I saw a local don walking towards me with his minions closely walking behind him, in a corridor of some building that looked like the building of Imperial College of Engineering in 3 idiots! I was feeling a little uncomfortable, but then he saw me and patted me, then wrapped his arm around my shoulders from behind and hinted me to walk with him. He was there to attend some meeting with his associates. They had a meeting in some classroom, as I could see the green board on one side. That classroom was in the league with the best office conference rooms, with AC and good furnishing.
The meeting commenced. After few minutes, I saw a sexy lady, of my age group come and sit on the chair beside me. Most of my attention was now diverted to her hair, her scent and those cursory glances I gave her. In a while, I noticed don's khaas aadmi (right hand man), who had long hair and beard and looked stupid with his sunglasses on, frequently looking at her, so I stopped glancing at her.
Later that night, the don called me. I never wanted to be his friend but he seems to like me and trust me as a friend, and can't say no to a don! His mansion was like the ones shown in Bollywood movies! I climbed up to his room and saw him in a pathetic situation. He looked sick, and scared. He wouldn't tell on being asked, but after some cajoling and reminding him that he can tell me anything, he realized he could trust me and told me all about it.
"But you never killed a woman in your lifetime, you promised yourself you wouldn't."
"Yes, but that's not the complete truth. I did kill a woman, unintentionally. She was bent on exposing me. I got a little violent and her death was an accident."
"Oh crap! That's really bad. But that must have been long time ago. Why today?"
"Because I saw her today."
"The woman you killed? What? Seriously? Are you drunk? High?"
"Don't be stupid! I'm sober now. I saw her walking towards me. She didn't say anything though. But that's not all."
The idea of the mansion being haunted scared me. I saw a ghost walking through the walls of the mansion, then out of the mansion and towards me, standing in front of it. I didn't want to die with that don because of something I wasn't involved in. But he never looked more scared. I was a little concerned.
"I saw many woman's ghosts. I know they were ghosts because they were walking in air, just like the woman I killed walked."
"Did you kill all of them?"
"No! I didn't. I need your help. I'm scared."
He walked to the bar, made himself a drink, gulped it immediately and turned towards me.
"I don't want to die. I am really sorry for whatever I had done with that woman."
I did think that was coming. But I was puzzled as to why he saw other woman's ghosts he didn't kill. Could it be that his minions killed those women?
"I think that's a sign that I should give up my evil ways and become a good person. I'll do anything to reduce the damage I've done, as long as I live in peace."
A don confessing, I was amused. I wanted to smile but couldn't. I didn't feel scared or nervous of him anymore, but started feeling better in his company. Finally he might become one of the good guys.
"I think the only way to nullify the effects of your bad deeds, is to start doing good deeds. You've to become one of the good guys. Sir, I'm with you. You must become a good person and use all your capabilities and resources towards it. The ghosts of all the woman would feel satisfied to see you do good work and would leave."
I encouraged his desire to survive the spirits. Alas, the right hand man thought the don had gone crazy and decided to take over.
I don't remember what happened after that, but I do hope the don became one of the good guys!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
9th April 2010 Early Morning
I saw myself at some get-together in some dim lighted big room. It looked like some seminar hall of a 5 star. Few of my immediate juniors had this list of marks and grades for a course I was TA of. Those were a year old records. One of them said that I had the authority to make changes in those records and since they were old records, others won't bother verifying it. He said I was the TA, so I would have the password which would still be valid! He wrote something which looked like 'm' and 'n' in his ow writing, but sideways. He explained those were the current marks and marks to be updated (which were fake of course!). I looked at them for sometime to figure out the numerical figure they resembled.
I remember Kamal sir addressing all of us after that. Perhaps we all were at Dean's Dinner. He said if we could all promise him that we would stop drinking from that moment onwards!
I happen to meet two students of Police Academy sitting at a table, in a small room/back of a big vehicle. I met them for the first time but they seemed friendly. Some other friend of their walked in and sat on the third chair and then some other came in and stood beside me. One of them already sitting there asks the ones who just came in about their training and if the gun was issued to them. The one sitting said that he'd be issued the gun next week/month. The table had a plate with some confectionary stuff but I can only remember brown muffins. They offered me the whole pack of big brown fresh muffins. I took it, hesitatingly.
Later that night, I had to struggle to recall the name of my destination. I started taking names of all the stops in between till I could say "Gachibowli" after which the 7-seater driver said that the 7-seater would turn from the Gachibowli bus stop to the right.
