The Unspoken Connection

 

Bright sun, scotching heat, pollution, noise of umpteen vehicles on road and amidst all was Divya, waiting to board her bus to office. Everything in the vicinity was same as any regular day. The rising temperature of the day, the chaos caused due to heavy traffic, people rushing and pushing each other to board the bus, nothing could affect her today. She stood quietly in a corner lost in her own thoughts.

 

Her face was heated up and appeared red every time she thought about the pain she was undergoing. And then was a rush of uncontrolled emotions which came out in form of tears which she wiped off cleverly so that no one could see.  

 

Her bus came and she boarded it without looking anywhere else.

 

In the bus, she realized that she had forgotten to give food to baba. He must have been there at the bus stand, like every morning, waiting for her, but she didn't notice him today. 

 

Baba, an old man in his late 60's, cobbler by profession and presumably abandoned by his family, he had a small shop near to bus stand from where she boarded her bus. Her bond with baba developed three years back when she had come to Mumbai in search of job.

 

Mumbai, a new city, a new life altogether. She knew no one there. Her zeal to prove herself brought her to this territory which was completed unexplored for her. It wasn’t easy for her initially because she hailed from Panchgani, which is a municipal council, situated in Satara district in Maharashtra, situated at a distance of about 240 kilometers from Mumbai and Mumbai on the contrary appeared a very robust city with a completely different approach and lifestyle to her. But she had to take a chance in life, after all she had put in a lot of hard work during in her studies and finally scored a good percentage in her graduation. And now was the time to put in all her learning's so far, into a real life scenario. Life in a new city made her struggle a lot in the early days. Multiple rejections at job place and yet she tried to keep the vigor on. She had no one to discuss her issues with. She could not even share with her family back home because if she did so, they would call her back. Almost six months passed after which she finally got a job as a consultant in multinational firm.

 

During this course of time, one fine day she met Baba. She was waiting for her bus when she noticed that the strap of her footwear was broken. She saw a cobbler sitting nearby and went to his shop, got her shoes mended and gave him little more money than he asked for, thinking that he was old and might be needy. He nodded his head and said something to her. She hardly understood anything as he spoke in a pure Marathi accent and she on the contrary did not know Marathi, till a passerby translated to her. He said that if she wants to give something extra, she can give him food. Since that day, every morning without fail she handed him breakfast, which he took without any hesitation.

 

This became a daily affair. While going to office she handed him breakfast. They could not communicate as language was a barrier but that one smile every morning from an old man, motivated Divya to keep her hunt for job on. If he, in this old age, can work for his survival, she should certainly make a way out for her was her new outlook to her issues.

 

But today, she had missed her daily custom of giving breakfast to him due to her personal tension and so decided to handover food to him this evening if his shop was still open when she returned back home. While returning back from office, she packed food and when she was back, to her surprise, his shop was still open. He was sitting there, like every morning although it was quiet late.

 

She gave him food. He kept it aside and was looking straight into her eyes as if he knew that something was wrong. He held her hand. And then there was runoff of sentiments. An uncontrollable Divya narrated the tale of how she was being cheated by Mihir for past few months.

 

Mihir, the guy she liked and considered to marry in future. They were into a relation for a year and a half. She had met him at her workplace. They hardly interacted initially as both of them belonged to different departments until one day when he had to shift to the workstation near to her as his system was having technical issues. His nature was totally opposite to hers. A very cheerful, happy go lucky guy who lived his life to the fullest. Everyone in the office seemed to like him for his friendly nature.

 

And one fine day, he asked Divya out for coffee. Divya was hesitant because she hardly knew him and moreover she was a very reserved person and hardly interacted with anyone in office, but just for the sake of being polite she said yes. And then started their journey, umpteen coffee followed by light conversations. She started to discover lovely hangouts in Mumbai along with Mihir, which was an unexplored land for her till now. Suddenly she had developed a liking for this place. Street food, beachside, local markets everything added a new spark to her not so pleasing daily routine. These things were there before but maybe it was Mihir’s company that she enjoyed. She started to view life from a different angle altogether. This time it was more positive and more fun. She discovered that even she was a fun person from inside and like everyone around even she liked to live life to fullest, just the fact that her childhood years were so tangled in the social stigmas that she barely knew anything else apart from being responsible and becoming an ideal child.

