Chapter 23: Patience on Test
March 5, 2011
Three days away from freedom. The mind has now started wandering between possibilities and impossibilities. Giving me company though are books, blogging, movies, music and definitely my passion for writing. I extremely enjoyed watching two amazing documentaries on the romantic lives of John F. Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline Kennedy. The other documentary threw light on the painful & struggling life of Marilyn Monroe. I’ve been completely besotted by this blonde actress. So much so that I still remember watching every movie of hers during a festival announced on Zee Studio two years back. Her story was immensely moving and inspiring. The most beautiful thing about both the documentaries was the connection between the two. Marilyn had a whirlwind romantic affair with John F. Kennedy and his younger brother. Jacqueline was all the way aware of this. Marilyn’s story is that of how a beautiful woman was exploited just because she was charming & blessed with the natural gift of being extremely seductive. Today on a weekend, I would have preferred traveling to some far off place and spend time photographing. But due to my immobile status, I had to put my passion on rest for yet another day. My mind has started galloping towards March 8. My orthopedic surgeon has promised me, the plaster will be removed on this day. But I will still not be allowed to make it to my office. Not before March 14, is what he had to say. But what matters to me is the freedom. The moment my plaster is removed; I am going to take my bike out of my garage and vroom around. It’s being lying unattended, ignored and immobile just like me. I love my bike more than anything else. She has helped me travel beautifully to my desired destinations. I am waiting for the moment, when she will be taking me all the way to the coasts of Konkan in the second week of June. Now that my patience is on test, I just can’t wait to go mobile again.
Two amazing movies, I watched today:
Shiver – A Spanish supernatural thriller on Lumiere movies. It was extremely scary and also indirectly emphasized the fact that we are doing a hell lot of injustice by cutting jungles. The animals are also hurt by this injustice and they will one or the other way hold the human mind hostage & make them do things, they as animals have been doing so far. We are not far from transforming into four legged blood thirsty beasts.
50 FIRST DATES – Adam Sandler & Drew Barrymore simply were too adorable in this romantic flick. It is the most amazing movie where a guy comes to know of his partner’s traumatic way of living with the problem of short term memory loss. The concept of short term memory loss though was dealt with more seriously by Christopher Nolan in Memento and blatantly copied by A. Murugadoss to create an Indian Ghajini. But originality rarely has a substitute. The movie 50 First Dates also had a message in it that no matter what the circumstances are in life, if you love somebody – be by his/her side to support life.
Chapter 24: Accident Averted
March 6, 2011
Mom has always been asking me to be cautious while taking bath. But today time was not in my favor. I slipped dangerously in the bathroom but was saved. My plaster got completely wet and I found myself trembling again. Because I couldn’t fathom the fact that exactly after one month, I literally escaped being hurt again. Had I not immediately held myself together, I would have definitely fractured my right arm and sprained my neck. This incident has left me miffed and mom worried. I know these are the times, when we want to stay away from superstitions. But they come knocking on the door. This painful impact that I luckily escaped from falling prey to gave rise to suspicions that something is just not right. Is there an evil eye that’s prying on me? Or am I prying on the evil itself? I am sure, I will come out of this and rejoin forces that help me think creatively. In this entire immobile phase, my fondness for reading, writing and watching foreign language movies has only grown. Also I’ve developed immense interest in catching up with travel shows and browsing websites, which invite freelancers who want to contribute their travel writings and get it published. I am keeping my fingers crossed but am still left shaken by another accident that I successfully averted. Time might not have been on my side during these accidents but the invisible hand of God saved me from serious damage.
Chapter 25: Conversations with Best Friend
March 7, 2011
My best friend Nikhil had wanted to meet me ever since I met with the fatal accident. Some how due to unavoidable commitments, he couldn’t make it. Finally he made it my residence, just a day before my long awaited freedom. From the moment, he set his foot we just conversed, laughed and continued taking a walk down the memory lane. From second week of college till graduation and thereafter, it has been 18 years, we have seen our friendship only grow. Today he works as a Development Officer with LIC and I am into advertising. But our paths were never the same in the past. He was the one pursuing a career in creativity and I was the one pursuing a career in official administration job. But as destiny had it, our paths changed. So today he came to meet me to cheer me up. He had planned to leave in an hour. But some old memories just consumed us for a little over two hours and finally when he made his mind to leave, he hugged me and said, “Let’s go to Goa again to celebrate what we call - A LIFE OF SUPREME SINGLEHOOD”. I said amen to that and I wrapped up the day dreaming about a tomorrow, which will gift me, my FORBIDDEN FREEDOM FROM FRACTURE.
Chapter 26: Mobile AGAIN
March 8, 2011
FINALLY FREEDOM FROM FRACTURE
I spent the entire morning and noon and the evening waiting for the clock to tick 7.30 pm.
