Dear readers,
You might think that being me was nothing but a big rollercoaster of laughter. However, that’s not true. It’s impossible to find a true friend, a date, or a family member who really understands me.
I’m Jaspreet ‘Sweetu’ Kapoor, one of the most-ignored characters from the movie, Kal Ho Naa Ho. You might remember me as Naina’s best friend or Frankie’s girlfriend, but I’m here to share my side of the narrative.
I live in the heart of New York City with my elder sister, Jaswinder ‘Jazz’ Kapoor and my neighbour is my best friend, Naina, and her family.
Naina, whom I always considered a sister, consistently picked out the faults in me. It all started when I placed an order for some doughnuts, muffins and cappuccinos at a cafe, where my ‘best friend’ came and rolled her eyes at my order.
Next up, while walking, she handed me a letter that was wrongly delivered to her house. It was my blind date application – where people answer a few questions about themselves and then, they are fixed with their perfect match. I was just so excited and was waiting for this letter. However, I was, once again, body shamed.
“Paas se dekhne mein Aishwarya Rai ka ghar lagti ho.”
Nevertheless, I invited my blind date over for a friendly chat and his name was Guru. I picked a saucy red-hued dress for my date and asked my elder sister to help because it was a little fitted. She, in return, called me a “double-decker bus”.
I, of course, felt bad. Is it wrong to expect my own family to stand beside me rather than body-shaming me?
However, like an angel, Aman entered our lives. He made everyone smile, laugh and well, he never made me feel bad about myself, like most of the people in my life.
After a couple of weeks, Naina and I were commuting and I spotted a cute man there. While she, like always, ignored my feelings, Aman helped me to communicate with him and even set us up on a date! I never felt so confident and good.
Nonetheless, I felt really happy for Naina when she confessed her love for Aman because let’s face it, if anyone in the world could make her truly happy, it was him.
I never knew what heartache was until Frankie decided to break my heart by confessing that he was confused. He wanted to go to London to join the Bhangra group, Daler Chaddo, Sannu Dekho.
After he left, he sent me a letter. I excitedly told this to my sister and Aman, who was present at our house. Even though I mentioned it more than three times, no one really cared about my letter from my long-distance boyfriend.
Even though the letter was not from him, I couldn’t be happier than when I saw him back at Naina and Rohit’s sangeet function.
For the first time, I felt my heart breaking into several pieces when I saw Aman on his deathbed. It felt so wrong.
I believe that I have been misunderstood during the entire movie. I’m a fun woman, who likes to explore and meet new people, through blind dates. I love eating scrumptious meals and don’t care about my weight I don’t care about how the world – including my best friend and family – sees me. I love and embrace myself, just the way I am!
Thank you for being here. Lots of love,
Sweetu.
Please note that all images are from the movie.