LADIES AND LAJPAT NAGAR: A LULLABY

I deviate from my usual short story writing just this once because I feel that it is necessary to bring to light an issue that many of us have experienced but due to some reasons have kept quiet about it. 

Lajpat Nagar according to wikipedia  is an affluent suburb of the South Delhi district of Delhi. It is named in honor of Lala Lajpat Rai, also known the Lion of Punjab, and is today most known for the Lajpat Nagar Central Market. It is strange that the place has been recognized by wikipedia, well so has been Delhi Haat. Lajpat Nagar is known for all kinds of shopping especially for Kurtis & Indian wear . This market is one of the most crowded and most popular market among Delhiites. Huge crowded shopping rigorously can be seen anywhere during anytime of the day here. The market attracts ladies, specially with all kinds of dress material, accessories etc. Well according to me this market ONLY attracts LADIES and nobody else. 

Today I had gone to Lajpat Nagar with 5 female companions something that my friends you should never do. Today was Monday and more than half of the shops were closed but it did not help much because whatever you do women can smell shops and are ever ready to lay their hands on any piece of cloth even if it is a 3cmX3cm cloth. We entered the market and they were off as if it was the last day they were allowed to shop. I chose a quiet place below a tree to sit down and sat down to wonder and observe.The market makes you feel that Ladies are meant for Lajpat Nagar and vice versa. You cannot spend 5 minutes in that market but a lady can spend 6 hours of complete solace. Lajpat Nagar is paradise for women.It is a drug like cocaine. It is an open addiction which women boast about. They are selfish when they invite those who are not interested to go to the boring place. They say that they will spend only an hour but the hour changes into 2 and then it goes on forever. I simply cannot understand what is in this place that makes women feel that they are in their blankets on a cold January night. I then walked on to KFC but my fears changed into reality when I discovered that there was another lane of these addictive (only  for women) market. I then convinced the folks not to go to KFC or else I would have to suffer for another two hours. I will soon put out a map for the people who want to reach the auto rickshaw avoiding the shops because when they set their eyes on the target they mean to acquire it. 

Today  I was dreaming of the Tennis Courts but most of the people are reminded of their Blankets. That is why Ladies and Lajpat Nagar qualify to become a lullaby.

                                             

The Final Goodbye Part 2

Stanford was 15 and lived in New Delhi. He was a student of class 11 in a nearby public school.He was tall, thin and a smart boy.His eyes were black and his hair was jet black. He was an ardent reader and loved to write.He stayed in an apartment with his mother. His father was no more. He had died when Stanford was 13. He had a special bond with his mother. Raising a teenager in Delhi was not an easy job. Mona had a tough time. She took strict care of Stanford. He understood what she was going through and helped his mother.

Stanford was loving his life.Eleventh class was fun. He used to study well , play well and was a sincere boy.He loved his mother and never wanted to argue with her. But a teenager would not be called a teenager if the life of a teenager was without arguments especially against parents. These days the mother son duo were having arguments on many small issues. Stanford did not want to argue with her. He wanted to have an argument free relationship.But he could not help it. They had arguments but all these were minor ones.

Stanford had started using a mobile for a few days now. He had never felt the need to use a mobile phone and he did not use it permanently. There was an extra mobile at his house so he used it just like that. He did not message anybody nor did he call anybody.

One night he was studying and then he went to the other room. He picked up his phone and messaged one of his female friend asking about a rumor he had heard about him at the school. He had just sent her 2 or 3 messages when he went to the other room and again returned after 10 minutes. He was replying her message when another message from one of his friends came. He replied to both his friends when his mother came to the room. He suddenly got scared and his heart was now beating fast. He knew that his mother would not appreciate what he had and what he was doing. She asked him  who he was texting with. He got really scared  thinking what mother would say. He immediately took the male friends name. She asked him again and he gave the same answer then she asked him for the phone. Just as he handed over the phone  he immediately  took name of his female friend. She seemed angry. He apologized but she did not listen. He told her that he did not mean to hurt her but she told him that he had broken her trust. She went to sleep. Stanford felt miserable. He was blankly staring at his mothers back. Thinking of a solution. He did not mean to lie to her. It was just at the moment. Fear got the better of his sane judgement. Next morning he went to school without meeting his mother. While returning home in the afternoon his bus met with an accident. Stanford was the only casualty.

As for Stanford, he died in vain.He died with guilt in his heart. It ended on a sad note.

As for Mona, she lived a sad life .Her last words to him was : "You Broke My Trust". Not even a Goodnight. She could not tell "THE FINAL GOODBYE".

The Final Goodbye

Chronos was 16 and he lived in New Delhi with his mother. His father was stationed at Jammu and Kashmir and served The Border Security Force. They lived in an two storied apartment in a government colony.