The time for my freedom had come. In the afternoon, I had seen a dream that was a medley of all the activities I’ve indulged in during my immobile days. Right from story telling to blogging, to watching television, to getting entertained by foreign language movies to writing short thriller stories and to the many inspirations, I imbibed from the dynamically changing world around me. My elder uncle ferried me to my orthopedic surgeon’s clinic on his Honda Activa. The moment, I entered, I asked the surgeon – WILL YOU GRANT ME MY FREEDOM TODAY? He smiled and replied, “Today is the day you shall be relieved of those frustrating days and thoughts”. I was taken to the mini operation theatre. The guy, who was entrusted the responsibility of cutting my plaster, showed me an instrument, which threatened to cut deep into my skin. But that was a gimmick to break the ice. He just made me hold the instrument and touched the blade with his bear hand. I was shocked to realize, it was just a vibrating instrument that can only manage to pierce through a plaster and not the skin. Much to my relief, my leg was set free of the 2.5 kg plaster. My surgeon asked me to get an X-Ray done. The image proved that my hairline fracture had healed. But my surgeon advised me to resume work only from Monday, March 14, 2011. I agreed to the series of physiotherapeutic exercises, he recommended. And he signed off saying that I should avoid jogging till the end of April 2011. Thereafter he promised, I can go completely footloose. Having tasted freedom on a very special day (WOMAN’S DAY) and one of my best friend Mansha’s daughter’s birthdays, I walked free out of the clinic and arrived home to hug mom. Victory did come at a cost. But I shall cherish it for a lifetime………
Loads of love, 100 gms of life and fistful of luck to all who have helped me stay inspired, motivated and restless... craving for more out of life…!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Friday, March 4, 2011
IMMOBILE HOURS Fourth Part of one new chapter
Chapter 22: Just Another Day
Four days more.
I am eagerly waiting for March 8, 2011.
My orthopedic surgeon reconfirmed, the plaster will be removed.
The plaster has become my second skin.
I am finding it difficult to move.
And therefore, I am left immobile.
Now begins an impatient countdown to the D-Day.
I spent my day glued to the television set and what did I absorb from it:
In New:
Quattrocchi was set free from the Bofors case allegations.
Arjun Singh, Senior Congressman passes away.
West Indies defeats Bangladesh and comes under direct attack at Mirpur.
Lalit Modi, former IPL Chief makes an allegation of investigating agencies demanding bribes.
Gaddafi, Libyan ruler is fighting tough.
A Marvelous Movie:
I’m Not There, a Bob Dylan biopic on Lumiere movies.
Four days more.
I am eagerly waiting for March 8, 2011.
My orthopedic surgeon reconfirmed, the plaster will be removed.
The plaster has become my second skin.
I am finding it difficult to move.
And therefore, I am left immobile.
Now begins an impatient countdown to the D-Day.
I spent my day glued to the television set and what did I absorb from it:
In New:
Quattrocchi was set free from the Bofors case allegations.
Arjun Singh, Senior Congressman passes away.
West Indies defeats Bangladesh and comes under direct attack at Mirpur.
Lalit Modi, former IPL Chief makes an allegation of investigating agencies demanding bribes.
Gaddafi, Libyan ruler is fighting tough.
A Marvelous Movie:
I’m Not There, a Bob Dylan biopic on Lumiere movies.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
IMMOBILE HOURS Third Part of two new chapters
Chapter 20: Self Help
March 2, 2011
The kitchen is a terrain I’ve rarely tried to tread into. I’ve never felt the need to do so. Mom is the Queen of the Kitchen. Whatever she cooks is simply amazing. And my knowledge of cooking as such is limited to making Maggi noodles, frying an omelet, boiling an egg and doing my favorite stuff of making coffee. But yes I had once tried to give Pav Bhaaji a shot. The result was extremely disastrous for my father to declare, I better never take it to the frying pan. But today I chose to tread into that somewhat uncomfortable terrain. Mom wasn’t at home. So I had to keep her bothered over her mobile phone to let me know where half of the things are kept in the kitchen. My relationship with the kitchen is limited to the second drawer beneath the gas burner, which stocks my favorite collection of biscuits, cookies and salty snacks. To be frank, I was not making some extremely experimental kind of breakfast. But it was once again the most simply Maggi noodles, which still lives up to its promise of chasing hunger away in two minutes. The only experimentation I did do was chopping an onion with my eyes swelling up with tears, finding a 12 day old chili and adding them to Maggi for some hotness for the tongue. The end result was satisfying. Self help had triumphed. So intrigued and inspired I felt, I hastily limped towards the balcony and called out for my sister who was leaving for some work. I told her to get me brown bread so that I can treat myself to an entertainment of a breakfast tomorrow – two egg omelet with five toasted slices of buttered brown bread. Sounds yummy na. I shall try my level best to make it simply delicious.
