தமிழீழம்

தமிழீழம் பிரச்சனையை குறித்து இங்கு  நான் விவாதிக்க போவது இல்லை .

நான் விடுதலை புலிகளிக்கு ஆதரவாளரும் அல்ல. இலங்கை அரசுக்கு எதிரியும் அல்ல. தமிழ்நாட்டின் எங்கோ ஒரு கோடியில் சினிமா, கிரிக்கெட் , வேலை, வீடு என அன்றாட வாழ்வை வாழ்ந்து கொண்டு இருக்கும்  சாதாரண இளைய சமுதாயத்தில் ஒருவளின் எண்ண பதிவுகள் .

நானும் இத்தனை நாள் "இராமன் ஆண்டாலும்  இராவணன் ஆண்டாலும் எனக்கொரு கவலை இல்ல " என்ற பொன்மொழி படி வாழ்ந்து வருகிறேன். 

"தமிழீழம்" பிரச்சனை என்றால்.." அங்கு ஏதோ போர் நடக்கிறதாம்" என்று மட்டுமே தோன்றும் . 

எதற்காக போர்? யாருக்கும் யாருக்கும்? இத்தனை நாள் இலங்கையில் என்ன நடந்தது? இந்த போரின் விளைவுகள் என்ன? இதை பற்றியெல்லாம் என்றுமே நான் யோசித்ததே கிடையாது. நம் வீட்டில், ஆபீஸில் இருக்கும் பிரச்சனைகளையே நம்மால் சமாளிக்க முடியவில்லையாம் , இதில் உலக பிரச்சனை பற்றி கவலை என்ன நமக்கு? 

அனால் கடந்த சில தினங்களுக்கு முன்பு ஆங்கில தொலைக்காட்சி நிறுவனம் வெளியிட்ட சில காட்சிகள் நமது செய்திகளில் ஒளிபரப்பினர்கள் .  அதை பார்த்த எனக்கு மிகவும் பாதிப்பு ஏற்பட்டது. இந்த பதிவை எழுதுவதற்கும் அதுவே மூல காரணம்.

இணையதளத்தில் அந்த காட்சிகளை தேடி பார்த்தேன். அதை பார்த்த எந்த ஒரு மனிதனுக்கும்  பாதிப்பு ஏற்படாமல் இருக்காது . அப்பாவி மனிதர்கள் கொல்ல படும் நேரடி காட்சிகளை .காட்டினார்கள் . போர் இத்தனை  கொடூரமானதா?

பெண்கள் , குழந்தைகள் என்று பார  பட்சமே பார்க்காமல் கொன்று குவிக்கும் கொடிய அரக்கன் இந்த போர்.

உலகில் எந்த மூலையில் போர் நடந்தாலும் இது  தான் நடக்கும் என்பதில் சந்தேகம் இல்லை. ஆனால் இந்த போரின் பாதிப்பு மட்டும்  ஏன் இவ்வளவு  கொடுமையாக உள்ளது? 

அதற்கு முன்பாக இலங்கையை பற்றி நான் மேற்கொண்ட ஒரு சிறிய தேடலை இங்கே பதிவு செய்ய விரும்புகிறேன்.

இலங்கையின் வரலாற்றை  பற்றி நான் சேகரித்த சிறு தகவல்கள் இதோ:

(குறிப்பு: வரலாறு அதை வடிபவர்களின் பார்வையை  பொறுத்தே அமையும்)

இலங்கையில் தமிழர்களின்  வரலாறு பல ஆயிரம் ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்பே இருந்து வருகிறது.  6- ஆம் நூற்றாண்டில் தான் வங்க தேசத்திலிருந்து படையெடுத்து வந்த "சிங்கபுறத்து  இளவரசர் விஜயன்" அங்கே இருந்த திராவிட மன்னர்களை எதிர்த்து போரிட்டான்.  (அன்று முதலே ஆரம்பித்து விட்டது தமிழர்களுக்கும் சிங்களவர்க்கும் எதிரான இந்த போர்) 

தமிழ் அரசர்களும் சிங்கள அரசர்களும் மாறி மாறி போரிட்டு ஆட்சியை கை பற்றி கொள்ள முயன்று கொண்டிருந்த நிலையில் ... 13 ஆம் நூற்றாண்டு வாக்கில் , சிங்கள அரசர்கள் இலங்கையின் தெற்கு பகுதியில் தங்கள் ராஜ்யத்தை நிலை நாற்றினர். அன்று முதல் ஆங்கிலேயர்களின் வருகை வரை, தெற்கு பகுதிகளில் சிங்களவர்களும், வடக்கு மற்றும் கிழக்கு பகுதிகளில் தமிழ் அரசர்களும் தனி தனி நாடுகளாக ஆட்சி புரிந்து வந்தனர்.

சோழர் காலத்தில் கூட தமிழகத்தில் இருந்து ஈழம் சென்று போர் புரிந்த மன்னர்கள் பலர் உண்டு . கல்கியின் பொன்னியின் செல்வன் படித்தவர்க்கு , ராஜா ராஜ சோழன் ஈழம் சென்று போர் புரிந்த காலத்திலும் கூட அங்கே இருந்த மக்களின் அபிமானத்தை பெற்றிருந்தார் என்பது தெரியும் . அங்கே அவர் போர் புரிந்த காலத்தில் , போரினால் சேதம் அடைந்த புத்த விகாரங்களை அவரே மறு சீரமைப்பு செய்தார் என்பது குறிப்பிட தக்கது. 

நம் தமிழக மன்னர்கள் போரில் வீரர்களாய் இருந்தாலும், கலையை மதிக்க தெரிந்தவர்களாய்  இருந்தார்கள் . பகைவனின் கலை உணர்வை கூட மதித்த உன்னதமானவர்கள்  நம் முன்னோர்கள் . 

இந்த சூழலில் இலங்கையின் தெற்கே ஆண்ட சிங்கள மன்னர்கள் சிறிது முன்னேறி இலங்கையின் நடு பகுதிகளை ஆக்கிரமித்து "கண்டி" யை தங்கள் தலைநகரமாக கொண்டனர் . 25332 சதுர மையில்கள் பரப்பளவை கொண்ட இலங்கை ஒரு அழகிய செழிப்பான தீவாக விளங்கியது. வணிகம், விவசாயம் , நீர் வளமை ,  அந்த காலத்திலேயே சிறந்து விளங்கிய நீர் கால்வாய்கள், அடர்ந்த காடுகள், மலைகள்  என்று செழிப்பாக இருந்தது . 10- ஆம் நூற்றாண்டில் வணிகர்களாக வந்து இறங்கிய இஸ்லாமியர்கள் தமிழை தங்கள் மொழியாய் ஏற்று கிழக்கு மற்றும் தெற்கு பகுதிகளில் குடியேறினார்கள். 

