Recaps

Aditya opened Diya Textile Factory, recruited and organized its workers, and resolved the problems that kept production from running smoothly. After the factory began operating steadily and Madan found a potential buyer in Lucknow, Aditya prepared to return to Varanasi to visit the ill Solomon.

• Aditya announced the factory’s hiring terms, and Raju, Abid, Ram, and Dipti selected and registered experienced workers and laborers.
• Aditya appointed Abid night-shift foreman, Ram day-shift foreman, Raju general supervisor, and Dipti in charge of wages and daily management.
• The new workers struggled during the first days, while Aditya and Raju resolved factory and government issues until production settled into a steady routine.
• Madan returned from Lucknow with a prospective buyer who wanted to assess Diya’s output and cloth quality before committing to an order.
• By September fifteenth, all twenty-eight machines were running smoothly, and Aditya decided to return to Varanasi to visit the ill Solomon, to whom he owed five hundred thousand rupees.

Aditya returned to Varanasi from Kanpur, reunited with his family, and spent the night with Dipali after promising she could come with him in the future. At daybreak, he woke with Dipali still in his arms.

• Aditya drove back from Kanpur with fabric from Diya’s factory and joined his mother, Sushila, and grandfather, Patil, for evening worship.
• Aditya told Patil about the Diya Textile Factory before Sushila and Dipali brought him dinner.
• Dipali came to Aditya’s room at night with cool tea and asked whether he would stop wanting her or leave her behind.
• Aditya promised Dipali she could come with him in the future, and she massaged his temples as they talked.
• The old fan stopped working in the heat, and Aditya and Dipali spent the night together.
• At daybreak, Aditya woke beside Dipali and recalled the night without regret.

Aditya visited the dying Solomon, who revealed that his estranged daughter Mary was in Israel and asked Aditya to bring her back. Aditya agreed and prepared to leave, carrying Solomon’s money and family keepsakes.

• Aditya visited Solomon, who told him how war had separated him from his wife and daughter and how his wife had recently died and Mary had disappeared from contact.
• Solomon asked Aditya to find Mary in Israel and bring her back, offering him his Mumbai company; Aditya agreed without accepting the company.
• Aditya returned to the Mishra Family home and told his grandfather Patil that he would travel to Mumbai and then Israel.
• Aditya opened Solomon’s leather bag and found fifty thousand US dollars, photographs of Sara and Mary, and the family’s old jewelry and keepsakes.

Aditya found Solomon’s letter asking him to bring Mary back and promising him the Mumbai company, then reviewed Diya Textile Factory’s near break-even accounts. He left the factory running and headed by train to Mumbai, with Israel and Solomon’s request ahead.

• Aditya read Solomon’s letter, which gave him money and Rafiq’s contact details and asked him to bring Mary back in exchange for the Mumbai company.
• Aditya returned to the Diya factory and heard Dipti’s report that production generated only about a thousand rupees in daily profit before additional expenses.
• Aditya told Madan and Dipti to keep the factory operating, maintain accurate accounts and full wages, and prioritize cash flow over inventory.
• Aditya left the jeep with Madan and boarded a train bound for Mumbai, keeping a hand on the leather bag as he slept.

Aditya traveled to Mumbai and met Rafiq, whom Solomon Cohen had recommended, to arrange a trip to Israel. After Rafiq organized his visa, flights, and ways to move his money, Aditya prepared to leave for Dubai and then Tel Aviv.

• Aditya arrived at Mumbai Victoria Terminus carrying fifty thousand US dollars and took a rickshaw to Rafiq's address.
• Aditya told Rafiq that Solomon Cohen had sent him and asked for help arranging a visa, flights, and currency exchange to reach Israel.
• Rafiq agreed to arrange Aditya's travel documents and split his money among traveler's checks, an account, and a contact in Dubai for a fee of eight thousand rupees.
• Aditya returned two days later and received his passport, visa, plane tickets, traveler's checks, and some US dollars.
• Aditya checked his luggage and documents at the inn and went to sleep before his flight to Dubai.

