AN UN-OFFICIAL, OFFICIAL TRIP

(A Travelogue, A Book Review... What ever u Call it)

It was a pleasant morning. I was ready for my long day of work. Today I’ve to travel about 250 Km, to a remote Village, finish my job there and get back home. It will be different from the corporate office where I work. Any city other than Mumbai, will be slow and less vibrant. In this case, I’m not even going to a city, but to a remote village in Maharashtra. My colleague will pick me up from Mira Road. We will be driving his car from there, but to reach there, I’ve to travel one hour in train. As soon as we took a deviation from Mumbai-Ahmedabad Highway, the topography changed drastically. The roads resembled the small Panjayath roads in Kerala. My watch depicted time as 10:10, like any wrist watch advertisement. I’ve started my day by half past seven in the morning and still we have not reached our destination.

My colleague and I were talking many things till we reached our destination. We discussed about the new book I was reading.  I almost narrated the whole story of “The Immortals of Meluha”.  I was so excited that I even narrated the Sequel of the book (“The Secretof the Nagas”), till where I’ve read.  We talked about Amish Tripathi, the author who preferred to use only his first name so that he can show his real intend to fight against discrimination of caste and creed. Amish was an IIM Grad who took a strange decision to quit his promising banking career to become an author.  The best thing I liked about this Banker turned Author is his marketing skills. This was first time in my life I’ve watched a theoretical trailer of a book.  The cover design of the book is also very appealing.  He has done a great job in mixing philosophy with imagination, just like great Vyas who wrote Mahabharat. Both of them have compiled philosophy and dressed it up with a beautiful story. Wonderful work indeed.

I was wondering when will I be bold enough to take such unconventional decisions. There are so many similarities between Amish and Chetan Bhagat.  Both of them are IIM grads and were bankers. They both quit their jobs to take Writing as a Career. I’m also not much different from them. I’ve got a  B-Tech and an MBA. Similarly I’m also a boring banker who wants to be a writer. When I’ll publish my first book? I’ve no idea. My fantasy of comparing myself with these two great writers came to an end when Arun applied a sudden break.

I had almost pasted my picture alongside them. The reality was so far from that and Arun's sudden stoppage of car in-order to save a street dog crossing had brought me back from my dream land and I could see my picture fading out.

I told Arun that, Amish is an amazing writer who does his research well before he starts his narration unlike his much famous counterpart Chetan Bhagat. Just after reading two books of Amish, I just became his fan and was eagerly waiting for the last and third part of this Shiva Trilogy. Arun asked me why do I think, Chetan, doesn’t do his research well.

I like Chetan for the way he writes. I’ve read all five books he has published till date and also follow him on Twitter. I liked his writing from his first book, “Five Point Someone”. It may be because I could relate myself to the situations his characters got into. I could actually visualize me doing some of those crazy things his 3-idiots did when I was in NIT. I started hating him when I read his latest (“Revolution 2020”). How can he write the story like that? He had taken snap shots from my life and pasted it in his new novel. Protagonist of the novel was behaving like me when I was in such a similar situation. It was not the story of Gopal and Aarati. It is my story. I’ve no idea how he came to know about my autobiography. He had changed my Name to Gopal and her name to Aarati, He had shifted the location to Varanasi. When I read his novel, I almost felt like watching a flashback of my own life. He has the power to make the readers gripped to the story. Once you take his book in your hand you will put it down only once u finish it.

If you like Chetan that much, why do you think that Chetan doesn’t do his research well? Arun shot the most expected question in between my praising for Chetan. I took my bag and pulled out the “Revolution 2020”. I asked him to check out Page No.24. He asked me what the hell; I was doing and asked me to open the book myself, because he was driving. I told him that, as per Chetan Bhagat, the character Aarati wanted to watch SRK’s movie “Main Hoon Na”   and just  after a year in the story Aarati wants to watch “Chak de” (Page No. 87) How can FlyingAarati watch “Chak de” with Raghav just a year after she watched “Mai Hoona Na”? Arun as usual showcased his  memory power in front of me. Some times I feel the character ‘Calendar’ in the movie ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ was inspired from Arun. You are right Vineesh. ‘Chak de’ was release in 10^th August 2007 and ‘Main Hoon Na’ was released in 30^th April 2004.  This is a serious lack of research.

