Judged

I always wanted one! I was fascinated with those who had them. Of course, my parents would never let me have one! They say it won't be good for my body, especially my skin, because it can cause cancer! I'm talking about Tattoos! Where did your one track mind go??? I love doodling. The first time I saw someone with a tattoo, I was hooked! I'm Priya and I think I was about 10, enjoying my mint chocolate icecream, when I saw something mind blowing ! My exam results were good, so mommy brought me to the Mall for some shopping. I was happy to have a new dress and a matching hairband with it. Suddenly, a tall pretty girl caught my eyes! She was wearing a long white dress with colourful floral sleeves. Wait a minute! The floral design wasn't her dress, but it was drawn all over her body because I could see it on her neck, shoulders, back, arms and even legs! I was totally fascinated and admired her from head to toe, my mouth open with wonder! I walked up to her and asked, "Excuse me, who made this doodle on your body? I love it! I want it too!" She smiled at me and said, "Hi little princess! These doodles? Well, they are tattoos! You like them? " "Tattoos? Yes, I love tattoos! Can I touch them?" I was mesmerised and surprised by the feel of her soft skin, because it looked rough and textured, but wasn't! My curiosity got the better of me as I asked her, "Please tell me who will paint a tattoo for me. Where can I get one? " The pretty smiled and said, "You are too small, princess! Your skin is too soft right now! Why don't you choose the designs you like and then get them done when you are as tall as me? " I walked back, lost in thoughts, as mommy came and held my hand, pulling me to a side. She seemed angry and she scolded me for talking to strangers. On the way home, I was bracing myself for another round of scolding from Papa. The moment we reached home, I ran to the bathroom and closed the door. In a few minutes, Papa knocked at the door and told me to come down for dinner. I couldn't make out whether he was angry or not! Generally, mommy is the short tempered one and Papa is the cool one. I'm hoping today is no different! I went to the dining room and sat down on my chair, staring at my plate, dreading what would come next. But Papa smiled at me and asked how the visit to the Mall was. Seeing his smile, I relaxed and chattered on about our shopping, the icecream I ate and the pretty lady with the tattoos. Papa raised one eyebrow and asked me, "That lady had tattoos? All over her body?" "Yes Papa, all over her body, except her palms, feet and face! They were beautiful! I want one too - a small one!" I couldn't hide my fascination. Papa looked at mommy (who was glaring at him) and then smiled at me and said,"Only problem is you are a child and you have 8 more years before you can get a tattoo! Till then you can look for the designs you want!" Papa deserves a prize for the way he handled my tattoo craze at that time! When I was 14, he made me watch videos of people getting tattoos, hoping the painful procedure would end my fascination for tattoos! But, unfortunately for him, it didn't scare me at all! I was the only child I knew, who wasn't scared of injections or needles! However, I understood Papa's hidden agenda, so I stopped talking about tattoos in front of my parents. They thought my tattoo craze is a thing of the past now! As a typical teenager, I was becoming rebellious, more vocal, aware and sensitive about people's attitudes. I realised that people have a habit of judging others at face value, knowing nothing about them! Tattoos, piercings, coloured hair, junk jewellery, unusual hairstyles, etc were the ultimate proof of being a rebel, an antisocial, a psycho, mentally unstable, etc etc etc! The list is endless! Constantly judged for my looks, I was quite upset about the same.... Sometimes I was cool about it, sometimes I wasn't! I'm a diehard K Pop enthusiast and I want to colour my hair red, after my 18th birthday!