I remember Kamal sir addressing all of us after that. Perhaps we all were at Dean's Dinner. He said if we could all promise him that we would stop drinking from that moment onwards!
I happen to meet two students of Police Academy sitting at a table, in a small room/back of a big vehicle. I met them for the first time but they seemed friendly. Some other friend of their walked in and sat on the third chair and then some other came in and stood beside me. One of them already sitting there asks the ones who just came in about their training and if the gun was issued to them. The one sitting said that he'd be issued the gun next week/month. The table had a plate with some confectionary stuff but I can only remember brown muffins. They offered me the whole pack of big brown fresh muffins. I took it, hesitatingly.
Later that night, I had to struggle to recall the name of my destination. I started taking names of all the stops in between till I could say "Gachibowli" after which the 7-seater driver said that the 7-seater would turn from the Gachibowli bus stop to the right.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
7th April 2010 Early Morning
Underwater temple and paper piano
I saw a couple jumping into the water and from inside the water I saw them kissing each other once, then swimming deeper towards the Sri Ram temple at the bottom of the lake. I swam to the temple and visited it. I saw a hawker distributing prasad so I accepted a packet. I opened it and ate a little boondi from it. I realized I couldn't stay without breath under water for a long time so I started going back upwards. I called my sister and asked her to leave with me. She was puzzled but she did. I pushed her upwards, then started swimming towards the surface. I had to go through a thin opening which had stairs below it. I then realized that the temple was submerged in the lake but wasn't when was originally built. Sensing that I might be out of breath, I left the packet of prasad at the start of the opening for better comfort in swimming.
On reaching the surface, I started feeling hungry and regretted leaving prasad back at the lake. I looked around for vendors selling prasad but didn't find anyone selling the same prasad. Finally I asked one of them for 3 out of 5 diff. kinds of prasads that he was selling but he refused, as he sold them all as a set and not individually and I didn't have enough money to buy the whole set.
My sister and I were to wait for a vehicle to take us home but we waited for sometime and it didn't come. Coincidentally I saw Alok, Sachin and other IIIT-H friends who are currently working and staying in Bangalore leaving the temple in their car. Alok looked out of the window and in his usual style greeted me.
Apparently some of the guys in that car were to be dropped somewhere so it would take more time than usual for us to reach home. We made a few minutes stop at their place. I told them that it reminded me of my school and the place looked like a part of Army cantonment area. It did have small rooms arranged in a circle, a TV room, a playground and a large area for exercises. I saw a playroom with a paper piano in it. My sister went there and started playing the piano. I was astonished to see that piano make music. My friends and I walked around the place and talked for a few minutes. I asked them if there was anything available to eat and although I had a biriyani and something else, still I was hungry. My sister came to us from the other room and said that the paper piano was dismantled. I saw the broken into pieces piano and got a little worried. My friends said it can be fixed easily and that I should not worry.
I was at a marketplace (sadar bazar, Jalandhar, lookalike) with my father and some friend of his. My father left me with him to buy something from some shop a little far. My father's friend asked me if I would like to have something. I said, and he brought me a large hot-dog and something else in packing. My father called us outside so that we may leave. While leaving the shop, I forgot to take my half-eaten hot-dog and the something else in packing. Halfway out of the marketplace, I remembered that I had left my stuff at that shop. My father and his friend looked at each other, concerned. "Never mind, it'll not take long," my father's friend said and we went back. It was closing time for all the shops. Initially we were not sure if we were at the same shop because the place looked like an abandoned patch, as if nothing ever existed there! There was a man taking rounds of the street, asking everyone to close down their shops. He wore a uniform similar to the security guards' at IIIT-H. On watching us enter the abandoned shop, he walked to us and said we were not allowed to enter that place because it was past closing time for shops. We tried reasoning with him that we'd left our stuff inside the shop but he wouldn't listen. Finally we had to give him a little something, which my father and his friend debated upon, and went into the abandoned shop, only to find my stuff lying there, untouched, among the emptiness.
Later, we walked the empty streets of the city. There was enough lighting, both natural and artificial to confuse a brightly lit night to a cloudy daytime. I saw a big banner of indibloggers on our way back and got excited about it. I pointed to it, saying that they'd have their meeting in the same building which hosted the banner. My father asked me "What do you guys really do in such meetings?" not convinced those meetings and get-together serve any purpose.
I saw myself in a long table conference type of meeting, sitting close to the head of the meeting. Somebody, I think it was Mux, greeted him, "Konbanwa" which the boss interrupted saying it was morning time. The boss asked others if they knew the Japanese greeting for "good morning". Many, including me and Mux said "Oya sumi masen" with a little hesitation. He repeated the greeting with better intonation and pronunciation. He finally asked who knew basic Japanese. Many hands shot up, and it was then I saw Mohit sitting in the meeting, a couple of chairs away from me.