Someone please tell Chetan Bhagat , that there is no NIT in Lucknow (Page No. 31). NIT of Uttar Pradesh is in Allahabad. I fell bad that, I didn’t take up NIT Allahabad’s CSE branch, during my counselling in 2002. He should at least know there is no NIT in Delhi also (Page 164). How can he make such stupid mistakes? Some one need to scream at him that, Indian government is not filled with fools to have a NIT and an IIT in the same city. He claims to have completed his B-Tech from IIT Delhi and still he makes such stupid mistakes. I cannot blame him, because there were instances where people asked me many a times, how much donations I paid to get admission. They really thought that I was a fool and couldn’t get admission even in a private collage in my home town.

We have reached our destination. I had a good discussion about books and literature after a long time. This is where I miss my friend Sak. I really miss someone to discus about new books and literature. Shakuntla come back, to Mumbai. Mumbai rocks and Delhi Sucks, I was mentally fighting with my Delhi Friend and didn’t realize that I was climbing the stairs to the new branch my organization had launched in this small village. Is it just because of RBI guidelines to have branches in rural India, my bank had created one here? What ever may be the reason, I’ve a job to be completed. I’ll finish this first and get away from this deserted place as soon as possible.

This branch was entirely different from what we have in Mumbai. It had no Ac. The branch was filled with primitive people. Have I just reached inside the dense forest of Amazone? When did this kind of people start banking with one of the reputed private bank? I heard one of then fighting with the teller that, he was given fewer amounts than what he received last time. I asked the branch manager what is the issue? He told me that, these people stay in the mountains and are illiterate. They don’t even know how to count the money. Last time when he came, we gave him the instalment for the “Indira Awas Yojana” in the denomination of Rs. 500/- and today we gave him in the denomination of Rs. 1000/-. He is just confused that why the number of currency notes is less this time. I really felt bad for this man. How can some one live in this 20^th century like this?

I really got an inner feeling that; I need to do something for these people. I asked my colleague to carry on with the job for which we are here. I slowly started to understand, what is happening in the lives of these poor people. I needed a translator as these people were only conversing in Marathi. This was not the Mumbaiya Marathi that, I’m used to. It was really difficult for me to understand what they were trying to convey. I came to know that these people don't even have proper clothes to wear or food to eat. There are lot of middle-men operating and the real benefits Government is providing is not reaching these people.  I was furious and wanted to do something for these people.

On my way back to Mumbai, I told, Arun that, I’ll drive. This was a strategic move, I didn’t want to sit in the back seat and think about these people. I was very clear, I had to do something for these people, but had no idea, what to do. I decided to drive so I can concentrate on something else and get out of these troubling thoughts. Oh! God, it was not enough, new trouble is in the corner. When the cop stopped, my car I realized that, I was not carrying my Driving License with me.

I told him, I work for a reputed bank and it was a mistake that I didn’t have my license with me now.  That was the stupidest thing I’ve done that day. He told me that, his EMI cheque for the Housing Loan was bounced by my bank and was charged Rs. 350/- as cheque bounce charge. Now he is demanding me to give him that 350 rupees and can drive back home. I looked at Arun and he told me to go ahead and give the fine. I knew, I was not paying the fine, but bribing the Cop to get out of this shit. When I sat back in the driver’s seat with the seat belt on, I thanked my stars. Even the Atheist in me thanked God for my bank not charging him AQB non-maintained charges. It could have been INR 1000/-

I had a wonderful day outside the noisy and busy Mumbai. It was a very different official trip for me. I learned many things and came to know what is happening in the rural India. I’ve taken a decision to help the underprivileged. Will I really do what I planned today, or will I forget this episode and get busy in my urban life? Only time can give answers for this.