by Anuj Tiwari
‘I am a student at NIFT,’ she answers.
‘So is there any specific reason for you to have picked NIFT?’ he asks.
‘NIFT Mumbai? Well, the presence of glamour and fashion in this city is undeniable. All the big fashion brands and retail houses are here. It’s the ideal environment for fashion students in terms of industry exposure, class room learning, projects and placements. And what do you do apart from playing football?’ Angira asks assuming he must be a student too.
‘I am associated with the Indian Football School and I am doing an MBA from S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research,’ Ved replies.
‘How did you get into the college? Even my cousin didn’t get in.’
Ved wonders if that is a compliment or a judgement.
‘I didn’t get in on any lucky draw. I scored a ninety-five percentile in CAT this year,’ he replies.
Angira sees Charu coming out of the bathroom.
‘I’ll call you after some time. Need to go for some urgent work. Bye.’
‘Did I say something wrong?’ he wonders. First impression is the last impression.
‘What happened?’ he asks her.
‘Nothing. Just got some work,’ Angira says.
Ved pauses for a second, anxious that he may have upset her and replies,
‘Sure. Bye.’
Mr #
Charu comes into Angira’s room, refreshed after having taken a shower.
‘Who were you talking to?’
‘Mom. Arjun lost his luggage at Delhi station and Delhi Police refuses to file a case. So Mom is thinking of complaining about them,’ Angira says, taking out her clothes and towel to go take a shower. She decides not to mention Ved, else Charu will start with her Dos and Don’ts. Instead she talks about Arjun.
‘Like a complaint will help. The police will anyway sit on their ass and do nothing. So where is he now?’
‘Reached Mumbai I guess.’ Angira checks her cellphone while talking to Charu.
‘So did you tell Aunty that you are meeting Arjun?’ asks Charu
‘I see you are a little more excited to meet Arjun than I am. Do you like him?’ Angira teases her lightly.
‘Of course I like him. I am not like you, who takes so much time to select things. Writers are romantic and very good in bed too,’ Charu shouts from the other room.
‘Oh really, what makes you say that?’ Angira chuckles. ‘Do you have any experience in this area?’
‘Everything can’t be told,’ Charu sniggers confidently, applying lotion all over her body.
‘Then stop dreaming, he can’t be yours,’ Angira says offhandedly.
Lost in her thoughts of Ved, Angira keeps her phone on the dining table and goes in for a shower. Though Charu is her best friend, Angira thinks it’s best not to tell her about her chats with Ved. Charu will be the first one to know if anything happens, but Angira is not comfortable with the idea of sharing anything at this point.
Angira’s cellphone rings while she’s in the shower. At first Charu ignores it, but as it vibrates constantly, she cranes her neck back and shouts, ‘Angira, your phone is ringing!’
‘Okay,’ Angira shouts from the bathroom. ‘Who is it?’
‘Someone named hash (#) is calling,’ Charu says.
‘Oh!’ Angira exclaims and rushes to open the door of the bathroom in case she is inaudible. ‘Leave that! I’ll call later,’ Angira says, reaching the table and shutting the phone.
‘Why would you save a number with a hash symbol?’ Charu asks her offhandedly.
‘It comes on the top in the call-list and WhatsApp. Easy to manage, you know,’ she answers.
The next day they rush to college, excited to meet new people and make new friends.
Walking to the classroom via the lobby, Angira says, ‘I have the worst record when it comes to reaching class on time.’
‘What are your names?’ the person at the entry point asks with a big smile.
Charu looks at Angira, ‘I told you not to take so much time in the shower.’
‘You took more than an hour while getting ready,’ replies Angira.
‘But I got ready before you,’ Charu hisses.
‘Wait,’ says the person at the entry point.
They both smirk looking at him.
‘Can you both hear me?’ he asks again.
The class sniggers at the scene.
‘Don’t laugh at them, tomorrow this could be you,’ he says, offering them a seat in the class.
‘What are your names?’
‘Sir, Angira.’
‘Charu, sir.’ She gives a fake smile while answering.
‘Sir Angira and Charu Sir,’ he tries to crack a joke but nobody laughs this time.
‘Angira and Charu,’ he says again and they both smile and reply ‘Yes.’ Then they utter under their breaths, ‘And you are an asshole.’
Once they settle down, Mr Alberto continues with the lecture on the ‘Introduction of Contextual Design Studies and Communication’. Charu is attentive, taking down copious notes while Angira, clearly bored, takes her phone out and messages Ved.
Hey!
Hi.
While waiting for Ved’s reply, she messages few of her friends who are studying in different cities.
‘What are you doing? He will kick us out of the class if he sees you,’ Charu says.
‘This asshole? No, he won’t.’ Angira keeps her cellphone on the desk, which is easily hidden by the tall classmate sitting in front of her.
