
Krishna: (Laughs) What you want is what I want. Doing anything for you is doing it for me, idiot. I was born for you.
Rani: Flattery again! Right.
Krishna and Rani begin walking down towards their hut followed by the cows when Bijju pushes out of the high grasses. Krishna waves at him.
Bijju: Well, looks like Rani di is already bringing him back.
At the city fair…
They may have grown a bit, but their minds were still of those young kids. They hopped from one swing to another and explored the game and food stalls. With the kids, the Ferris wheel grew too. This fair boasted a bigger and fancier Ferris wheel than the previous ones.
Krishna: (Wraps his arm around Bijju's shoulder) Woah!! This year's Ferris wheel is something else. The view up top would be amazing. Come on, we definitely have to climb it.
Bijju: That is, (looks up as he scans the wheel) biiiiig!
Nana: Well, if you want to then you two can go ahead. Rani, we shall go to some other stalls over there.
Rani: I will go too.
Krishna: Huh!!
Bijju: Huh!
Nana and others: Huh!!!
Rani: I want to ride the wheel.
Nana: But, son, you are afraid of heights. And this one is…
Rani: No worries, I can handle it. I want to witness the view from the top of the wheel.
Abha: Are you sure dear?
Rani: Krishna made me climb the tallest tree once to show me a sunset. If he is there, then I won't be afraid.
Abha: But Rani, he is the one…
Nana: What? Krishna is there? He is there, that's an addition to your trouble. What if he caused mischief up there, like he always does.
Krishna: Baba, easy, I am not a kid anymore.
Nana: What did you say? Did you see your face in the mirror before coming here?
Bijju's father: Ok, ok, let her go. If she wants to conquer her fear, then give her a chance.
Nana: Fine, if you say so. Go on.
They reach the wheel, but it only has seats for two.
Krishna: It only has seats for two. What's the meaning of this? Previous wheels had seats for four.
Vendor: It is to maintain the balance brother. This one is big, we don't want to exert any more weight than the motors can handle.
Krishna: Only two, what shall we do now?
Rani: This is troublesome.
Bijju: Why don't just the two of you go?
Krishna: Huh! But!
Bijju: Don't worry, I always climb the wheel, let Rani di take my place this year (smiles).
Bijju's father: Good boy, listen to him. You two go on. And Rani, conquer the fear. We will be right over there.
Krishna: Ok then, let's go.
They climb the wheel and it starts to move. Nana looks at them from below. Rani seemed excited so Nana went back to the group.
Krishna: Hey, Rani, I never said I will not cause any mischief.
Rani: Huh! What does that mean?
The wheel stops with a jerk. Rani panics briefly and grabs the support around.
Rani: (Flustered) What did you do?
Krishna: (Laughs) I did not do anything. The wheel just stopped to drop some people.
Rani: (Scared) Drop!!?
Krishna: I mean, to let them get off. It will start again.
Rani: Ok, I see. You don't do anything mischievous, alright.
Krishna Ok, ok. I won't. Anyways, what made you climb the wheel this time?
The wheel starts moving again.
Rani: I wanted to see the view up top.
Krishna: Ah! I see.
Rani: I remembered the view I saw that day when I climbed the tree.
Krishna: And since then you never climbed any again.
Rani: And did not see any view like that again. So, I did not want to miss this opportunity. The view is going to be worth it, right?
Krishna: How would I know? This is the first time for me too, climbing this huge Ferris wheel.
Rani: You gotta be kidding.
Krishna: What? You thought this was common for me.
Rani: Yeah, I thought you have climbed one before (the wheel stops with a jerk again shaking the seats, grabs the support) Woah! Woah! Woah!
Krishna: The shaking is really hard. I understand now what the vendor was saying.
Rani: Oh come on, you are really not doing anything?
Krishna: No, Radhe. Look at me. I am just sitting here.
Rani: Oh god! Is this going to be like this all the way up?
Krishna: You better hold tight.
The wheel moved again. Rani held tightly to the supports. She slowly tried to peek from the side to judge the height and found out that she was quite high. Her body shivered. The wheel stopped again and Rani fell forward as she lost grip on the supports. Krishna grabs her as her head leans on Krishna's chest.
Krishna: Woah! I thought you were holding the supports.
Rani: (Grabs Krishna, shivers) Hold me, I am gonna fall.
Krishna: Hey, I got you. Look at me, look at me (grabs her chin and slowly raises it up), see, I am holding you. I am not letting you go until you say so.
He gently slides her hair behind her left ear then caresses her cheek. She slowly calms down.
Krishna: Look, (grabs her chin and gently turns her face towards the left) is this view worth it?
As she turns, the space stretches out shining the lights across the surface illuminating the attractions and the crowd of people around. Even the houses outside of the fair painted the scenery with their unique design while the moonlight washed the sky with a brilliant shade of white. Rani was mesmerized. Krishna held her in his arms as he watched Rani's eyes glittering with the lights of the fair with a smile on his face.
They get off of the ride. Krishna extends his hand and Rani holds it stepping down the seat.
Krishna: Well, Radhe, how was it?
Rani: It was…worth it.
Krishna: Glad to hear it. Let's go, everyone is over there (pulls her along holding her hand).
Rani: (Follows him with a lovely expression on her face looking at Krishna).
They reach others who were busy stuffing their faces before one of the stalls.
Nana: (Spoon in his mouth) Ahh! How was it? Has this jerk caused trouble on the wheel?