 

It was almost six months of knowing each other when Mihir proposed to her. She obviously had a liking towards him. After all he was the guy who helped her discover a new Divya who was within her. By now she knew that he was the guy who could keep her happy all through life and she said yes to him. Next followed a series of family meetings of their parents. Initially Divya’s parents were a little unwilling to approve their relation as Mihir was born and brought up in Mumbai and his family was also very open minded, unlike them who were conservative but after a few gatherings, Divya’s father was convinced that Mihir was the right guy for her and even though their families were different, Divya and Mihir gelled up well and ultimately they would be happy together. Mihir asked for a span of two years to settle his career completely before he could get into married life and Divya’s father approved of it.

 

It was a fairy tale going on for Divya. What better she could have expected from life. Life could not have been more beautiful for her.

 

Everything was perfect until Mihir was chosen to go to Europe for a business trip. All this time, Divya was so used to being with Mihir that spending a month without him even sounded very tough for her. But keeping in mind his career aspirations and his love towards his profession, she was ready to forsake this time for his betterment. Mihir on the other hand was very excited cause this trip could have certainly added a new dimension to his professional life as it would not only help him get a better exposure but also build good contacts for the business he was planning for life ahead. Rashmi, legal advisor from the same firm, was to accompany him for the same.

 

This one month time seemed very long for Divya. She was always lost in his thoughts. She missed everything. The way he talked, the way he treated her, the way he took small efforts to make her smile, each and everything. As he was super busy in his trip, he called her once every two or three days and all this while she did nothing but think about him. Days seemed longer than usual. All she prayed was that he should be successful in getting the business deal for their firm and come back as soon as possible.

 

Finally came the day when he was supposed to return back. She was super excited. She dressed in the best possible and when to receive him at the airport. Her heart was beating fast as she saw him coming along with Rashmi. She hugged him and he hugged her back. But she felt that something was wrong. Maybe he was stressed out after this trip. All this while he was away from his near and dear ones plus work pressure was at its maximum so maybe he was tired is all that she could conclude and thus she ignored the negative vibes she got. She hugged Rashmi next and asked her about the trip. She informed Divya that they had got the contact for their firm and this trip was a success. The success of getting the contract was evident on Rashmi’s face but Mihir was lost somewhere. Divya anyways did not wanted to discuss anything at that moment as she felt that he might have been super tired and needed rest and thus left for home.

 

Almost a week had passed ever since Mihir had come back. But still he was not back to normal. Everyone in office praised his skills for making this trip a success but Mihir looked tensed somehow. He did not look like the same old person who used to enjoy life besides work. Work was a priority to him always but his attitude towards life seemed different. Divya could clearly figure out that there is something which is bothering him. She asked him about the same and he said that it was work pressure and the expectations from him are even higher now and he should become a little more responsible and serious in order to fulfill them. She was not convinced with his replies but has no option but to believe him.

 

Nearly two months had passed. Life had changed. She was not liking the way Mihir was behaving. Every time she asked him regarding the same he said work pressure and ignored the conversation that could have led to a dispute. After a while even she stopped asking the reason for his strange behavior and adjusted with whatever was going on. They went out to the same places like they did before but that spark was missing. Everything was so formal. The warmth in their relationship was fading away.

 

One thing which Divya noticed was that after his Europe trip, his interaction with Rashmi has increased. She was getting a feeling that might be there is something between the two them which is bothering Mihir, but she was ignoring her gut feeling because she loved him and did not want to have any doubts about him. But she could not ignore her feeling for long and did something which finally gave answered all her questions. She checked his phone.