Chapter 21: Thought Process
March 3, 2011
I truly wish this could have been my most desired vacation. But isn’t what it is supposed to be. I know sometimes or most of the times, my writings on this blog must have hinted more of despair and much less of hope. The question of whether I deserved this or not also made me reconstruct the night of February 9, 2011. But then I thought, what is the use of it? Is there any? No, not at all for sure. In my entire course of immobile hours starting from February 10, 2011 till date, some things have remained inseparable from me. I would like to list them accordingly – my laptop, my wired internet connection, my mobile phone, my personal diary, my subscribed issues of Open magazine, my books, my copy of The Roazabal Line (courtesy: Yogeta Yadav), my copies of my favorite news daily Hindustan Times on alternate days, my supply of dairy milk chocolates, my music, my blog, my facebook profile, my emails through gmail, my chats, my poetries, my tv set, my music system and my mind. All of them have stayed with me. I downloaded some amazing Bengali music, which I feel is the best so far to lend my ear too. I also did lot of travel reading. I think that is my latest passion, I am getting addicted to and shall love to stay addicted till health permits me to explore new destinations or some age old destinations in new light. I want to return back to work. I still can’t imagine how things are getting managed in my absence. There is no God’s hand to take care of things that are directly or indirectly related to me. But I am sure during this last one month my love for writing and reading has only grown. And I’ve developed a fascination for two great channels on air – FOX HISTORY & ENTERTAINMENT & LUMIERE MOVIES. 45 minutes back, I witnessed fantastic cinema. In fact, I was rendered speechless by the Turkish movie – THREE MONKEYS. The story revolved around an affluent politician and his driver’s family. The movies core theme revolved around the lust for wealth and woman. And there was that cutting edge dimension of old family secrets. On a very lonesome, workless day I couldn’t have asked for more. Equally amazing was a round of entertaining comments that I shared with my comrade Rohit in Mumbai office and Adee S. in Delhi office. I know the eccentricity of being a hardcore Bengali simply spilled out. But at the end of the conversation, I had a hearty laugh. I was thrilled to discover the way Rohit (fellow Bengali colleague) was instantly reacting to it. At the end of the day, I feel fresh and fabulous. By the way for the second day, I prepared my own breakfast of two egg omelet with five slices of toasted brown bread with little butter on them and treated myself to a cupful of hot piping coffee. Finally I might succeed in shedding my image of being a complete Kitchen Illiterate. The mission to Kitchen Literacy is on… Smiles
It is 1.45 am now.
March 2, 2011
The kitchen is a terrain I’ve rarely tried to tread into. I’ve never felt the need to do so. Mom is the Queen of the Kitchen. Whatever she cooks is simply amazing. And my knowledge of cooking as such is limited to making Maggi noodles, frying an omelet, boiling an egg and doing my favorite stuff of making coffee. But yes I had once tried to give Pav Bhaaji a shot. The result was extremely disastrous for my father to declare, I better never take it to the frying pan. But today I chose to tread into that somewhat uncomfortable terrain. Mom wasn’t at home. So I had to keep her bothered over her mobile phone to let me know where half of the things are kept in the kitchen. My relationship with the kitchen is limited to the second drawer beneath the gas burner, which stocks my favorite collection of biscuits, cookies and salty snacks. To be frank, I was not making some extremely experimental kind of breakfast. But it was once again the most simply Maggi noodles, which still lives up to its promise of chasing hunger away in two minutes. The only experimentation I did do was chopping an onion with my eyes swelling up with tears, finding a 12 day old chili and adding them to Maggi for some hotness for the tongue. The end result was satisfying. Self help had triumphed. So intrigued and inspired I felt, I hastily limped towards the balcony and called out for my sister who was leaving for some work. I told her to get me brown bread so that I can treat myself to an entertainment of a breakfast tomorrow – two egg omelet with five toasted slices of buttered brown bread. Sounds yummy na. I shall try my level best to make it simply delicious.
