Wednesday, December 31, 2008
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly... 2008
Well, well... suddenly I got this idea into my head, while sipping tea (I made, yippee...this is one of those rare things I can do properly) last evening, thinking of the year which is almost drawing to a close (today's 31st...gosh!) that it would be nice to blog about whatever happened, good or bad, 'cause that would give me another excuse to torture all you readers out there...hehe! So, here goes nothing...
The GOOD Stuff...
1. First thing that happened in January, WBUT results were out and thankfully enough my GPA didn’t decrease… Whew!
2. Then what…Oh yeah! The College Fest. Enjoyed a bit, though I didn’t go to Nazrul Manch on the final day. Honestly, if you guys ask me I was looking forward to something else at that time, not the fest! SOME people will realize what I’m talking about…hehe!
3. Hmm… My friendship with Solanki definitely makes it to this list. It improved and I’m glad about it. Earlier there was so much Why-Don’t-You-Try-To-Understand shit between us.
4. Monalisa’s attitude of course! Ah…What a relief, man! She listened when I told her I hate her clinginess (yeah, you got it- I hate clingy people). And she has become a close friend now.
5. Freedom at last- Ahem! I mean freedom from Physics and Chemistry and other shitty subjects in the third sem. Yuck…seriously!
6. Coming to know that SBA ma'am (Smita Basu, if you don't know, who's like an angel on earth) is our H.O.D. Sweet surprise!
7. Joining Hi5, maintaining my Gmail account properly and leaving Orkut! The first thing is not that important, Gmail is and well...I'm glad about the last bit that I did it.
8. The new Internet scheme at home! It's like a dream come true... Finally I got rid of dial-up. Sheesh!
9. Starting this blog, 'cause like I said, I write crap and like to go on torturing you readers out there. That's my hobby!
10. Writing some poems though they are a bit stupid may be. Who cares! I’m not writing for a book for heaven’s sake!
11. I got to know "somebody" better. And I got a new nickname for that "somebody".
12. Studying, I think, a bit better in the third sem. See, I'm not really brainy or anything, it's just a tiny flicker of hope. Never mind, I don't care whether I studied or not! Just that my GPA shouldn't decrease and if it does... I'm toast!
13. Getting to see a lot of good Animes and succeeding in getting a lot of songs. I just can’t live without music. Getting to know about Simple Plan, The Click Five, Linkin Park (I know I’m a duffer…please spare me), Evanescence and other bands.
14. Then? Well…getting admission in a Spanish Communicative Course, though I don’t know whether I’ll manage that language.
15. And…A Confession…I’m just so glad.
2. Then what…Oh yeah! The College Fest. Enjoyed a bit, though I didn’t go to Nazrul Manch on the final day. Honestly, if you guys ask me I was looking forward to something else at that time, not the fest! SOME people will realize what I’m talking about…hehe!
3. Hmm… My friendship with Solanki definitely makes it to this list. It improved and I’m glad about it. Earlier there was so much Why-Don’t-You-Try-To-Understand shit between us.
4. Monalisa’s attitude of course! Ah…What a relief, man! She listened when I told her I hate her clinginess (yeah, you got it- I hate clingy people). And she has become a close friend now.
5. Freedom at last- Ahem! I mean freedom from Physics and Chemistry and other shitty subjects in the third sem. Yuck…seriously!
6. Coming to know that SBA ma'am (Smita Basu, if you don't know, who's like an angel on earth) is our H.O.D. Sweet surprise!
7. Joining Hi5, maintaining my Gmail account properly and leaving Orkut! The first thing is not that important, Gmail is and well...I'm glad about the last bit that I did it.
8. The new Internet scheme at home! It's like a dream come true... Finally I got rid of dial-up. Sheesh!
9. Starting this blog, 'cause like I said, I write crap and like to go on torturing you readers out there. That's my hobby!
10. Writing some poems though they are a bit stupid may be. Who cares! I’m not writing for a book for heaven’s sake!
11. I got to know "somebody" better. And I got a new nickname for that "somebody".
12. Studying, I think, a bit better in the third sem. See, I'm not really brainy or anything, it's just a tiny flicker of hope. Never mind, I don't care whether I studied or not! Just that my GPA shouldn't decrease and if it does... I'm toast!
13. Getting to see a lot of good Animes and succeeding in getting a lot of songs. I just can’t live without music. Getting to know about Simple Plan, The Click Five, Linkin Park (I know I’m a duffer…please spare me), Evanescence and other bands.
14. Then? Well…getting admission in a Spanish Communicative Course, though I don’t know whether I’ll manage that language.
15. And…A Confession…I’m just so glad.
The BAD Stuff...
1. Not enough improvement in my second semester GPA (though it didn’t decrease, as I said).
2. The Fresher’s was a mess thanks to the rain…absolute dampener! Though the guys worked really hard for everything. Par “Shaheed Toh Hona Hi Tha…”
3. Shubhangini and us. Even if you are reading this, Shubha, I’m going to write this. She has gone far away. I don’t mind and I can’t say whatever she is doing is wrong or anything just that I feel sad about it. Still…if you are happy, so am I.
4. Tuhina went mad around holidays (third sem). I don’t know what was wrong; she was suddenly behaving very weird. Though, thankfully enough, she’s okay in the head now.
