Rang Diya…!!!?

I got out of the country’s largest multiplex on a Saturday night. It wasn’t a mid-night but was just 10 to 10. I chose the route to pre-paid auto counter and was happy enough to stand in the queue. It was something I felt good about my home city, “citizen-friendly you know?” I asked my non-local friend. As we neared the counter it was just 8 minutes to 10. The officer issued a ticket and said “One and half, sir”.
“It’s not 10 yet…” I argued. “Sorry Sir. You don’t have to pay one and half rate”, he replied. We felt better.
“I cannot go now, we’ll wait for few more minutes and charge one and half”, the auto drivers were conversing in the local language. “Ask for 50 extra bucks on dropping them…they’ll pay that for sure”, suggested the officer. My friend had got into the auto before I could say anything. “It’s alright, I’ll miss my train otherwise”, he told me.
Is it that the pre-paid counter was built for?

I got down at a bus stop 2 Km away from home. No, I didn’t plan to walk my way (and get robbed) at 10:30pm on a Saturday night. All autos refuse to drive on the road to my house, “Bangalore roads, you know!” When we brought the house in this colony 4 and a half years back, it was one of the remotest places in the city for sure but certainly a calm and beautiful locale. As more constructions happened, more trucks traveled to destroy the roads and no one would ever believe me if I say this!

There I stood at the bus stop for nearly a minute or two when the mammoth BMTC bus stopped by. I boarded and got comfortably seated next to the window. The cool breeze got a smile out of me. “Ah! That’s Bangalore… cool even in the mid-summer!” The bus conductor approached me for the ticket. This face looked quite familiar to me. Yes, this is the man I had picked up a fight with! “How much is the ticket for last stop?” I asked. “Five rupees”, came the reply after an awful yawning. I searched in my wallet to find an old 10 rupee note expecting a five rupee coin in return. But, yes this was the man indeed. I got 7 rupees in return without any ticket. It was my turn now. The blasting went on… “Are you not paid the salary?” Everyone looked on. It must be embarrassing for the poor chap, I thought. Only I thought, not him. He issued a ticket and I gave him those 2 rupees.
“ticket, ticket…” he went on and earned as much as I had spent at the multiplex that evening.
“Wish he’ll watch a Rang De Basanti!” Would that even impact? “Yes and No”
“Guess I bring the director Shankar of Hindustaani and Anniyan fame and ask him to kill this bus conductor! And as one of the characters in the movie asks, “Is just getting an extra 3 rupee a crime!?”

I came back home with mixed feelings. I had picked up a fight with the same corrupt government employee twice and blasted him in the public but nothing changed him! What else could I have done? I switched on the NDTV and saw something which I had not imagined before. One victim of the malefic “bribery” had not just bribed a Police officer but was smart enough to record the whole incident with a hidden camera.
Public and the media had rushed to see the villain of this whole drama and all they heard from him was “No comments!”

But, I had something to comment. “It’s happening! We have come quite some miles to end this evil. So, all those fellow villains beware! As more film makers are waking up, the citizens are not too behind, the most recent addition being Mr. Aamir Khan himself who’s just joined the NBA. Yes, the generation slowly awakens to the voices of Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s Rang De Basanti.

Would it be too early to say that “Mr. Mehra ne Rang Diya…?”

DARK…

As dark as the shadow was the night. The ever running sight caught nothing but the darkness, the darkness behind closed eyes and then a lightning in the wink of an eye. I listened to my breath and nothing else. The night was mute. The stars rested miles away behind the clouds; they were not seen, even in dribs and drabs. Where is the moon? “She’s been crowned by millions of stars behind the clouds, yes it was a full moon day without a moon”.

The darkness is no miniature. She can climb up the skies, she can pull you down. Can she kill you?