Chapter 21: Thought Process
March 3, 2011
I truly wish this could have been my most desired vacation. But isn’t what it is supposed to be. I know sometimes or most of the times, my writings on this blog must have hinted more of despair and much less of hope. The question of whether I deserved this or not also made me reconstruct the night of February 9, 2011. But then I thought, what is the use of it? Is there any? No, not at all for sure. In my entire course of immobile hours starting from February 10, 2011 till date, some things have remained inseparable from me. I would like to list them accordingly – my laptop, my wired internet connection, my mobile phone, my personal diary, my subscribed issues of Open magazine, my books, my copy of The Roazabal Line (courtesy: Yogeta Yadav), my copies of my favorite news daily Hindustan Times on alternate days, my supply of dairy milk chocolates, my music, my blog, my facebook profile, my emails through gmail, my chats, my poetries, my tv set, my music system and my mind. All of them have stayed with me. I downloaded some amazing Bengali music, which I feel is the best so far to lend my ear too. I also did lot of travel reading. I think that is my latest passion, I am getting addicted to and shall love to stay addicted till health permits me to explore new destinations or some age old destinations in new light. I want to return back to work. I still can’t imagine how things are getting managed in my absence. There is no God’s hand to take care of things that are directly or indirectly related to me. But I am sure during this last one month my love for writing and reading has only grown. And I’ve developed a fascination for two great channels on air – FOX HISTORY & ENTERTAINMENT & LUMIERE MOVIES. 45 minutes back, I witnessed fantastic cinema. In fact, I was rendered speechless by the Turkish movie – THREE MONKEYS. The story revolved around an affluent politician and his driver’s family. The movies core theme revolved around the lust for wealth and woman. And there was that cutting edge dimension of old family secrets. On a very lonesome, workless day I couldn’t have asked for more. Equally amazing was a round of entertaining comments that I shared with my comrade Rohit in Mumbai office and Adee S. in Delhi office. I know the eccentricity of being a hardcore Bengali simply spilled out. But at the end of the conversation, I had a hearty laugh. I was thrilled to discover the way Rohit (fellow Bengali colleague) was instantly reacting to it. At the end of the day, I feel fresh and fabulous. By the way for the second day, I prepared my own breakfast of two egg omelet with five slices of toasted brown bread with little butter on them and treated myself to a cupful of hot piping coffee. Finally I might succeed in shedding my image of being a complete Kitchen Illiterate. The mission to Kitchen Literacy is on… Smiles
It is 1.45 am now.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
IMMOBILE HOURS Second Part of Fresh Chapters
Chapter 9: Gratitude
Undated & Forever
Deepty – for positive words of wisdom
Adi – for care and concern
Daleep – for motivating me
Ganesh – for sharing the most difficult moment of his life
Dipanwita – for being the first one on the 2nd day of my mishap to call me & express concern
Kalpesh – for being the best buddy
Ulka – for never letting me feel alone
Sonar – for letting me know that there are issues with copy
Deepa – for being there the way she is
Prasad – for being the best of buddy
Apurva – for being cheerful and cheering me
Mansha – for making me believe again in destiny
Prashant & Swati – for being my supportive
Sanat – for letting me know that I can still manage to be unstoppable
Ajay – for telling me that worrying will only weaken me and therefore I should continue working
Raji – for challenging me again and again
Gayatri – for telling me that lunch was terribly silent
Rutu – for making me believe that she will always remain the darling of a friend for me
Rohit – for comradeship that requires no words to be described as it is inevitable
Lydia – for keeping in touch
Yogita – for telling me it is good to have a neighbor who keeps you on your toes
Yadav – for tolerating all my tantrums
Priya – for making me realize I am really scary
Jaggu – for pushing me hard to work on a few captions for his photo exhibition
Khanna – for telling me how invisible I have become
Sweetu – for keeping on telling me to get well soon
Yogi – for saying that one accident can never leave me without energy
Rajeshri – for letting every one know that I have become immobile and getting me connected
Kiran – for making me believe again that true friendship is much more precious than any other wealth in this world
Rupal – for quarreling over the fact that not meeting a friend often leads to such long unforeseen vacations of a painful nature
Ameet Sonawane – for telling me from America that I will get well soon
Ashina – for getting me involved in something I was unaware about
Nikita – for letting me know that beyond everything hidden is that truth of mistrust
Nikita Narang – for offering the flowers to my Lord Ganesh in office
Adees S. – For delhidreams
A big thank you to my daredevils: Antara – for ferrying me to the hospital on her Honda Activa | Udayan – for being the first to rush to help his elder brother | Arpita – for unlocking the door to the home in which I lay in pain | Bara Maima – for putting my injured leg on the pillow and caressing me with love & care | Nibedita – for missing her dadamani | Bara Mama & Chota Mama – for saying it is just a temporary phase | Didu – for giving me courage…
But Mom is the greatest of all… I love the way you are simple, loving, caring and supporting me through all this.
Chapter 10: Moment of Total Triumph
February 17, 2011
I had visualized it come alive. I had eagerly anticipated its truism. And my phone rang. I answered after the first bell. The voice on the other end declared – THEY LOVED IT AND WE HAVE GOT TWO MORE TARGETS TO HIT. I loved that positive feeling. I had worked hard on this campaign. But this entire campaign belongs to a team, which made it sure that we delivered quality without compromising on our vision. Sitting at home, perched on an escalated computer chair and a plaster, I wasted not a single second along with my team to put things in place. At the end of the day, we are answerable. I simply felt great to be at the core of the triumphing moment. And I give entire credit to my team and my creative partner, my buddy for making me believe again – ABSOLUTELY NOTHING IN THIS WORLD IS IMPOSSIBLE.