5. PPL (Principles of Programming Languages or Pakau Programming Language, whichever you prefer though the latter is more appropriate) as a subject. And the worst thing is, this subject will be eating my head off till fourth year!
6. As if PPL isn’t bad enough, we got SH (someone go and tell him, he has chosen the wrong profession…that guy can’t teach) to teach us that one heck of a thing!
7. 160by2.com going bonkers. Someone told me that if I send a message once from that site it gets delivered some twenty times.
8. Airtel going nuts as well. It reduced the rates as well as the free stuff customers used to get. Though my cell phone allowance went up to 200 bucks, it doesn’t make a difference. Such a pain in the neck!
9. Not being able to finish a story I had started with so much hope…Some things never change. I’m very bad at concluding whatever I start. I abandoned the whole thing in the middle and it’s highly unlikely that I’ll take it up again.
10. I’m still not getting anywhere in writing Full-Of-Emotions stuff. And I can’t do away with rhyming words…I’m not exactly complaining. Never mind!
11. I hurt “somebody” a lot this year. I wish I had a time machine…
12. I’m still doubtful about getting better GPA. A bit scared…this is odd semester.
13. Not being able to watch a good movie with Sola and Mona. I really wanted to, though not right now. Sola please don’t throttle me for this. I know I cancelled our plans of going out…not in the mood. Sorry.
14. Not being able to get admission in Japanese Language course. Tried a lot…didn’t get it anywhere. Session starts in July!
15. A nightmare on the 27th of December. I can’t forgive myself…I really wish I had a time machine!
2. The Fresher’s was a mess thanks to the rain…absolute dampener! Though the guys worked really hard for everything. Par “Shaheed Toh Hona Hi Tha…”
3. Shubhangini and us. Even if you are reading this, Shubha, I’m going to write this. She has gone far away. I don’t mind and I can’t say whatever she is doing is wrong or anything just that I feel sad about it. Still…if you are happy, so am I.
4. Tuhina went mad around holidays (third sem). I don’t know what was wrong; she was suddenly behaving very weird. Though, thankfully enough, she’s okay in the head now.
5. PPL (Principles of Programming Languages or Pakau Programming Language, whichever you prefer though the latter is more appropriate) as a subject. And the worst thing is, this subject will be eating my head off till fourth year!
6. As if PPL isn’t bad enough, we got SH (someone go and tell him, he has chosen the wrong profession…that guy can’t teach) to teach us that one heck of a thing!
7. 160by2.com going bonkers. Someone told me that if I send a message once from that site it gets delivered some twenty times.
8. Airtel going nuts as well. It reduced the rates as well as the free stuff customers used to get. Though my cell phone allowance went up to 200 bucks, it doesn’t make a difference. Such a pain in the neck!
9. Not being able to finish a story I had started with so much hope…Some things never change. I’m very bad at concluding whatever I start. I abandoned the whole thing in the middle and it’s highly unlikely that I’ll take it up again.
10. I’m still not getting anywhere in writing Full-Of-Emotions stuff. And I can’t do away with rhyming words…I’m not exactly complaining. Never mind!
11. I hurt “somebody” a lot this year. I wish I had a time machine…
12. I’m still doubtful about getting better GPA. A bit scared…this is odd semester.
13. Not being able to watch a good movie with Sola and Mona. I really wanted to, though not right now. Sola please don’t throttle me for this. I know I cancelled our plans of going out…not in the mood. Sorry.
14. Not being able to get admission in Japanese Language course. Tried a lot…didn’t get it anywhere. Session starts in July!
15. A nightmare on the 27th of December. I can’t forgive myself…I really wish I had a time machine!
Monday, December 29, 2008
DISCONNECTED... :)
Well... This New Year I'm definitely trying something 'new'. Disconnecting myself from the rest of the world. Rest of the world basically means my friends ('cause I'm definitely not going to my relatives, or for a trip with my family)... Asmita, Shikha, Navani, Solanki, Monalisa, Shubha, Ipsita, Annu, Sharmistha, Utsav, Avinash, Asha, Divya, Kaushik etc etc etc... (don't get mad at me now if I've not mentioned your name here! T_T I suffer from weak memory...) These people will not be able to reach me on my cell and I absolutely forbid any attempt to contact me on my landline for "New Year Wishes" (they will never forget the response they will get if they dare do that...hmph!). I need some time off from this freaky You-Have-To-Wish-Me-On-New-Year period of time. I don't complain about it usually... I like it (don't take it otherwise) I really do... keeping in touch with friends, wishing them, being happy, smiling and laughing with the people I love the most... but something has made me realize, I cause a lot of pain to these very people who love me and care about me... and I have done something for which I don't deserve to be forgiven. Till date I have never felt like this. If ever I had done something to hurt someone I have had some reason, either my short temper (which can't be helped), or my possesive attitude (which, I think, I inherited from my Sun Sign... again it can't be helped), or sometimes maybe I have been right in my own way... I always had the right to be forgiven, there was always the scope for the incident to be forgotten for good... But what happened this time, it is unforgivable. I don't even have the right to go and say sorry, I haven't, I simply can't. I just can't seem to come to terms with the fact that I have done something so terrible... I just stare into the darkness at night and ask myself, "How could I?" The only thing I can do is wait... Wait in the hope that everything will be alright again. So, guys and gals, till that time I am DISCONNECTED. As my status message in Orkut, Facebook and Hi5 reads--- "I Won't Be Available This New Year... No Calls, No SMS, No emails..." Bubbye till the 6th of January... and Happy New Year 2009. See ya! :)
Saturday, December 27, 2008
WITH YOU...
