Jab We Met: 'I followed her bus on my bicycle'

Reader Udit Handa waited for 11 years to get married to Priyanka, the love of his life. This is his story.

Shahrukh Khan made a generation fall in love and Jagjit Singh made them feel it from the bottom of their heart.

I am one of the blessed few to live in that generation of bliss.

There was something in the air and the sun looked lovely after the chilling winters of 2000.

I had just completed my graduation and there was a life full of excitement and drama waiting.
I saw her first from my roof top and could not take my eyes of her.

She was cute and innocent as a baby. I thought maybe my studies had kept me busy to notice a girl as beautiful as her in my neighbourhood.

Later I learned from my cousin that she had come to her aunt's house in her holidays. 

It was my cousin who helped me get introduced to her. Special thanks to you Priyanka.

The initial period was awesome and we would talk for long hours over the phone.

Those days never seemed to end and we were living in a dream world.

Knowing each other and waiting for phone calls was an incredible experience.

It never seemed that we got so much attached to each other until she left. It was May 20, 2000 and she was about to leave in a day.

I somehow managed some money and we went for a movie together. The movie was Kaho Na Pyaar Hai.

It was then that I realised she would be leaving and things would be different from now on.

It's a famous story among my cousins that I followed her bus on my bicycle from Dehradun to Saharanpur to just get a glimpse of her.

Jokes apart I did followed her bus for a while and finally managed to see her.

Jab We Met stories!

Dear readers, do you have an interesting love story that you want to share? Tell us where you first met your partner and how the two of you fell in love. Write in to us at getahead@rediff.co.in (subject line: 'Jab We Met'). You can also include a photograph of you and your partner and we'll publish the best entries right here on rediff.com

Life was tough after that and there were many challenges.

I had completed my BCA and the dotcom bubble had just busted.

There were no jobs in the market and our family was not financially strong for me to pursue a master's degree.

I managed to get a teaching job at ICT computers where my first salary was Rs 2000.

Life was tough and I had apprehensions about our future.

I still remember how I used to save Rs 500 each month from my salary and share the remaining with my mother. I'd call her in those Rs 5/minute STD days. 

It was my other cousin who'd help me call at her landline phone to avoid questions from her parents.

A long distance relationship was difficult but we were both adamant to carry it lifelong. She would always say "Jab baba ji ne milaya hai to kuch soch kar hi milaya hai" and this kept our spirits high.

The initial struggle for petty jobs lasted for two years and I made sure to be as much ready as possible when a good opportunity came through.

I remember how I would sit late at work to just get hold of a computer and hone my skills as much was possible.

During this period we managed to meet only twice.

I landed a fine job in Gurgaon and we could meet often since she lived in Delhi.

I had managed to convince my mother but her parents were not ready.

There were people from both sides who tried to discourage us by talking of the consequences of us getting married which I better not write on a public forum.

After 11 years of perseverance she finally managed to convince her mother and we are happily married now.

Happy Valentines to you, my lovely wife, you gave me a story to tell our grandchildren and a determination to think every think is possible if you have the willingness to do it.

A few years back I took this determination a step further to start my own start-up www.valeteck.com which is doing great just like our love story.

Dear readers, do you have an interesting love story that you want to share? Tell us where you first met your partner and how the two of you fell in love. Write in to us at getahead@rediff.co.in (subject line: 'Jab We Met'). You can also include a photograph of you and your partner and we'll publish the best entries right here on rediff.com