I stood up on the peaceful terrace. I didn’t realize it was so dark while I climbed the stairs. Now that I was on the top, I didn’t want to come back. I was trying to find something I had lost. But it was too dark. I hoped someone would help me out of this deep doo-doo. I heard a voice which was loud and rough. The breeze blew slowly.
“Who are you?” I said.
“I’m DARK” replied gently, “Do you need help? Come close to me.”

I was horror-struck, I moved away towards the gate which was left ajar. It was now closed. “Come to me, I’m here for you” the voice kept yelling. “Why did you close the gate?”, I asked terrified. “Who are you? Go away…” I was running all over the space. The voice got much scary with the darkness embracing all over. The voice never stopped. The constant noise in the DARK wasn’t enough, for thunderstorm made its cameo. At that point I thought darkness had taken me in its arms and I forgot what I was searching in the dark. I wanted to save myself in a jiffy!

I could have jumped out of the terrace hoping I would still be alive, I could have tried opening the gate hoping the darkness wouldn’t kill me or I could have killed the voice and relaxed. Before I made a decision, something got me descended. I fell down to witness a large brick on the floor. Before it’s too late, I declared “Get yourself out of here, else you’ll die in a split second”. I caught hold of the brick and tried reaching the voice. Yes, the voice still didn’t stop, it kept clasping. From a tight spot, I flung the brick and knocked down the voices of darkness. It was a huge blast which raced a current through my nerve. Something broke down heavily followed by a long pause…

I started walking down towards the spot and screamed out of pain for pieces of glass from the broken mirror had stuck my feet.

"Don’t run away from yourself in darkness.
Darkness comes, darkness goes.
Listen to your soul when it’s DARK."

[Now it’s been years since this DARK scary night turned out. I’ve now realized its substance. There was no one on the terrace, but a mirror (a self-reflection). My inner voice wanted to talk to me and help me. I had climbed the ladder of success and overlooked my'self'. The darkness had done the damage.

The DARK night has to come and go. Let it just go, don’t fret!!! ]

My Last Journey...

“It had started, finally”, everyone was relieved that the bus started to move after a long wait. One could not stop smiling, looking at the awesome western ghats which captured eyes of all. One such evidence was the little blind girl seated next to me who saw the beauty of tailored mountain flowers in her own way when she exclaimed “Hey, these are jasmine flowers to my left”. Evidently happy was her mother. “I’ll record the videos and store them forever” claimed a teenage boy looking at the thin line of water between the hills miles away. Little did the newly wed couple know that “their first journey was also their last!?”

I sat relaxed, not exactly enjoying the beauty of setting Sun. I was unhappy with the latest developments in life. There seemed to be no end to the long-existing problems which feared insecurities and worries. They kept haunting me even in the arms of Mother Nature. “Enough, now I really need a break”, I told my wife and departed, deciding to go on vacation all alone. I hardly knew minutes away, miles away all problems would no more haunt me… I would no more be there to worry about anything! Death was starving …

“... two more miles”, shouted the horrified voice of the driver which spread like a shock wave in the nerves. “Brakes have broken down!”

I could see people briskly taking their last few breaths. Such is the velocity of scare, death brings with it. The bus never slowed down from there, leaving no room for anyone to get out of it. Glued to their seats people were screaming at the top of their voices. A few, like me were horror-struck and dumb-founded!!

I closed my eyes gently recollecting what had made me choose the route to death! Was I unhappy to the extent that I parted ways with someone I had loved to be all through my life!? Wasn’t I harsh when I said, “I won’t be back in your life … never again”?
Tears flowed, hands trembled, heart battled. The dry lips were locked tight, but I opened my eyes to see the last few trees and hills before the bus would slip down!

Would there be a life after life? Deep down inside the jungle, is there someone who can save my life and take me back to my home? What would happen to all that hard-earned property? Who would console my loved ones and who can fill in the gap; won’t I miss them, would I even know I’m missing them? When will I know I’m no more!!!

We don’t have answers to such questions, nor do we know which our last journey is. Then what is it that we are fighting for? May be, a politician who fights so hard for his seat has all answers!!!

It can’t get more ironical…