I saw a couple jumping into the water and from inside the water I saw them kissing each other once, then swimming deeper towards the Sri Ram temple at the bottom of the lake. I swam to the temple and visited it. I saw a hawker distributing prasad so I accepted a packet. I opened it and ate a little boondi from it. I realized I couldn't stay without breath under water for a long time so I started going back upwards. I called my sister and asked her to leave with me. She was puzzled but she did. I pushed her upwards, then started swimming towards the surface. I had to go through a thin opening which had stairs below it. I then realized that the temple was submerged in the lake but wasn't when was originally built. Sensing that I might be out of breath, I left the packet of prasad at the start of the opening for better comfort in swimming.
On reaching the surface, I started feeling hungry and regretted leaving prasad back at the lake. I looked around for vendors selling prasad but didn't find anyone selling the same prasad. Finally I asked one of them for 3 out of 5 diff. kinds of prasads that he was selling but he refused, as he sold them all as a set and not individually and I didn't have enough money to buy the whole set.
My sister and I were to wait for a vehicle to take us home but we waited for sometime and it didn't come. Coincidentally I saw Alok, Sachin and other IIIT-H friends who are currently working and staying in Bangalore leaving the temple in their car. Alok looked out of the window and in his usual style greeted me.
Apparently some of the guys in that car were to be dropped somewhere so it would take more time than usual for us to reach home. We made a few minutes stop at their place. I told them that it reminded me of my school and the place looked like a part of Army cantonment area. It did have small rooms arranged in a circle, a TV room, a playground and a large area for exercises. I saw a playroom with a paper piano in it. My sister went there and started playing the piano. I was astonished to see that piano make music. My friends and I walked around the place and talked for a few minutes. I asked them if there was anything available to eat and although I had a biriyani and something else, still I was hungry. My sister came to us from the other room and said that the paper piano was dismantled. I saw the broken into pieces piano and got a little worried. My friends said it can be fixed easily and that I should not worry.
I was at a marketplace (sadar bazar, Jalandhar, lookalike) with my father and some friend of his. My father left me with him to buy something from some shop a little far. My father's friend asked me if I would like to have something. I said, and he brought me a large hot-dog and something else in packing. My father called us outside so that we may leave. While leaving the shop, I forgot to take my half-eaten hot-dog and the something else in packing. Halfway out of the marketplace, I remembered that I had left my stuff at that shop. My father and his friend looked at each other, concerned. "Never mind, it'll not take long," my father's friend said and we went back. It was closing time for all the shops. Initially we were not sure if we were at the same shop because the place looked like an abandoned patch, as if nothing ever existed there! There was a man taking rounds of the street, asking everyone to close down their shops. He wore a uniform similar to the security guards' at IIIT-H. On watching us enter the abandoned shop, he walked to us and said we were not allowed to enter that place because it was past closing time for shops. We tried reasoning with him that we'd left our stuff inside the shop but he wouldn't listen. Finally we had to give him a little something, which my father and his friend debated upon, and went into the abandoned shop, only to find my stuff lying there, untouched, among the emptiness.
Later, we walked the empty streets of the city. There was enough lighting, both natural and artificial to confuse a brightly lit night to a cloudy daytime. I saw a big banner of indibloggers on our way back and got excited about it. I pointed to it, saying that they'd have their meeting in the same building which hosted the banner. My father asked me "What do you guys really do in such meetings?" not convinced those meetings and get-together serve any purpose.
I saw myself in a long table conference type of meeting, sitting close to the head of the meeting. Somebody, I think it was Mux, greeted him, "Konbanwa" which the boss interrupted saying it was morning time. The boss asked others if they knew the Japanese greeting for "good morning". Many, including me and Mux said "Oya sumi masen" with a little hesitation. He repeated the greeting with better intonation and pronunciation. He finally asked who knew basic Japanese. Many hands shot up, and it was then I saw Mohit sitting in the meeting, a couple of chairs away from me.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
6th April 2010 Early Morning
It must be 8 or 9 am, we were trekking, me and few others. Among others I remember a couple of families, some other middle aged people, and few of my friends. We were walking through a posh colony, akin to an army cantonment colony. We looked around and saw only few people around. One of my friends pointed to a house and said, "This is house of Rocky, Sylvestor Stallone." I thought he was kidding but when I looked at him, I knew he wasn't.