On his way to Israel via Dubai, Aditya helped two Chinese travelers at Mumbai airport by explaining their connecting-flight transfers, then met Anjali in the boarding line. They compared their backgrounds and discovered they were on the same flight, leaving open the possibility of continuing their conversation aboard.

• Aditya left the check-in line to guide a Chinese traveler to the transfer counter and explain how to confirm his connection to Dubai.
• Aditya helped Wang Changgui confirm his Dubai transfer, and Wang gave him a business card and invited him to visit China.
• Anjali approached Aditya and asked about his Chinese, then introduced herself as a UCLA computer science student from Kerala.
• Aditya told Anjali he had left university and now ran a textile factory in Kanpur after paying off his family's debts.
• Aditya told Anjali he was flying to Israel for personal business, and they learned they were boarding the same flight to Dubai.

Aditya and Anjali shared a flight to India, where their conversation about his textile mill revealed his plans to support workers and eventually pursue the internet industry. Anjali became increasingly curious about Aditya’s rejection of the caste system and his desire to build India.

• Aditya and Anjali joked while waiting to board, then discovered they had seats beside each other on the plane.
• Anjali asked why Aditya had opened a textile mill, and he explained that he had started Diya in Kanpur to repay family debts and support more than a hundred workers.
• Aditya described his plans to upgrade and expand Diya, while Anjali argued that the internet industry offered better prospects.
• Aditya said manufacturing could provide livelihoods for people at the bottom and outlined his goal of growing Diya before working with people like Anjali on the internet.
• Anjali questioned why a Brahmin like Aditya cared about Dalits, and Aditya said he rejected the caste system and loved his country more than his caste.

Aditya and Anjali shared a playful conversation during their flight to Dubai, where she gave him her contact details and learned he was traveling to Israel to bring an old man's daughter back to India. They parted at the airport, with Anjali heading to immigration and Aditya continuing toward his connecting flight to Tel Aviv.

• Anjali wrote down her dorm phone number and Kerala home address for Aditya, and he put the note in his pocket.
• Anjali asked Aditya how he learned Chinese, and he spoke a few phrases for her.
• Anjali fell asleep, then woke and asked why Aditya was traveling to Israel; he explained he was going to find an old man's daughter and bring her back to India.
• Aditya and Anjali chatted as their plane approached Dubai, and Anjali said she would visit his factory after graduating.
• After landing, Anjali and Aditya said goodbye at the airport, and Aditya went toward the transfer gate while Anjali headed to immigration.

Aditya waited overnight at Dubai Airport for money arranged through hawala, then received cash and documents to support his entry into Israel. After a tense night, he boarded his flight to Tel Aviv and fell asleep as it took off.

• Aditya followed Rafiq’s instructions and sat by Gate D8, where a man delivered a newspaper containing an envelope.
• Aditya opened the envelope in a restroom and found 4,600 shekels, 200 US dollars, Yair Ben-Zeev’s business card, and instructions for entering Israel.
• Aditya spent a restless night at the airport, then bought a sandwich and water near dawn.
• Aditya boarded his flight to Tel Aviv and fell asleep after the plane took off.

Aditya arrived in Tel Aviv and passed immigration and a secondary inspection before traveling to the address Solomon had given him. He found Mary, Solomon Cohen’s daughter, and she invited him inside.

• Aditya landed in Tel Aviv and answered the immigration officer’s questions about his visit, his friend Yair Ben-Zeev, and his background.
• A female officer searched Aditya’s luggage during a secondary inspection and then let him leave the airport.
• Aditya took a taxi to Mary’s address on Haifa Road and waited outside after the housekeeper did not let him in.
• Mary came to the door, and Aditya introduced himself as a friend of her father, Solomon Cohen.
• Mary invited Aditya inside.

Aditya visited Mary in Tel Aviv to tell her that her dying father, Solomon, wanted to see her in India, and he delivered Solomon’s letter and keepsakes. Mary had not decided whether to go, but she took Aditya to her mother’s burial place to pay his respects.