Whenever I close my eyes,
Trying to recall,
When was the time we first met,
When and how did I fall,
I just can't remember the time,
Or even that insane day,
When we had to say goodbye,
And I had to go away.
But I can't let go of memories,
You know that very well,
And when I look in your eyes,
My heart just seems to swell.
You know what I feel for you, but-
You try not to see,
And every passing moment says,
You're drifting away from me.
You are what I want the most,
It makes my very soul ache,
Sometimes it makes me feel like,
My whole life is at stake.
The day you leave me alone, I-
Don't know what I'll do,
May be I'll go back to God and-
Leave my heart with you.
Trying to recall,
When was the time we first met,
When and how did I fall,
I just can't remember the time,
Or even that insane day,
When we had to say goodbye,
And I had to go away.
But I can't let go of memories,
You know that very well,
And when I look in your eyes,
My heart just seems to swell.
You know what I feel for you, but-
You try not to see,
And every passing moment says,
You're drifting away from me.
You are what I want the most,
It makes my very soul ache,
Sometimes it makes me feel like,
My whole life is at stake.
The day you leave me alone, I-
Don't know what I'll do,
May be I'll go back to God and-
Leave my heart with you.
Friday, December 19, 2008
MAINE KAHA THA, NA?
Mmmm ... Mmmm ... Mmmm ...
"What the hell ... ?"
Mitushi opened her eyes sleepily. Something was making a weird vibrating sound, right under her pillow. She wondered what it was, then suddenly remembered.
"Damn!" she muttered. "Phone? Abhi kaun hai yaar?" She glanced at the digital clock on her table ... the digits gleamed in the dark--- 5.55 AM.
Angry at being woken up at that time, she didn't even check the number and picked up.
"'Ello?" she groaned.
"Hey Mitu? So rahi hai kya yaar?" the voice at the other end asked cheerfully. "Itni der baad uthaya?" It was Sameer, her classmate.
No, I'm sitting wide awake at six in the morning, she thought, gritting her teeth. Aloud she said, "Subah 6 baje log in general kya kar rahe hote hain?"
"Main toh jaga hua hun," Sameer went on with his usual cheer.
"Tu toh haiwaan hai ... maine general logon ki baat poochhi." Mitushi was still irritated. "Chhor ... what happened?"
"Aaj tuition aa rahi hai, na?"
"Haan, kyun?"
"Bio class ka notes le aana. Xerox karna hai ..."
"Tu class mein nahin tha? Unbelievable!"
"Well ..." Sameer sounded guilty, "Woh actually ... Sumita ma'am ne bulaya tha ..."
"Kyun?"
"Kehti hain Social Science ke liye model banao."
"Doob maro! Jab dekho she's after her own subject only ..." She glanced at the clock again--- two minutes past six.
"Main le aaungi ... ab sone de."
"Kitna soyegi?" he teased. "Class mein bhi soti hai, ghar pe bhi---"
"Tujhse permission leni padegi kya?" She was losing her temper now. Sameer seemed to have sensed it.
"Okay, okay! Ja, so ja," he said in a hurried way, so that she doesn't flare up. "Aaj phir se late ho gayi toh don't complain ... samjhi?"
"FINE!" Mitushi hung up and buried her face in her pillow.
"It's no use," she thought after a while. "Abhi kya khaak neend aayegi ... dhat! Anyways I have to get up at half past six."
She dragged herself out of her bed slowly and put on her slippers. Sunlight was already streaming in through her bedroom window. Summer mornings ... She thought of the bright, sunny day ahead and smiled to herself. She loved the summer season.
An hour later, she stepped out of her house. As she closed the main gate, she thought of what Sameer had said earlier. "Aaj phir se late ho gayi toh don't complain ... samjhi?"
"Aaj toh late nahin hone waali. Pehle se ja kar baithi rahungi," she thought. "Gadhe ne jaga jo diya hai!"
***
"Surprise, surprise!" said Sameer from the sofa as Mitushi stepped into the drawing room of her english teacher's apartment. "Kya baat hai madam? Aaj itni jaldi?"
"Tu yahan iss waqt kya kar raha hai?" she asked, bewildered. "Class start hone mein 40 minutes baaki hain, na?"
"Main toh hamesha jaldi aa jaata hun," he grinned. Mitushi shook her head. "Hopeless creature ..." she muttered to herself, sitting on the farther end of the sofa and eyeing him cautiously.
"Aise kya dekh rahi hai?" he asked, noticing her gaze.
"Main tere aas-paas nahin aane waali," she replied, waving him off. "Contagious hai ... padhai-likhai ki bimaari lag gayi toh?" She asked in mock concern.
"Chup reh," he snapped. "Bahut bolti hai ... Maano khud padhti hi--- Woh kya hai?"
