All of us have a list in our lives.
A list of dreams and simple joys.
My list has always been filled with new journeys and new places.
I'm Preeti, and one journey on my list led me to Musafir Cafe.
What is Musafir Cafe?
Ask anyone, and you'll hear a different answer every time.
To me, it's home. Chander's and mine.
Your dark, beautiful eyes
Looked up and met mine
The flowing breeze, the passing scenes
Everything stood still
Hey! Hi!
Wait, one second.
- Hi! - You guys are coming tonight, right?
No.
I can't believe Rajvir planned a trek with his friends today,
and now I'll miss tonight's party.
Well, I have a feeling you're really going to love this trek!
- Is it? - Yeah! Have a great time, you two!
Okay. Bye.
Bye!
What kind of magic
Have you cast on me?
Tell me, haven't you?
Stars fell like jasmine blossoms Upon my rooftop…
For every traveler, the journey truly begins
when they find their true companion.
Sometimes, that companion stays by their side.
And, sometimes, they leave after changing you forever.
What kind of magic
Have you cast on me?
Tell me, haven't you?
Something similar happened to me when I met Chander.
And, perhaps, his life changed in much the same way
when he met Sudha.
Mom, tilt the phone down a bit. You're not in the frame.
- Is this okay? - Yes, I can see you now.
- Have you arrived? - Yes, I'm here.
Early, as usual.
Did you pick a good place?
- She picked it. Look how pretty it is. - Yes, it's beautiful.
I didn't even know about this place.
How would you know?
- You're always busy with work! - Mom…
- Should I hang up now? - Wait, just a minute.
Thank you.
- I know that in your heart, you still-- - Mom.
Please don't start this again.
- Okay, fine. - I'm hanging up.
She'll be here any minute. Bye.
- Where's your coffee from? - From the South, sir.
What do you mean by South? Tamil Nadu? Karnataka? Kerala? Where exactly?
- Sir, that's… - Is it blended or single origin?
- Sir… - Okay, is the grind medium or medium-fine?
It's medium-fine, sir.
I know that for sure, it's medium-fine.
- Are you sure? - Yes, sir.
Then do one thing, Mohan.
Some coffee,
some hot water between 90 and 95 degrees Celsius,
an empty pot, and an Americano cup. Please bring all of this.
- Sir, are you sure the machine coffee-- - No, that won't work.
Don't worry, I'll pay the full amount, and I'll tip you too.
Okay, sir. I'll bring it.
Excuse me! What do you software engineers think?
Is moving to America a career now?
No, no. It's just for two years.
So, you'll go to America for two years,
and I'm supposed to leave my practice and follow you?
- How will I live alone? - Live alone?!
Take your mom with you to take care of you!
Why do you need to get married?
The nerve of some people!
Hello. I just wanted to let you know that I've arrived.
Yes, I'm coming!
What are you looking at?
Are you leaving, or do you need a green card for that too?
How about I roll out a red carpet for you? Get lost!
Hi.
Sorry to keep you waiting.
I'm Sudha.
You spoke very well.
I'm Chander.
Were you eavesdropping?
I wasn't eavesdropping. I could just hear you.
Everyone could.
- Shall we sit? - Please.
- Can you bring another cup of tea, Mohan? - Yeah.
The usual.
Sorry, just give me a minute, please.
You came here to make your own coffee?
I'm a bit particular about my coffee.
Nice cafe, by the way. Do you come here often?
But I don't drink coffee.
I'm a chai lover.
Chai!
And along with my Sunday tea,
I also get samples from matrimonial sites. Free!
Who made your profile? Your mom or your dad?
Excuse me. Oh, man.
MOM: HAS SHE ARRIVED? HOW IS SHE?
If you don't mind, can I ask you something?
Do you have another candidate lined up after me?
No. If there is, I'll wrap up accordingly.
So, we don't overlap again.
So, you're a lawyer?
Yes.
Divorce lawyer.
My family usually hides that part.
It frightens the suitor's side away.
But I love my job.