• Aditya told Mary that Solomon was gravely ill and wanted to see her one last time, then gave her his letter, bracelet, and pendant.
• Mary asked Aditya to stay at her house and said she would decide the next day whether to return to India.
• Mary questioned Aditya about eating chicken despite being Hindu, and he explained that customs varied among Indian families and regions.
• Aditya asked where Mary’s mother was buried, and Mary agreed to take him there.
• Mary changed, covered her face with a blue gauze scarf, and led Aditya on foot to her mother’s burial place.

Aditya accompanied Mary to her mother Sara’s grave, where Mary decided to go to India and see her father, Solomon. The next morning, Aditya used his name and an expediting fee to get Mary’s visa application fast-tracked, and they entered the consulate to discuss it.

• Aditya told Sara’s gravestone that Solomon could not leave India, and Mary admitted her mother had asked her not to hate him.
• Mary decided to return to India with Aditya to see Solomon, and Aisi encouraged her while preparing to leave for the countryside.
• Aditya reminded Mary to prepare her passport and photos for a visa application, and she agreed to go with him the next morning.
• Aditya approached a consulate employee with an envelope, and the employee invited him and Mary inside to discuss the visa.

Aditya helped Mary obtain an expedited Indian visa so she could visit her seriously ill father in Varanasi, then arranged their journey from Tel Aviv to India. The chapter ended with Mary and Aditya leaving Aisi behind as they began their trip.

• Aditya bribed a consulate official to expedite Mary's visa application, and the official told them to collect it the day after tomorrow.
• Mary took Aditya shopping for local gifts, and they joked together after a shoeshine boy mistook them for a married couple.
• Aditya and Mary agreed to travel from Tel Aviv through Dubai to Mumbai, then take a train to Varanasi to visit Mary's father.
• Aditya collected Mary's visa and booked their flights, then packed for the trip.
• Aditya and Mary left for the airport after breakfast, and Mary hugged Aisi goodbye while Aisi asked Aditya to look after her.

Aditya brought Mary from Israel to India, where she struggled with the heat, crowds, smells, and chaos while traveling with him toward Varanasi. They boarded an overnight train, and Mary quietly muttered in Hebrew as she tried to endure the journey.

• Aditya and Mary flew from Tel Aviv to Mumbai, where Mary was overwhelmed by the heat and the crowd's stares.
• Aditya held Mary's hand to guide and protect her through the airport, and Mary covered herself with a jacket, sunglasses, and scarf.
• Mary dry-heaved outside the airport, then rode with Aditya in a taxi and regretted coming to India.
• Aditya and Mary pushed through Victoria Railway Station, bought sleeper tickets, and boarded a delayed train to Varanasi.
• Aditya helped Mary through the surging crowd onto the train, where she took the upper berth and struggled with the conditions.
• Mary quietly murmured in Hebrew while Aditya lay on the lower berth and listened.

Aditya brought Mary to Varanasi to reunite with her dying father, Solomon, who asked her to stay with him. Solomon offered Aditya half of his Mumbai company, but Aditya refused for now and returned to Kanpur to focus on Diya and the Diya Textile Factory.

• Aditya and Mary reached Varanasi and made their way through the alleys to Solomon’s home.
• Mary confronted Solomon about staying away after her mother died, and Solomon admitted he had been unable to return and had failed both Mary and her mother.
• Solomon asked Mary to stay because he had little time left, and he showed her the scarf her mother had kept from her childhood.
• Solomon offered to divide his Mumbai company between Mary and Aditya, but Aditya declined until he had dealt with Diya’s needs.
• Aditya left Varanasi for Kanpur, where he planned to expand the Diya Textile Factory.

Aditya returned to the Diya Textile Factory and found Dipti exhausted from managing its growing workload. He approved her hiring Paro and Usha, reassured her that he trusted her, and left with her to inspect the workshop.

• Aditya arrived at the factory and learned from Raju that Dipti had been working late and skipping meals.
• Aditya found Dipti asleep at her desk, startled her awake, and asked why she had been overworking herself.
• Dipti explained that she had hired her classmates Paro and Usha to help manage the factory, and Aditya approved their hiring and let Dipti set their pay.
• Paro and Usha teased Dipti about missing Aditya, then Dipti sent them to take inventory in the warehouse.
• Aditya encouraged Dipti to eat, and when she asked whether Paro and Usha could stay, he told her he trusted her judgment.
• Aditya asked Dipti to accompany him to inspect the workshop, and she followed him.

