Chapter 3: The Social Media Circus

I glanced at the comments. Some netizens asked:

[Are you really together with Little Princess?]

Kabir didn’t reply.

But a few minutes later, he liked several top comments wishing him and Little Princess a long and happy relationship.

That basically confirmed the rumour that he and Ananya were together.

[Kabir’s already making it so obvious, and you’re still asking? Upstairs must be a hater sent by Arjun’s team.]

[Just asking makes you a hater? If it’s real, what’s there to hide? I think it’s fake, just hyping.]

[Kabir must have his reasons for not admitting it directly. Don’t be sarcastic.]

[When it’s time to go public, Kabir will announce it on Insta first thing. Trolls, get lost.]

Annoyed by the attacks, the netizen ran to Ananya’s comments to ask:

[Madam Singh, is Kabir really your boyfriend?]

Ananya quickly replied: [Who said that? Who said that? I don’t even know him.]

Kabir fans were upset: [Kabir would be so sad if he saw this.]

Ananya fired back: [What’s it to me if he’s sad? And I don’t eat khichdi, so stop calling me Khichdi Singh.]

These comments shot to the top.

Netizens immediately screenshotted and threw them into Kabir’s comment section.

[Stop hyping. Little Princess said she doesn’t even know Kabir. Stop flattering yourself.]

The next second, Kabir fans swarmed in.

[It’s just not convenient to go public now. Of course Little Princess has to deny it.]

[Colour fans have nothing better to do, always watching our Kabir.]

[Didn’t a certain singer deny it at first too, and now after going public, she’s showing off her love every day on Insta Live?]

My manager saw the trending topics and looked grim.

He closed the Swiggy app he’d been browsing for breakfast and frowned at me. “Big mess. Let’s hope this doesn’t blow up even more.”

“You and Kabir Malhotra debuted at the same time, both have the ‘independent young actor’ persona. Your fanbases have always been at odds, fighting non-stop.”

He tapped his phone against his palm, as if the answer to our problems would come out of thin air. “Every time one of you trends, the other gets dragged down.”

“Now that he’s latched onto Madam Singh, you’ll probably get suppressed by him in the future.”

He looked at me with that typical manager-wala pity, as if I’d just been dumped on national television. “We have to be careful, Arjun. These days, power couples are everything.”

I felt like my brain was about to fry.

I massaged my temples, wishing for a strong cutting chai. The drama was too much, even for me.

Kabir will do anything for hype.

He actually pretended to be Ananya’s boyfriend.

My manager saw I was zoning out and tried to comfort me.

“Don’t worry too much. From now on, I’ll try to arrange your work so you avoid Kabir as much as possible. Today’s the last episode of the show, so just keep your distance and don’t get into any conflicts.”

He patted my shoulder, all elder-bhai vibes. “Focus on your work. Rest, everything will sort itself.” I could hear the faint whistle of the pressure cooker from the kitchen. Time for breakfast and a new round of drama.