Skip to main content

LIFE AND LIES #76 | Over The Years

For a moment, I was up in the air.

And for a moment, I had travelled back in time.

Back in 2011, I was watching a movie with my friend on a Nokia 5233. Our monthly expense budget didn’t include theatre tickets. But the songs were everywhere. Not a single day went by without hearing the voice of Mohit Chauhan. I had to watch the movie.

“Did it end,” I asked as the end credits rolled out. “The Cyber Café guy must have given us a faulty mp4 file.”

“Whatever,” my friend replied. “I didn’t like the movie.”

“What are you talking about? It’s one of the best Bollywood movies I have ever seen.”

“Really,” my friend was surprised at my reaction. “This movie was about lust… and obsession.”

I was thinking of contradicting him when I noticed the chemistry textbook lying nearby. We were studying for the upcoming test when we thought of watching the movie. I picked up the book and rushed through some pages until I reached the one I needed.

“See, substrate and enzyme,” I showed it to my friend who looked confused. I explained further. “They work as lock and key. One cannot fit with another. Sometimes, the same happens with people. Two people share a unique combination. Space left vacant by a certain someone cannot be filled by someone else.”

“Woah, man,” my friend replied with enthusiasm. “You should become a writer. Chuck engineering.”

Fast forward to 2016. Another city. Another friend.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come? Mohit Chauhan is performing in our college. I know he’s your favourite.”

“No, I can’t,” I replied. “I told you. IIFT entrance test. Next Sunday.”

“It’s just a few hours.”

“I can’t. I have made a promise to myself.”

“Fine! Suit yourself. Don’t regret it later.”

The moment was over. I was no longer in the air. My friends had put me down. Back to the present. 2017.

But what I was witnessing was nothing less than a dream. As it turned out, I didn’t have to regret it like my friend had cautioned me. Mohit Chauhan was performing on stage right before my eyes, in IIFT where I was studying. I would have been out of words but my recent CAT preparation had helped me build quite a vocabulary. The word was ‘serendipity.’

And now it’s 2024. And my birthday.

I have taken leave from work. No big plans, just a movie. I no longer have to worry about the price of a movie ticket.

After 13 years, they have rereleased Rockstar in theatres.

***
Liked what you read? Leave a comment.





Labels:
Location: Delhi, India

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

LIFE AND LIES #77 | The English Teacher

When we are young, the world is full of possibilities. We can do anything, and become anything. We antagonise anyone who even hints at thinking otherwise about us. It's probably why most of us have a story to tell where the villain was a school teacher. Even I do. I don’t remember exactly how I ended up in the Headmaster’s cabin that day. All I remember is that back then I blamed my House Master for it. It wasn’t just me who had bunked the STD XII Pre-Board exams. There were many. But he made a scapegoat out of me. And the moment, I set foot inside the cabin, I received a big slap from the Headmaster. My ears rang. But that wasn’t the worst thing that happened that day. The Headmaster instructed him to call my father. Tell him to come or his son would be rusticated. I wasn’t a notorious student. I was good in my studies and had no disciplinary complaints against me. Had this incident not occurred, I would have completed my schooling in a few months with a clean record. My fat...
5 comments
Read more

Whispers and Words #1

*** Finding solace In an air-conditioned space, The city slept While I wandered the streets, Restless, Perfecting the ending Of a sentence. The cool breeze made me forget That it was a summer night. Then, out of nowhere, A cold whisper Sent a shiver down my spine. "You have to choose, my friend. Be a writer or be content." "Why can't I be both?" I asked the emptiness. And the whisper scoffed at me, "You and your consistent pursuit To get the best of both worlds. Buckle up then! You are about to be tested." I stumbled over a rock And found the ending I was looking for. "If a river wants to meet the sea, Twisting and turning, It will somehow find its way Even through the mountains." If a whisper could smile, It did, and said, "We will see." *** I don't have a million readers - not by choice, obviously - just a handful. But they mean to me as much as the millions would do. And one of those readers reminded me that I had taken a lon...
1 comment
Read more

LIFE AND LIES #57 | Neil Nitin Mukesh (#2)

"Krishna is a married man but he's always revered along with Radha, his lover. What if... say Rukmani, said to Krishna one day, that she'd rather be Radha?"  Nitin uttered his thought out loud then looked around the room. While the others had stopped long back, Neil was pouring himself another drink. Only he could drink so much on a Sunday night, because unlike the others, his Monday had been declared a Bank holiday. It was Mukesh who was sober enough to reply to his question. "Radha spent her years in sadness longing for Krishna. Rukmani would not want to be in her place." "What if...'' smiled Nitin. He always placed the actual question he wanted to ask as the second question. "One day, after reading my work, my wife says to me that she'd rather be one of the women I write about so passionately." "The women you choose to write about are also inherently sad," Mukesh was quick with a reply. "Ask your wife then, would ...
Post a Comment
Read more