Chapter 11: It Is So Not Very Of Me
February 18, 2011
My conversations were bitter. My deliverance was lethal…
Chapter 12: Shocked and Awed
February 19, 2011
The internet is a powerful tool of communication. But once misused can shatter everything. Be it pride, honor or glory; God forbid if someone ever manages to hack into your personal email id, you are in for a shock. Today I helplessly witnessed something that kept unfolding miles away from me. It was a virtual war of words. It was a digital destruction of an identity. Everything that seemed secure was at stake. And what suffered the most were friendship, trust, faith, belief and mutual admiration. Passwords were being changed, identities were deleted, profiles were scrutinized, forwards were monitored and on the other end of the phone were three voices. Every voice spoke on a different level. One spoke on the level of suspicion, the second voice spoke on the level of being in grief and shattered and the third voice spoke on the level of surety. The location was traced to a crime capital of a place located in the heart of a lively city like Mumbai. Nothing seemed to be unstoppable. Be it doubts, words, allegations or making it sure that one or the other gets hooked, booked and cooked. At the end of the day, I was left shaken because in spite of being confined my mind was pushed to a roller coaster of a ride… Shaa…. It was so much unexpected of you my friend. I will take lot of time to recover from this shock. Because I really had no role to play in this.
Chapter 13: Ruined Sunday
February 20, 2011
It was a sunny Sunday. I was watching one after the other best movies on television. But I was thrilled to catch up with Roman Holiday on Zee Studio starring Greogery Peck and Hepburn. At the same time my movie viewing experience was interrupted by a phone call that made a demand. I did share the information that was demanded of me. But the voice on the other end made me feel as if I was at the core of something that was completely untoward. I was questioned, I was crosschecked and I was asked to part with information that I consider very serious. At the end of the Sunday while watching the amazing Marathi movie Gandh, I realized how fragile every relationship is. I also realized how closest of friends misunderstand you and mistrust you on a matter which is actually rooted in the city you are just based at. Anyways I retired for the day feeling very disturbed.
Chapter 14: Never Say Never Again
February 21, 2011
I had once promised myself that I will never step into the shoes of another person who is an expert in his or her own field. But I had to do so today because somewhere I felt my commitment towards my creative vision was feeling threatened. I believe there are different ways of interpreting and decoding visions. But today, I was dealing with a mind which simply refused to think. My phone calls were left unanswered. My online chats were left unaddressed. My smses never received any replies. I even sent mails. But the unthinking mind just wasn’t in a mood to cooperate. After trials and errors, I gave up and decided I should sacrifice my selfishness and step into the shoes of a person who seems or is supposed to be knowing a bit more than me.
Chapter 15: Completion
February 22, 2011
My mom says very soon I will find myself feeling petrified of my own temper. Her fears might just come true some day. I was speaking to my otherwise soft spoken colleague from office. I wanted to make it sure that before I proceed for my journey to a slightly laid back town, I accomplish my assignments. But this particular assignment just continued getting stretched. Though I felt apologetic later, at that moment my colleague became the victim of my wrath. I know for days, she would be in a state of disbelief that it was I to whom she conversed with over the phone. And it was the same me, who might have really jeopardized her eardrums. Luckily I completed my bit of work that was left pending. There are also those who are stuck between two worlds – Better and the Worse. It was disheartening to see how creativity was put at stake. But then I had very little or less to complain about because we were chasing a livewire deadline.
Chapter 16: Escapade
February 23-27, 2011
Only my mobile was with me. Half of the time, the network was zero. The journey went well and the people around me were filled so much with life. For a moment, I failed to realize that I was tending a fractured left leg. I felt like keep walking with them for hours. But they advised me to rest. I caught up with lovely tea. I entertained myself to good quality food. I enjoyed sleeping longer hours. And I enjoyed smelling the smoke that emerged out of the manmade charcoal gas. I just want to be there forever in the near future.
Chapter 17: Home Coming
February 28, 2011
A break within a break.
A home away from home.
A feeling complementing a feeling.
A vacation in a vacation.
A complication surrounded with more complication.
