Tuesday, April 01, 2008

FREEDOM (SHORT STORY)

“My mother’s advice is no more valid” – I thought to myself on hearing the conversation below.

“What is Freedom?”

“Freedom means we can do whatever we want, as long as it does not affect others”.

The question about freedom was asked by Gayathri, a five year old girl, daughter of my brother in law (my husband’s brother). In fact even I wanted to ask that same question, as the people all over the railway station were shouting - “Bharat Mata Ki Jay”,” We got the freedom” were some of their shouting’s - and dancing in Joy. If they were so happy in getting freedom – then the freedom must be tastier than the ‘Adhirasams’ (a sweet) my mother makes – I thought to myself, before being enlightened by the answer given to Gayathri by my father in law.

I, born on a day before Pongal, thirteen years ago, am now in a distant land called Jhansi, sitting in the third class compartment in the train going to Delhi. Sitting near me is my husband, who speaks one or two words to me, only when his mother is not watching. Until two years before, I had been going to school – Convent school run by Christian missionaries- in the next street to our house. I, having completed sixth standard was the most educated girl in our caste. It, along with my beauty (headmistress at my school was so much stunned by my beauty when I danced in a frock for a song praising Jesus Christ during Christmas celebrations) were the reasons that I was selected as a bride by a highly respected family from Delhi.

I was treated like a princess – my father kept repeating that I was so lucky – and I was provided with the finest of sarees and golden bangles; but that was not I wanted. All I wanted was to play with my friends as I used to before. I wanted to go out with my friends and eat ground nuts in a shop near school, but I was gently scolded by my mother when I told my desire- “Don’t ever tell it when your father is near – he is so happy now. Don’t make him angry”.

It was two months before my marriage that I was given the advices that I told to you in the first line of the story. Some of the prominent points of those advices were – to obey everything said by my mother in law, sister in law, or far that matter any of my in laws, not to play with dolls as I used to at home, not to talk to any male relatives other than my husband and thousand other things – and I literally memorized all of them as they were told day after day. Besides these theoretical lectures and advices, I was also given practical fast track courses in cooking, washing clothes etc.

In the train, as Gayathri was playing with toys, jumping in a pink frock – similar to the one I used to wear when I was young – it brought back my childhood memories and I felt jealous of her. I also wanted to play – but my mother’s advice and lectures kept me under control.

It was then Jhansi came and I was enlightened about what Freedom is by my Father-in-law. Now, my entire mother’s advice was not valid. They were valid only when we did not have freedom. Now we have freedom and we can do whatever, we want, as long as it does not affect others. Definitely- I jumping and playing with Gayathri will not affect anyone. I can do it as we have freedom. My mother’s advice is not valid now as we have freedom. I jumped with joy and rushed towards Gayathri to play.

I don’t want to say what happened after that (I don’t believe in sharing negative things), but one thing -- my father-in-law is not as intelligent as other’s think. His definition of freedom was proved wrong and my mother’s advice is still valid.

Sorry, it’s not a story, it’s a confidential report. (SHORT STORY)

Scene –I

He was standing in the bus stop in a slightly arrogant way characteristic of any college going student in Chennai. His eyes were showing very keen interest when ever any teen age girl passed by that side, but even half of that interest was not shown when a 56P bus came and halted in front of him. In fact the bus would go to his college. However he would travel only in the next bus, in which is gang of friends would come- travelling with his gang would make the otherwise boring travel so interesting

The bus started to move after no one got down from it but at least twenty people tried to force their way into already fully packed bus. Just as the bus was gaining momentum, he noticed her. She was sitting in the third row from rear in the women’s side. He was just wondering, why was she here, why she is travelling in this bus when her house is at a walk able distance from collage.

She was college’s dream girl. Every one in the college right from students to watch man just loved looking at her from morning to evening. No one except her close friends had ever dared to speak to her – leave alone flirting with her. There were rumors in the college that she had even slapped one of the lecturers once when he tried to flirt. Today was a God given opportunity – he thought to himself. If only he could go in this bus, travelling with her would make him a hero in his gang. He would be envied by others. He need not even talk to her. He could just make stories about how she was so friendly with him in the bus, and so on.

