Day 37. The green printed mulmul is part of my anniversary sari loot this year. The run-up to birthdays and anniversaries is time for a lot of secret service operations at our home, everybody trying to surprise the special one. There’s a known smile exchanged every now and then among the partners in “crime’, some inevitable beans spilt by the seniors followed by some frantic cover-up and a lot of innocent “I don’t know a thing” expressions are feigned. Amid all this conspiracy, it’s the duty of the person(s) whose birthday or anniversary it is to be suitably oblivious. Quite a task that can be! So when the day before our anniversary, my sister-in-law Sarmistha and my brother-in-law Sandipan declared they had to go out on some important work, I put on my nonchalant best. But to be honest, I hadn’t a clue what they were up to. At midnight, Sarmistha handed me my gift with a note that said “here are two additions to your wardrobe for the #100sareepact, the stories to be told in person”. This is one of the two saris in the packet. I’ll share half the story with this sari and keep the rest for the other one.
So, for all those who keep asking how I manage to find matching accessories for every outfit or sari and whether I buy them to match, I sincerely don’t. But this one’s different. All the credit for the perfectly synced accessories goes to Sarmistha and Sandipan. Let’s start at the very beginning, that’s a very good place to start. Only, this sari story begins the other way round. Sarmistha got two neckpieces with matching earrings made for me and went armed with them to Bunkari India to buy saris that matched. And she actually managed to find them. I love the saris but what touched me most is the thought and effort that when into planning the gift. The staff at Bunkari must have thought her to be quite crazy! I was eager to wear the sari and share it but had to wait for the blouse to be made. I picked it up from the tailor yesterday and couldn’t wait any longer. The wait was actually worth it because a few days ago Sandipan brought me two pairs of bangles to match the saris. He had stopped at the fuel station and dropped in at the adjacent Jharcraft store, from where he bought a sari for Sarmistha and the bangles for me. So thank you to the lovely pair to help me pair my sari with the perfect accessories and giving me a moment and a story I will cherish forever more than any gift. PS: Watch this space for part II of the story.