16-ஆம் நூற்றாண்டின் துவக்கத்தில் போர்த்துகீசியர்கள் இலங்கையில் இறங்கினார்கள் . இங்கு வடக்கு  மற்றும் கிழக்கு பகுதிகளில் தமிழர்களும் தெற்கு மற்றும் மேற்கு பகுதிகளில் சிங்களவர்களும் தனி தனி ராஜியங்களாய்,  தனி கலாச்சாரங்களாக திகழ்ந்ததை கண்டு , சிங்கள மன்னர்களிடம் ஒப்பந்தம் மேற் கொண்டனர். 1619 இல் நடந்த போரில் , தமிழ் ராஜ்ஜியம் கைபற்றபட்டது. தமிழ் மன்னன் "சங்கிலி குமரன்" தூக்கிலிடபட்டான் . 

ஆனால் , அதன் பின்னர் வந்த டச் மன்னர்கள் , இலங்கையை தனி தனி நாடுகளாகவே ஆட்சி புரிந்தனர். 1796 இல் வந்த ஆங்கிலேயர்கள், இலங்கையின் வரலாற்றை மாற்றி அமைத்தனர் . தாங்கள் ஆட்சி புரிவதற்கு சுலபமாக வேண்டும் என்ற காரணத்திற்காக இரண்டு நாடுகளையும் ஒன்றாக்கி "சிலோன் " என்று 1833 இல் ஒரு தனி நாடாக மாற்றியது . 

In 1799 Sir Hugh Cleghorn, the first Colonial Secretary observed in the well known 'Cleghorn Minute', `two different nations, from very ancient period have divided between them the possessions of the island: the Sinhalese inhabiting the interior in its southern and western parts from the river Wallouve to that of Chillow, and the Malabars (the Tamils) who possess the northern and eastern districts. These two nations, differ entirely in their religion, language and manners.'

இரு வேறு நாடுகளை, இரு வேறு இனங்களை , இரு வேறு கலாச்சாரத்தை, இரு வேறு வரலாற்றை , தன் அரசியல் வசதிக்காக ஒன்றாக மாற்றியது ஆங்கிலேய அரசு. இன்று இலங்கையில் நடக்கும் இன வெறி படு கொலைகளுக்கு என்னை பொறுத்த வரையில் இதுவே வித்தாகும். 1805 ஆம் ஆண்டு ஆரோஸ்மித் என்ற ஆங்கிலேயர் வரைந்த இலங்கையின் வரைபடத்தின் படி ஈழம் தனி நாடாகவே சித்தரிக்க பட்டுள்ளது. அந்த வரைபடத்தை இதில் காணலாம்:

http://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~233057~5509638:Map-of-The-Island-of-Ceylon-Drawn-b

1820 களில் ஆங்கிலேயர்கள் இலங்கையின் மலை பகுதிகளில் காபி எஸ்டேட்களை அமைக்க ஆரம்பித்தனர். 1840 - 1850 களில் தமிழகத்திலிருந்து கோடிக்கனக்கான மக்கள் கொத்தடிமைகளாக கொண்டுவரப்பட்டனர். இவர்கள் பெரும்பாலும் நெல்லை, மதுரை, தஞ்சை பகுதிகளின் ஏழை மற்றும் தாழ்த்தப்பட்ட சமூகத்தை சேர்ந்த மக்கள் ஆவர்கள். ஈழத்தை ஆண்ட வீர  தமிழனின் வம்சாவளிகள் ஆங்கிலேயர்களின் கொத்தடிமையாக வாழ நேர்ந்த அவல நிலைமை ஏற்பட்டது. 

காபி வியாபாரம் நஷ்டமடைந்த காலத்தில் , 1880 களில் தேயிலை தோட்டங்களை அமைக்க தொடங்கியது ஆங்கிலேய அரசு. இந்த காலகட்டத்தில், ஆங்கிலேய ஆட்சியின் அசுர ஆக்கிரமிப்பு குணம், தலை விரித்து ஆட தொடங்கியது. தமிழர்களை அடிமைகளாக்கி,அவர்களக்கு வாழ்வின் அன்றாட வசதிகள் கூட இல்லாத அளவில் , கொடுமை படுத்தியது. 

தமிழர்கள் சொந்தமாக நிலமோ அல்லது வீடுகளோ வைப்பதற்கு தடைகளை விதித்தது ஆங்கிலேய அரசு. 

இந்த நிலையில், தமிழர்களின் சாதி அமைப்பில் மேல் தட்டில் இருந்தவர்கள், ஆங்கில கல்வி முறையை தேர்ந்தெடுத்தார்கள். இதனால் தொழில்முறை மற்றும் வெள்ளை காலர் தொழிலாளர்கள் என்று  ஒரு புதிய வர்க்கம் உருவானது . இலங்கை வரலாற்றில் இது ஒரு முக்கிய நிகழ்வாகும்.

"பிரித்தாளுதல் " முறையில் பெயர் போன ஆங்கிலேய அரசு, தமிழர்களுக்கு மாநில நிர்வாகத்தில் முக்கிய பங்குகளை வழங்க ஆரம்பித்தது . மாநில நிர்வாகத்தில் முக்கிய பதவிகளை வகித்தல், ஆங்கிலேய கல்வி முறையை தேர்ந்தெடுத்து மேல் தட்டு வர்க்கமாக உருவெடுத்தல், கிறிஸ்துவ மதம் பரப்பல் என்று தமிழர்களின் மீது சிங்களவர்க்கு வெறுப்பு தொடங்கியது. ஆங்கிலேயனின் எண்ணம் நிறைவேறியது. 

1947 இல், இந்தியாவை விட்டு பாகிஸ்தானை பிரித்தெடுத்து சென்ற ஆங்கில அரசு, 1948 இல், இலங்கையில் தமிழருக்கு எதிரான தீ பொறியை விட்டு சென்றது.  இன்று அந்த தீ பொறி , வெறி கொண்டு பல அப்பாவி மக்களை தனக்கு இரையாக்கி கொண்டுள்ளது . 

இரு தனி நாடுகளின் வேற்றுமைகளை மதிக்கமால், அவர்களின் தனி பட்ட வரலாற்றை  பொருட்படுத்தாமல் ஒன்றினைத்ததே ஆங்கிலேயன் செய்த பெரும் தவறு. ஒரு அழகான தீவான இலங்கையை ஒரு போர்க்களமாக மாற்றியது அந்த ஒரு அரசியல் முடிவு தான்.