Mitushi turned round to check the reason behind the abrupt change of subject. He was pointing at a weird showpiece with floral patterns, up on the shelf.
"Hoga kuch," she shrugged. "Sir ke paas toh aise namoone rehte hi hain." She indicated something else below it--- a laughing buddha figure.
"Arre, woh toh Feng-Shui related hai," he said, ignoring it. "Lekin ye toh bada ajeeb hai!" He walked up to the shelf and picked it up.
"Wapas rakh de," Mitushi warned him. "Kya kar raha hai?"
"Dikhne mein it's like ..." He started fiddling with it.
"Bola na Sameer, rakh de." By this time, he had walked up to the window and was holding it to the light.
"Bahut ajeeb hai ... kaisa dikhta hai dekh! Ekdum China clay pot ke neck portion jaisa!"
"Pagla gaya hai kya?" she retorted. "Poora pot kidhar gaya jo usski gardan yahan padi hai?" She started taking her notebook out of her bag.
"Pata nahin ... Aur kisi cheez ka part toh lagta hi nahin hai. Tu--- HEY!!" Mitushi whipped round.
"Kya hua?" she asked.
Sameer looked horror-struck. At last he muttered in a low voice, "Building se niche gir gaya ..."
"Heh?" Her eyebrows were raise in an Are-You-Nuts way.
"Haan. Haath se phisal gaya!" He started peering out of the window, trying to spot it.
"Niche chal." Mitushi's voice came from a distance and he turned to look. She was already at the door, zipping her bag shut.
"Kahan ja rahi hai?" he asked, confused.
"Uss cheez ke tukde dhoondne," she scowled at him. "Chal niche ... aur bag saath mein le."
A few minutes later, they were staring at a heap of sand outside the apartment building, right below the drawing room window out of which the showpeice had fallen. There was nothing there.
"Yahin pe toh girna chahiye," Mitushi muttered, completely lost. "Tune kahin pakad ke phenka toh nahin tha na?" She looked doubtfully at Sameer.
"Of course not!" he retorted angrily. "Main phenkoonga kyun bhala?" He started thinking seriously. "Kahan gayi ... seedha niche hi toh giri thi ..."
"Oye Sameer..." Mitushi called him.
"Sochne de."
"Sun na ..."
"Sochne de na yaar!"
"Arre idhar toh dekh!" She caught him by the arm and wheeled him around. A dog was playing in the street, rolling an object across the road ... something which had floral patterns on it ...
"Arre yeh toh wahi showpiece hai!" Sameer exclaimed, pointing at the dog.
"Haan," Mitushi sighed. "Aur yeh kutta isey lekar apni wife ko gift karne waala hai."
"Isski wife bhi hai?" he asked, unconvinced.
"Hogi ... Brahmachaari toh nahin lagta."
"Tujhe kaise pata?"
Mitushi slapped her forehead.
"Bakwaas band kar aur uss cheez ko wapas le aa!"
"Main akele jaaun?" He glanced at the dog again, this time clearly unimpressed by it's dirty looks.
"Haan, main sadak-chhaap kutton ke aas-paas nahin jaane waali. Main yahin rahungi!" She was firm on her point.
"Theek hai ... Ja raha hun ..." He slouched off slowly, the prospect was very uninviting. Still, he had no choice. He had dropped the showpiece in the first place and he had to get it back while it was still in one piece!
But it turned out that the dog wasn't really willing to help. As Sameer approached it, noticinghim, it quietly picked up it's priced possesion in it's mouth and took off towards the nearby park, leaving him and Mitushi totally dumbfounded.
"Bhagaya kyun usey?" She almost shouted at him.
"Maine nahin bhagaya, khud bhaag gaya!" Sameer seemed to be at a complete loss of what to say or do.
"Chalo," she said finally, striding off towards the park. "Ab ek kutte ka peechha karte firte hain."
He followed her, muttering under his breath, "Aur kuch nahin mila wife ko gift karne ke liye ..."
Once they entered the park, the dog was nowhere to be seen. There were a lot of kids--- playing, yelling at each other, on the swings, the slides, around the fountain ... but they couldn't find the dog anywhere.
"Ab ye kidhar gaya?" Mitushi said in an exasperated way. She walked up to the fountain and sat on it's edge, tired of the chase.
"Kya pata ... idhar hi toh ghusa tha," Sameer replied, equally confused about the whole thing. "Yahin kahin hona chahiye ..." He sat down beside her.
"Ab kya karen?" she asked, wishing nothing more than to go back home.
"Pata nahin," he said and checked his watch. "20 minute aur baki hain. Agar utne mein nahin mila toh wapas chale jaayenge."
"Ghar?" she asked, surprised.
"Nahin re, tuition wapas jaayenge." She groaned at the idea ... Same old studious guy!
"Agar sir ne showpiece ke baare mein poochha toh?" she argued. "Ye nahin keh sakte ki hum abhi pahunche hain kyunki aunty ne toh hamen pehle dekha hi hai."
"Keh denge bio ka naotes xerox karwaane gaye they Main Road tak," he replied flatly.
"Par xerox toh hamare paas hai nahin ..."
"Dukaan band hai." Again came a flat reply.
"Fine!" she said, defeated. "Baithe raho 20 minute yahin pe!"
