Husband is Cooking

Welcome to a typical day in the life of Ananya, our homemaker who is also the protagonist of this story. She is the proud owner of a cozy home with a beautiful balcony, a loving husband and two adorable kids. But her pride was put to test in the current pandemic situation. She has to maintain this beautiful home all on her own since any helping hand from outside can be risky. Her husband is working from home and busier with work than ever before due to the current situation. With the schools closed, the kids demand her attention 24/7. As a result, she has little or no time for herself. Her life has bounced out of track in an attempt to keep everything else on track.

It is 7 o’clock in the morning. Ananya sat on a chair with sleep laden eyes in her balcony with a cup of warm rose tea in her hand reminiscing the good times from her last vacation to Munnar from where she bought this tea. 

Those wonderful days….

She looked at the series of clothes hanging on a string in her neighbor’s balcony fluttering in the morning breeze and soaking up the warm sun.

Really? Laundry done already? Is she a super woman?

Nah… I think her husband did it… Or her maid… is she allowing a maid?

Ananya knitted her eyebrows for a while thinking but then relaxed it.

Ah ok…. To each his own… It’s their decision… It’s their life…

She took a sip of the aromatic tea. They had decided not to keep a maid for a while due to the coronavirus pandemic spreading fast across the city. As a result, Ananya’s workload had increased by a magnitude. Managing the household all by herself was taking a toll on her. She had never thought she could miss her maid as terribly as she did these days.

She was the Genie of my home… Now back to the bottle… 

All because a teeny tiny but dangerous virus…. Life changes faster than one thinks

Rahul enters the living room with a big yawn.

“Someone is awake… Or still in her dreams!”, He smiled at Ananya staring outside with half open eyes.

Ananya didn’t respond and kept looking outside.

“Aha! Did ‘someone’ make tea for me also?”, He joked again putting his cup of tea to reheat in the microwave.

“As always…”, Her reply was almost inaudible.

“Ooh…. ‘Someone’ is in a melancholy mood right from the morning… You gotta chill… It’s weekend madam!”, Rahul replied relishing his rose tea.

“First of all, stop saying ‘someone'”. Her voice was a few notes higher now.

Ananya kept her empty cup on the table and gave him a menacing look.

“Weekend huh?… I don’t have the privilege of weekends…it’s only for you…. every day is a weekday for me… First of all, I’m a mom of two children… They both need me all the time for everything…. Next, I am a cook… Providing all of you four-square meals a day and an umpteen number of snacks demands in between…. And now that there is no maid, I am a maid too … cleaning the house, washing the vessels, doing laundry and what not… and this goes on and on all seven days of the week without a pause! I guess you never noticed it huh?”

Although she talked in a calm manner without raising her voice, the ice in her tone could not be missed.

Rahul was not ready for this. Morning time he usually blabbered casually as per habit. But after listening to this short, crisp and burning speech, he was barely able to gulp the tea. He knew he had to give a satisfactory answer or else no one can predict what hell might break loose. As they say,

“A happy wife is a happy life!” 

And his wife was clearly not happy.

Moreover, a happy weekend was also of utmost importance to him after a grueling work week.

“Hmm…”, he started. This answer was always safe for an immediate response.

But it had to be followed by something solid. So, he picked up. Or rather he stood up and bowed.

“Meet the chef of the day…yours truly”

Ananya’s face was blank. She stared at him as if he was speaking a foreign language. Or maybe she was unable to hear what he said.

“What?”

“In other words, I will be cooking today!”, Rahul clarified.

Now Ananya looked even more startled. She was joined by their two kids who had made their way to the hall from the bedroom with sleepy eyes and pillows still in their hands. In spite of being in half sleep even they looked surprised.

There was a moment’s silence as Rahul looked at all three of them in turn and they all stared back at him.

“Daddy is cooking people! What part did you all didn’t understand?”, Rahul tried to clear the confusion.

“All of it…”

The children started jumping and throwing up their pillows in the air as if there was an announcement of their favorite dinosaurs visiting their home. Ananya might have believed the dinosaur visit but not this. “Daddy is cooking” seemed extinct and improbable.

“Daddy is cooking! Daddy is cooking!”, they started singing in unison.

No celebration ever when mommy cooks!

“Are you serious, Rahul?”

“Hundred percent wifey!”

“Today I will make my special chicken curry….”, Rahul said.

“…. Which no one has ever tasted!”, Ananya completed the sentence.

“Really? Did you forget that warm Saturday afternoon when I made this curry for you Anu?”

“That was once upon a time Rahul…older than the fairy tales I read to Pinky”, Ananya laughed while helping her daughter Pinky brush her teeth.

“Then you will remember that taste again today my wifey!” Rahul looked determined.