 இது நடவாதிருந்தால், தமிழீழம் இன்று ஒரு தனி நாடாக இருந்திருக்கும். தமிழர்களுக்கு என்று ஒரு தனி நாடு. இராமேஸ்வரத்திலிருந்து படகுகள் மூலமாகவே எளிமையாக ஈழத்திற்கு சென்று விடலாம் . (வெறும் 29 கீ மீ. தானே!) தமிழ் மீனவர்கள் எல்லையில் கொல்லபடுவார்கள் என்று அஞ்ச வேண்டியிருக்காது. எல்லாவற்றுக்கும் மேலாக லட்ச கணக்கான மக்கள் போரில் இறந்திருக்க வேண்டியதில்லை. 

ஏதோ ஒரு உணர்வு இந்த போரின் கொடுமையை மட்டும் மனதின் ஆழம் வரை செலுத்துகிறது  என்று முன்பு  கூறினேன் அல்லவா ? 

எங்கோ அமெரிக்காவில் ஒரு தெருவில்  தொழில் நுட்ப நிறுவனத்தில் பனி புரியும் ஒரு தமிழர்,வழியில் ஒரு தமிழ் உணவகத்தை பார்க்கும் பொழுது தன்னை அறியாமல் முகம் மலரும் பொழுது.. 

புது தில்லியின் கூட்ட நெருக்கடியான சாலையோர கடைகளில் மண் பொம்மை விற்கும் ஒரு முதியவர், தனது செல்போனில் எம்.ஜி.ஆர். பாடல்களை கேட்கும் பொழுது...

பெங்களூருவில் ஆட்டோவில் செல்லும் பொழுது , உள்ளே ரஜினிகாந்த் படத்தை பார்த்ததும் .."அண்ணே ..நீங்க தமிழா? தலைவர் ரசிகனா ?" என்று முகம் மலர்ந்து கேட்கும் பொழுது..

இந்த பொழுதுகளில் ஏற்படும் அதே உணர்வு தான், பன் மடங்கு உயர்ந்து, வேதனையாய் , நெஞ்சில் வலியோடு அந்த கட்சிகளை பார்க்கும் பொழுது, ஒரு அம்மா .."ஐயோ ..இந்த குழந்தையை காப்பற்றுங்கள்" என்று அலறும்  சத்தம் கேட்கும் பொழுது.. அந்த உணர்வே , நம்மால் எதுவும் செய்ய முடியவில்லையே என்று கூனி குறுகி வெட்கப்பட வைக்கிறது. 

தமிழீழம் தனி நாடக மாறுமா? எனக்கு தெரியவில்லை, அதனால் மீண்டும் போர் வரலாம். அங்கே மக்கள் கொல்ல  படாமல் இருந்தால் அதுவே போதும். மக்கள் அமைதியாக வாழ வேண்டும். நமது நாட்டில் பல்வேறு மொழிகள், கலாச்சாரத்துடன் நாம் அமைதியாக வாழவில்லையா? இலங்கையில் வெறும் இரண்டு மொழிகள் தானே? அவர்களால் ஏன் ஒற்றுமையாய் வாழ இயலவில்லை? ஆங்கிலேயன் தன் சுயநலனுக்காக பிரித்து ஆட்சி செய்தான். இதை உணர்ந்தாலே போதும். 

20000 ஆண்டு பழமை வாய்ந்த கலாச்சாரத்தை சேர்ந்த தமிழர்களுக்கு ஒரு நல்ல விடிவு காலம் வராதா? நம்ப தான் முடியும். என் எண்ணங்களை எதற்கும்   பதிவு செய்யலாம் என்றே இதை எழுதினேன். 

நான் முன்பு கூறிய உணர்வு என்ன என்பது இப்பொழுது புரிந்திருக்கும். 

அதுவே .. "தமிழுணர்வு " 

Firefox & The Lonely girl

Firefox & the lonely girl.

Chapter-1

He cleared his mailbox and logged out. He was blandly staring at his laptop screen, not sure what to do. He was frustrated. There was not much motivation left in him to do his work, or anything for that matter.

Just when he was about to shut down his laptop, an ad for a free chat room popped up. It said “JOIN FREE CHAT ROOM NOW” . He hesitated for a second and thinking that it would be a good way to kill time, entered the chat room.

He has never done this before, joining random chat rooms.  He was in fact a little excited about doing this, and that surprised him.

“enter nickname:  _______”  the screen blinked.

Ok. Nickname. Hmm.

His mind went completely blank. He had no idea what he should type as his nickname. He looked around his room hoping some name in some paper would catch his eye. He looked at his browser window again and typed “firefox”

Firefox has joined the chat room.

He saw a list of names in the right corner of the window. The names were even weirder than his, ranging from “body builder” to “sexy b*tch” to “tinker bell” to “lord’s messenger”.

So many jobless people in this world. He thought, not realising he was one!

So what am i supposed to do now? Do i wait for someone to start chatting with me or how does this work?  He waited for five minutes. No body approached him.

Maybe i should have entered a better nickname. He decided he should take the lead and start a chat with someone.  He scrolled down the list of users in the chat room. There was one name which caught his attention – “LONELY GIRL” . He was quite intrigued by that name. He clicked that name and a window opened.

                firefox:  Hi.

                lonely girl: Hi!!

He was taken aback by such a spontaneous response. His heart was racing. He felt like the time when he had his first drink when he was 17.

Come on. It is not that big a deal. He convinced himself.

                lonely girl: asl?

                firefox: sorry?

                lonely girl: :O

                firefox: what.

                lonely girl: r u new?!!

                firefox: Yes. Is it that obvious?

                lonely girl: lol yeah.. :P ASL = age – sex – location :)

                firefox: Oh.

No way i am giving away my details. But this is interesting. Hmm. Let me see.

                firefox: 28 – M – Bangalore

                lonely girl: cooool... 24 – F – Mumbai here :) :) :)

                firefox: Ok.

                lonely girl: first things first... If you are looking for some weird “hot chat” stuff, i am not the                         

                                   kind of gal ;)

                firefox: Wo! I’m not that kind either.

                lonely girl: lol :P OSM!! I just thought your name was very weird “fire”fox  n all that :D  so                       

                                  what do u wanna talk about??? :) :)

                firefox: anything. you tell me. What is the expansion of OSM?

                lonely girl: lol :D its short for awesome ;) :)

                firefox: I see.

                lonely girl: duuuudee!! you sound so cold :-/

                firefox: Why?

                lonely girl: lol..i dunno.. Maybe its coz u don’t put too many dots after each sentence.. :D

                firefox: do you come here often?

                lonely girl: yup!! everyday.. I can sit here for hours n hours :P

                firefox: Great. So what do you do?

                lonely girl: for fun?

                firefox: No. In life.

                lonely girl: Oh lol :P I’m an architect :)

                firefox: Wow! That’s great. I’m an architect too.

                lonely girl:  :O :O :O talk about coincidences!! lol

                firefox: why do you keep using the word “lol” in every sentence?

                lonely girl:  :D LOL = Laughing Out Loud

                firefox: so are you laughing out loud really whenever you type LOL?

                lonely girl: lol. no..!! :D (but now i am!!)

