tiger and the fountainhead

To
The Prime Minister of india
Dr. Manmohan Singh

From
The blog of AW


This time I am going to write about something real, something concrete…something that makes sense to somebody. Let this one be addressed to the Indian premier.

Mr. Premier, yesterday I was reading a blog from my friend which stirred my brain into action. Sir, at times man has to pass through such hardships in life that he snaps, contradicting the Ayn Rand philo. Now I wonder if the person that rand was looking for, the person that she imagined could be real in today’s world. I for one have not yet met such a man. Although I think you should be that person but then, I haven’t met you.
There are many people in this world who change for good, but then this is merely in their own opinion. Probably the people change for bad too. But who is the judge for that. Everything is relative (salute to Einstein).
But what is the factor which drives people to change? Is it that they form opinions just by a few experiences? Or do they so-called “learn” from them. Again this is a relative issue. There can be number of things which a psychologist may read about people and probably if I consult one I may find the answer to my question. But you know Mr. Premier, we don’t have a trend for therapy yet in India.
Another factor can be the society, tell me Dr Singh, won’t I be called foolish if I keep making the same mistake again and again. Take for example Howard Roark. He was the man of steel, he had his defined objectives and aspirations and he lived for them. He never bent his principles, but what did he get in the end. No contracts. People did call him foolish, probably they envied him or maybe they were practical towards life and not as stubborn as Roark. Who gets to decide this?
Yet another factor is the convenience for a person. Yes I will change the way the wind blows. I read in my hindi book as a child stiff trees with broad stems snap in hurricanes, but the grass (which has no spine) they are saved. Now what does this teach us. We are brought up to be hypocrites in the schools.
Then there is lack of courage to fight against the events, some people are too lazy to take actions, some want to evade the troublesome situation and they take the easier way out and the list continues….
I am looking for such a man who has the courage to fight and who wants to remain as he is against all odds.

A nightmare.....That I ran

I ran. I ran like a bull to save my life. I was running for so long that I myself had forgotten what I was running from. Was it my own deed or was it my fear. I still don’t know. It seemed I had been running for eternity and still a long way ahead.

I was all wet. I was feeling so hot that even sun seemed colder. My legs were giving up. I could no longer feel them; as if I was hovering over the ground. I looked down to ensure they were there. Then came the most dreadful moment as I saw what was underneath me. My eyes widened as I saw what no man should ever see. It was a road made up of carcasses.

Innumerable bones of human beings were below me and a sky brewing blood longing to consume me. The clouds were as black as death itself. I was being torn apart by the horror.
I ran, not caring about what happened, not caring about how they got there. I had to save my life. I ran.

Sometimes a man’s sixth sense leaves him to ponder over the question of his existence, of his deeds and the very reason that why he is doing something. It was a wrong time for such a thought. I had to look behind to find out the answer to the question. It would have been much better if I hadn’t. At first, I tried but couldn’t. The fear of running slowly kept me looking forward. Somehow I managed to get a glimpse of what was behind me.

It was a gun. A black revolver. I could even smell the gunpowder. This lanky man wore a black coat and a black boulder hat. His face seemed to be plastic-white, covered with black thick framed goggles.

When a man has a gun, he is no longer a man. He forgets who he really is, to live in the pool of power carried by him. His hands begin to feel the energy in the gun. He feels united with the metal that he carries. But this man did not seem to be a human. He was rather a machine, with no emotions. He carried the same expression all along. He was as calm as wind. No sign of anger, power or revenge. He just kept on following me like something dead.
It seemed he was not at all tired. No emotion of fatigue could be seen on his face.
I heard a gunshot. I was scared off my life. Still I kept on running. I ran like a deer that was running from a hunter. I had totally lost my breath. Yet I ran. Not thinking of what could happen, what was ahead, I ran.

I realized that the distance between us was decreasing. I had to run but I no longer could, now I didn’t need to, I had reached my destination. I had reached The dehumanator………..

To be contd…..

A true love story…well, almost

It was a dark night. Stars were filling my soul with a silent hum and accompanying me along the way. The road seemed to be meeting with the dark sky ahead. The trees were bristling in the soft wind. It was all so quiet that I could hear my heart pounding afar. It was me and my thoughts covering distances in that gloomy night. Thick blue clouds were drifting from one corner of the sky, thundering, trying to absorb it. I needed to walk faster as it was about to rain.

As I was walking through, I saw someone coming, or was it only a feeling that someone was coming? Was I feeling lonely? No. somebody was coming my way. I tried not to look, trying hard to look composed and busy. Suddenly I felt like looking in that direction, I would have cursed myself if I had not. It was like a ray of light in the gloomy darkness.

It was a girl, a beautiful girl. Those deep black eyes engulfed all my attention. They were too intense for any girl of her age. One could easily see her whole world through her eyes. They were so intimate that I could not resist watching them. I thought I had seen her before, but only in my dreams was this possible.

Wind was gliding through her hair as if kissing her and not willing to spare even a single moment not addressing her beauty. She had a suave walk that looked like a unicorn walking towards me and about to take me to a magical land of beauty.

Even the stars, accompanying me, betrayed and became silent. She had features that only a princess could possess. I was no longer aware of where I was or what I was doing. I felt like going into a trance. Suddenly I realized that we were too close and dreary thoughts engrossed me, “Was I looking long enough? Was I staring? Oh god was I acting like a stalker”. I couldn’t care less. I couldn’t dread even the thought of missing out this sensuous sight.

Then I saw something that turned my world around. She smiled. I was enamored by that captivating smile. I could swear that I had not seen anything so pure and so beautiful. Then the string of thoughts started again. “Did she really smile? Did I convince myself that she was smiling?” I couldn’t think anymore. In just a moments notice she passed me by and I realized that she was really smiling at me.

I wanted to look back at her. To have a last look at that beauty which I could never even come close to in my life, ever. Just then I heard a voice calling my name behind my back, “Akshay”. It was her. I could swear on my life it was her. Just as that beautiful voice struck my ears, turmoil began. I couldn’t explain what was happening. Everything started whirling around and into her eyes. “What was that?” just as it was all happening, that voice became harsher and harsher trying to engulf me in as well. Out of nowhere, something started beeping and I saw my friend Ankit shouting from outside my room and calling my name, asking me to wake up. I looked around to get aware of my surroundings. It was only my room, with alarm clock beeping over my head. It was quarter to eight and I was getting late for my classes.

So this was my fugacious love story but next time I will try not to wake up and atleast ask her name.