I slipped away from the group, walked up to his apartment on the first floor. I knocked at his door. He came out in his night clothes. He stared at me for a few seconds. "What is it that you want, kid?"
OMG, Sylvestor Stallone talking to me !!
I introduced myself and said that I really wanted to meet him, since forever. He invited me in. :)
His apartment was really huge from inside. It looked as if he lived alone but there was a lot of stuff at his house that suggested otherwise. I saw collections of bollywood movies/songs from the 70s, especially Shammi Kapoor's. I saw a big poster of Shammi Kapoor at one corner of his living room, below which was his big stereo music system.
I went to his verandah, and peeped below. I was surprised to see Ruhela sir. I asked him what he was doing there. He said he was waiting for someone, and that I should leave at once and suggested an escape route, other than the front door. But I went back inside.
I was surprised to see my mother come to his house. I asked her what she was doing there. She didn't reply. My mother was with others on trekking, how come she was there as well? Maybe she was some other woman of my mother's age, and not my mother. She started making something in the kitchen. Mr. Stallone had prepared something snacks so we ate that and talked for sometime.
I saw Ruhela sir from the window beside me, he was beckoning me to urgently leave that place. I said I had to leave, and asked that woman who looked like my mother, if she wanted to come too, but Mr. Stallone said she'll leave after she was done with her work. I left from the front door, with Mr. Stallone closing it behind me.
I slipped away from the group, walked up to his apartment on the first floor. I knocked at his door. He came out in his night clothes. He stared at me for a few seconds. "What is it that you want, kid?"
OMG, Sylvestor Stallone talking to me !!
I introduced myself and said that I really wanted to meet him, since forever. He invited me in. :)
His apartment was really huge from inside. It looked as if he lived alone but there was a lot of stuff at his house that suggested otherwise. I saw collections of bollywood movies/songs from the 70s, especially Shammi Kapoor's. I saw a big poster of Shammi Kapoor at one corner of his living room, below which was his big stereo music system.
I went to his verandah, and peeped below. I was surprised to see Ruhela sir. I asked him what he was doing there. He said he was waiting for someone, and that I should leave at once and suggested an escape route, other than the front door. But I went back inside.
I was surprised to see my mother come to his house. I asked her what she was doing there. She didn't reply. My mother was with others on trekking, how come she was there as well? Maybe she was some other woman of my mother's age, and not my mother. She started making something in the kitchen. Mr. Stallone had prepared something snacks so we ate that and talked for sometime.
I saw Ruhela sir from the window beside me, he was beckoning me to urgently leave that place. I said I had to leave, and asked that woman who looked like my mother, if she wanted to come too, but Mr. Stallone said she'll leave after she was done with her work. I left from the front door, with Mr. Stallone closing it behind me.
Friday, April 2, 2010
2nd April 2010 Early Morning
I saw myself at a mansion. I was alone. I remembered looking at a pack of hounds tearing apart an alive human body from a window while standing over the fireplace stand. He was an acquaintance, but I was too scared to go out to help him, I was too scared to move. I ate cold food, didn't leave the mansion for the fear of those hounds. I couldn't contact anyone. I was cold, had a blanket to keep me warm. I wanted to get rid of those hounds, preferably destroy all of them.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
31st March 2010 Late Morning
There was a little girl who went missing. It was Mahaveer who first asked me to search for her. There were two other things also that I had to search but the little girl worried me the most. Her absence haunted me in my dreams too. I knew I had to find her!
Once something got stuck in my throat and I was trying hard to push it out but in vain. I felt as if the little girl was telling me that I'd left her in the dark and she was scared. I tried harder to push out the thing stuck in my throat. I didn't come out, so I swallowed it with force.
I had late breakfast as usual and was carrying a glass of milk to drink after sometime. I saw Kapil, Atul, Parashar, Pankaj, Alok, Mahaveer and others playing some stupid game in which they'd hold anyone and push that person very hard and run with that person, then eventually releasing him/her from their grip. I tried to tell them that I had a full big glass of milk in my hand and that the milk would fall and that would make me angry. They didn't bother and the group, like a group of bees surrounded me from behind and pushed me randomly left, right, front. I got angry and spilled all my milk on the person on my right because I was holding the milk in my right hand. Sadly the person was Atul! After that I did throw the remaining drops at Parashar as well but the damage had been done. I went to mess to refill the glass with some milk. On the wall clock above the entrance to the stairs that led to Yuktahaar mess, I saw the time, 12:13 pm. It was way past the breakfast time, so I had to do without milk.