In Greek mythology Chronos was the God of Time and Rhea was the Mother of Gods.Chronos and his mother Rhea shared a very unique bond.  They loved each other and unlike many mother son duo's, they never argued. Rhea cared about Chronos as a lioness cares about her cub. She never wanted her son to get into bad company and took many measures to see that her son remains untouched by the black sheep of the youth. Chronos also supported his mother. He never complained and knew that all  his mother did was for his best.Their relationship was forged into a strong chain a strong bond which was never to break.

Chronos studied at a nearby public school and Rhea was a Counselor at a Private School about 30 minutes from their house. Chronos went to school by the bus and Rhea drove to the school.Chronos studied in 11th class and was enjoying every moment of his school life. He used to have a lot of fun. Off late Chronos started liking a beautiful girl in his class and yearned to go to school every morning.

One morning Chronos got ready to go to school and sat in the Dining Table. He told Rhea that he did not want to have the porridge that she had made for him. Chronos started walking towards the door when Rhea called out told him to eat the porridge. This was the first time they were arguing. Chronos was at an irritable mood and back answered by saying that he will have half the porridge. Chronos sipped half the porridge and Rhea told that it was for his own good that he finished the porridge but now Chronos was angry retorted by telling his mother to shut up. Rhea stayed quiet as she saw Chronos leave the house.  She consoled herself by telling that it was the FIRST and  LAST time they argued.She left for school after some time.

Chronos, as he was walking towards the bus stop realized his mistake and wished to go back to his mother and apologize and say " Goodbye, have a nice day..! " but it was already too late as the bus approached the bus stop. He then forgot about his mother and thought about his beautiful classmate who he was going to meet  in some time, thinking what he would say to her.

The day passed and Chronos came back home and was watching television. Rhea left her school eagerly wanting to tell her son about a school activity. She was driving her car and she took the final right turn towards her home thinking about Chronos when a Sumo skipping the red light banged into the driver side of her car. She DIED on the spot.

Chronos got the news by his relative and broke down and went unconscious. He regretted what he had done that morning, wanted to stab himself for that, called up his dad and said sorry and in every corner of his heart haunting him was regret, remorse and guilt.The last words that he had told his mother was Shut up, not even a smiling goodbye.. The Albatross hung around his neck for eternity.

As for Chronos, he could never say THE FINAL GOODBYE..
As for Rhea, her wish did come true. It indeed was their FIRST and LAST argument.

Beautiful Eyes

Nikita had been excited about buying herself new shoes. At 11 she had a fascination for Actors and wanted to wear what they wore. She was born with a silver spoon as her parents were rich enough to grant her these wishes. She was very beautiful and had a pretty face with perfectly shaped blue eyes.Her perfect skin was complimented with a pinkish shade which made her look even more appealing. Her lips had the gentle curve and her smile was just beatific. Her long hair rode her skull in full pride and was like the icing on a perfect cake.

She lived in New Delhi and studied at a very expensive boarding school. She was an ardent fan of Katrina Sharma who at the ripe age of 19 had won Two Filmfare awards and had been nominated for an Oscar. She was Nikita's idol and her god. As some tennis player would like to wear a RF shirt she too wanted to be clad like her idol actress. This wasn't easy and demanded a lot of following and looking up for things. Nikita was up for this challenge and enjoyed tracing and wearing what Katrina wore.

In one of her similar quests she had traced the shoe that Katrina wore and had gone to South Extension to buy herself the very shoe that Katrina had worn. She went to a very posh shop and bought those shoes with a feeling of triumph. She was just too happy and told her mom to treat her at a nearby restaurant. Nikita's parents and herself enjoyed the delicious lunch.Then they loitered around in the nearby shops. Nikita's father observed a large crowd in front of a jewelry shop and went to check out what was happening. When Nikita's father inquired he got to know that Katrina had come to the Jewelry shop for its inauguration. Nikita was delighted to hear this. She raced to the door of the shop but was disappointed when she was not allowed to enter. She decided to wait for the star to come out so that she could get a glance of the real life Katrina. She waited for ten minutes but now the crowd was getting out of control. She didn't let this spoil her spirits and waited on. She was just standing there for 45 mins now drenched in sweat. Her curiosity was increasing and she started wondering about Katrina's beautiful eyes. Her wait was rewarded as Katrina was now reaching the door. But before she came out the bouncers started performing their duty. They pushed the crowd violently as Katrina walked out of the door. Nikita was excited on her fathers shoulder. Some people were trying to break the band of bouncers but the bouncers struck back violently. They pushed the crowd and Nikita's father stumbled on to the ground . Nikita's eye hit a sharp stone and started bleeding. Their was chaos all around which ended when Katrina's car rolled out. Nikita was rushed to the hospital with both her eyes bleeding. The doctor said there was no possibility that she could see again. She was blind for ever.

The last thing that Nikita remembers seeing, was a pair of BEAUTIFUL EYES.                