He smiled. This was nice. He checked the time. It was 1:00AM. He had an early meeting the next day.

                firefox: I better sleep. I have a meeting tomorrow. It was good talking to you.

                lonely girl: same here dudee... :) wil u b here 2mrw?

He thought for a moment.

                firefox: yes

                lonely girl: c ya then... G’nite! xo xo sleep tight... :D :D :) :)

                firefox: Good night.

He fell on his bed thinking about the lonely girl. His thoughts immediately switched to the meeting tomorrow. He fell asleep.

Chapter-2

It was 9:30 by the time he reached home the next day. He quickly freshened himself and had dinner which he had parcelled on the way.

He opened his laptop and he was in a hurry to sign in to the chat room. He scrolled down the names, once, twice , thrice. He couldn’t find the lonely girl. He was disappointed. He checked the time. It was 11:00PM.

Maybe she left.

He opened his mailbox and checked his mails, most of it was spam. He cleared them all and checked the time again. It was only 11:10PM. Just then a window popped.

                lonely girl: yo!! :)

He was elated. It was as if a new energy was flowing through his body.

                firefox: Hello.

                lonely girl: ‘sup?

                firefox: What?

                lonely girl: lol :D WHAT IS UP? so funny to type the whole thing mann! :P

                firefox: Oh. Nothing. How was ur day?

                lonely girl: boring :-/ as usual... how was ur meeting thingy??

                firefox: thingy? Meeting went fine.

                lonely girl: lol ... coollll :D :P

                firefox: How is architecture in Mumbai? Where do you work?

                lonely girl: It is ok i guess. I work for some stupid company..dont even ask :-/

                firefox: Ok.

                lonely girl: which company do you work for?

                firefox: I kind of have my own office.

                lonely girl: :O :O you dint get any job or what?!

                firefox: I did work for sometime. Now I prefer designing buildings on my own.

                lonely girl: ahh.. like that.. :P

                firefox: you are funny.

                lonely girl: lol. thnx :D but u r boring :-/ :P

                firefox: Is that so?

                lonely girl: Yeahhhh man!! you don’t even use smileys :-/ :P

                firefox:  I like it this way. Who is your favourite architect?

                lonely girl: duudeee..im so sorry..but im damn sleepy..I gtg...ttyl..gn..sd... :D :) :)

                firefox: OK.Good night.

After she logged out, he had to google “gtg” , “ttyl”, “gn..sd” to completely understand what she said.

Chapter-3

Days passed. The firefox-lonely girl chat became a regular event. They talked about anything and everything. Movies, cricket, travel, etc. They did not chat for long hours though. It lasted for 30-45 minutes but every single day. It became a habit difficult to stop. This went on for two months. One of those days when they were in the middle of a conversation.

                firefox: you know this is so weird.

                lonely girl: what is? :O

                firefox: we talk about so many things. wide range of topics. anything & everything.

                lonely girl: yeahh..!! we totally rock :D whats so weird abt dat :O

                firefox: It is weird because we are both architects but we have never discussed architecture!

                lonely girl: lol

                firefox: architecture is my passion. I just love designing spaces. And i’m so proud of being an

                             architect.

                lonely girl: lol..me too :P

                firefox: you have “LOL” now too?

                lonely girl: became a habit..lol.. cant stop it :D

                firefox: why don’t we talk about architecture today?

                lonely girl: Reallllyy? I was thinking today was gonna be about food :-/  lol :P

                firefox: What?

                lonely girl: jus kiddin.. ok shoot :D

                firefox: Ando is my all time favourite architect. Who is yours?

                lonely girl: Hafeez Contractor. Thats my guy :)

                firefox: LOL

                lonely girl: He is my sort of role model :) :) :)

                firefox: Ok. Seriously. Who is your favourite architect?

                lonely girl: Hafeez Contractor! duuuddee what are you saying? He is a member of the

                                  Bombay Heritage Committee & New Delhi lutyens Bungalow zone review

                                  committe!! don’t you think its OSM?? :O

                firefox: seriously. What?

                lonely girl: Ok... listen.. I’ve to make a confession.. I’m not an architect :-/

                firefox: What!

                lonely girl: yes and im not 24 and im not from Mumbai :(

                firefox: how old are you?

                lonely girl: I’m 18 :|

                firefox: Oh my god.

                lonely girl: I’m so sorryy :( :(

                firefox: I don’t know what to say.

                lonely girl: I knowww... i feel so baddd :( :( im sorry for hurting you.. you were so true to

                                  me..but i ditched you :(

                firefox: Actually no. I too have a confession to make. I’m not 28 either. I’m much elder to

                            you.

                lonely girl: how much elder? :O

                firefox: I’m 46. Married. Divorced.

                lonely girl:  w t f !!!

He googled “ WTF” and did not know what to reply.

                lonely girl: you are like my dad!! I can’t believe ive been chatting with you.. x-(

                firefox: So? You lied too.

                lonely girl: Forget it dudee.. Internet is full of posers! You are such a creep. GUD BYE!

Before he could type anything, she logged out. He felt so angry and guilty at the same time. He shut down his laptop and went to bed. He could not sleep. He shut his eyes tightly and tried not to think about anything. He failed. He kept thinking about the lonely girl.

 How can she cut me off like this? As is she was very honest.

He tried sleeping for half an hour. He got up again and opened his laptop and entered the chat room. He scrolled down the list of users. “body builder” was there as usual. She was not. He shut down his laptop and leaned back in his chair.

Entering this chat room was a big mistake, I am never coming back here again, After 2 hours of struggle , he fell asleep.

Chapter-4

A month passed. He never logged into the chatroom after that night. It was very difficult initially. It was like skipping a meal of the day everyday. He kind of missed the lonely girl and their weird relationship. It was one part of the day when he poured his heart out not worrying about any consequences . He missed that. He missed her non-stop chatter. But life went on.

It was a Friday night. He declined his friends offer to go for a drink and went back home. He just wanted to be alone.

He opened his laptop, checked his mails asusual. He had a sudden instinct to visit the chat room again.He logged in.

                Firefox has joined the chat room.

He decided that he would logout immediately if she was not there. He would not wait for her. But there she was. The lonely girl.  Somehow his ego stopped him from starting the conversation.

Comeon. She is just a kid. He thought. A window popped up suddenly.

                lonely girl: Hi.. how have you been?

                firefox: Hi. been good. How about you?

                lonely girl: yeah.. fine..

