The summers were getting worse with each passing day ,on that day however the mercury had touched a staggering 41 degrees.School getting over meant that going home fast was the only thing in my mind. I was however pleasantly reminded by a friend that i had tutions after school .Though reluctantly i made it there.I got to the place where the classes were supposed to begin and then just as the teacher entered and was just about to start the oh-so-boring-class.The the monkeys working at the electricity department pleased at the fact that i had fed them (yes bananas )initiated a power cut & Yes the invertor thingy was low on charge and we thus got a holiday.Yipee!!.Now normally i would have just boarded a bus or something but nothing beats walking through streets of Calcutta in the dark.The fact that the street lights too were busted helped(the monkeys again!!) .As i walked ,"fear of the dark" played for the millionth time on my phone .My eyes fell on a woman walking past me .She was a professional ,her uniform told me that much.She wasn't really very attractive physically as i had hoped she would be.Then again few women are, but she was confident, she was promiscuous,she had broken every single shackle that our Hypocritical society puts on her,.She had become every thing the stereotypical indian woman was not supposed to be and all that made her attractive in a very strange way .As the sound of her footsteps faded i had to turn my attention to something way more important. "low battery" was being conveniently flashing on the shitty symbian based device.So realizing that the the laws of cosmic justice would soon shut down my phone .I turned it off myself .Denying it of the pleasure, it so desperately wanted. I turned my attention to other things namely tottenham's 5-2 defeat last night ,Rednapp's grave tactical blunders had cost us the match ,i wished i was the manager.Could have done a better job at least.Pavlyochenco deserved a start.Funny how the people who matter make the wrong decisions and the people who make the right decisions don't really matter, Suddenly i tripped on some pothole on the road making me,ALmost land on my face ,i was just about to curse the municipal guys when i saw the moon .In all her glory ,till then i was blissfully unaware of the fact that it was a full moon night.The solar system's fifth largest satellite had never looked this beautiful .For the remainder of the journey i regularly Glanced at the moon,disturbing my view only to make sure there were no more potholes in my way.
I walked quite a bit after that, when a spine chilling moan made its way to my ear . It seemed as though something was dying.I didn't want to look ,but i bloody had to.On a closer inspection i found that a dog had fallen into the drain and couldn't get itself out.It was literally "rotting alive".For an instant i thought that i should rescue it or try and end its misery somehow ,but some thing pulled me back.I looked at the street where i was standing i saw that many people passed the dying dog ,all of them had heard its cry .The creature almost begging for death to befall on him somehow,but no one even bothered to look they were too bothered about their clothes ,and the fact that the missed their soaps because of the powercut.But i shouldn't blame them though for i too did nothing to help it( it turns out my parents dont subscribe to certain a detergent companies”daag ache hain” campaign ).I did something else though i switched on my phone and tried to take its picture.I knew emotional pornography made for great photography subjects but i coudn't make myself do it though,I coudn't mock it's pitiful existence any further..I started to walk again and my mind started to wander,wander as I wondered what is it was like to be a war photographer,taking pictures of dying men .When every thing around him is absolute devastation all he does is take a picture. .I don't know how he does it.I don't even think its humanly possible.
As i turned my attention to the road I realized that the streets seemed awfully familiar.I was almost home.The guard greeted me with his same big smile,which by now had almost become his trademark..I tried to return his smile but mine could have never really matched his ,for his reflected absolute contentment mine, mere courtesy.I soon made my way to my bed.I coudn't sleep though.I'd like to think it was just the heat,but it wasn't .A few of the thoughts ,that had made their way earlier that evening kept lingering around my mind.Disturbing me at very frequent intervals. The dog slowly rotting away to nothingness,the lady,the photographer.The dog specially though,i just couldn't get him out of my head. .But i knew and so did the dog perhaps that in time even its miserable death would fade away from my memory and would become just as obscure as his life always was and maybe then i would get some well deserved sleep and he his redemption.
You have come a long way since your first post. I really liked this one. I mean really. So much so that I'm gonna follow it. By the way Its Hypocrite not hippocratic.They have two very different meanings. You got the talent. Post regularly.
ReplyDeletenow before i kill myself with euphoria ,sorry i spell erred Hippocrates was the greek bastad right?,/
ReplyDeleteyeah started medicine n all..
ReplyDeleteThe finesse that has touched every minute detail including the post script to your encounter with the woman who chose to deviate from the ways of a stereotype Indian woman...or just the Surf Excel ad caption:"daag accha hay"...every single detail has been so perfectly put in.
ReplyDeleteoh. i just thought it was bull shit .:O.
ReplyDeleteoh yeah? and is that why you posted it? :)=
ReplyDeletei posted it a year ago, mind you.
ReplyDeleteI went blank for some while after reading this.
ReplyDeleteThis is the most powerful article you’ve written.
In the end, we’re all hypocrites.
About photography. Again, this reminds me of Kaushik, in Jhumpa Lahiri’s “Hema and Kaushik” from “Unaccustomed Earth”. He was a journalist photographer. One night, he confessed to Hema, unwittingly, that it did affect him. Taking pictures always, being oblivious of anything that might be treated as immediate and indispensable. He particularly referred to one accident scene, where he had jumped down from his car, and taken a snapshot. Before even asking how the victims were. It’s cunning almost.
This article is a patchwork of some disparate, albeit beautiful emotions.
I liked the use of the word “staggering”.
The allusion to monkeys. :P funny, prepares the readers for some entertainment.
“but nothing beats walking through streets of Calcutta in the dark”
Alright, a hint of romanticism in the apparently inattentive escapist. :P
When you first mentioned the woman, I assumed she’d figure as just another person. . as just someone who momentarily stole your heart and soul. But then, with the stroke of a few words, you bring the readers to a sombre reality. You remind us, that life is not all about romantic musings.
Then you sound like a Quora article, yes. :P
The Moon has always served as a poetic inspiration to solitary dreamers. :) you do have a wonderful way with words.
The incident that follows, I shall not say much, except, your attitude towards it seemed.. distant, detached. It reflects the general human psyche. Were you feeling sort of aloof as well? Or was it helplessness?
I liked your mention of the watchman, the tenderness in his gesture, and your casual demeanor.
There are some disappointing attributes to this article as well, in terms of sentence build-up, typos here and there. But I guess that’s what this blog reveals. How you evolved. :)