‘This is the advantage of sitting in the back row. Nobody can see us, but we have a clear view of everyone. From today we’ll sit here only.’ Angira looks at her phone and gets engrossed in typing messages on WhatsApp. Her eyes are on the white board, but her fingers are clicking away on the keypad.
So how’s it going?
As of now, nothing is going good.
I have an internal test,
And I have been warned not to appear for exams.
Oh that’s fun :B
Low attendance?
Yeah
So Ved Gulati is a Satyavadi Harishchandra
who can’t get proxies?
Ved is reminded of his engineering college days where he had friends who cared, who would give proxies on his behalf.
Ved gets out of his bed and walks towards the balcony. The cold breeze rushes towards him; a feeling of gentle bliss spreads over him. He breathes in the calm.
My friends tried to but they were caught, And that’s the reason I have been warned.
By the way all Gandhians are not like me. They are busy with women empowerment :P
LOL
What’s up with you?
Nothing, first day in class.
So how’s it going?
Not so good actually.
We were late for class
And he cracked a joke on us
In front of everyone.
Now we are sitting in the last row.
Oh that’s fun ;)
Don’t use my lines on me.
Just wanted to make you feel, you know…
How does it feel ;)
Chill,
Class means Come Late And Start Sleeping
LOL, you are mad. So what else?
Prof. Alberto looks at Angira who promptly looks alert, but her fingers still run on the touchpad.
Nothing. Will go to class and then prepare for exams.
From next week, match practice will begin.
You can come if you want.
Ved invites her to watch his match because he is feeling a little more confident about this game and is sure he will impress her.
Dude, your match…Noooo,
can’t take the risk ;)
Multiple Os always have a positive meaning. Okay, come if you’re free :)
She doesn’t want to sound rude.
Will see.
Eventually, she agrees to come for his football session after he convinces her.
Okay. Well one
advice for you, rather than sitting in the back row, you should sit in the first row.
There are a few advantages—you can learn whenever you want and sleep whenever you feel like because nobody pays attention to the first row.
Their eyes always seek answers from people sitting in the middle and the back row.
Try it. It worked for me in my four years of engineering and still works in my MBA classes.
Angira smiles at his reply. She thinks he is quite cool. But whenever she feels this way about anyone, Charu tries to change her mind by insisting that people are different from what they make themselves out to be on chat or over a call. Charu believes that the truth lies behind the camera and not in front of it.
Dude, fashion designing can be understood sitting miles away from the faculty, but MBA can’t be done like that.
You need to focus on the formulae and graphs of Demand and Supply.
Yes, but I don’t want to live a boring life. I am either playing a game or studying. Life should be exciting every day.
His logic impresses Angira. Charu’s eyes fall on the phone and she excitedly asks if it is Ved. On getting the confirmation she smiles.
‘All the best,’ Charu shows a thumbs up and winks.
Angira types a message to Ved.
You have given me so much ‘guru gyan’, now I’ll give you the ‘guru mantra’ to pass your exams.
Before going for exams, write all the tough formulae on the scale.
It won’t be visible until you place it against a white background which is your answer sheet.
You can also use your scientific calculator or its cover to write whatever you want.
That gives you enough space to write and it is not visible until it’s held up against light.
These two ideas will surely work and nobody would have any evidence to catch you.
You are a player; you must play the game safely ;)
Ved smiles on reading the text and now he actually wants to meet her. She has a good sense of humour. He types a message and pop, a notification appears on top. Angira taps on that.
Send me your photograph.
If you don’t mind.
Why do you want my picture?
No, just felt like seeing you.
Then don’t feel too much.
☺
‘But there is always a tomorrow,’ he thinks and types again.
Don’t tell me,
You haven’t checked my profile on Facebook.
Not yet.
I have other work to do as well.
I would have surely checked had you won that day.
But you disappointed me.
I know.
Now don’t depress me.
Lol, okay.
Please come if you can. Will try not to disappoint you this time.
Ved lies in bed, constantly thinking of Angira and what she must look like. He begins downloading her profile picture. He is optimistic and hence chooses to be happy with what he has in life. For now he might not have a proper picture, but he is nevertheless quite excited about his interaction with Angira. Her picture finally appears.
She has dark brown hair, parted to the side. It covers an eye and a side of her forehead. She has finely sketched eye brows. Her whitish skins glows and there’s a twinkle in her eyes.
She looks beautiful in the picture.
‘What are you doing? You haven’t even met her and you’re already staring at her lips,’ Ved’s notorious mind asks him.
‘Her lips are beautiful and there is nothing wrong with looking at them,’ his heart answers back.
‘Indeed her lips,’ are fine and kissable,’ his mind replies. He feels awkward for a moment, but soon types out a message.
Nice DP.
You work for some NGO?
Yes, I do from time to time.
I just try to spread a little happiness.
Her words make him smile. He wants to continue the chat, but he has to rush and before he’s about to explain it to her, someone knocks on his door unexpectedly.
Bye. See you later.
