Bollywood film-makers must be overjoyed. After a long time, another juicy story has come their way that can be presented on the silver screen with a little personal touch. For Shoaib Malik and Sania Mirza have finally tied the knot after a lot of hullabaloo was created revolving their liaison. Love reigned and families united across International borders even as a certain Ms.Siddiqui (or Mrs. Malik?) cried hoarse claiming to be Shoaib's better(and bitter!) half. A lot of denial, a little bit of compromise and our couple ends the story 'happily ever-after'. Result- the Media gets it's share of bytes and newspapers and news-channels comfortably putting aside national news to telecast the love-story of the decade.
India and Pakistan have never particularly been bosom buddies and this marriage- some consider is a triumph for Pakistan for they have claimed one of our prized possessions- Sania 'oh-so-glamorous' Mirza. The fact that she played well (besides looking like a million bucks) helped this country get the much-needed attention in the Tennis circuit. While Paes-Bhupathi had earned much more accolades for the country, brand Mirza managed to combine sports with glamour and kept the ball rolling by constantly wearing Tees with slogans or donning a skirt short enough to vex the Maulvis who guard their religion zealously. Our girl though, by being unperturbed, turned out to be the role-model all parents with daughters had been desparately looking for (boys already had the Indian Cricket Team at their disposal)!
Soon enough, Ms. Mirza started playing less and socialising more- every other day the Media paired her with some celebrity, announcing them to be a couple. Then came the blow when she suddenly got engaged to her childhood friend Sohrab Mirza, thus breaking the hearts of millions. Equally suddenly was the engagement called off and before one knew, a certain Shoaib Malik from (Cricket) Team Pakistan claimed our girl.
However, once again, controversy was the icing on the wedding cake and it was served by Ayesha Siddiqui. The lady claimed to be Malik's wife, and demanded a divorce before the nuptials. Shoaib vehemently disagreed initially with full support from his in-laws, only to give in later and pronounce 'talaaq' for his first wife. The Indo-Pak audience were united for once as they lapped up the juicy gossip and expected more drama to unfold with each passing day. Our gracious celebs obliged by preponing the blessed union much before the due date and secretly became man and wife. While the Maulvis cried hoarse about the couple tarnishing the Islam religion with their impulsive decisions, Pakistan dressed up to welcome bahu Mirza and declared that she could play for India irrespective of the fact that she had been married into another country (such a splendid display of generosity- that!)
The question now stands that how long will the bahu be allowed to wear skirts and show off her legs- now that she is the 'bahu' and no more the 'beti'? How long will Shoaib and family let her play as an Indian and run a family as a Pakistani? While Sania has boldly declared that nothing could stop her from playing for India, deep down, probably we all know that it is just a matter of time before she gives up the racket for the cradle. The glam quotient was lost as soon as she became Mrs., now it is to see when she chooses to become the home-maker and give bytes to the Media such as- "I'm happy to be doing this and do not regret my decision at all. My family is important and it is time I took up my long-pending responsibilities...etc" Till then, let's enjoy until the ball remains in our court.