"Teri jagah uss bachche ko mere saath hona chahiye tha uss time," Sameer spoke up suddenly after a few long minutes of silence. Mitushi turned round to look--- a small kid, hardly two years old, was playing under a tree with his mother by his side who was watching over him. The kid was giggling happily, his giggles mixed up with the yells and shouts of the other kids around.
"Kis time?" Mitushi asked, eyeing the kid in a confused way. Sameer was really fond of kids for some reason. "At least, abhi toh chup raho yaar ..." she thought, irritated.
"Jab woh kutta dikha tha. Tune toh usske paas jaane se inkaar kar diya tha. Uss bachche ko dekh--- jo cheez uss kutte ke muh mein thi, usi ko lekar khel raha hai."
"Heh?" Mitushi looked at the kid carefully. Of course, he was playing with the weird showpiece they were searching for!
"Yahan pe kya baitha hai! Chal, ja kar uss manhoos cheez ko wapas le aate hain!" She got to her feet.
"Aise mat ja," he said, shaking his head in disapproval. "Woh bachcha uss cheez se khel raha hai. Agar chheenegi toh rone lagega aur usski maa daudi chali aayegi ... Casual approach better hai. Just ja kar bolna hai ki woh cheez ek sadak chhaap kutte ke muh mein thi."
Slowly, after a lot of argument, Mitushi finally decided to go up to the kid's mother. She casually walked up to the kid and watched him for a moment. He was still playing with the showpiece and giggling. Suddenly, she said, "Arre ..."
"Keya (kya) hua?" the kid's mother asked in a bengali accent. Bong, huh? Mitushi smiled to herself.
"Aunty, eta apnaar chhele (Aunty, is this your kid)?" she asked the woman in a worried tone.
"Hain (yes)," the woman replied. "Keno (why)?"
"Ei jinish ta ke niye khelchhe (playing with this object)?" Mitushi went on. "Eta toh ektu agei ekta kukur er mukhe dekhlam (I saw it just a while ago in a dog's mouth)!"
"Tai naki (really)?" the mother said in a panicky voice.
"Hain (yes)," Mitushi nodded, wrinkling her nose a bit to show disgust. "Ektu agei baire dekhlam (saw it just a while ago outside)."
"Shona, ota phele dao (sweetie, throw it away)," the mother said, hurrying over to her kid. "She pried it out of his hands and immediately he started crying. "Na Shona, ota nongra ... nite nei (no sweetie, that's dirty ... you shouldn't take it)." Saying this, she raised the showpiece and, to Mitushi's horror, threw it away! Before she could run and see where it fell, the kid's mother started talking to her again.
"Bhaagyish, tumi bolle boley (thank God, you told me)!" she said, while Mitushi gave her a polite Anyone-Else-Would-Have-Done-the-Same smile. "Eijonyo bachchader chokhe-chokhe rakhte hoy (that's why you should never let children out of your sight)." The kid was still sobbing. She took him up in her arms and said, "Cholo Shona, ghure ashi (let's go sweetie, let's go for a stroll."
Panicking about the fate of the showpiece, Mitushi hurried back towards the fountain where Sameer was standing.
"Uss aunty ne toh utha ke phenk hi diya!" she said in a helpless voice.
"Haan, pata hai," he muttered. "Seedhe fountain mein gira."
"Fountain mein?" she said in disbelief. Then brightening up a bit, she asked, "Tab toh toota nahin hoga, na?"
"Nahin, nahin toota."
"Toh hai kidhar?" She looked into the rippling water at the bottom of the fountain. It wasn't there.
"Mujhe dekh kar kya lagta hai ki main itni der kya kar raha tha?" Sameer scowled.
Then she noticed. His trouser-ends were folded up several times, he was barefoot and his arms and legs were dripping wet. Even his hair and wire-rimmed glasses were sprayed with tiny water droplets.
"Tu paani main utra tha?" She couldn't believe it.
"Tujhe kya lagta hai?" He held up his left hand to show her--- he had the showpiece!
"Hmm ... Haan, utra tha," she said, after a second or two. Then they both burst out laughing.
***
"Aaj late kaise hua?" their Almost-Reaching-Sixty english teacher asked, as Mitushi and Sameer entered his apartment at five minutes past eight. "Sujata ne toh kaha aap donon pehle hi aa chuke ho?"
"Woh sir ..." Sameer hesitated. "Baat yeh hai ki---"
"Sir, actually ek problem ho gayi thi," Mitushi cut across him. "Main aapka ek showpiece dekh rahi thi---" Sameer blinked at her at this point, not understanding a word "--- aur woh mere haath se gir gaya. Wahi khonjne gaye they niche toh der ho gayi." She held up the weird object to show him.
"Ohh ... Ye?" their teacher laughed. He took it from Mitushi. "Yeh toh bass ek China clay pot ka neck portion hai. Isska baki hissa meri poti ne khel-khel meintod diya. Ajib andaaz mein bana tha issliye baki hissa toot gaya aur bass yeh reh gaya. Isey toh main aaj khud hi phenkne waala tha." And saying that, he flung it out of the drawing room window. A second later, a soft thud told them it had landed on the heap of sand.
Sameer and Mitushi stood rooted there in stunned disbelief. Then Sameer said, "Maine kaha tha, na?"