Krishna: I wish. The wheel was the one pranking her.
Nana: What?
Krishna: (Pulls her towards Nana) Here, take your daughter and get her the stuff you are eating. Hey, Bijju, (wraps his arm around his shoulder) We are going to the wheel.
Bijju: Huh! Again.
Krishna: No, I am going again, this will be your first (Pulls him away).
Abha: Come here dear, did you enjoy the attraction?
Rani: Yes, I did.
Nana: Was it not scary?
Rani: At first it was, but I adjusted to it.
Bijju's father: See, I told you. Just give her a chance and she will conquer her fear. Hahaha.
Nana: You are right. hahaha.
Rani: (Looks back lovingly at Krishna who was walking away smiling and laughing with Bijju and suddenly her eyes spotted something else and she checked her money pouch).
Next day…
Rani hurried with her chores like she was eager to go somewhere.
Bijju's mother: (Sitting watching Abha work) Where did this boy go? He is taking his sweet time.
Abha: Don't worry about it. The boy is still learning.
Bijju's mother: It is just some household shopping. What is so tough about it? Oh sorry, I forgot, he is a little slow in the head.
Abha: (Chuckles) Should I have sent Krishna with him?
Bijju's mother: Oh! And who would take our cows to graze then? I wouldn't trust anyone else with my cows except my son Krishna.
Abha: (Smiles and continues her work)
Bijju's mother: Have you heard your son playing the flute?
Abha: Hmm, I have.
Bijju's mother: Can you believe that he got so good just on his own? It is almost like he is really Lord Krishna.
Abha: Arey! Don't compare God with him. I know my Krishna is good but saying he is like a god is such a stretch.
Bijju's mother: Sorry. But God always comes as a human, doesn't he?
Abha: He does, but my Krishna is just Krishna, no god. I don't wanna lose him like every other mother of the incarnation of God.
Bijju's mother: Don't worry. I was just making a reference. I wasn't suggesting that he is. I just said he is like him. His flute is just so sweet to my ears.
Abha: No doubt about it.
Radha: (Rushes out) Ma, I am going to the riverside.
Abha: Arey! (Rani vanishes) And she is gone.
Bijju's mother: So, when are you planning to get them married?
Abha: Krishna's father says he wants Rani to study.
Bijju's mother: Why though?
Abha: He thinks she is very capable and can secure a good job that will improve our lifestyle.
Bijju's mother: But, she can still study after getting married, can't she?
Abha: I said so as well. But he thinks getting married to Krishna early will cause him to mess up her future. So he said we should wait until she decides to do so herself. It wouldn't be right to force her into it.
Bijju's mother: Wow! How thoughtful! I wish I had you as my parents. I wanted to study too. But my parents thought girls are only meant for household work and they should limit their dreams to being just good housewives. I may have achieved something too if my parents were this considerate.
Abha: Times have changed. And wouldn't you want your child to have everything that you couldn't. Once I had dreams too. Thanks to God, I got Krishna's father as my husband who would let me have the opportunity to see my dreams come true through Rani.
Bijju's mother: (Looks at Abha with tender eyes)
Rani jumps out of the tall grass into the open where Krishna appears directing cows to the grazing field. Rani pants and slowly heads for the tree with the swing looking at Krishna. Krishna notices her and waves at her with a smile. She slowly goes and leans on the tree and watches him going around with the cows. Krishna comes to Rani after sometime and sits under the tree beside her.
Krishna: Phew! What's up Radhe? You look out of breath. You came to see me?
Rani: Yes.
Krishna: (Surprised) Huh! I thought you would deny it like always. What's with you today?
Rani: (sits beside him) I wanted to hear you play the flute.
Krishna: Oh! I see. You like my flute music, don't you? I am so happy that you do. I have practiced so much to get better at playing it. I will play it right away (takes out his flute). I always have it on me, see.
Rani: (Grabs his flute and pushes it down).
Krishna: Huh! What's wrong?
Rani: Use this (brings out a brand new good looking flute).
Krishna: (takes it) Wow! Have you bought this? For me? It is beautiful.
Rani: I saved some money and got this in the fair last night. Do you like it?
Krishna: I love it as much as I love you, my Radhe (begins playing it).
Rani: (Sits and listens to him play with a loving smile on her face, after sometime she slowly gets up and gets closer to his ear and whispers) I love you, my Krishna (and kisses him on the cheek).
Krishna: (Stops playing, and looks at her blushing when a strong wind blows briefly waving their hair).
Rani: (Drops her head on Krishna's left shoulder to hide her flushed face).
Krishna: (Turns his face towards the river and sees a peacock feather flying with the wind which comes and lands on the river surface standing upright). Look at that beautiful peacock feather that just landed on the water surface.
Rani: (slowly shifts her head on his shoulder to look at the feather).
Krishna: It is amazing how the air brought it here to make it stand like that on the surface of the water. I promise you, even if I fall and vanish into the waters, I will still be with you always, just like that feather, invisible, but flowing with you until the end.
"So, if you ever feel lonely, then don't look for me here and there
just breathe and you will always find me in the air…"
It will always bring me back to you, just like it brought the beautiful feather to this beautiful river.
Rani: (raises her head and looks at Krishna) I will not allow you to go anywhere.
Krishna: Is that so? (Smiles) Know that I will not go away until you tell me to.
Rani: I will never tell you to go away. (Puts her head on his shoulder again) I will love you forever, I promise.
Krishna: (Begins playing his flute again).