Bye.
Ved soon leaves for college because he has been called regarding his low attendance.
He tries to come up with new excuses which he hasn’t used before, anything to help him get back to playing football.
Expecting the Unexpected
The clock indicates it is 8.30 p.m. Just like any other day, Ved reaches home covered in sweat. He switches on the TV and keeps pressing the button until a sports channel appears. He gets up from the sofa and goes to the kitchen to get a glass of juice. Taking sips of it, Ved checks his WhatsApp. One of his friends had messaged him about tomorrow’s surprise test, which is not a surprise anymore. Few of his friends are in good terms with Mr Subramaniam. Meeting faculties in their cabin always helps stay a step ahead.
His positive nature makes Ved everyone’s favourite. He is loved by everyone and all his friends are very supportive of him. One moment, Ved feels that he shoudn’t give a damn about his MBA, that he should just leave everything and concentrate only on football. The next moment he is not so sure if he will do well as a player in the long run. He is confident about his game, but he is worried about the lack of opportunities and exposure in the field of sports in general. Hence, the MBA is his backup plan. Sometimes, it’s like the MBA is his part-time course and football is his full-time passion.
‘Who is it?’ Ved asks while sitting up on his sofa.
‘Hey, it’s me,’ comes a voice from outside.
‘Who’s this?’ he enquires again just to trouble him, though he knows who is there on the other side.
‘Your grandfather,’ the voice replies, mildly irritated. Ved laughs at the response and opens the door. It’s Arjun.
Arjun and Ved have been living together for the last few months. Arjun, Anushka and Ved used to study in the same college. They both came to Mumbai as engineers, but Ved couldn’t keep up with his ‘job’. Actually he did not want to keep up with them either. They were good friends in college, but after college everyone got busy with their lives. They were not in touch for several years. Just two months before Ved started looking for a place to live, Arjun landed up in Mumbai. Anushka happened to know that they both were looking for a place and suggested that they move in together. So they rekindled their friendship, but could never rekindle the bond they shared in college.
What if Ved, Arjun and Angira run into each other at the same time? Nobody is aware of the fact that Ved and Arjun are flatmates other than Anushka.
Arjun does not share his dreams with anyone. Revelling in mystery, he still manages to be a people’s person. These days he has tremendous work pressure, so sometimes he gets frustrated with the way Ved lives in the house.
‘You didn’t go to office?’ Ved enquires.
‘I went day before yesterday,’ he says and throws his bag on the sofa.
‘You mean, you didn’t come home last night?’ Ved asks him, surprised.
‘Had some work. So had to finish it off,’ Arjun manages a smile despite being exhausted after his hectic work-day.
‘Ved, why don’t you clean your room, it’s so messy,’ Arjun tells him, inspecting the rooms. Sometimes they have arguments because Ved is not as responsible as Arjun.
‘It’s not fair,’ Arjun goes to the washroom, his tone is gruff and he is in a bad mood.
‘You were not at home yesterday?’ Ved asks him again.
Arjun ignores the question.
‘Why don’t you leave your 9 to 6 office. It just looks like 69 but doesn’t give any pleasure at all, does it?’
‘Not everything in life is about pleasure, Ved,’ Arjun finally snaps.
‘We’re obviously very different from each other,’ Ved shouts.
‘Yes we are, but I am not going to marry you,’ Arjun responds.
‘Fuck off !’ Ved again shouts, loud and clear, smiling at the silliness of their lives and how they preserve their innocent college banter to this day
. Ved always tries to cheer him up, but he also knows that there are some things that Arjun never talks about.
Arjun comes out of washroom. It is then that Ved asks suspiciously, ‘Why do you have this red mark on your neck? Who gave it to you? Is it a love bite?’
Arjun disregards the question and goes in his room.
‘What happened? I am talking to you,’ Ved asks him again.
‘Nothing. By the way, why don’t you tell me about the frequent beeps on your phone? I have noticed it has increased over the last fortnight.’
‘We need to talk,’ Ved says, stepping into Arjun’s room.
‘Yes, tell me.’
‘You haven’t been talking to me properly for the past two months. If anything has happened, please share it with me. I’ll try my best to help you,’ Ved wants to know why Arjun has been so serious lately.
‘Ved, I am not your girlfriend that I have to share everything with you. Nothing happened. Things are not like they were when we were in college. We are friends, even good friends I’d say, but I go to office, I have work. It’s difficult for me to manage everything. You understand that, right?’
‘Yes, I do. Sorry for troubling you. Hope someday we’ll share the same bond like we used to,’ Ved goes back to his room and starts cleaning up the mess around. He is hurt, but he understands that Arjun has no time for himself or for Ved. However, Ved feels that there’s more to it than just that.
‘By the way, Anushka called today,’ Ved informs him.
‘What did she say?’ Arjun enquires.
‘She tried your number but your phone was switched off, so she called me to ask where you were.’