"What the hell ... ?"
Mitushi opened her eyes sleepily. Something was making a weird vibrating sound, right under her pillow. She wondered what it was, then suddenly remembered.
"Damn!" she muttered. "Phone? Abhi kaun hai yaar?" She glanced at the digital clock on her table ... the digits gleamed in the dark--- 5.55 AM.
Angry at being woken up at that time, she didn't even check the number and picked up.
"'Ello?" she groaned.
"Hey Mitu? So rahi hai kya yaar?" the voice at the other end asked cheerfully. "Itni der baad uthaya?" It was Sameer, her classmate.
No, I'm sitting wide awake at six in the morning, she thought, gritting her teeth. Aloud she said, "Subah 6 baje log in general kya kar rahe hote hain?"
"Main toh jaga hua hun," Sameer went on with his usual cheer.
"Tu toh haiwaan hai ... maine general logon ki baat poochhi." Mitushi was still irritated. "Chhor ... what happened?"
"Aaj tuition aa rahi hai, na?"
"Haan, kyun?"
"Bio class ka notes le aana. Xerox karna hai ..."
"Tu class mein nahin tha? Unbelievable!"
"Well ..." Sameer sounded guilty, "Woh actually ... Sumita ma'am ne bulaya tha ..."
"Kyun?"
"Kehti hain Social Science ke liye model banao."
"Doob maro! Jab dekho she's after her own subject only ..." She glanced at the clock again--- two minutes past six.
"Main le aaungi ... ab sone de."
"Kitna soyegi?" he teased. "Class mein bhi soti hai, ghar pe bhi---"
"Tujhse permission leni padegi kya?" She was losing her temper now. Sameer seemed to have sensed it.
"Okay, okay! Ja, so ja," he said in a hurried way, so that she doesn't flare up. "Aaj phir se late ho gayi toh don't complain ... samjhi?"
"FINE!" Mitushi hung up and buried her face in her pillow.
"It's no use," she thought after a while. "Abhi kya khaak neend aayegi ... dhat! Anyways I have to get up at half past six."
She dragged herself out of her bed slowly and put on her slippers. Sunlight was already streaming in through her bedroom window. Summer mornings ... She thought of the bright, sunny day ahead and smiled to herself. She loved the summer season.
An hour later, she stepped out of her house. As she closed the main gate, she thought of what Sameer had said earlier. "Aaj phir se late ho gayi toh don't complain ... samjhi?"
"Aaj toh late nahin hone waali. Pehle se ja kar baithi rahungi," she thought. "Gadhe ne jaga jo diya hai!"
***
"Surprise, surprise!" said Sameer from the sofa as Mitushi stepped into the drawing room of her english teacher's apartment. "Kya baat hai madam? Aaj itni jaldi?"
"Tu yahan iss waqt kya kar raha hai?" she asked, bewildered. "Class start hone mein 40 minutes baaki hain, na?"
"Main toh hamesha jaldi aa jaata hun," he grinned. Mitushi shook her head. "Hopeless creature ..." she muttered to herself, sitting on the farther end of the sofa and eyeing him cautiously.
"Aise kya dekh rahi hai?" he asked, noticing her gaze.
"Main tere aas-paas nahin aane waali," she replied, waving him off. "Contagious hai ... padhai-likhai ki bimaari lag gayi toh?" She asked in mock concern.
"Chup reh," he snapped. "Bahut bolti hai ... Maano khud padhti hi--- Woh kya hai?"
Mitushi turned round to check the reason behind the abrupt change of subject. He was pointing at a weird showpiece with floral patterns, up on the shelf.
"Hoga kuch," she shrugged. "Sir ke paas toh aise namoone rehte hi hain." She indicated something else below it--- a laughing buddha figure.
"Arre, woh toh Feng-Shui related hai," he said, ignoring it. "Lekin ye toh bada ajeeb hai!" He walked up to the shelf and picked it up.
"Wapas rakh de," Mitushi warned him. "Kya kar raha hai?"
"Dikhne mein it's like ..." He started fiddling with it.
"Bola na Sameer, rakh de." By this time, he had walked up to the window and was holding it to the light.
"Bahut ajeeb hai ... kaisa dikhta hai dekh! Ekdum China clay pot ke neck portion jaisa!"
"Pagla gaya hai kya?" she retorted. "Poora pot kidhar gaya jo usski gardan yahan padi hai?" She started taking her notebook out of her bag.
"Pata nahin ... Aur kisi cheez ka part toh lagta hi nahin hai. Tu--- HEY!!" Mitushi whipped round.
"Kya hua?" she asked.
Sameer looked horror-struck. At last he muttered in a low voice, "Building se niche gir gaya ..."
"Heh?" Her eyebrows were raise in an Are-You-Nuts way.
"Haan. Haath se phisal gaya!" He started peering out of the window, trying to spot it.
"Niche chal." Mitushi's voice came from a distance and he turned to look. She was already at the door, zipping her bag shut.
"Kahan ja rahi hai?" he asked, confused.
"Uss cheez ke tukde dhoondne," she scowled at him. "Chal niche ... aur bag saath mein le."
A few minutes later, they were staring at a heap of sand outside the apartment building, right below the drawing room window out of which the showpeice had fallen. There was nothing there.