 

He was involved with Rashmi. They were having an affair for the past three months that is even a month before they went for the trip. Divya was devastated. The messages she saw in his phone and all his call logs clearly showed why he was behaving strangely with her. She didn’t know what to do at that moment. She had a hint before that this could be the matter but she kept ignoring because she could not doubt the guy she loved. Everything seemed to have ended for her. She went to Mihir and handed his phone to him. Mihir looked at her eyes. It was completely red. He understood that she has come to know about what was going on. She left without saying anything and today he could not stop her.

 

Her trust was broken and as she narrated these details to baba, she kept crying and repeating that she could still not believe that all this happened yesterday and all her dreams were shattered.

He listened to her peacefully. After about an hour she realized that he would have hardly understood anything as he was a pure Marathi guy and she spoke Hindi but still all this while he listened to her. She felt that she acted dumb but she had no choice maybe. So much was going inside her and perhaps this is why she forgot the fact that the guy she was narrating her story to barely even understood her. She wiped her tears. He put his hand on her head and said something which she did not understand. She could have asked someone to explain but today she had no patience and thus she went home.

 

Next morning when she went to bus stand, she noticed that Baba's shop was closed. She thought that maybe we was up late last night and maybe would open up late. Same thing continued for next couple of days.

 

Meanwhile Mihir had talk to Divya. He confessed that he was having an affair and this was the reason for his changed behavior. He could not tell this to Divya for obvious reasons but even he was confused from inside. Next, told her everything as how he got attracted towards Rashmi and thus when this trip was panned, he was excited not only about the contract but also about the fact that he would get time to spend with Rashmi. But after he came back, he could clearly make out that he was was moving in a wrong direction. It was his mistake and he did owe it completely. He was even ready to confess the same in front of his and Divya’s parents and if they permitted only then he would continue his relationship with her. He left it on her completely as to how she wanted to take things ahead. All he said to her at last was that he was sorry for what he did and if possible she should give him another chance.

 

Yes he had made a mistake. A very serious one. She was deeply hurt. But the ultimate fact was that both of them loved each other. And sometimes things do go wrong in a relationship. But what matters is strength of love between the duo. Mihir had opened his heart to her. She had an option to go back and let his and her parents know about it and end everything. But somewhere within there was some hope left for her.

 

His mistake was not something which could be considered. But he was the guy who had made Divya what she was today. He supported her when she all alone. He helped her discover the person she was. He made all efforts to convince her family for their relationship. Maybe he deserved a chance. She was not sure if this would work but yes she decided to give him a chance.

 

They planned a vacation to Kerala. Change is what both of them needed. Time can heal all wounds and time did help to get things on track for them. This short trip did sought out the tussle between them and things were better.

 

She came back to Mumbai after 15 days. Excited to meet baba and tell him that things were better, she packed breakfast and went to bus stop. To her surprise his shop was still closed. Little anxious, she went to a nearby shop and enquired about him. And what followed next stunned her totally. 

 

He was no more. The shopkeeper told that he had promised his daughter that he would go to a nearby pilgrimage to seek blessings for her as she was in distress. No one in this locality knew about his daughter though. There was a stampede and he succumbed injuries while returning back. He survived for 10 days and breathe his last 2 days ago. The shopkeeper took out some holy offerings which baba handed over to him and told him that his daughter would come and collect the same.

 

Divya could now understand what he was telling her the day she narrated her story to Baba. He had told her his plans, which she didn’t understand.

 

Tears rolled down her face as she replied “I am his daughter ". 

दादी

सुबह की पहली किरण की तरफ मुख करके धीमी धीमी आवाज़ में , 
ओम का जाप करती थी मेरी दादी..
सर पर पल्लू लिए , मन में सच्ची भावना कि साथ, भगवान को स्मरण करती थी मेरी दादी ... 
आज बहुत याद आ रही है दादी 
आज भी एक सुबह है , पर वो कही नहीं है ना उनकी वो अवाज़ हैं , ना घर मेँ गूंजती उनकी प्राथना है ... 