“On a serious note, I know you are overworked. I’m unable to help you as much as I would like to these days. But since this is a long weekend at my customer’s place, I’m not that loaded with work. So, I have decided to cook for you all. Today is your free day Anu. Relax!”

These words were like music to Ananya’s ears.

“Really?”

Rahul was already wearing the kitchen apron and standing inside the kitchen looking around as if he was seeing that place in a totally new light.

Then he turned to look at Ananya.

“Just one request Anu…”

“And here it comes…”

“Can you please make a simple and quick breakfast for all of us? I will take on after that? I’m really hungry. The kids are too I’m sure”

This request burst the one-minute bubble of happiness formed in Anu’s mind.

I miss you Swiggy and Zomato! You have fed the hungry in minutes numerous times and never demanded anything in return for food!

Except money of course… But that’s acceptable… And easier…

 But she tried to remain positive.

Maybe I could just cook breakfast and the rest of the day becomes free for me! Not a bad deal.

“Ok sure”, Ananya replied cheerfully.

She prepared vegetable upma for all. While feeding little Pinky, all she could think was how to spend her ‘free day’ effectively. She made a point to pamper herself and take a lot of rest. 

It was not that Rahul didn’t care for her. He was a wonderful husband but sadly cooking was not his forte. He cooked well when he did but he was not inclined to this activity, not like some other men she knew who could chop onions here and make pakoras there like a pro. So, this offer was special. She wanted to make full use of this rare opportunity.

Maybe a homemade facial pack…followed by a self-mani-pedi session….my skin is in horrible condition… I won’t blame it… I hardly have the time to take care of it…hmm maybe after that I will curl up with a book on the sofa…a lot of reading to catch up with…

As Pinky giggled and strewed her food all over, Anu fed her patiently and planned for the day in her mind.

First, I will take a long bath…

“Mummy time for my online abacus class. Please connect the laptop! “, Bunty shouted and pushed her out of her dreams.

“Tell daddy… I’m feeding Pinky”

“Oh Mummy, Daddy is busy in the kitchen can’t you see?”

So much concern for daddy being in the kitchen!

Bunty’s reply shot up Anu’s eyebrows but she decided to keep quiet. Competing with her partner was the last thing she wanted to do in front of her kids. 

But the mind thinks what it thinks!

“Ok give me a minute Bunty”, she took a break from feeding Pinky and set up Bunty for his online classes.

After cleaning up Bubby and making her sit with crayons and coloring books, she peeped in the kitchen. Her hubby had literally torn the kitchen apart and was frantically searching something.

“Can I know the reason for this mess”, she asked, controlling her disappointment.

“Where is that onion chopper, I gave you on your birthday?”

Oh crap!

“Why do you need an onion chopper? You can do it in less time using a knife!”

“You can do that Anu… Not me… You know how I tear up cutting onions!”

I know! Tsunami alert in the kitchen!

“Moreover, gadgets are meant to make our lives easier…where is it?”

” I kept it in the loft”, Anu spoke quickly without making any eye contact with Rahul.

Rahul paused from whatever he was doing.

“And you told me you loved my gift!”, He looked hurt.

“I did love the color… It was a cute pink one”. 

Anu made an attempt to cut it short. She grabbed the chopping board and knife.

“Let me cut the onions for you in a jiffy!”

” No, it’s ok. I will bring that onion chopper from the loft and cut with it”. 

Chicken curry was planned for lunch not for dinner!

Rahul looked a little upset but Anu was glad that he didn’t drag the topic.

Instead he said something else in a minute.

“Anu, can you wash the vessels in the sink please? I will need them for cooking”

No!

“Sure”. It was damage control. The guilt of lying about the gift made Anu say yes.

Washing vessels took quite some time. She had imagined that the ‘cooking offer’ included washing vessels too. Clearly it was not the case. She confessed to herself that she imagined a lot.

After this, Anu got busy with giving a bath to Pinky and helped Bunty with studies. No imagination here. 

Forget the pampering session…. Let me take a quick bath… Taking rest after that is must… Or else what’s the point of my husband cooking?

She got ready in a hurry, like every other day. She peeped into the kitchen again, stealthily this time. Rahul was operating the machine and chopping the poor onion to minuscule pieces with all his might. She suppressed a laugh and left.

The bed with its cool blue bed sheet and a calm room with slight breeze from the window and fluttering curtains was inviting her. She jumped on the bed and melted in the cushiony mattress. This moment was rare and unheard of. A mom lying down on a bed and relaxing just before lunch in the peak work time, that too during a pandemic outbreak was pure fantasy. She closed her eyes softly and was just beginning to live in the moment when she realized that someone was tugging her sleeves from back.

“Mummy potty”. It was Pinky.

Seriously!!

“Didn’t you do potty just a while ago?”

“Potty number two”, Pinky had recently learnt counting.

Anu’s first reaction was anger which got replaced by love in no time.

