The last few weeks have been an ordeal by fire for Zarina Wahab and Aditya Pancholi with their son Suraj (22) in jail since June 13, and gossip columns having a field day writing about his role in 26-year-old Jiah Khan's suicide. But with the Bombay High Court granting bail to Suraj yesterday, the family's suffering seems to have ended, at least in part. The court has granted Suraj bail on a surety of Rs 50,000 while observing that he cannot be held solely responsible for the 'impulsive' act of suicide committed by Jiah. For Zarina, who has maintained that her son "is an extremely shy and sensitive boy" and "cannot raise his hand on anybody", this is the fruit of her fervent prayers. The doting mother told TOI last night that it wasn't before visiting the Mahalaxmi Temple and making a stop at the Mahim Durgah that she stepped into the court. "The last three weeks have been terrible. I have visited so many temples and churches," she said, and added that she had left absolutely no stone unturned for her son to return. Apart from divine intervention, Zarina revealed she had "had a long chat with Jiah in her head" before going to the court, which made all the difference. And before we wondered what she meant, she explained, "Let me tell you how I had this chat. I read the namaaz and started talking to Jiah in my mind. I told her, 'If you really loved my son, are you happy with what has been happening to him since the past few days? Today, you are far closer to God than us. Help him. End his suffering'."

So did Zarina speak to Jiah's mother Rabiya again? "No. I had gone to her once, which everyone knows about. She didn't quite like the fact that I had gone to meet her. That's about it," she quipped. Zarina, who last met her son 17 days ago in Arthur Road Jail, is ecstatic her son is finally free to return home. "When I visited him in jail, he said, 'Mummy, please yahaan phir se mat aana.' At the time, I don't know how I held back my tears and rushed home. Now that he is coming, you can't imagine my happiness. I have hardly slept ever since the tragic suicide of Jiah," she said. Zarina further revealed that Aditya broke into tears in court. "He hugged my sister who was accompanying us," she said, then adding, "My daughter Sana just can't wait to see her brother home." So is Zarina preparing Suraj's favourite dishes to welcome him? "No. In fact, I will be shooting for my TV show Madhubala. I don't want to show him extra attention. I want to be very normal. Anyway, Suraj is not fussy about food," she said in a voice choked with emotion. Sana and Aditya will be bringing Suraj home. "I didn't want to say this to anybody but let me tell you that I haven't gone for the TV shoot since the past two days. I was not in any condition to do so," Zarina said and paused before adding, "Maybe, God wanted to test my son. He is so soft-spoken. Perhaps God wanted to make him stronger."