There was some guy who came to me asking for Sushanta. I said I didn't know where he was at the moment. He asked me what bothered me and I said a little girl was missing and he said if I had investigated it thoroughly. I said I didn't ask the girls of the college. He said Sushanta was incharge of ice-creams and that girls would definitely come to him for ice-creams and we could ask them at that time. I looked at him, he seemed to be quite interested in meeting the girls. Then Sashidhar came along and I asked him, "hey how would you suggest a missing person could be found?"
Sashidhar thought for a few seconds and suggested that we could trace her by the IP address. He then explained that the last number would be the person's ID, second last number would be the person's batch, third last number... Finally I asked him, could this method be used at present? Sashidhar, who was sitting on the sidewalk divider, looked up at me, I looked at the other guy. Both of them nodded in negative.
Nobody seemed to be bothered about the missing little girl. Was I the only one who knew about it? Did I imagine Mahaveer telling me about the little girl? Have I been doing too much detective work, as in searching for lost things that I've started hallucinating?
I looked at Sashidhar and the other guy, both lost in their own thoughts, I looked to my right, a little ahead and all my friends were still playing that silly game. I felt the dusk giving way to the night as the darkness slowly spread itself around us.
Once something got stuck in my throat and I was trying hard to push it out but in vain. I felt as if the little girl was telling me that I'd left her in the dark and she was scared. I tried harder to push out the thing stuck in my throat. I didn't come out, so I swallowed it with force.
I had late breakfast as usual and was carrying a glass of milk to drink after sometime. I saw Kapil, Atul, Parashar, Pankaj, Alok, Mahaveer and others playing some stupid game in which they'd hold anyone and push that person very hard and run with that person, then eventually releasing him/her from their grip. I tried to tell them that I had a full big glass of milk in my hand and that the milk would fall and that would make me angry. They didn't bother and the group, like a group of bees surrounded me from behind and pushed me randomly left, right, front. I got angry and spilled all my milk on the person on my right because I was holding the milk in my right hand. Sadly the person was Atul! After that I did throw the remaining drops at Parashar as well but the damage had been done. I went to mess to refill the glass with some milk. On the wall clock above the entrance to the stairs that led to Yuktahaar mess, I saw the time, 12:13 pm. It was way past the breakfast time, so I had to do without milk.
There was some guy who came to me asking for Sushanta. I said I didn't know where he was at the moment. He asked me what bothered me and I said a little girl was missing and he said if I had investigated it thoroughly. I said I didn't ask the girls of the college. He said Sushanta was incharge of ice-creams and that girls would definitely come to him for ice-creams and we could ask them at that time. I looked at him, he seemed to be quite interested in meeting the girls. Then Sashidhar came along and I asked him, "hey how would you suggest a missing person could be found?"
Sashidhar thought for a few seconds and suggested that we could trace her by the IP address. He then explained that the last number would be the person's ID, second last number would be the person's batch, third last number... Finally I asked him, could this method be used at present? Sashidhar, who was sitting on the sidewalk divider, looked up at me, I looked at the other guy. Both of them nodded in negative.
Nobody seemed to be bothered about the missing little girl. Was I the only one who knew about it? Did I imagine Mahaveer telling me about the little girl? Have I been doing too much detective work, as in searching for lost things that I've started hallucinating?
I looked at Sashidhar and the other guy, both lost in their own thoughts, I looked to my right, a little ahead and all my friends were still playing that silly game. I felt the dusk giving way to the night as the darkness slowly spread itself around us.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
16th March 2010, Early Morning
I was to go to some place, somewhere far. Perhaps Andaman and Nicobar. I had to get myself registered for the trip, some days prior to the day of travel. I called in a travel agent. I heard a knock at my door. I saw myself walking in an old, perhaps 1 BHK flat towards the door. I asked the agent to come in but he seemed rather perturbed and wanted me to quickly sign the papers confirming my journey. I signed but his uneasiness made me doubtful as to what was bothering him. I didn't ask. I offered him a beverage but he left in haste without a word. I concluded that maybe he wanted to cover maximum customers for a bonus or promotion.
It rained heavily on the day of the journey. The heavy rain reminded me that for some reason I had been to Andaman and Nicobar some months before, and had a miserable experience. I decided to quit and was about to go to the office to cancel my journey when that agent crossed my mind. I picked up my bag, put on my hat, took my umbrella in my arm, looked back at my flat which only had a study table by the window and no other furniture, and only one bulb to light the room, I left for Andaman and Nicobar.
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