I felt nice coming back home. Hope kept me feel driven; the hope of soon getting rid of my plaster tomorrow. The first thing I did was put on my television and catch up with some real entertaining stuff. I opted for infotainment. I loved to watch a Macedonian movie on Lumiere Movies which dealt with supernatural happenings. The name of the movie was Shadows. It had a simple but sexy concept. The movie revolved around a doctor and his encounters with spirits. Thereafter it was a lot of viewing of an equally stupid budget, which does no good to inflation. Air fares and hospitality costs are supposed to cost more. And how dare our finance minister shamelessly declare that healthcare cost might go still higher. Indian politicians can kill the Indian population in one blow by waging a war of prices. Soon there will arrive a time when we will find ourselves begging at many doors…
Chapter 18: Mixed bag of sordid feelings
March 1, 2011
Today was eagerly awaited. I just was excited for my left leg, which was all set to taste freedom. The pale looking plaster was supposed to go and I was sure to walk my way or drive my way back home. Nothing of that sort happened. The entire experience left me feeling pathetic, even more frustrated and I cursed every moment of that moment when I met with this bloody accident. I understand the harshness in the language of my writing is due to the most inevitable experience, I didn’t want to be a part of. On reaching the nursing home, I was shocked to find my doctor’s cabin empty. Limping desperately, I rushed to the reception and asked where the doctor is. The receptionist was a bit too busy with the animated conversation she was having over the phone. The second attempt of communicating with her was a success, which was made possible only by my sister. She came back saying, the doctor had left for a stroll since there were no patients to be addressed between 6.30 pm to 8 pm. We were at the nursing home at sharp 7.45 pm to avoid the situation of causing any delay to his departure. The orthopedic has been immensely helpful so far. On entering his cabin, I was warmly welcomed by his smiling face. Courteously he once again asked me to pull the stool and sit comfortably. I did so. He went through the prescription, turned towards me and inquired about my health and my leg movements. After lending an ear to all my motivated conversations, he ticked the name of a medicine I have been taking doses of so far and declared – I AM HAPPY TO SAY THAT YOUR PLASTER WILL BE REMOVED ON MARCH 8. WE ARE DELIBERATELY DELAYING THE PROCESS TO SEE TO IT THAT THE BROKEN BONE STIFFENS IN A GOOD WAY OR ELSE YOU MIGHT HAVE TO STAY INDOORS LONGER. I was left shaken. I had thought, today was the day of freedom but was only left feeling upset when I was made to believe, it will stay one more week. It will stay on my left leg to tease me and remind me of that fateful Wednesday. I came home hurling silent abuses within my mind. I could even feel the instant irritation caused. A friend called up after I reached home to inquire about my health and I vented my anger on her saying – IT YOU THINK A PLASTER IS FUNNY, GET YOUR BRAIN SCANNED. That was the end of every communication today. The night has arrived and I just don’t want to sleep. I might continue reading a book or catching up again with another show of THE SOCIAL NETWORK on my laptop. Or maybe continue reading the freshly arrived issue of my most favorite magazine – OPEN.
Chapter 19: Irreversible
Undated and Forever
I must make peace with the thought that it was an untoward mishap. But it happened. I should have been very angry but I sacrificed my anger. It is painful experience. I have to live with it at the moment. I now feel I really must not have let him go. He ruined some of the finest moments of my life. Who the hell had asked that stupid biker to drive unabashedly? Wasn’t he aware that he was driving on a road and not flying in the sky? People walk on these roads. Life changes on these roads. Why didn’t he blow the horn? Who had given his wife the right to start screaming on me? Didn’t he deserve that slap from the bystander who took control of the situation? Who the hell was he? Hiding his face behind a black helmet mask, seated on a 180 cc Black Bajaj Pulsar, he kept riding like a madcap and what did he do? He knocked me down… B*&$@##&###*!@#
What I have lost in these many days, shall never come back to me and it is my most precious PEACE OF MIND.
Undated & Forever
Deepty – for positive words of wisdom
Adi – for care and concern
Daleep – for motivating me
Ganesh – for sharing the most difficult moment of his life
Dipanwita – for being the first one on the 2nd day of my mishap to call me & express concern
Kalpesh – for being the best buddy
Ulka – for never letting me feel alone
Sonar – for letting me know that there are issues with copy
Deepa – for being there the way she is
Prasad – for being the best of buddy
Apurva – for being cheerful and cheering me
Mansha – for making me believe again in destiny
Prashant & Swati – for being my supportive
Sanat – for letting me know that I can still manage to be unstoppable
Ajay – for telling me that worrying will only weaken me and therefore I should continue working
Raji – for challenging me again and again
Gayatri – for telling me that lunch was terribly silent
Rutu – for making me believe that she will always remain the darling of a friend for me
Rohit – for comradeship that requires no words to be described as it is inevitable
Lydia – for keeping in touch
Yogita – for telling me it is good to have a neighbor who keeps you on your toes
Yadav – for tolerating all my tantrums
Priya – for making me realize I am really scary
Jaggu – for pushing me hard to work on a few captions for his photo exhibition
Khanna – for telling me how invisible I have become
Sweetu – for keeping on telling me to get well soon
Yogi – for saying that one accident can never leave me without energy
Rajeshri – for letting every one know that I have become immobile and getting me connected
Kiran – for making me believe again that true friendship is much more precious than any other wealth in this world
Rupal – for quarreling over the fact that not meeting a friend often leads to such long unforeseen vacations of a painful nature
Ameet Sonawane – for telling me from America that I will get well soon
Ashina – for getting me involved in something I was unaware about
Nikita – for letting me know that beyond everything hidden is that truth of mistrust
Nikita Narang – for offering the flowers to my Lord Ganesh in office
Adees S. – For delhidreams
A big thank you to my daredevils: Antara – for ferrying me to the hospital on her Honda Activa | Udayan – for being the first to rush to help his elder brother | Arpita – for unlocking the door to the home in which I lay in pain | Bara Maima – for putting my injured leg on the pillow and caressing me with love & care | Nibedita – for missing her dadamani | Bara Mama & Chota Mama – for saying it is just a temporary phase | Didu – for giving me courage…
But Mom is the greatest of all… I love the way you are simple, loving, caring and supporting me through all this.