Actually, I have a lot of plans for my 18th birthday- my first drink (with Papa), first driving license to drive Papa's Maruti 800, my first party with friends in the pub, my first late night dance party at the Discotheque, my first out station trip with my friends (not a school trip!)...., first tattoo (of course!)....first piercing too! Yup! I have a long list! I don't know how many I will manage to do though.... Let's see! It's been a while now.... I'm out of college and I'm a Radio Jockey now! I'm also a part time DJ and do gigs for my friends. Well, my love for music is well known and my eclectic taste in music is appreciated by my friends and family who encouraged me to dabble in it. It started as a hobby and now I'm a 'celebrity' in my own right as I'm the first choice for college festivals etc! I'm 25, still petite and plump, barely 5 feet tall, extremely short rainbow hued hair, tattoos all over, literally living in my jeans and tees( with hoodies in winters!)! My parents had been looking for a match for me. They asked me if I had anyone in mind. I understood their concerns to see me 'settled', so I said they could look around. My tattoos and colourful hair was a big 'minus' in the arranged marriage market!! So, even if we found a suitable match, my appearance put off many eligible men and their parents. Just too bad! It was during one of these college fests that I noticed this man. Tall, wearing glasses, his piercing black eyes staring at me. I wasn't sure what the look meant.... He was either trying to make me nervous or he was checking me out! The latter, most likely! Finally, the dance party ended signalling the end of the vibrant college fest and the students began to crowd around me applauding and thanking me for the great time they had! This is what I live for, honestly! After that, we started packing up our stuff. That man was still there, staring intently at me. Was he a stalker? A thief? Psychopath? A serial killer? Mafia maybe? I ignored him and walked towards the van with my bag and my earphones. I knew he was following me so I sped up. I opened the door of the van and sat down but he held on to the door. Me- Please leave the door or I will scream and you will get beaten up for harassment! Man- I'm sorry if I scared you! I want to talk to you. Please.... Just 2 minutes! Me- Ok. Talk. You have 2 minutes. Man- Not here. Can we sit in the cafe across the road and talk? I'm tired of standing and you have been on your toes all day! I told my colleagues to go ahead and walked with him towards the cafe. I was scared of him initially but now he seemed alright. I know that he has been watching me for the past 3 days now and I'm curious to know why! We ordered coffee and I got straight to the point. Me- Are you stalking me? I noticed you staring at me for 3 days in a row. Obviously I was scared! Now tell me the reason for this creepy behaviour. Or I will file a police complaint! Man- Oh no! Please don't misunderstand me! I wasn't stalking you.... I apologise for my creepy behaviour.... Actually, I wanted to see you and talk to you.... My parents had heard about you and were keen that we get to know each other and finally marry. I had refused initially because I thought I wasn't really your type, but I agreed to meet you because I was intrigued about you. My parents were desperate for my marriage and had almost committed to yours, but then I asked for a photograph. When my parents saw your photograph, they told your parents that this marriage isn't possible. Actually, because of your coloured hair and tattoos, my parents refused the proposal. I was really disappointed. However, I really wanted to know more about you and I thought it's not fair to judge you just because of a photo! I read a few articles about you but I wanted to see for myself and ,if you agree, to know you better... (I admit I was a bit ashamed for calling him names and having judged him without knowing about him!) Me- I don't care what others think about me! I love and respect myself too much to get affected by unfair judgement! But I really appreciate the fact that you chose not to judge me without knowing me, so I would definitely like to know you too! His name is Gaurav. He is a professor in the college where we met. He teaches in the Fine Arts department and has already done two solo exhibitions of his paintings and sketches. An artist! No wonder he is sensitive and observant. Over the next few days, we met almost every day and I started falling for his endearing eccentricities.... I was impressed by his art and his knowledge about art. He loved travelling, reading and music, so did I! I could make out that he was totally in awe of my personality, especially my confidence in myself! I was also falling in love with a beautiful human being, who was always patient and understanding, calm and sensitive to my feelings. We had finally decided to have a family meeting and tell our parents that we wanted to get married. As planned, Gaurav and I met at the Taj. He seemed very excited about something and showed me his arm, as we hugged each other. Me- Oh my God! A tattoo!!! You got my name tattooed on your arm? Did it hurt? Are you crazy? What if.....? I didn't get to finish as he gave me a quick, shy kiss on my cheek and we both blushed because our parents were standing right in front of us! Thankfully, without any drama, we all went inside the Tea Room and ordered a high tea. There was an awkward silence at the table and palpable tension! Finally, I squeezed Gaurav's hand and encouraged him to speak. I had decided not to take the initiative today and to keep my cool! Gaurav- Uncle, Aunty, Mom, Dad, thank you for coming... Mom Dad, we already spoke about it, so I would like to speak with Uncle and Aunty now. Uncle, I love your wonderful daughter, Priya and she loves me too. We would like to get married as soon as possible. My parents were shocked but they seemed happy. Gaurav's dad- I'm sorry about our behaviour earlier.... My son tells me what a beautiful and amazing person your daughter is! We were wrong to judge Priya just because of her appearance... My wife and I fully support our son's choice! My parents got up and hugged Gaurav's parents. Gaurav smiled shyly at me and I couldn't help smiling back. He held me close and whispered in my ears, "I'm so lucky to have you in my life! I can't wait to share my life with you..." Finally in a month's time, we got married. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that my shy guy had a wild side too, while he found me awesome no matter what I said or did! Gaurav's emotional and sensitive nature drew out my softer side and my bold persona made him more confident and sure about himself. Together, we rode the roller coaster ride that a marriage is!