आज भी हर सुबह जैसे अख़बार आया है पर चस्मा लगकर उसे नहीं पढ़ पाएगी मेरी दादी
ध्वनि का एहसास तो भगवान ने कबका छीन लिया था
पर फिर भी अखबार के शब्दों से दुनिया की हर छोटे बड़ी बात को समझ लेती थी मेरी दादी... 

कभी सोचूं तो नहीं समझ पाती मैं की कैसा होता होगा ,
इस दुनिया को देख तो पाना, पर किसी भी अवाज़ को ना सुन पाना ..
ऐक इंसान जिसने सब कुछ सुना है , उसके लिए दुनिया का ऐक दिन शांत हो जाना .., 
पर दादी को देखकर ऐसा लगता था की अपनी सूझ बूझ से इंसान अपनी कमी पर भी विजय पा सकता है , दुनिया से कटकर भी दुनिया मेँ रूचि जागा सकता है .. 
एहसास से सबकुछ भाप लेती थी ऐसी थी मेरी दादी ... आज बहुत याद आ रही है दादी 

शाम को मम्मी के साथ बैठकर टीवी का मज़ा लेती थी.. 
बंगला हिंदी सुन तो नही पाती थी , पर हर कुछ समझ जाती थी मेरी दादी
दादी का टीवी दखकर ज़ोर जोर हसना बहुत याद आएगा... 
टीवी तो अब भी हर शाम गूजेंगा पर नही गुंजेगी अब से दादी की वो प्यारी हसीं ... 
कहाँ चली गयी दादी ... थोड़ा और रुक जाती दादी ... 

शाम को हर कमरे में प्रकाश कर दो, हर जगह लाइट जला दो , ऎसा कहती थी दादी
आज भी मैंने वही किया हैं पर ऎसा कर दो, ये कहने वाली दादी आस पास कही नहीं है
ये वही कमरा है जिसमेँ दादी रहती थी , 
कही दादी की दवाइया पड़ी हैं कहीं उनकै कपडे और कही उनकी किताबे ... 
उनके हर कपडे से उनकि खुशबू , उनका एहसास आता है ..
पर वो कही नही है रात को उसी बिछावन पर हमेशा जैसी सोयी थी मैं .. 
पर बीच रात में दादी की आवाज़ ने इस बार नही उठाया मुझे ,
इस शांति से तो अच्छी अवाज़ ही थी
ऎसे क्यों चली गई दादी ... थोडा और रुक जाती दादी.. 

हर बार जो मेरे घर आने का इंतज़ार करती थी
मेरे घर आने पर मुझे गले से लगाती थी
इस बार वो मेरे आने पर बिलकुल शांत थी
आराम से लेटी हुई थी चेहरे पर एक सा भाव बनाये 
दुनिया से आँख मूंद चुकी थी मेरी दादी
लगता है जैसे इस बार दादी को जल्दी थी 
शायद कही और जाने की प्रतिबद्धता थी
तभी नही रुकी इस बार मेरी दादी ... 

इसान शांत हो जाता है , 
अवाज़ चली जाती है पर लम्हें , यादें रह जातीं हैं , 
हस्ता हुआ चेहरा मन मेँ समां जता है 
इसलिए दूर होकर भी आप सबके बहुत पास हो दादी .. 
आपकी हर बात याद आएगी ,
आपका चहरा बहुत याद आएगा 
 सबके मन मेँ अमिट छाप छोड़ कर भगवान मेँ विलीन हो गयी मेरी दादी 
सबको बहुत याद आएंगी दादी ...

Bihari or a Bengali

I was 9 when our class teacher asked all students to get in writing from their parents as to which caste they belong to as it was to be maintained in official record books of school. There were 4 categories written on backboard. I didn’t know what it meant. So I copied the same in my diary and asked my mother and she said we belonged to General.