Chapter 10: Moment of Total Triumph
February 17, 2011
I had visualized it come alive. I had eagerly anticipated its truism. And my phone rang. I answered after the first bell. The voice on the other end declared – THEY LOVED IT AND WE HAVE GOT TWO MORE TARGETS TO HIT. I loved that positive feeling. I had worked hard on this campaign. But this entire campaign belongs to a team, which made it sure that we delivered quality without compromising on our vision. Sitting at home, perched on an escalated computer chair and a plaster, I wasted not a single second along with my team to put things in place. At the end of the day, we are answerable. I simply felt great to be at the core of the triumphing moment. And I give entire credit to my team and my creative partner, my buddy for making me believe again – ABSOLUTELY NOTHING IN THIS WORLD IS IMPOSSIBLE.
Chapter 11: It Is So Not Very Of Me
February 18, 2011
My conversations were bitter. My deliverance was lethal…
Chapter 12: Shocked and Awed
February 19, 2011
The internet is a powerful tool of communication. But once misused can shatter everything. Be it pride, honor or glory; God forbid if someone ever manages to hack into your personal email id, you are in for a shock. Today I helplessly witnessed something that kept unfolding miles away from me. It was a virtual war of words. It was a digital destruction of an identity. Everything that seemed secure was at stake. And what suffered the most were friendship, trust, faith, belief and mutual admiration. Passwords were being changed, identities were deleted, profiles were scrutinized, forwards were monitored and on the other end of the phone were three voices. Every voice spoke on a different level. One spoke on the level of suspicion, the second voice spoke on the level of being in grief and shattered and the third voice spoke on the level of surety. The location was traced to a crime capital of a place located in the heart of a lively city like Mumbai. Nothing seemed to be unstoppable. Be it doubts, words, allegations or making it sure that one or the other gets hooked, booked and cooked. At the end of the day, I was left shaken because in spite of being confined my mind was pushed to a roller coaster of a ride… Shaa…. It was so much unexpected of you my friend. I will take lot of time to recover from this shock. Because I really had no role to play in this.
Chapter 13: Ruined Sunday
February 20, 2011
It was a sunny Sunday. I was watching one after the other best movies on television. But I was thrilled to catch up with Roman Holiday on Zee Studio starring Greogery Peck and Hepburn. At the same time my movie viewing experience was interrupted by a phone call that made a demand. I did share the information that was demanded of me. But the voice on the other end made me feel as if I was at the core of something that was completely untoward. I was questioned, I was crosschecked and I was asked to part with information that I consider very serious. At the end of the Sunday while watching the amazing Marathi movie Gandh, I realized how fragile every relationship is. I also realized how closest of friends misunderstand you and mistrust you on a matter which is actually rooted in the city you are just based at. Anyways I retired for the day feeling very disturbed.
Chapter 14: Never Say Never Again
February 21, 2011
I had once promised myself that I will never step into the shoes of another person who is an expert in his or her own field. But I had to do so today because somewhere I felt my commitment towards my creative vision was feeling threatened. I believe there are different ways of interpreting and decoding visions. But today, I was dealing with a mind which simply refused to think. My phone calls were left unanswered. My online chats were left unaddressed. My smses never received any replies. I even sent mails. But the unthinking mind just wasn’t in a mood to cooperate. After trials and errors, I gave up and decided I should sacrifice my selfishness and step into the shoes of a person who seems or is supposed to be knowing a bit more than me.
Chapter 15: Completion
February 22, 2011
My mom says very soon I will find myself feeling petrified of my own temper. Her fears might just come true some day. I was speaking to my otherwise soft spoken colleague from office. I wanted to make it sure that before I proceed for my journey to a slightly laid back town, I accomplish my assignments. But this particular assignment just continued getting stretched. Though I felt apologetic later, at that moment my colleague became the victim of my wrath. I know for days, she would be in a state of disbelief that it was I to whom she conversed with over the phone. And it was the same me, who might have really jeopardized her eardrums. Luckily I completed my bit of work that was left pending. There are also those who are stuck between two worlds – Better and the Worse. It was disheartening to see how creativity was put at stake. But then I had very little or less to complain about because we were chasing a livewire deadline.