He knew he had to act fast. The bus had already travelled quite a distance. He began to give it a chase. He was collage champion in athletics and it helped. Then in athletics field, you don’t find an old woman with basket of fruits, a tricycle, and a group of school going kids with bags twice their weight coming from the other sides. The road wet as a result of the rain day before, did not help his cause in any way.

He was about to give up, when she turned and looked behind from the bus. Her face game him all the motivation he needed. He picked up speed and come so close to the bus. He managed to put one foot into the bus, when the dreaded thing happened. The wet shoes didn’t give the grip he needed, and the next moment, he was not inside the bus, but unfortunately under its wheels.

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Scene 2:

His eyes were so reddish. He had just come out of the Tasmac shop. His aunt- he was her favorite- had come home today from her native village, and she had given him hundred bucks to buy some thing useful. She would not have expected that useful thing would be the same liquid that was responsible for her husband’s death. He went and sat inside the Maruti. He some how convinced his innocent mother of the special class, and how he could never make it to it in time because of the unreliable public transport system, and how the master cruelly punishes anyone who turns up even a second late.

“These days’ teachers are so bad” – She had always found the teachers at fault right from the day, his first standard teacher complained about his love to pinch the students sitting near by. She could never believe his son could do some thing wrong.

He had decided to go and have a great ride. He just loved driving like they drive it in formula 1. There was no one to tell him that the last thing formula 1 drivers do his to consume alcohols before driving, and they don’t drive in roads used by common people. He started off fast, and immediately shifted gears. He drove as fast his maruti would allow him, in the process terrorizing innocent road users. There came that sharp turn, with a warning “Accident Prone Zone. Keep slow”. He loved this sharp turns. He loved to make those turns in great speeds. Today he decided to do it again. The extra hundred bucks given by her aunt meant extra alcohol – which in turn meant poorer reflex. He tried to turn the steering wheel with great speed, but all he could manage was to dash his dad’s hard earned maruti against the banyan tree, that had seen many such accidents in two hundred years of its existence in that corner.

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Scene 3:

He was one among the few who got down at Pallavaram railway station in that non peak hour. His face was tense as he was expecting a call from Madurai, where her wife is going to give birth to their first child any time now. He must have been now in Madurai, standing in the hospital, waiting for the privilege of being the first person to be informed about yet another new entry to this world. His manager spoiled all this.

The manager had forced him to go to Chennai on some urgent work, work he despised so much. “I should have been in Maudrai” – he was constantly thinking. He had already done most of the work in Chennai, and after he finishes this one last work in Pallavaram, he would be travelling in the first available bus to Madurai.

He got a call from an unknown number in Madurai. He was sure that was from the hospital. “Hello” he said, fully engrossed to listen to what the other person on the line had to say. “Hello” he literally shouted again, poor network connection which meant that he was not able to listen properly. The person at the other end was saying some thing, but unfortunately he was not able to listen to it.

He was so keen on talking in phone, that he did not listen to “Train is coming” shouting’s from the people around him. He even did not listen to the loud horn sounded by the express train coming at a good speed. He was just keen on listening to what the other person had to say on phone. An image of a beautiful baby was flashed by his brain and he was smiling, as he received happy news from the other end. He did not know that he could never see his child alive. The train was coming fast…..


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Conclusion:

When you, The Almighty God said that you are going to destroy the Earth, I was one among the many who felt very bad about you. After coming to Earth on your insistence, and after seeing the many incidents in Chennai, as assigned to me, I was fairly convinced that any way most of the people here are already trying hard to kill themselves, which was evident from the above mentioned scenes and various other scenes that I had seen but not mentioned. So hereby I conclude my report saying that you could go ahead with your plans of destroying this earth.

Yours truly,

Angel No – 90453,
Senior Consultant (Chennai Division),
Heaven