I was 12 and went to buy chart paper in a nearby stationary shop. The guy who owned the store asked me, which caste do you belong to, I said general because that I what I knew. He smiled and said there are subdivisions to it, better ask your mother. I did so and I was informed that I am a kayastha.

I was 16 and I went to my music class. My music teacher is a Bengali lady. She asked me your sister is a Bengali. Her family speaks Bangla. How come you speak Hindi. Moreover, my father uses a title das which is a Bengali title. So was I a Bengali? I was puzzled again. I asked my mother again and she said we are Bengali Kayastha.

Confusing J . It is, for me too.

And then one fine day, years after, I googled my so called existence. Where do we come from, who are we? And google is supposedly said to have answers to almost all questions in this world. It has, this time also J

It says we are basically Kayastha from Uttar Pradesh who settled down in Bengal when the rulers were trying to expand their kingdom towards east. As we lived in Bengal for more than 250 years this state had a deep influence in our language, style of dressing customs and cultures. We adopted Bengali traditions to its fullest. Baktiyar Khilaji invaded Bengal and defeated the then King Laxman Sen. In order to save life and property we started migrating towards Bhagalpur in Bihar. Vikramshila University in Bhagalpur was always supported by Laxman Sen and it grew with his support. So finally people of his kingdom choose to migrate to Bhagalpur due to their long connection with Vikramshila University. And this is how we moved to Bihar. I was born in Bihar and my prior generations are from Bihar, so let it put this way, I am a Bihari with a Bengali origin :).

I did not do this research because my existence bothers me in any way. In fact, I have lived with people of all castes all through my life. Right from school and here I would like to mention that I have changed five schools in my schooling career and so I met a lot of people in my school life. None were from “my caste” and it hardly made a difference to me. And then came college, a bigger circle altogether. I met even more people and became close to people who were not only from different caste but from different religion altogether. And today the same continues in my workplace too. So as long as there is a connection this caste factor does not bother me in any respect.

But yes, I should have answers to questions being put up to me. And so I choose to know my existence. It never was and it never will, matter to me in anyway but knowing things related to me does help to increase my knowledge. It did in this case J

 

 

 

Walking down the colony's lane in rain with the umbrella but making sure that tiny droplets of shower do touch my face, playing badminton in the evening with my landlady helper, watching kids of age group 2-8 riding bicycle, standing on the Terrance and simply feeing the swift wind that tickles me, eating the so called unhygienic yet the most yummy golgappas from the colony’s vendor, visiting the grocery store in my shorts at times without giving a damm to anyone who sees me and above all living a life of peace, this is what I had always dreamed for and I am living my dream!

When I joined hostel I was blank totally, no presumptions, nothing. And with an experience of 3 years in hand as of now, I can say it was more of learning lessons for life than just fun. Bitching, back biting, politics, unnecessary drama at times or rather most of the times, it sucked totally. I don’t want to escape from the adversities of life but yes these things I would rather avoid because there are certain harsh scenarios destined by nature that all of us willingly or non willing face but manmade superfluous problems, one can surely do without for sure! I somehow I don’t want to recall my hostel life cause even when there were moments of pleasure, the very next moment, situations were out of control. I sometimes wonder how a 20-22 year old person can complicate his/her life to such an extent and most importantly hamper the lives of everyone around.

I had dilemmas regarding my decision to take a PG this year. And almost a month has passed after I joined my new PG, and I am clear in my mind that I took the right decision. Bright faces of my PG friends, less calorie good food enriched with love and care prepared by aunty, uncle’s hilarious nature, chotu’s chit chat and rocky’s(doggy) barking one and all seem pleasurable cause behind each of these, there in genuinely which hostel life lacked.

I have never dreamed for the impossible or for something which is very lavish. But yes whatever little I wish of having must be authentic and provide me calm so that I can live not mere breathe. I wish that the days ahead are lovely and as of now I AM IN LOVE WITH MY LIFE TOTALLY!!!!!!

Is it me?