Chapter 16: Escapade
February 23-27, 2011
Only my mobile was with me. Half of the time, the network was zero. The journey went well and the people around me were filled so much with life. For a moment, I failed to realize that I was tending a fractured left leg. I felt like keep walking with them for hours. But they advised me to rest. I caught up with lovely tea. I entertained myself to good quality food. I enjoyed sleeping longer hours. And I enjoyed smelling the smoke that emerged out of the manmade charcoal gas. I just want to be there forever in the near future.
Chapter 17: Home Coming
February 28, 2011
A break within a break.
A home away from home.
A feeling complementing a feeling.
A vacation in a vacation.
A complication surrounded with more complication.
I felt nice coming back home. Hope kept me feel driven; the hope of soon getting rid of my plaster tomorrow. The first thing I did was put on my television and catch up with some real entertaining stuff. I opted for infotainment. I loved to watch a Macedonian movie on Lumiere Movies which dealt with supernatural happenings. The name of the movie was Shadows. It had a simple but sexy concept. The movie revolved around a doctor and his encounters with spirits. Thereafter it was a lot of viewing of an equally stupid budget, which does no good to inflation. Air fares and hospitality costs are supposed to cost more. And how dare our finance minister shamelessly declare that healthcare cost might go still higher. Indian politicians can kill the Indian population in one blow by waging a war of prices. Soon there will arrive a time when we will find ourselves begging at many doors…
Chapter 18: Mixed bag of sordid feelings
March 1, 2011
Today was eagerly awaited. I just was excited for my left leg, which was all set to taste freedom. The pale looking plaster was supposed to go and I was sure to walk my way or drive my way back home. Nothing of that sort happened. The entire experience left me feeling pathetic, even more frustrated and I cursed every moment of that moment when I met with this bloody accident. I understand the harshness in the language of my writing is due to the most inevitable experience, I didn’t want to be a part of. On reaching the nursing home, I was shocked to find my doctor’s cabin empty. Limping desperately, I rushed to the reception and asked where the doctor is. The receptionist was a bit too busy with the animated conversation she was having over the phone. The second attempt of communicating with her was a success, which was made possible only by my sister. She came back saying, the doctor had left for a stroll since there were no patients to be addressed between 6.30 pm to 8 pm. We were at the nursing home at sharp 7.45 pm to avoid the situation of causing any delay to his departure. The orthopedic has been immensely helpful so far. On entering his cabin, I was warmly welcomed by his smiling face. Courteously he once again asked me to pull the stool and sit comfortably. I did so. He went through the prescription, turned towards me and inquired about my health and my leg movements. After lending an ear to all my motivated conversations, he ticked the name of a medicine I have been taking doses of so far and declared – I AM HAPPY TO SAY THAT YOUR PLASTER WILL BE REMOVED ON MARCH 8. WE ARE DELIBERATELY DELAYING THE PROCESS TO SEE TO IT THAT THE BROKEN BONE STIFFENS IN A GOOD WAY OR ELSE YOU MIGHT HAVE TO STAY INDOORS LONGER. I was left shaken. I had thought, today was the day of freedom but was only left feeling upset when I was made to believe, it will stay one more week. It will stay on my left leg to tease me and remind me of that fateful Wednesday. I came home hurling silent abuses within my mind. I could even feel the instant irritation caused. A friend called up after I reached home to inquire about my health and I vented my anger on her saying – IT YOU THINK A PLASTER IS FUNNY, GET YOUR BRAIN SCANNED. That was the end of every communication today. The night has arrived and I just don’t want to sleep. I might continue reading a book or catching up again with another show of THE SOCIAL NETWORK on my laptop. Or maybe continue reading the freshly arrived issue of my most favorite magazine – OPEN.
Chapter 19: Irreversible
Undated and Forever
I must make peace with the thought that it was an untoward mishap. But it happened. I should have been very angry but I sacrificed my anger. It is painful experience. I have to live with it at the moment. I now feel I really must not have let him go. He ruined some of the finest moments of my life. Who the hell had asked that stupid biker to drive unabashedly? Wasn’t he aware that he was driving on a road and not flying in the sky? People walk on these roads. Life changes on these roads. Why didn’t he blow the horn? Who had given his wife the right to start screaming on me? Didn’t he deserve that slap from the bystander who took control of the situation? Who the hell was he? Hiding his face behind a black helmet mask, seated on a 180 cc Black Bajaj Pulsar, he kept riding like a madcap and what did he do? He knocked me down… B*&$@##&###*!@#
What I have lost in these many days, shall never come back to me and it is my most precious PEACE OF MIND.
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