"Yahin pe toh girna chahiye," Mitushi muttered, completely lost. "Tune kahin pakad ke phenka toh nahin tha na?" She looked doubtfully at Sameer.
"Of course not!" he retorted angrily. "Main phenkoonga kyun bhala?" He started thinking seriously. "Kahan gayi ... seedha niche hi toh giri thi ..."
"Oye Sameer..." Mitushi called him.
"Sochne de."
"Sun na ..."
"Sochne de na yaar!"
"Arre idhar toh dekh!" She caught him by the arm and wheeled him around. A dog was playing in the street, rolling an object across the road ... something which had floral patterns on it ...
"Arre yeh toh wahi showpiece hai!" Sameer exclaimed, pointing at the dog.
"Haan," Mitushi sighed. "Aur yeh kutta isey lekar apni wife ko gift karne waala hai."
"Isski wife bhi hai?" he asked, unconvinced.
"Hogi ... Brahmachaari toh nahin lagta."
"Tujhe kaise pata?"
Mitushi slapped her forehead.
"Bakwaas band kar aur uss cheez ko wapas le aa!"
"Main akele jaaun?" He glanced at the dog again, this time clearly unimpressed by it's dirty looks.
"Haan, main sadak-chhaap kutton ke aas-paas nahin jaane waali. Main yahin rahungi!" She was firm on her point.
"Theek hai ... Ja raha hun ..." He slouched off slowly, the prospect was very uninviting. Still, he had no choice. He had dropped the showpiece in the first place and he had to get it back while it was still in one piece!
But it turned out that the dog wasn't really willing to help. As Sameer approached it, noticinghim, it quietly picked up it's priced possesion in it's mouth and took off towards the nearby park, leaving him and Mitushi totally dumbfounded.
"Bhagaya kyun usey?" She almost shouted at him.
"Maine nahin bhagaya, khud bhaag gaya!" Sameer seemed to be at a complete loss of what to say or do.
"Chalo," she said finally, striding off towards the park. "Ab ek kutte ka peechha karte firte hain."
He followed her, muttering under his breath, "Aur kuch nahin mila wife ko gift karne ke liye ..."
Once they entered the park, the dog was nowhere to be seen. There were a lot of kids--- playing, yelling at each other, on the swings, the slides, around the fountain ... but they couldn't find the dog anywhere.
"Ab ye kidhar gaya?" Mitushi said in an exasperated way. She walked up to the fountain and sat on it's edge, tired of the chase.
"Kya pata ... idhar hi toh ghusa tha," Sameer replied, equally confused about the whole thing. "Yahin kahin hona chahiye ..." He sat down beside her.
"Ab kya karen?" she asked, wishing nothing more than to go back home.
"Pata nahin," he said and checked his watch. "20 minute aur baki hain. Agar utne mein nahin mila toh wapas chale jaayenge."
"Ghar?" she asked, surprised.
"Nahin re, tuition wapas jaayenge." She groaned at the idea ... Same old studious guy!
"Agar sir ne showpiece ke baare mein poochha toh?" she argued. "Ye nahin keh sakte ki hum abhi pahunche hain kyunki aunty ne toh hamen pehle dekha hi hai."
"Keh denge bio ka naotes xerox karwaane gaye they Main Road tak," he replied flatly.
"Par xerox toh hamare paas hai nahin ..."
"Dukaan band hai." Again came a flat reply.
"Fine!" she said, defeated. "Baithe raho 20 minute yahin pe!"
"Teri jagah uss bachche ko mere saath hona chahiye tha uss time," Sameer spoke up suddenly after a few long minutes of silence. Mitushi turned round to look--- a small kid, hardly two years old, was playing under a tree with his mother by his side who was watching over him. The kid was giggling happily, his giggles mixed up with the yells and shouts of the other kids around.
"Kis time?" Mitushi asked, eyeing the kid in a confused way. Sameer was really fond of kids for some reason. "At least, abhi toh chup raho yaar ..." she thought, irritated.
"Jab woh kutta dikha tha. Tune toh usske paas jaane se inkaar kar diya tha. Uss bachche ko dekh--- jo cheez uss kutte ke muh mein thi, usi ko lekar khel raha hai."
"Heh?" Mitushi looked at the kid carefully. Of course, he was playing with the weird showpiece they were searching for!
"Yahan pe kya baitha hai! Chal, ja kar uss manhoos cheez ko wapas le aate hain!" She got to her feet.
"Aise mat ja," he said, shaking his head in disapproval. "Woh bachcha uss cheez se khel raha hai. Agar chheenegi toh rone lagega aur usski maa daudi chali aayegi ... Casual approach better hai. Just ja kar bolna hai ki woh cheez ek sadak chhaap kutte ke muh mein thi."
Slowly, after a lot of argument, Mitushi finally decided to go up to the kid's mother. She casually walked up to the kid and watched him for a moment. He was still playing with the showpiece and giggling. Suddenly, she said, "Arre ..."
"Keya (kya) hua?" the kid's mother asked in a bengali accent. Bong, huh? Mitushi smiled to herself.
"Aunty, eta apnaar chhele (Aunty, is this your kid)?" she asked the woman in a worried tone.