“Aww my baby learnt the numbers! Come mommy will help you!” She held her hand and took her to the toilet.

A mother will always be a mother.

After the potty session, Anu put Pinky to sleep and lay down next to her.

Finally….

She closed her eyes. Just then a voice came floating from the kitchen.

“Anu! Where is the chili powder?”

It’s all over in my mind!

“Anu come please!” 

A desperate cry for help?

Anu got up and went to the kitchen. The sight of it made her faint. All cupboards were open and masala boxes were strewn over the counter. Chopped vegetables and their peels lay here and there. Masala was getting cooked in a kadhai on the stove filling the room with a strong aroma which watered the eyes. Rahul was on the floor searching something at the bottom most counter.

Oh… My… God…

“What made you think that chili powder will be in the bottom drawer?” Ananya asked him while wiping her eyes. The water in her eyes was due to masala or pure anger only she knew. It would take her a lot of effort to clean all that mess.

“Because Madam didn’t keep it where it should be kept!

An allegation!

Anu noticed that the chili powder container had toppled over at the back side of the stove alongside with many other masala boxes which lay colliding with each other. 

“Here, take it. Seems like Sir has destroyed the decorum of this kitchen”, she picked it up and handed it to Rahul.

He stood up with sweat dripping all over his face, masala splinters on his apron and a garlic peel stuck to his cheek. 

Anu couldn’t help but chuckle. 

“How do you do it Anu? In this heat… In front of fire… all these spices… Each day 4 times… and sometimes more?”, Rahul spoke in half sentences. He looked tired and frustrated.

“I do what I do… What can I say?” 

Anu felt quite good. At least he realized that what she does day in and day out was no easy task, that too without any complaints! 

Well she complained at times but who paid any attention?

He sympathized with her workload but living in another’s shoes was an entirely different experience.

“Let’s install a fan in the kitchen!”, He chirped.

New ideas always popped from Rahul’s head like popcorns on the stove.

” You do realize that in the kitchen we work with fire! “, Ananya was shocked.

” Oho, I know the science. Listen to me first. Before that we will get an induction oven for you. What do you say?”

Ideas upon ideas… That’s Rahul for you!

“I say you concentrate on your present work. We will do all these experiments later ok?”

Well, thankfully Rahul agreed after giving a lecture on how gadgets improve lives. 

She helped him find all the spices he needed, the cooking items and literally served every raw material he required for his cooking on a platter.

“Is that all? Can I go now? Or do you need my help in moving the spatula also?”

“That’s unfair Anu! It’s my recipe and my cooking. I had asked for just a little help in finding things. It’s your territory after all!”, Rahul tried to defend himself.

“Ok ok…I was joking… Now may I go to another ‘territory’ where I’m an alien? My ‘sleep territory’?”

“Yes, you may Madam. You will be summoned when lunch is ready!”

Anu lay in bed again. She was sure Rahul won’t call her anymore. She had provided him everything he needed. She sighed and closed her eyes.

This time it was the phone. It vibrated next to her pillow. It was her friend Sandhya on WhatsApp. There was a message.

“Lucky gal…husband cooking yeah??”

What! How?

“How do you know Sandy?”

“The whole world knows! Why won’t I?”

“???”

“Check Rahul’s Facebook page… And Instagram… And Twitter… And anywhere where there is an option to put a photo with a kadhai and ladle!”

She followed it with a laughing smiley. Anu quickly checked Rahul’s page and there it was! It had multiple likes and comments. She felt hot air coming out of her ears. 

Why this show off!

“Sandy, even your husband cooks that too regularly. Rahul’s cooking is like once in a blue moon activity!”, she tried to sound humble.

“My hubby makes Maggi now and then… Not some exotic chicken curry!”

Yeah lucky me…

The chatting was interrupted by a call from Ananya’s mother.

My mother to the rescue…

“A call is coming Sandy..ttyl”

“Yes Ma”, Ananya thought she could chat a while with her mother. As such she hardly got enough time to talk to her.

“All fine Anu?” Her mother’s voice was grave.

“Why what will happen to me?”

“No since damadji cooking so I asked”

She too!

“How do you know Ma?”

“Your father saw his WhatsApp status and told me.”

“I’m fine Ma. Do I have to fall sick to make him cook?”, She asked with irritation.

“Don’t get angry. You should thank God who blessed you with such a caring husband. Your father never cooked for me come what may. I spent my whole life feeling jealous of your Sharma aunty whose husband cooked every day. You are one lucky girl!”

“I’m hearing that a lot lately! I’m going. I have work. Bye Ma”, she cut the call.

Anger was welling up inside her. This was one classic example of how social media spoils one’s sleep. She stomped into the kitchen ready to confront Rahul for this childish behavior.