Aditya inspected Diya’s textile factory, reviewed its improved output and profits, and set plans to recruit and train more workers. He accepted a large, urgent Allahabad order, then headed to the canteen with Dipti and Madan before discussing further business.

• Aditya toured the workshop as Abid and Ram reported that all twenty-eight machines ran during the day, while unstable power forced them to shut four down at night.
• Dipti reported September output of 934,000 meters and daily gross profit of up to 2,000 rupees, while Paro and Usha detailed yarn supplies, finished stock, and an upcoming shipment to Allahabad.
• Aditya ordered Abid and Ram to screen new workers and have them shadow a shift for five days, and he assigned Dipti to set their wages and post the schedule.
• Aditya instructed Raju to give water to the people waiting outside and told Paro and Usha to prepare recruitment notices and red and blue shift tokens.
• Madan brought an offer from Boss Suen for 100,000 meters of cloth at 8.65 rupees per meter, to be collected from the factory within five days, and Aditya accepted it after Dipti confirmed they could meet the deadline.
• Aditya told Madan he had more important business to discuss that evening, then led him and Dipti toward the canteen as the factory changed shifts.

Aditya explained that the falling rupee and shortage of dollars would drive more Kanpur factories into bankruptcy, so he planned to borrow money in Mumbai and convert it to dollars for Diya. He prepared Dipti to manage the factory and intended to contact Hong Kong trader Wang Changgui before leaving.

• Aditya discussed the exchange-rate crisis with Madan and Dipti, predicting that the rupee would keep falling and more Kanpur factories would fail.
• Aditya said he would take Diya's accounts to Mumbai to secure a loan and convert it into dollars; Madan objected to being left behind, while Dipti supported Aditya's plan.
• Aditya told Dipti to prepare the factory accounts, recruit and train workers, and develop Paro and Usha as managers.
• Aditya drove Madan and Dipti to their villa, where Madan said he would travel to Allahabad to answer Boss Suen.
• Aditya examined Wang Changgui's business card and decided to contact the Hong Kong trader the next day.

Aditya sent a fax to Hong Kong while overseeing recruitment and a major cloth shipment at the Diya Textile Factory. When Mary Cohen called to say Solomon wanted to see him, Aditya drove back to Varanasi, leaving Dipti in charge of the factory.

• Aditya dropped Madan at Kanpur station and took Dipti to the Diya Textile Factory, where Raju organized recruitment.
• Aditya faxed Wang Changgui in Hong Kong to propose a business discussion, but no reply arrived that afternoon.
• Aditya checked recruitment and the warehouse, then told Dipti to prioritize Allahabad's cloth order after Madan signed a supply contract with Boss Suen.
• Mary Cohen called Aditya and said her father Solomon was stable but wanted to see him.
• Aditya told Dipti to keep the factory running and drove to Varanasi to visit Solomon.

As Solomon lay dying, he arranged for Mary Cohen and Aditya Mishra to inherit his shipping company, giving Mary the controlling share and Aditya responsibility for its operations. Aditya accepted Mary’s Rakhi and promised to stand by her, and Solomon died after the transfer documents were signed.

• Mary told Aditya that Solomon was waiting for him and that a lawyer had arrived from Mumbai.
• Solomon warned Aditya that his textile factory needed a way to ship its goods and offered him a share in Cohen Shipping Services Company.
• Aditya insisted that Mary receive seventy percent of the company and that he receive thirty percent, and Solomon agreed.
• Solomon asked Mary to tie a Rakhi on Aditya, and Aditya accepted it as a promise to protect and support her.
• Aditya and Mary signed the share-transfer deed, naming Mary chair and Aditya executive director.
• Solomon called to Mary and Aditya, then exhaled and died; Aditya closed the window.

After Solomon died, Aditya helped Mary bury him on Mishra family land, then prepared to accompany her to Mumbai to settle the port company’s affairs. They left Varanasi by train, with Mary still overwhelmed by grief.