Omertà

The Code Of Silence “the categorical prohibition of cooperation with state authorities or reliance on its services, even when one has been victim of a crime.”
Aryan lived in New Delhi and studied at a Public School near his locality and was a student of class 11th. Aftab lived in New Delhi and studied at a Public School near his locality and was a student of class 11th. Both of them were classmates and average at studies. Both of them loved to venture into new suburbs and discover new places.
Their school had just reopened after their 10th examination and both of them felt big and thought of doing things that were not meant for children. As a result they were introduced to a practice called WHOLE DAY which meant that they would leave home going to school but instead they would go to hangout zones of the vicious capital. They started indulging in this practice and went to many places. It now became a habit and in every two days they would skip school and hangout in sheesha bars, cinema halls, pubs and many such places. They smoked , they drank, they did drugs and were enjoying life.
One day both of them left for school and decided to bunk and for this purpose Aryan got his fathers car and invited Aftab. Both of them got into Aryans Car and headed to Satya Niketan a popular hangout among teens and sat in their usual booth in Arab Heaven a popular sheesha bar. They sat their inhaling hookas and nibbing sandwiches. After an hour they decided to go high. They started their engines and took out bottles of Black Dog and stated drinking and driving. They were  high and they decided to go and consume Ganja in the terrace of Appolo Hospital. They thought that it would add to the their TRIP. They went on to the terrace and injected themselves with Heroin felt great. They thought it to be the best time of their lives being unaware what was going to happen next. They loitered around the terrace drinking more rum, smoking more cigarettes, consuming more drugs and shouting out aloud. The security was now aware of their presence so they decided to leave and gave a 100 rupee bribe to the official. They got into the car semiconscious and drove at a high speed of 100 kmph. Aryan suddenly saw a red light but was too late to stop so he drove on but there came a bike and he smashed into the helpless two wheeler. The 2 teenagers in the car were shocked and the two men on the bike didn't have a chance to be shocked. They DIED. The boys in the car came down saw the body and thought of running but it was too late. They now heard the siren of police van. Then everything happened very  quickly. The next thing they knew was that they were at the police station. They called up their parents who were obviously furious and desperately wanted to free their kids. Everything changed for the kids.


They were sent to the lockup until the hearing and were all very ashamed. Their parents on the other side were thinking of ways to get their children out of the hell they were in. 2 sets of parents came to one conclusion- BRIBE. Both of them separately paid heavy bribes. The policemen had everything arranged and gave the same reassurance to each parent separately:If their son wrote a statement turning the other in then he could walk free. 


The boys were now in a dilema : How could they turn their friend in and walk free. Aftab thought of the happy memories with Aryan but Aryan was now thinking of the Punishment. Both their minds were tired.  Aftab kept thinking of the good times with Aryan but Aryan being clever was carefully measuring the effects of his statement. They had until morning to give their statements. Morning came and both of them handed a letter to the constable. Both  the letters read : I AM RESPONSIBLE.


This was unique. This was rare. This was surprising. This was discipline and this was Omertà.    

Autobiography of a "CAN"

                                                           

I was born at ORISSA CAN WORKS LIMITED and my parts came from BOKARO STEEL PLANT. Unlike humans my lifespan was only about a year. I was born healthy as were my friends and we shared the same feelings when we were sent to be tested. We were all scared. Unlike the unfair test on humans our tests gave the results as soon as they were conducted. There are basically 5 tests in the CAN Testing Laboratories. These were Chemical test, Biological test, Mathematical pressure test, Physical property test, Pest test. I was scared as I was given my Roll Number which was 8179462 . The day of the first test came and I was tensed. Then I went to the Chemical chamber. I passed the test with flying colours as I could resist the all the harsh chemicals forced on me. Then I went for the Biological test . I passed that too with flying colours as I had a very strong biological backing. Then came the day for the Mathematical pressure test which I passed but it did not go as good as the former tests as I was put in a chamber for three hours and was bombarded with mathematical radiations. Then I went for the Physical property test in which a brutal machine crushed me but I was able to withstand it. Then I eagerly went for the last test the Pest test in which buzzing pests were left to linger around my body. I did well but I lacked as a multimicro pest succeeded in drilling a whole on my precious skin. Then we friends waited for the results. Then the results came, which would decide the fate of my life. Finally the result came, where I was rated 9.6 out of 10 which meant I had got a grade of A1 in three tests and A2 in the other two. My friends did well. Some of them even got a rating of 10 which was highly commendable. Our fates were decided, I was sent to New Delhi. My friends who got a rating of 10 were sent to London and those who didn’t fare well were sent to places like Jhareda Village and some were sent to Sambalpur a small town in the Indian coastline. The standards of life of CANS were directly proportional to our surrounding and as a result, staying in radiant places made our lives pleasant ones. To be continued...

Snehanshu Sadangi