But something made her stop on her tracks. This time the scene in the kitchen was a little different. She spotted her mother in law’s face from the steamy surface of the mobile phone Rahul was hanging over the kadhai full of bubbling chicken curry. Rahul was all smiles and chatting nonstop.

“Look Mummy! How is the curry looking? Wonderful color, right? Aroma is also mind blowing!”

Child indeed…

“Mummy see Anu is also here”, he noticed her standing near the kitchen and thrust the steamy phone screen on her face.

“Namaste Mummy ji”, Anu said hastily wiping the screen with her fingers.

“The curry looks good Anu! You are having a hassle-free weekend full of rest and homemade food”

I’m already tired of so much ‘rest’!

“Yes, Mummy ji. How are you?”, Anu tried to change the topic.

“I’m the same. I think my blood pressure is on the rise. Instead of eating food cooked by my bahu, I’m spending hours in the kitchen cooking and cleaning. What to do”, she gave the longest sigh.

“Daal is boiling on the stove Anu. I have a lot of pending work. You go relax. Bye”, she hung up.

Even my blood is boiling.

“Why Rahul why? Why are you doing all this show off?”

Rahul looked perplexed as if nothing had happened.

“Oho Mummy called herself!” He defended himself.

“It’s not only Mummy ji. What about those Facebook posts and tweets?” Anu accused him. 

“Oh, you saw it already? I’m looking so smart in that picture, right? My chef pose and my expression is so perfect! Isn’t it?”, Rahul replied shyly with the enthusiasm of a school boy whose photo was printed in the school magazine for the first time.

“After a long time, I got something worth posting on my Facebook page. What else is left in my life to show off? I’m working from home for long hours. No friends, no socialization, nothing. I don’t meet anyone apart from office meetings and don’t get the time to call anyone. I haven’t felt this excited in a long while”, he sighed while moving the wooden spatula in the kadhai.

Will it be monstrous to kill this childlike happiness?

“Smelling good”, she managed to say this instead of something evil which she was all geared up to speak.

“Really?” Rahul looked delighted.

“By seeing the number of likes and comments I got, I’m planning to leave my hectic job and open a YouTube channel of cooking. “

Could this day stop getting weirder by the moment!?

” We can earn sitting at home Anu. Just imagine!”, Rahul said with a twinkle in his eyes.

I love that expression on your face… But no!

” You do realize that for that you have to ‘cook’… That too regularly?”

Rahul was lost in thoughts for a second.

” That I will!”

He didn’t care to elaborate on his answer.

Point made!

“Come Bunty, Pinky! Time for a historic lunch prepared by Daddy!” He was brimming with excitement.

Anu checked the clock. It was around two. All her relaxation plans had failed. Her sleep plans went for a toss. But she tried to feel positive yet again. She was hungry.

At least I didn’t have to cook…

Children sat in the chairs banging their plates and spoons with excitement. It was not every day that Daddy cooked! Anu also pulled a chair for herself. Rahul brought the pot of hot chicken curry carefully.

“Presenting the chef’s creation, Chicken Hariyali Malai Makhni!”

Never heard of it before. Chef’s creation after all…

“Ok children, first let’s serve rice in plates and then you can take chicken curry in the bowls”, Anu said while arranging the plates and bowls for her kids.

“Is rice in the kitchen Rahul?” She searched for the pot of rice on the table.

There was an odd silence. 

“I thought I only had to make the curry so …”, Rahul said with a guilt-ridden face.

The hunger in Anu’s stomach was now fuming out of her eyes.

“You didn’t make rice! Neither you asked me to make it!”

“We have yesterday’s bread!”, Rahul tried hard to mend the situation.

The children looked disappointed and stared at Anu in hunger. 

She kept aside her anger and took control again.

“No. I will make rice in the cooker. It will be ready soon. You all wait.”

Not a day without entering the kitchen and cooking…

The rice was ready in no time. All gobbled up Chicken Hariyali Malai Makhni with rice. Anu noticed Rahul eyeing at her multiple times while having his food but not asking her anything.

“The chicken tastes good Rahul. In fact, very good”, she said licking her fingers.

The children joined her.

“Yes Daddy, very yummy!”

Rahul’s face lit up the way Mysore palace lights up in Dussehra.

“Thank you! “he beamed.

The lunch was followed by a long nap taken by Rahul. He complained of extreme body pain and headache after all the ‘hard’ work. It took him around 2 days to recover from the fatigue.

As for Anu she dropped the plan of sleeping. After putting the children for a nap, she cleaned the kitchen and washed the vessels. Then she made a rose tea for herself and sat in a chair in the balcony. Her neighbor had completed a second, maybe third batch of laundry and was drying the clothes in her balcony.

So, it was her only…not the husband… Not the maid…

We are all superwomen…

We do what we do… what can we say…

She sipped her tea and smiled a little.