After months of preparation, the big day had finally arrived. The buzz in the Bandra recording studio was palpable as the members of the sixty-piece orchestra squeezed onto the main floor. Sahil Malik had spent most of the morning speaking to each and every musician, testing their instruments and tinkering with them if needed. The perfectionist composer had handpicked everyone in the room from all corners of India, and had arranged for their travel and stay in Bombay. The film’s producers had offered many options of local musicians to cut costs, but Sahil wouldn’t budge. Eventually, each hour the band spent in the recording studio or holed up in a hotel, waiting for instructions, was costing a fortune. On the first day of recording, Sahil’s musical army took position and waited for him to give orders. And waited. Some practiced their last-minute melodic notes as the clock grated to a full hour without any sign of the lead singer, Meera.

Sahil sent out men to bring her to the studio, but they returned with bad news. Heavy rains that lashed the city overnight had cut off most of Danpada. The sea had engulfed the outer limits of her neighbourhood, leaving her stranded on an island of tin huts. ‘It’s a goddamn fisherman village! Why can’t somebody get the damn boats out?’ fumed Sahil to no avail. Eventually, he cancelled the session. With money having gone down the drain and nothing much to do for the rest of the day, he set out for Meera’s place with one of his trusted assistants. Their taxi went as far as it could without drowning, after which they waded through the muddy waters to reach Meera’s hut. When she opened the door, her eyes widened in surprise and she immediately began to apologise.

‘I am so sorry about this, I just couldn’t get out,’ she said, moving things around to make room for her surprise guests.

‘You could have gotten out, just the way we got in,’ Sahil said tersely, still standing at the door.

Meera stopped in her tracks.

‘Are you ready for this, Meera?’ Sahil prodded, clearly miffed at her no-show on a day he had been looking forward to.

‘Of course I am!’ she said defensively.

‘Then a little drizzle sure as hell shouldn’t have stopped you from showing up at the studio!’