2011

I have been in Chennai for almost a decade now and this is the first time I stayed back for the New Year. I know it sounds weird but that's the fact. I make sure that I always go to my native Madurai for the new year and I attend midnight mass in a church close to my house. This has been the routine right from 12th standard for some reason and I continued with that :)

So having decided to stay back I somehow wanted to go somewhere for the new year celebrations instead of sleeping at my home and after lots of confusion we ended up paying close to 2000 bucks for a night at the Radisson in the GST road. That was the cheapest and safest considering our residents. As we entered the hall there was nothing spectacular. We started of with the food and that was the best part of the night for me. They had a wide choice which included kerala style fish and few other continental dishes of which a desert made out of rum and brownie was yummy. Being a foodie the purpose for me was already served even before the celebrations started :)

As we started having our food there was this guy who started of the celebration with some simple games which were quite familiar to us and the only different thing here was that all old people played in front of the entire crowd. There were few intimidating games and it was a common sight to see husbands kissing and hugging their wives in front of the crowd which I believe is quite a culture in these places these days and I was not startled by any of these but few were. I could see them looking with an awe the way people behaved in front of the crowd. I was just wondering how my parents or for that matter even my sisters would feel had I brought them with me for this celebrations. For sure it would have ruined a nice day for me :)

Most among the crowd were people from the upper class or the upper middle class people with an apt outfit for the occasion and they looked so among the crowd. The dads and husbands found nothing odd with the length of the dress theirs kids or wives wore which would have irked common people for sure. They just got along with the celebrations and it gave an indication that this was yet another New Year party for them unlike us and another bunch of bachelors in the corner of that room.  Everyone was playing and enjoying each and every moment there and danced their way into new year 2011 with great joy. It was a memorable night for me too as that was the first New Year party I have ever been in my life.

But there was this section of crowd who were so stuck to their orthodox attitude and were trying their level best to look normal among this high class crowd. I assume that they have come just on the compulsion of their husbands and few even tried playing and dancing with sarees and it is obvious why it has a special mention here in the post. Few were even drinking in front their small kids and that's the only thing startled me on the night. They looked so lost in this world and were just trying their best to imitate what others were doing. I don't understand why would they want to do it in first place. They somehow think that it adds some brand value to them but it is worth nothing. It is always best to be what you are and what you feel.

I really feel sad for all those who are just trying to be an !@#$% when they are actually not one.

My First Attempt

Nirmal : Halloooo ... Whoo is this ? (in a frustrated tone)

Swetha : Hey this is Swetha …. Hmmm……

Nirmal: (Super Excited and completely out of sleep) Heyyyy ... Happy Birthday ... :)

Swetha:  ya thnx man ….

Nirmal: having a blast with your friends  ??? 

Swetha: ya just done with the cake cutting …..somehow felt a little weird not to find ur msg on phone by 12 ... Don't know why ! ! !

Nirmal: hmmm.... hey have a blast ... catch u sometime …. Take Care... See You ... (Hangs with a heavy Heart)

Swetha: hmm.... Ya Bye...

Dei machi it is already 6:30 ..Walking polaiya da nee ??? He wakes up just to realize that the conversation was just a dream. Hmmm … Good it happens at least in dreams .. J As he was getting out of the bed he heard his friend screaming from the other room ... " Machan you had a call around 12 da. I tried waking you up with no luck... It was from an unknown number so just left it unanswered.

Apadiya  ! ! ! He was still feeling sleepy and checked his phone to find a call missed and an unread message. Unable to figure out the identity of the number he just got into the message folder to find a new message again from the same unknown number …. And it read “Hey was waiting for ur msg which never came :) enna flata nethu night? “ with time displayed as 12:03 AM .

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5 years back…

It has been almost few weeks since Nirmal joined this college in Chennai and he was really excited about the fact that there were quite a number of figures for him to hit on though he was not capable of doing :) Well being from a remote place like Trichy there is no wonder that he is a little hyper to be in this college. He was enjoying each and every moment of his college life sitting behind the most beautiful girl in the entire college.


It was after a couple months did he take notice of this girl who was not that beautiful as many other girls in his college, she was a little fat but still he fell for her without any reason. Though it sounds clichéd that’s the way it was. He really had no reasons whatsoever. She was cute with those glittering ear drops and the complete black salwar suited her complexion to perfection. May be she was looking that way because he admired her a lot :) but his world was in standstill for now and it was that way for the next 4 years.


Fortunately she was in the same class as he was but that didn’t help him in getting to know her better which he always wanted to do. He at times got a few chances to talk to her and at other times he created a few chances to talk to her and he would cherish each and every moment he spent with her though not many for the rest his college life.

In one of the few interval break he got to talk with her ......


Nirmal : Hey Swetha …. Howz ur headache ????  are you okay now …..


Swetha: Ya ya I am okay now .... feeling a lot better .... Everybody calls me sweety why don’t you do the same....


Nirmal: Swetha sounds a lot better to me ... freeya vidu .... seri did u go to the doctor ???? 


Swetha: No no just took a paracetamol and that did the trick .... :) 


Nirmal: hmmm ... try avoiding self prescription it is not that good you know .... 


Swetha: atha vidu .... seri assignment panitiya ???


Nirmal: aiyo havent even thought about it ... what abt you ???? Let me know once u are done I will take a copy of it ... :) 


Swetha: Ada paavi ... seri tharen... aana konjam modify pannittu apram copy edu seriya ... illa adhuvum naanae unakku panni tharanuma ! ! ! ?


Nirmal: no no ... I will take care of that .... edhu kuda pannalana apram enna engineering sollu :) :) :) 


Swetha: Nasama po ... talk of the devil and there she is .... prabha saniyaen varudhu lets get in and sleep :) 


Nirmal : hmmmm .... ok ok .. lets go ...

This was one of their conversations and others were no different from this either during the 3 years of college life. They were a good acquaintance I should say and it stayed like that till the last day of the college. He never got the guts to ask her out nor had the luck to be her friend. He was always happy to see her from a distance and he enjoyed it being that way. If not for the little slam book none apart from his close friends would have ever known the feelings he had for her including she herself. He still wants to get to know her better like he always has done.

At present ....

Nirmal: Hey wish u a happy birthday…. Howz life??? Sorry I missed ur phone number… I lost my mobile last week….

Swetha: That’s ok… you generally wish me at 12 with an SMS right so was expecting the same this yr too….Thnx by the way …. I am good … howz you?

Nirmal: Not bad ….. Had a blast last night?

Swetha: Yeah it was great… My fiancé had come over to my home and we had a great time with all family members…… I am in a hurry now… catch u later ….

Nirmal: Oh great …. Have fun … see u …bye…

It is still the same even after 5 yrs of college life. Nirmal still relishes each and every little moment that he had spent with her though they are not many. His mind knows what he did and is doing is total crap. But then his heart still loves what he does and that is all it matters when it comes to ….. hmm….  ! ! !