• Mary agreed to bury Solomon on Aditya’s family land after he offered him a quiet resting place.
• Aditya and Mary lowered Solomon’s body into the grave, buried him facing Jerusalem, and marked the mound with the initials “S.K.”
• Aditya told Dipti that Solomon had died and that he was taking Mary to Mumbai; Dipti agreed to oversee the Diya Factory and its payments.
• Kulkarni left for Mumbai to register the company share transfer, while Aditya and Mary packed Solomon’s belongings and chose to travel by train.
• Aditya and Mary boarded a crowded train at Varanasi Railway Station, and Mary remained awake through the night as it headed south.

Mary and Aditya arrived in Mumbai and took control of Cohen Shipping Services Company under Solomon’s will. Kulkarni briefed them on the company’s threats and Solomon’s private assets, leaving them to decide how to protect the business.

• Aditya and Mary reached Mumbai Central Station and traveled to Cohen Shipping Services Company’s offices at the port.
• Kulkarni read Solomon’s will, which gave Mary seventy percent of the shares and the chairwoman’s role, while Aditya received thirty percent and responsibility for daily operations.
• Ghulam, Harun, and the managers accepted Mary and Aditya’s authority without raising objections.
• Kulkarni warned them that Gadkari was delaying the company’s dock license renewal, while Kumar, Haji Karim, Rajput, and Saparkar posed other risks to the business.
• Kulkarni told Mary that she had inherited Solomon’s Mercedes-Benz and villa on Malabar Hill, and Mary decided to keep the villa’s maid, Nagina, for now.

Aditya and Mary reviewed the Cohen Shipping Services Company's finances and discussed the officials and clients who could affect its business. Aditya planned to secure the dock concession renewal and left with Mary for her villa, where he intended to stay.

• Aditya and Mary examined the company's accounts, finding about 6.8 million rupees in its accounts and a monthly net profit of roughly 600,000 rupees.
• Aditya identified Gadkari, Kumar, and Haji Karim as officials receiving unrecorded monthly payments, while Mary noted that Rajput owed two months of agency fees.
• Aditya planned to visit Gadkari at the port authority to pursue the dock concession renewal and told Mary to remain at the company to reassure its staff.
• Aditya insisted on staying at Mary's villa, and Mary reluctantly followed him after he teased her and offered to drive.
• Aditya drove Mary in the old Mercedes-Benz along the coastal road as she relaxed and hummed a song her mother used to sing.

Aditya and Mary arrived at her father’s former villa in Mumbai, where the sea and harbor lights stirred memories of their last visit together. Over dinner, they discussed their plans for the next day, leaving Aditya set to visit the port authority with Kulkarni while Mary went to the company.

• Aditya and Mary reached the villa on Malabar Hill, where Nagina welcomed them and showed them inside.
• Mary looked out at the sea and recalled her father telling her that boats turned on their lights so she could find him.
• Aditya told Mary that her father had been unable to leave India and had regarded her as his hope.
• Nagina called them to dinner, and Mary teased Aditya for not knowing how to comfort anyone before they sat down to eat.
• Mary said she would accompany Aditya the next day, but he told her to visit the company while he went to the port authority with Kulkarni.

Aditya drove Mary to work, then met Kulkarni at the Port Authority to negotiate the Cohen Company's Pier Three permit renewal with Gadkari. He left with Gadkari's safety checklist and planned to address its demands before the inspection, then headed with Kulkarni to the police station.

• Aditya drove Mary to the company and told her he would pick her up that night.
• Aditya picked up Kulkarni and went with him to the Port Authority to meet Gadkari about renewing the Cohen Company's permit.
• Gadkari warned that Pier Three's condition could jeopardize renewal and presented a safety checklist while raising Saparkar's interest in taking over the pier.
• Aditya and Kulkarni challenged the checklist's unofficial status and reminded Gadkari of the company's clean record and established renewal process.
• Gadkari threw the checklist on the floor, and Aditya picked it up before leaving with Kulkarni.
• Aditya said the Port Authority could not afford to block Pier Three's revenue, and he and Kulkarni drove toward the police station.