"Hain (yes)," the woman replied. "Keno (why)?"
"Ei jinish ta ke niye khelchhe (playing with this object)?" Mitushi went on. "Eta toh ektu agei ekta kukur er mukhe dekhlam (I saw it just a while ago in a dog's mouth)!"
"Tai naki (really)?" the mother said in a panicky voice.
"Hain (yes)," Mitushi nodded, wrinkling her nose a bit to show disgust. "Ektu agei baire dekhlam (saw it just a while ago outside)."
"Shona, ota phele dao (sweetie, throw it away)," the mother said, hurrying over to her kid. "She pried it out of his hands and immediately he started crying. "Na Shona, ota nongra ... nite nei (no sweetie, that's dirty ... you shouldn't take it)." Saying this, she raised the showpiece and, to Mitushi's horror, threw it away! Before she could run and see where it fell, the kid's mother started talking to her again.
"Bhaagyish, tumi bolle boley (thank God, you told me)!" she said, while Mitushi gave her a polite Anyone-Else-Would-Have-Done-the-Same smile. "Eijonyo bachchader chokhe-chokhe rakhte hoy (that's why you should never let children out of your sight)." The kid was still sobbing. She took him up in her arms and said, "Cholo Shona, ghure ashi (let's go sweetie, let's go for a stroll."
Panicking about the fate of the showpiece, Mitushi hurried back towards the fountain where Sameer was standing.
"Uss aunty ne toh utha ke phenk hi diya!" she said in a helpless voice.
"Haan, pata hai," he muttered. "Seedhe fountain mein gira."
"Fountain mein?" she said in disbelief. Then brightening up a bit, she asked, "Tab toh toota nahin hoga, na?"
"Nahin, nahin toota."
"Toh hai kidhar?" She looked into the rippling water at the bottom of the fountain. It wasn't there.
"Mujhe dekh kar kya lagta hai ki main itni der kya kar raha tha?" Sameer scowled.
Then she noticed. His trouser-ends were folded up several times, he was barefoot and his arms and legs were dripping wet. Even his hair and wire-rimmed glasses were sprayed with tiny water droplets.
"Tu paani main utra tha?" She couldn't believe it.
"Tujhe kya lagta hai?" He held up his left hand to show her--- he had the showpiece!
"Hmm ... Haan, utra tha," she said, after a second or two. Then they both burst out laughing.
***
"Aaj late kaise hua?" their Almost-Reaching-Sixty english teacher asked, as Mitushi and Sameer entered his apartment at five minutes past eight. "Sujata ne toh kaha aap donon pehle hi aa chuke ho?"
"Woh sir ..." Sameer hesitated. "Baat yeh hai ki---"
"Sir, actually ek problem ho gayi thi," Mitushi cut across him. "Main aapka ek showpiece dekh rahi thi---" Sameer blinked at her at this point, not understanding a word "--- aur woh mere haath se gir gaya. Wahi khonjne gaye they niche toh der ho gayi." She held up the weird object to show him.
"Ohh ... Ye?" their teacher laughed. He took it from Mitushi. "Yeh toh bass ek China clay pot ka neck portion hai. Isska baki hissa meri poti ne khel-khel meintod diya. Ajib andaaz mein bana tha issliye baki hissa toot gaya aur bass yeh reh gaya. Isey toh main aaj khud hi phenkne waala tha." And saying that, he flung it out of the drawing room window. A second later, a soft thud told them it had landed on the heap of sand.
Sameer and Mitushi stood rooted there in stunned disbelief. Then Sameer said, "Maine kaha tha, na?"
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
AFTER 11 O' CLOCK :)
I know all the trouble that I cause,
I'm the biggest jerk that ever was,
I know you wanna snatch your hair and yell,
But, all you say is, "What the hell?"
The wee little mistakes that you make,
The huge offences that I take,
Like dadi ka nakhra, in that new ad,
"Seventy-nine candles, aur itna chhota cake?"
But a fight with you, it makes me sad,
I feel guilty, I feel bad,
So, after eleven O' clock at night,
I call you up to set things right.
Then there's "I'm sorry","It's OK...",
"You're still pissed?","Main theek hoon re...",
And I tell myself, "Don't be upset",
Though I'm a big cry-baby, and my eyes go wet.
But an instant later, it's "Puh-leeze!",
"Chor...","Idiot!" we are at ease,
And when the last-minute-beeper screams,
Unwillingly, we say, "Good-night, sweet dreams..."
I'm the biggest jerk that ever was,
I know you wanna snatch your hair and yell,
But, all you say is, "What the hell?"
The wee little mistakes that you make,
The huge offences that I take,
Like dadi ka nakhra, in that new ad,
"Seventy-nine candles, aur itna chhota cake?"
But a fight with you, it makes me sad,
I feel guilty, I feel bad,
So, after eleven O' clock at night,
I call you up to set things right.
Then there's "I'm sorry","It's OK...",
"You're still pissed?","Main theek hoon re...",
And I tell myself, "Don't be upset",
Though I'm a big cry-baby, and my eyes go wet.
But an instant later, it's "Puh-leeze!",
"Chor...","Idiot!" we are at ease,
And when the last-minute-beeper screams,
Unwillingly, we say, "Good-night, sweet dreams..."
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
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