Think of something to say. Anything. He just kept staring at the screen for five minutes.

                lonely girl: u there?

                firefox: Yes. Was thinking what to type.

                lonely girl: Listen. I’m really sorry about last time. I was very rude to u :( you have been my

                                  good friend. I shouldnt hav done that to you. :(

                firefox: That’s ok. We both are at fault. I am sorry too.

                lonely girl: coooollll :) :) can we be frnz again?? what do u say we start all over again?? :) :)

                firefox: alright. OK.

                lonely girl: ASL? :D :P

                firefox: 46-M-bangalore.  What about you?

                lonely girl: 18-F-chennai.  :) :)

                firefox: So what do you do?

                lonely girl: I’m in my 1^st year engineering course . I hate my college :( and you?

                firefox: Hey. I lied only about the age part. Im still an architect running my own firm.

                lonely girl: OSM! :P

                firefox: Why did you say you were 24? and why an ‘ARCHITECT’? and how the hell do you

                              know about hafeez?

                lonely girl: lol :D I just typed “architect in mumbai” in google and copy pasted few lines from

                                  the wikipedia :D :P  and yeahh i thought a 24 year girl in mumbai who is an

                                  architect sounded so much cooler than a dumb 18 yr old college kid :-/

                firefox: I know. being an architect IS cool.

                lonely girl: lol..ok sir :P

                firefox: Come on. Now you call me sir because you know i’m 46?

                lonely girl:  :D :D jus pulling ur leg

                firefox: Can i ask you something?

                lonely girl: Yeah?

                firefox: It was actually very sweet of you to talk to me even after knowing that i am 46. You

                           are so full of energy. When i chat with you, i have these positive vibes in me and i feel  

                          so much younger. Why is your name “lonely girl” ? as far as i know, a chatter box like

                         you can never be lonely!

There was no answer from her. For 3mins.. now 4.. 4:30.. He was getting tensed . He was worried that he asked something that he shouldn’t have.

                firefox: are you there?

                lonely girl:  yea.. actually the kind of impression that you got about me – this person is not me. This person is who i want to be in my life. That is not what i am actually to the outside world. In this chatroom, i meet new people from different countries and culture and i know for sure that i wont meet them in my life. So i let out all my thoughts and the craving i have for living life to the fullest. In real life, i’m an introvert. People hardly know me. I have very few friends. Like in my class now, most of them dont even know my name. They dont even know i exist. I ve been used to all this ridicule and bullying.I can take it all. Im that weird kid in the class who nobody wants to talk to. Of course i dont want to be like this. But i cant help it. Who doesnt like attention and appreciation? Maybe its bcoz i dont look that great. If u r a girl, you either have to be super talented or super hot!! otherwise the world treats you like shit.

He was shocked. Though he knew her only “virtually” , it was like seeing a totally new person. He felt he needed to comfort her.

                firefox: That is not true.

                lonely girl: you are not a girl! you wont understand..I feel like shit when all these good looking girls in my class hang out together ignoring me. On the other hand, in this chat room i feel wanted. I feel good about it. That is why i come here everyday. Have you read sidney sheldon’s “tell me your dreams?” Im like that multiple personality creepy female. What a sad life i lead right?

                firefox: Not as sad as me. A 46 yr old guy in a chat room. What’s worse than that?

                lonely girl: lol

                firefox: you know what is more important than being “ super talented” and “super hot”?

                lonely girl: being “super rich” ? :P

                firefox: comeon, No.

                lonely girl: then?

                firefox: being a “super human being”

                lonely girl: oh comeonnn.. please dont tell me you are going to start that topic!! this is why i dont chat with old men x-( :D :P

                firefox: Comeon now. Listen to me. I will help you make your life better. Let me please. I somehow feel like I owe this to you.

                lonely girl: aww :) ok! i will listen to you

                firefox: you dont always have to be wanted by everyone. you do not “grab” attention. you earn it. Be yourself lady! Have a pure heart, love for others and a smile in your face. That makes you the most beautiful person in this world.  Love is such a beautiful thing.  Only shallow people see beauty as just skin deep. you are much more than that! aren’t you? just an example, the other day i had ordered pizza and i was climbing upstairs with the box. I saw my security guy and out of an instinct gave off the box to him . He refused at first but later he was so happy that he was going to have something for dinner that he has never had before. That feeling you know was so wonderful. When you a see a person smile and you know that you are the reason behind it. Do you know that there is no other greater feeling than the feeling of making some one else happy? Trust me, just try it for few days. Your life will become more meaningful.

He pressed enter with a sigh of relief. He hoped she understood what he was trying to say.

                lonely girl: wow.

                firefox:  what?

                lonely girl: noone has ever spoken to me like this before! Thanks :)

                firefox: so will you try?

                lonely girl: yeah sure. I feel good about myself already :) thanks a lot :) Can i ask you something?

                firefox: yes.

                lonely girl: are u sleepy :P

                firefox: No. Is that what you wanted to ask really?

                lonely girl: No. Jus making sure.. lol. you said you were divorced. May i know why? you dont have to..

                firefox: No thats ok. We were classmates. fell in love and got married. We have a beautiful daughter. Things were fine. We are in the same profession. Ego clashes happened. Things became worse. We both decided it was best that we were apart. We parted in good terms.

                lonely girl: what abt ur daughter?

                firefox: She lives with her mom. I visit her during weekends.

                lonely girl: How can you be divorced? you married the girl you loved! :(

                firefox: Life. happens.

                lonely girl: I’m sorry.

                firefox: no. Don’t be. Oh. I did a lot of crazy things when i was with her. crazy college days. i was the lead guitarist in my college band. I used to write songs to impress her. I used to write love poems and stick it in the girls hostel notice board. I was infact suspended for that.

                lonely girl: lol. you wer a romantic.. weren’t you? :P

                firefox: Oh yes i was. We were madly in love. And the most craziest thing that i did was on our wedding day.

                lonely girl: what did u do?!! :O

                firefox: ours is a very conservative family. After a lot of struggle, our parents agreed to our wedding and on that day, when i tied the knot around her neck, I kissed her on the forehead in front of hundreds of people. They were stumped!

                lonely girl: omg! you r crazyyyyy  :D but that was really romantic :) :) :) even now no guy would dare to do that!

                firefox: i know. I dont know what i was thinking. But i wanted that moment to be the most special moment of our lives.

                lonely girl: do u miss her?

                firefox: well. I have moved on. But of course her memories are still there. I’ve learnt to live with it.

                lonely girl: do u still love her?

wow. nobody has ever asked me that before.

He thought for a long time. He closed his eyes and thought about his wife, the mother of his daughter, his love. It seemed like an eternity. He opened his eyes and felt like he was awakened from a long hibernation. He looked at the screen, the question still remained.

lonely girl: do u still love her?

firefox: yes.

He typed. He was shocked.  He hasn’t asked that question to himself in years.

firefox: I’m off to sleep. It is 4:00 AM

lonely girl: thank you... i feel like a totally new person :) :)

firefox: me too :)

lonely girl: wowwww! your first smiley :) :)

firefox: haha. good night.

lonely girl: gn..sd..xo..xo..tc :) :)

Chapter-5

He got up the next day feeling very different. It was Saturday and he was going to meet his daughter.He tok his cell phone and dialled . A lady answered on the other end.