Staring at the mirror I thought “Oh god! Is it me?”

Clad in red shorts and white tee, all wet in sweat, sitting very comfortably on my friend’s couch waiting for her to get ready so that we could proceed towards the terrace and start with our game, I looked like a complete guy. I was 8 then. Biologically a girl but more of a tom boy! I had practically no qualities of a girl. My wardrobe gave an appearance that it was of some young boy and perhaps it was only at school or maybe when I visited some relative of mine that I was spotted in skirts! But that day something strange happened. For the first time I noticed that I looked like a boy, dressed like a boy and even had a haircut like a boy!

And then suddenly I started observing my friends who were girls. They were unlike me. Calm and composed, soft spoken away from fights! I was just the other way around, loud, ring leader of the group as quoted in my uncle’s word, always up with mischief’s and that too deadly one like playing with fire, experimenting with electrical sockets, involved in terrible fights with my cousins and other guys of my apartment which sometimes worsened because guys would not give up if punched by a girl and the same applied for me too. I was poles apart from other girls!

But then something struck me that day. It was not that I wanted to be like a guy but I had never realised that I acted like a guy! And after becoming conscious about this fact, I wanted to change myself. Changes were slow. In fact very slow!

The first change was that of my attire. I now had those frills and frocks which I once considered absolutely silly to wear! The next area of concern was to control my loud voice and moreover control my anger and stop hitting guys! And this was difficult. It took years. And by the time I was 11, I had, started developing girl instincts!

The major transformation took place when I was admitted to Notre Dame Academy in class 7^th. I had always been to a co-education school and it was my very first experience to join a girl’s school. Initially it was strange, 60 girls sitting in a room, all wearing same dresses looked the very same! I had a hard time memorising their names. But the most challenging job was still to come up, judging their natures, and poor I, till date i am very weak at it! I missed my friends from my previous school because I had no friends here. And it was difficult to make friends when everyone was so full of attitude and sense of letting the other one down. For a month I had my lunch with my cousin who was in the junior section until one day she suggested me to mingle with my class mates and develop a rapport. And once I tried, I was through! I made new friends.

And I learned a lot new things which I was poor at; a sense of creativity topped the list. Making bulletin boards on innovative topics with all sorts of craft paper, learning new art forms like pot painting, collage making, book binding, knitting, tie and dye, different stitches etc were all I developed an interest in. All this was so exciting and very new to me and I enjoyed doing it! Slowly and steadily I was more of a girl now.

Over the years things have changed. Now I like to wear a little bit of jewellery too but a lot of it still makes me crazy if it’s not something really trendy. I love wearing suits for some formal occasions. My interest in makeup had diversified. Nail paints of all funky shades, eyeliners and kohl of different colour, I totally love! Sophistication in voice and mannerism I can carry off well now. So progress is good. But I know I can never be like the pure girly stuff, and moreover I don’t want to become one after all individuality must be respected and one should be loved for it!

THIS IS THE 600 WORD SHORT STORY WHICH I HAD WRITTEN FOR COMMONWEALTH WRITING COMPETITION 2010.

The aroma of freshly prepared rotis had enveloped the miniature kitchen. Amongst a dim lighted lamp and some old utensils sat Kaveri Amma, as fondly called by the villagers. It was time for her dinner. Like an every day custom, she prayed to God before consuming the little she had prepared. Amma, in her late 60’s, mother of two sons, both well settled, was spending prime of her life in the ancestral house of her late husband.

As she lay quietly on the hand knitted rug, trying to figure out probable solution for her predicament, past reminiscences appeared before her. It felt as if it was just yesterday when she was married to Govind, who was nearly 15 years elder to her. A girl just 14, who played in streets, was suddenly the eldest daughter-in-law of Raghuvanshi Family. Along with Kaveri, 4 cows, a kilo of gold and silver utensils was send to the Raghuvanshi’s as a penalty of Kaveri’s dark complexion. But in spite of these offerings cum dowry, she was made to work continuously, without even attending to any of her genuine complains.