So, you enjoy getting people divorced?
No.
To be honest,
the divorce happens long before it reaches the courtroom.
We just help them
get the official stamp and…
settle the accounts.
Ma'am.
Thanks, Mohan.
You handle divorce cases, and you still want to get married?
Well, about that…
I don't want to get married right now.
I meet suitors to stop my relatives from pestering my mom.
I always find an excuse to reject them.
You should reject software engineers without even meeting them.
- Aren't you a software engineer too? - I was.
I got bored.
I work at DWD Logistics now.
I'm setting up their MP operations.
- Why did you choose that job? - It's far from my family.
From Delhi, that's why.
And from your ex-girlfriend too.
- No. No. - No?
No, it's nothing like that.
You're just assuming that.
Just one of the small perks of being a lawyer.
I've learned how to read people's faces.
Don't you find logistics boring?
A little less than life itself.
So, how are you spending the rest of your Sunday?
My plan was to meet you and then head to the theater to watch a movie.
There's so much to do in Bhopal,
yet you want to sit in the dark and watch someone else's story?
Okay then, tell me, what would you recommend?
Visit Manav Sangrahalaya. Take a long walk through Van Vihar.
Or best of all, enjoy a refreshing lemon soda by the lake.
Feel the heart of Bhopal.
- Shall we? - Where?
You're the one who said there's so much to do in Bhopal.
Why did you leave America?
My heart wasn't in it.
Despite the crowds, there's a strange emptiness there.
I made a few friends at the university.
Learned a little about myself, and time taught me the rest.
Tell me one thing you learned there.
No matter what happens in life, you should never forget your roots.
- And… - And?
And no matter how good the cafe is, you should make your own coffee.
When you get bored with logistics,
you should set up your own cafe.
Mom visits from Ratlam once every two months.
Gargi is hardly just my roommate. She's basically her undercover reporter.
What do you mean?
She's my mom's spy.
By the way, your strategy to extend the date was pretty smart.
Thank you. But it wasn't a strategy.
- No? - No.
I was just following my intuition.
Well, cheers.
Cheers.
Shit.
Chander, I have to go back to the cafe.
Why? What happened? Did you forget something?
Candidate number three!
- What? - Chander.
Make an excuse and reject me, okay?
- Hey! - Thank you.
Why me?
When a girl rejects a guy, his mother takes it even harder, you know?
Hey!
What even are you?
- Hi. - Hello.
Want to know what I wrote on the promise note?
Sure.
You don't have to tell me.
But if you still want to, I'm good with secrets.
"No matter what happens, this year I'm going to be brave and take risks."
This is my first note on the promise wall.
I'm sure it won't be the last.
Every traveler needs a place where they can pause for a while,
where they can remember the promises they've made to themselves.
For many travelers, this cafe becomes that place.
Maybe that's why they carry a part of it with them when they leave,
while leaving a part of themselves here.
Hey.
Hey! Hi!
Hi.
I went to Mall Road yesterday, and I saw something.
And… I thought it'd be perfect for you.
- Rahil. - No, it's nothing.
But open this only
when you're ready.
For what?
When you're ready to see yourself through my eyes.
Rahil.
No, seriously. But, please, carry on.
Preeti Kaushik's special sourdough
- with poached eggs and avocado-- - What are you doing? Come here!
- Hey, what happened? - Come here.
What happened?
You're spoiling me.
The regular customers will think the owner of this cafe
only pays attention to this girl!
Everyone already knows that this is the girl
who makes this cafe so special.
Come here.
For days, I've been watching a girl
who forgets herself while taking care of everyone else's hearts.
This little gift is for her
so that when she pauses for a moment, she can see herself too.
When we meet the right person at the wrong time,
we tend to blame the timing.
But perhaps the question isn't about timing at all.
The real question is whether
we were right for ourselves at that moment.
You're sitting so quietly.
So, what are your hobbies?
Look, all you need to know about me is that
I absolutely hate my job.
Logistics is such a boring job.