                “hello?”

                “it’s me”

there was a pause and then the lady spoke with a hesitation in her voice.

                “uh.. is Divya’s mobile not working? I will drop her at your place in an hour”

                “No. I wanted to talk to you”

                “what”

                “I love you”

There was silence. And then he heard her say:

                “Rajeev..”

She was crying.

Meanwhile, in chennai in some engineering college it was culturals day and everyone were gearing up for the final event , the rock concert. Jennifer was not feeling ok.  She kept telling her friends that she was feeling very sick and uncomfortable.

                “Just chill. Watch the concert. you’ll be fine”

                “No. I think its the food i ate this afternoon.. and ..”

Nobody could hear her after that as the rock band entered the stage and all the students started whistling, screaming and hooting. The lights changed colours and there was smoke everywhere. It was too loud.

Jennifer’s head was spinning. She couldn’t take it anymore. She felt like puking. She closed her mouth and ran out of the auditorium.

She couldn’t control. She found a corner and threw up.  She felt so exhausted and weak when suddenly a random girl offered her a bottle of water.She cleaned herself and drank the water.

The girl smiled and asked “how are you feeling now?”

“Much better .. thank you so much.. these guys wouldnt even listen to me.. rock show was more important” tears rolled down as she spoke.

“ thats ok. i heard you telling your friend, that is why i followed you up here to make sure you were ok.”

“that was so sweet of you... thanks a lot.. sorry i don’t even know your name? “

“Radhika”

“Hi Radhika.. Im Jennifer from ECE dept.. which dept are you from?”

“your class”.

The girl smiled and walked away.

               

               

It's normal to be weird

Sometimes it seems weird that you don’t feel weird about doing something weird in life.  Over the past few years of my life, i have become so used to this, that i feel absolutely normal to be weird. Yes, i am an architect.

Most of the time, we (architects) are surrounded by weirdo’s (fellow architects) like us, that we feel our world is perfectly normal, until we step outside.

• Walking into a restaurant, looking at the floor and thinking: “ that tile looks familiar.. oh yeah it is 6303B rustic finish” 

• Going to a bank, without a pen but a bunch of pencils ranging from 2B to 6B in your pocket.

• The feeling you get when you are unable to explain something (it might be an incident which took place down the road) to a person, and you HAVE to sketch it out on a piece of paper (sometimes in plans/sections/3D views) for them to understand better.  Otherwise, you feel handicapped.

• When you enter a movie theatre and can’t stop staring at the false ceiling or the acoustically treated walls

• Getting offended when your ‘non-architect’ friends ask you after you have worked whole night,

“Oh you had a night shift?”

“It is NOT a night shift. I did a NIGHT OUT”

• During travel, when somebody exclaims,

“did you see that??”

“yeah..horrible colours in the facade right”

“uh.. i was talking about the guy who fell down his bike.. Never mind “

• When you have a deadline tomorrow and you hear your friends say,

“it is only 12:30 am.. Still there’s lot of time”

• when you realise you just can’t work without coffee and your favourite music

• the sudden feel of guilt when you think you have slept for 8hours the previous night.

• When you just can’t gift a person “a show case piece” . Every time you have to gift something , it is like a mind boggling experience, and it is almost a NECESSITY that you come up with something different and creative.

• When staying up all night is so much easier than getting up early in the morning

• When the first thing you do after entering a lift, is to check the make of it.

• When you see a really tall person, you exclaim “he is almost lintel height!!”

Under usual circumstances, people normally consider the above said things as “weird”.

But we don’t, which is still normal.. Proud to be an architect..

Kaleidoscope

Kalyani and Swapna have been looking forward to this weekend for quite some time. 

Kalyani had in fact been dreaming about it. It was something that she was going to do for the first time in her entire life. She was so excited .She did not reveal her excitement though, to anybody, not even to her sister, as she believed telling it to somebody is a bad omen and whatever she had planned might not happen at all. The mere thought of it made her uncomfortable.

 Swapna on the other hand had mixed emotions. She did not know what to expect. She was happy and sad at the same time. She was not sure if this is what she wanted to do exactly. Whatever it is, she decided to face it this weekend. She felt her cell phone vibrating and took it out to read the message.

 “Saturday 6:30? “ 

 “Yeah will be there” She replied. 

 “Swapna, if you are not interested in my class, you might as well go out. “

 “Sorry ma’am”.

 Swapna’s parents were those kinds who spared the rod, and spoilt their child. She always got what she wanted in life. Well, almost. 

 “So you are going this Saturday?” Sridhar asked Kalyani.

 “I am going finally. Sri, i’m so excited. I haven’t told anyone except you. I can’t wait for Saturday.” 

 “Happy for you. I have been there once”

 “Really? How is it? Is it like.. no wait.. do not tell me. I don’t want to know until i go there myself."

 Sridhar smiled. Kalyani was the love of his life. He has not told her yet. He thought to himself that he should tell her soon. Maybe after the Saturday excitement is over. 

 “What should i wear sri?” 

He closed his eyes for a moment and waited for the same image that comes to his mind, whenever he thinks of her. 

 “that blue salwar you wore for rishi’s wedding”

 “alright then blue it is. I will meet you on Sunday and tell you all about how Saturday was” the excitement in her voice never seemed to die out. 

 “Can’t wait “ 

 Swapna headed straight towards the parlour from college. She wanted to look the best tomorrow. She always believed that spending quality time for grooming oneself was very important, no matter how much it costs. She spent 2 hours for the French pedicure and manicure, and then coloured her hair. 

 “2200rs ma’am cash or card?” 

“card” 

“tax will be extra ma’am”

 “yeah fine” 

She sped back home as it was already 9:30 which was late according to mom. She wondered why moms never understand their kids in these kinds of situations. 

 “what have you done to your hair?! Purple? Are you out of your mind? “

 “please don’t make a big deal out of it mom. It is just temporary. And by the way it’s burgundy” swapna started walking upstairs to her room . 

“What about dinner?”

 “Not hungry”

 She changed and looked at herself in the mirror. She loved the way she looked. She smiled to herself and fell flat on her bed. Tomorrow is Saturday. She let out a sigh and went to sleep. 

 Kalyani was sitting alone in the terrace that night. Staring at the moon less night sky studded with stars. She is a dreamer. She lives in a world known only to her. She tried to create her own constellations by drawing with her fingers in the air. She saw the hunter’s belt constellation and pictured a real hunter standing in the sky. For some reason the hunter resembled sri. She laughed out loud and then immediately became conscious of the silent neighbourhood.