To muddle through the diverse responsibilities shouldered upon her was indeed a challenge. Right from getting up early at 4 for Morning Prayer, to sweeping the entire house, to cooking the varieties before the clock struck 12, to taking lunch to the farm for her husband and brother-in-law, to again cooking dinner and simultaneously managing other petite tasks like attending to frequent calls of her in-laws, to shopping out for households, was all she did on a daily basis. And amongst all this, she tried to figure out what an institution like marriage actually meant?

She got an acceptance into family after delivery of her first baby and that too not because her husband loved her as of now or her in-laws developed a sense of care for her but because she was on the threshold of continuing their generation. This period of 9 months was like a queen’s reign for her. She named it and it was at her service, the best of clothes, eatables and whatever she desired for.

Kuwar, a fair complexioned baby boy, liberated her from being a blotch on the pride of Raghuvanshis’.

And out of the blue, things transformed for her. She discovered new facets of life, motherhood marking the very start. With each step Kuwar took forth, a novel quandary was waiting for this inexperienced girl. And she, with all her efforts, was ready to combat them. Yes, there was someone to help her now, Govind. He was in love with her. Life changed its connotations; she became a wife genuinely after she became a mother.

And then life began. She felt like a bird that could spread its wings, fly high, and explore the vastness of existence. Marriage, love, commitment, she could now completely relate to. The perception of her in laws also revolutionized with elapse of time, she became more of a daughter than daughter-in-law.

This was the house where she was brought 54 years back. She acquired different roles that of a wife, a mother, a daughter-in-law, a mother-in-law and finally a grandmother, and this dwelling were evident of her being just to each of it. She could feel each of the brick reciting her past life, the air gently tickling her and reminding her of all those rejuvenating moments. A young girl as delicate as a petal transformed into an emotionally and physically stable woman here. She had made her decision, her heart and soul resides here, and she would breathe h er last here.

There are some places where we love to hang out with some of our best pals and yes I am all set to write about one such place. It’s about 15 feet above the ground, not very spacious but yes very airy and totally awesome place! It’s none other than tank top of Meharkunj apartment and the person who is my partner in crime is AKANKSHA PRIYAM. I call it a crime cause as a kid I had this mindset that everyone who went up there were weirdo’s and moreover girls never went up there, it was always the guys and I think we two are the one who started this trend.

An iron ladder which is fixed to the ground leads up there. Off course one needs to be careful cause we can fall while going up and coming down and that reminds me of the fact that I did fall once when I hurried after listening to my mum’s voice! But I am an accident prone person, and these things do not alter my determination much.

So talking about the place, it’s like it can accommodate 6-7 people, but I and Akanksha would actually dislike to take someone along with us up there. One can view a good range of vicinity which basically included lots of vegetation, some private houses and apartments. Especially after a little drizzle, the sky looks marvelously stunning and clear from there. I remember we sometimes try to figure out different patterns which are randomly created during cloudy weather. There are all sorts of birds that one can see. Some are the migrating ones which form very orderly pattern as they proceed and some totally random like crows and sparrows, but I guess each of it looks gorgeous. And sometimes there are unknown kids playing in the nearby apartments who wave to us and its lovely to wave back!

Now a list of things we do there. Actually there is no list it’s all random! We chat, we laugh,we recall some excellent memories of our childhood, sometimes I go mad and feel like yelling and that is the moment when Akanksha acts sensibly and stops me, we guess random cloud patterns, we see kids and sometimes we even see guys and that’s normal..and moreover that’s rare..very rare I guess…very very rare I guess..anyways..and the latest was our photo shoot..up above, random poses..lots of laughter..it was heaven!!!

And I guess all this ultimate fun was possible because I had you Akanksha Priyam! (Don’t fly! Come down) And now that you are all set to start your college life, I hope things would not change and every time we meet during our common holidays, we would do the same, ever and ever again!!!!