But my mom was telling me that you're an engineer.
- Yes, I was one in America. - America!
I've always wanted to settle in America, honestly!
Now we can settle there after we get married, right?
No.
Why? You don't like it there?
No.
- What-- - Listen.
- Sudha? - I need to talk to you for two minutes.
The man sitting with you is a total scumbag.
- No, no, it's not like that-- - No, don't go by his face.
He's a sex addict.
- Seriously? - Yes.
What?!
This man only wants three things from girls.
Lust, lust, and lust.
- No, no, no, she's joking. - Joking?
- No… - I'm the one who has become a joke!
- Tell me more. - You know,
I've narrowly escaped becoming the mother of his child twice.
- What?! - For humanity's sake, I can only warn you.
But in the end, it's your life and your choice. Whatever you decide--
- Yuck! - No.
Ew!
Boring, my foot!
Mom!
She left.
You're completely crazy, Sudha!
Here's the thing, Chander Mohan Sharma.
You just can't put up with this world unless you're a little crazy.
Her mom and my aunt are best friends.
Oh.
But you were going to reject her, right?
Convince your aunt too.
How was my acting?
Really terrible.
Oh, man…
Sudha, he's waiting for you.
Kushal! I'm calling you!
Hi.
Bye.
I'll have to go tell poor Kushal Pandit
that you're the father of my future kids.
Do you want to catch a play tomorrow?
- Tomorrow is Monday. - So?
Do you live less on Mondays?
Bye.
Hi.
Wow.
I mean, you're so…
So…?
You're so on time.
So, shall we go watch someone else's story in the dark?
Let's go.
Let's.
So back then, from Delhi to my grandma's
and straight back.
We never saw any of this.
Funny how, as children,
we find so much happiness in the simplest routines.
Anyway, Grandma passed away 20 years ago.
After that, her house was gone.
Gradually, we just stopped coming here.
Now I get why you chose Bhopal.
Why?
"No matter what happens in life, you should never forget your roots."
Yeah, that's true.
You love Bhopal so much.
Do you want to settle here?
No.
Then where?
- Have you ever been to Bombay? - I've been to Mumbai.
So, when my dad passed away, I was in the tenth grade.
He was a lawyer here at the Bhopal District Court.
His dream was the Bombay High Court.
And now that's your dream.
Just a little bigger than his.
I'm going to start my own law firm.
In Mumbai!
And I'll give Mom all the happiness she never had.
You know, my dad promised us
that we'd have our own house.
Far from Ratlam,
away from joint family complications,
where it would just be the three of us.
Then he passed away.
And my mom's full attention shifted to me.
She educated me,
gave me the confidence to be independent.
I'm sure she's wonderful.
Yeah. She is.
I can see that.
So yeah, now I'm going to fulfil both my dreams and my mom's.
Anyway, society doesn't expect girls to look after their mothers.
We're just given permission, right?
Ouch.
That's why, right now,
I neither have the time
- nor the interest for marriage, and-- - I understand.
Wow.
Thank you for a memorable Monday.
Look, Chander.
If we keep meeting like this, you'll fall in love.
Maybe I will too.
And if you keep seeing me,
how will you ever settle down?
What?
Madam, where did you go off to?
Somewhere…
I probably shouldn't go.
Okay.
So then… we won't go.
Promise.
Oh!
The moment has passed.
Hello?
Sudha?
So late at night?
Right now?
No, no, I'm coming. I'm coming.
HAVE YOU LEFT?
Hey!
What happened? I thought you--
I hate Gargi!
Bhaiya, could you help out a bit?
Sure.
- Keep this one. - What was the fight about?
Man, what a cliché question to ask!
Do you need a reason to fight?
But there must have been something.
A cold war had been going on for days.
Today, the swearing went a bit too far…
Swearing!
Why are you laughing?
Let's go.
Come on!
Where are we going?
Back to where you just came from. His place.
Okay.
Is there a movie playing here? Turn it off!
Okay.
Subtitle translation by: Neha Nair