 Tomorrow is Saturday. She smiled to herself. She smiled at the hunter once more and then ran down to her room to sleep.

 Saturday morning seemed to drag forever for both Kalyani and Swapna. The excitement of the evening started from lunch time. They had a very light lunch. Swapna almost ate nothing.

 It was 5:00pm Swapna was dressed at her best. She got into the car and started driving towards the city mall. Typical of a Saturday evening, the mall was flooded with people all over the place. She always hated this mall. The crowd and lack of parking space drives her mad every single time. She almost stopped going to this mall for a long time until today. She couldn’t avoid it. One last time she thought. I’m not going to come here again. She made a decision in her mind. She got into the lift in the basement and pressed the number 5. 

 “Sir, which way to city mall? “ Kalyani enquired an elderly person in the signal. 

“straight, 2nd signal take right” 

“Thank you sir” Kalyani looked anxious. 

 “What time do you have to be there? “ 

 “6:30 papa .. are we going to be late? It is already 6:10. I am so worried” 

“Don’t worry jillu, it is right here. We will reach in no time” 

Kalyani’s father always does this. No matter how bad the situation is, he always tells her something very re-assuring. He was everything to her. When he was with her, anything seemed possible. Maybe all fathers are like this. She thought. At least the fathers of all daughters in the world. 

 They reached the mall in 5 minutes just like how her dad promised. Kalyani has seen the mall from outside many times, but this was the first time she was going inside. Her jaw dropped down when she entered the mall. The huge atrium with a glass roof was something Kalyani had never seen before. So many people walking around here and there, eating, talking, laughing, shopping, it was like being in a whole new world for her. She saw young girls like her being dressed up so well keeping themselves in tune with the latest trend in fashion. She looked down at her blue salwar and remembered sri telling her how beautiful she looked at rishi’s wedding.

 “If you are going to stand there and keep staring at people jillu, we will be late” She quickly ran behind her dad like a little kid. They spotted the lift and went inside along with a bunch of other people. Nobody spoke inside the lift. 

 “Which floor is the cinema hall?”

 “5” somebody replied.

 Kalyani pressed no.5 with a smile on her face. She was going to a theatre for the first time in her life. 

 “Hi. You are on time for a change” swapna waved at kishore who was waiting for her in the coffee shop at the 5th floor. 

“You look stunningly beautiful “

 “Kishore ,let me be honest with you. I came here to tell you that, we should stop seeing each other. I am sorry, but it is just not working out. “ 

“Please tell me you are kidding”

 “No Kishore I am not” 

“Swapna, i did not expect this. We could work things out; I mean is there any other way we could..?” 

“I am afraid it is over Kishore, I know it is hard but I can’t help it”

 “I had actually bought this gift for you. Will you atleast take this with you as a remembrance?” 

“Oh.. I don’t think I should..” 

“It is okay Swapna, please i can’t take this back.” He kept the gift box on the table and got up. He shook hands with her and shrugged his shoulders. 

“I know what exactly you want Swapna, and i won’t be able to give you that. I am not rich. Goodbye” He walked off. 

 Swapna hesitated for a moment and then opened the gift box. It was a Nokia N series mobile phone. She got up and took her phone and speed dialled 1. 

“Did you do it? “ aisha squeaked on the other end. 

“Yes i did” “wohoo! Congrats babe. How did he react?”

 “He was a little upset but whatever who cares! I just wanted to get rid of this relationship. Phew! I am so relieved now. He is a nice guy and all that but he is struggling so much in his career, how can i live the dream life that i want to live with him? “

 “It’s ok, forget it. It is over”

 It was interval. Kalyani still couldn’t believe she was watching a movie in the big screen. It was her dream since her childhood. Finally they have come to a position where her dad was able to afford tickets for two. Tickets were already booked by her uncle. She enjoyed each and every moment sitting in the theatre, the cushion seats, the air-conditioned hall, the digital surround effect, it was all new to her and she felt as if her heart was beating thousand times faster and louder. She felt like clapping and shouting every time her favourite hero appeared on the screen. Kalyani and her dad came out to the snacks counter. There was a long queue. She looked at the digital display of the menu card. 

“what do you want jillu?”

 “all these food items seem very expensive papa. I will just have a coffee” 

“2 coffees please” 

“150rs sir” 

 “What?!” kalyani shrieked. “papa one coffee is 75rs? I don’t want papa. Let us not get anything from here. Let us go papa. We can get ma’s radio fixed or buy you a book or something with that money. But just 2 coffees?”

 “sshh.. jillu.. quiet.. These places are like this. Money does not have same value everywhere. People like us can do so many things with 150rs. But some people here can just buy 2 cups of coffees. That is the fact. It is okay my dear. It is your day.” 

“whatever papa.. i am not liking spending so much money and i am not going to come here ever again.. i mean 150rs for 2 coffees?!”

 “what?! He gave you a nokia N series” aisha laughed out loud 

“yeah i know that is like just 10000 bucks or something . How cheap ! And you know what, i hate this crowded mall , im not going to come here ever again. I’ll call you later” Swapna hung up the call.

Unresolved corners

"Corners" - the most ignored parts of a space. Supposedly.

Unattended. Uninviting. Dark. Unnoticed. UNRESOLVED.

Corners can be so bland that it is completely out of vision or it can be expressed so strongly that it starts creating an impact.

Maybe if you are an architect , you would be able to relate to this much easier 'cause in the process of designing spaces , you would have come across many such "unresolved corners" .

But, I'm not talking architecture here. It is that corner in a person's mind which remains "unresolved" that drags my attention.

There are so many things/persons which/who become part of this dark secret corner of the mind. In every person's life he comes across people whom he never wishes to resolve issues with. Not that he doesn't want to, but it just doesn't happen.

It can be a secret high school crush, a movie which you've been wanting to see but somehow it never happens, a person that you really hate but you cant express, things that you wish you could change about your life but you know you can't,a misunderstanding that you had with your childhood friend but you somehow did not talk it out and kept postponing ,to tell someone that you like them and you would do anything for them ... simple things like that , keeps piling up in that corner. It remains there forever and stays unresolved. It will be always.

When was the last time you told your mom that she cooks so well or your colleague that he/she has done an awesome work in a presentation or your friend that he/she is looking good that day or wondered how beautiful the moon is or a "thanks" to the salesman in the garments showroom for showing so many dresses at a time or accepted your mistake in front of others..?

There are these things which should be let out, come out to the light.. After all a small bit of appreciation is what every heart yearns for! So don't let all these pile up in the corners of your mind.

On the other hand, there are few things which looks good in a corner. Meant to be in a corner. Small, beautiful things. I don't really know how to explain that, but there are certain things which are meant to be "unresolved". you should just let it be. somethings look the best just the way they are. unattended. I am sure each one of us have that corner in our mind which is a world known only to us and we would like it to stay that way. Let that "unresolved corner" be . Let it be.

The Lady like a bamboo pole

I love Saturdays. It is the day when office ends at 1:30pm. Time flies away and before you realise its 1:30 already!

I was so excited because I was leaving to Chennai that evening and Monday was a holiday. I had lunch with my colleagues in my favourite restaurant and reached Bangalore city junction by 4 pm.

It was a cool evening as usual in Bangalore. I love it when the chill breeze blows across my face. The train was late by half an hour. I did not mind , given the fact that i was excited about the journey and the weekend as a whole and also i carried minimal luggage.

The Shadapthi Express arrived gracefully. I got inside searching for my seat no. 33 (window seat) . I was dejected to see someone else sitting there. I told her that it was my seat and she was supposed to take the seat next to the aisle. I badly wanted the window seat . She just plainly said “never mind, you can take my seat”

I was like “what?!” .Wishing not to spoil my mood, I just sat in the aisle seat. I was frantically searching for my earphones from my bag , when she said “you can keep your bag up” . I was getting irritated with her.  “yeah i know that” i replied quite harshly.

I was feeling restless as the beautiful journey that i had in mind was having such a horrible start. I kept my bag up and sat down with earphones plugged into my ears. I looked out of the huge glass window; It was drizzling outside! I was supposed to sit there. I leaned back, with a sigh, on the push-back seat and shut my eyes. I felt the loud music travelling through my ears into tiny veins, slowly entering my head and in a second i felt my head was filled with it. I felt very peaceful, but, it was only for a short time.

“Your first snack has arrived”, the lady next to me said with a smile, waking me up. I woke up with an irritated expression on my face and found bread-sticks and butter served in front of me. I forgot i was travelling in one of the luxurious trains. I started having my snack and turned to look at the lady for the first time. She had a very thin figure, her hair neatly tied and she was dressed well in a crisp, clean cotton saree. I smiled at her for the first time. Well, I’m going to be spending the next few hours with this person.

“So, you came to Bangalore for a visit?”, She started.

“No. I work in Bangalore, I am going to spend the weekend at my relative’s place in Chennai”

“Oh that is nice. Are you an IT professional?”

“No no” I replied hastily, I don’t know why I find that very offensive! “I am an architect”

“Wow! An architect.. That is wonderful.. There is always scope for architecture; well you know people are never going to stop building!” She laughed.

“Yes” I smiled.  I had a feeling that she was one of those people who think they know about everything. But another voice inside my head said, “Stop complaining and just relax”

“So are you staying in bangalore?” I quickly turned the focus to her.

“No, I’m from Kolkatta. I came here to visit my friends”

“And you are leaving to Kolkatta from Chennai?”

“I’m visiting another friend’s place there” She laughed out loud.

I was very surprised, how a person can be so happy, just travelling around from one city to another visiting friends (not even relatives); that too alone! In fact i was feeling a little jealous.

“that’s great! you must be having lovely friends” I tried to sound very genuine. 

“Oh yes they are”

We were munching the bread-sticks for sometime without talking. She was looking out through the window. It was still raining outside.

“See how the landscape looks through the glass” she exclaimed like a child. I moved closer to the window to make her believe i was as excited as she was.

“There is a blue band, the sky and then the green band, the trees and then the brown band, the earth. And they all look blurry because of these rain drops on the glass! Doesn't it look like a painting?” She was saying with her eyes so wide in admiration. 

“yes, it is amazing” I replied.

“I’m sorry. I tend to observe all this while travelling, especially the changing landscapes” 

“that is ok” I smiled back.

The tea arrived a while later. She kept talking through the entire tea session too. She explained how she went trekking with her friends in Bangalore and how she has always loved visiting the city. It was mostly a monologue, I would say. I didn’t mind though. I felt like she was a good company.

It was getting dark outside and not much of scenery was visible through the glass. I was getting bored. She was writing something in a small notebook. I didn’t want to ask her what that was, as i felt that would lead to her explaining about something, in which mostly, i would not be interested. I leaned back and thought of sleeping for a while.

I woke up and realised i had slept for more than an hour. She looked at me as if she was waiting for me to wake up.

“It is almost dinner time” She said.

“Oh! i didn’t realise i slept for so long”

“You must be tired”

“I guess”

She started talking about her friends again. I was just listening to her smiling and saying “nice” “great” in between.

“They call me a bamboo pole” she said laughing. I laughed along, she actually looked like one, I realised.

Dinner arrived. It was a full meal, which i thought was quite heavy. I started eating slowly, how much ever i tried, i was not able to finish. I looked at her and found that she had already packed a part of the dinner in a separate cover. I had kept two rotis aside, which i hadn’t touched. I was planning to give it away to the guy who comes to pick up the plates.

“Wait, give it to me” she said

“No i’ll just give it to the guy who comes..”

“See even i have a part of my dinner packed. I’ll pack yours too and give it away to the people on the street when i go home. Do not waste it”

I was taken aback. There was a feeling of guilt all of a sudden in me. I packed the food and gave it to her. There were few chocolates and sweets, as part of the meal, i gave all that away. I really started admiring this woman now.

She talked a lot, she was a very animated person. And out of nowhere, she suddenly popped a question at me.

“So when are you planning to get married?”

 I was shocked.

“Uh.. I don’t know.. I haven’t really thought about it”

“Does it not scare you that you will be entering a new house, with new people, expecting too much from you?”

“Well..kind of” 

She smiled.

“I guess every girl goes through that” I tried to defend my fear.

“True. I always believe a smile can do wonders. Imagine you have a whiny mother-in-law who keeps complaining about you..Don’t bother justifying yourself. Just smile at her, make her sit down and start massaging her legs”

“What?!” I laughed out loud.

“It will work you know..my mother has told me this once” she laughed too.

We were nearing Chennai. She told me what she writes in the book, it was a book of all her adventure trip experiences. It was interesting when she told me that, she makes it a habit to note down any lack of facilities, in the place she visits, and makes sure she writes a letter to the concerned authority. She explained with pride about how she made sure she informed government authorities about damaged roads in a small village, she happened to visit during one of her treks.

The train finally came to a halt. We had reached Chennai central by around 9:30PM.I felt like the journey was too short and i wished i could have known her more. I realised we didn’t even know each other’s names. I didn’t feel like asking too.

We got down to the platform. She hugged me and said “It was a pleasure travelling with you”

“you will be one of the most interesting co-passengers in my life” I said.

“thankyou my dear”

“Is your friend coming to pick you up?” I asked with concern.

“Oh no. She passed away long back, lucky female. Her granddaughter is coming to pick me up, I am very close to their family now” She said with a smile.

“Ok i’m off, take care” I said

“You too”

I walked away from the Lady like a bamboo pole. Oh wait, did I not mention that she was 74yrs old?