Sayonara Bengaluru….!

Day 5 : 12th June 2010

Sayonara Bengaluru….!











“ kasam ki kasam hai kasam se..
Humko pyar hai sirf tumse…
Ab ye pyar na hoga fir humse…..
Kasam ki kasam…….

The pigeon flies and perches on another sil. I follow it faithfully and continue…

“kuch isharo mein tumne …humse toh ye kaha hai..
Ab yakin aa raha hai….tum ko vi kuch hua hai…

It broods… I smile…
“kyu tumko dekte hai….kya dil mein sochte hai..
Toofaan jo uth raha hai…hum usko rokhte hai…
Kasam ki kasam…ha kasam…

………….ooooooooooooppppppppppppsssssssssss!!! The pigeon flies away….May be he was already married and dint like my extra-marital proposal. :P
Anyways, I return back to my room. When I was very young , I developed this strange habit of confiding in non-linguistic creatures. When I learnt my first English poem, it was a little sparrow whom I chose to be my audience.
Dressed in a red frock and two pony tails, I stood at the verandah. A sparrow was eating the biscuit pieces that I threw [ I bribed it to listen to my poem].
“ Twinkle Twinkle little star…
How I wander what u are?.......................[ I am still wandering though]

After finishing the pieces, the sparrow flew away…and me too entered my home satisfactorily. Almost 20 years have passed and I couldn’t shed my queer habit .Maybe this is the reason I love animals whereas human species is still an unanswered question to me…I would any day prefer a pet than a friend . There lies no question of betrayal. Sorry guys, no offence…but its an honest confession!

My flight was scheduled at 10.10 am and Aneesha’s at 11.55 am. We decided to start early. No hot water, hence bathing slot was deleted…result: Time saved. We ordered for some coffee…and then kakima cleared the hotel bill. Out of fear, we had booked an over-priced cab to the airport. The cab was in time. All we had food was coffee. We had packed cakes which we planed to eat for breakfast in the car but we didn’t, coz we were so busy watching the view. It was 7.30 am and the streets were empty. Hardly people could be seen, only a few florists and morning walkers. I pulled down the wind shield to get fresh air. The wind was so hard it was creating menace to my beautifully tied hair. Alas.I had to click some pics through the glass only. Wotever, we were busy spotting vijay mallya’s properties all throughout Bangalore. When we reached the aitport, cold wind was blowing. We had some more burning experience there. A funky guy , known to Aneesha’s , cme with flying colours from nowhere. He got through neuroscience. His way of taunting was too rude. Only I dint knew the guy, I got angry, may be so did aneesha.I maintained silence coz of defeat.
“ If you win you need not explain, but if you loose, you should not be THERE to explain”.

I strongly believe in this n so ignorance was a better idea. My mom called. My flight was rescheduled. It was 30 mins late. I opted to enter the airport n relax at the lounge.I wished goodbye to kakima and Aneesha in Bangalore.

This time I got to explore the Airport more nicely. As I crossed the gate, I found more Bengalis inside , east Bengalis mainly. The saris adorned in ‘ aatpoure’ style, a big red bindi, vermilion- a must and their above-the-normal decibeled voice…

“o boudi, tumi koichhila j ekhane oisob check-tek er bepaar nai., amago kolkatae koto jhamela boloto diki..?”…… one such lady passed by shouting…sorry, telling her sister-in-law.
*[translation: boudi means sis-in-law, boudi, you said that here there is no such checks of luggages… our kolkata has so much checking..isn’t it?]
Me being a pure east Bengali could decode their frustration. The main problem with us is we like to speak in our own typical type of Bengali, the famous “bangal “vasha. It comes to my mind, what would have happened if the 1960 riot would not have occurred. I might have been sitting in Dhaka, wouldn’t at all dare to travel to India. Being a conservative group, our girls are married away at a very young age.
“ joto rongo sosurbaari giye koroge jao…..ami ar tomar rong-dhong soite parine”…this is my mom’s favourite line. She completed her graduation after her marriage. At my age, she was already changing my nappies and busy feeding me. Being a topper from her colg, her parents dint mercy her. But I really do. Hence ,I want to escape.
*[translation: show all your colours( meaning nakhraas) at your in-laws’ place. Don’t irritate me. I cant stand it anymore]

“bathroom gula valo kao?...amago dumdum e ki nongra koira raakse…oi puchki r chhoto shala airport e chaakri korego. Ami khub koira koiya disi, boli sob sarkar er poisa zae koi?..eto guli koira taka lou r eirokomta koira raakso.vote diyi naai ami ebar CPM re…”
…………..came these conversation fluttering from a middle aged lady in white.
*[translations: these bathrooms are great, isn’t it?.our dumdum airport has dirty bathrooms. Puchhki’s younger bro-in-law works at the airport. I have berated him a lot, saying that who consumes all the government’s money?..thats why I dint vote this time to CPM party.]
Bengalis are famous for PNPCs [ Poro Ninda Poro Chorcha i.e discussion regarding others affairs-good or bad(mostly bad)]. Whenever, wherever, whichever topic …they can start a firey conversation with whoever they like. Range is from their house maid to their child’s principal. Don’t u guys get this idea from my writing skills? …jus’ kidding…!

I, kinda curious, went to check the washroom….really cool, …reminded me of the British Council library toilets, more spacious. I stared at the mirror n stood still. Oh God….I started… At the age of 2 or 3 maybe I started… n I m 22 now, this studying saga is still on…I re-adjusted my hair, washed my face and was about to leave when sum hottie entered. She must be in her early 40s, over-weight and troubled with hairfall [her short tresses said so]. I watched shamelessly. Aware of my gaze, she took out her huge collection of make up. I started counting like a kid. Half of them I couldn’t discover what they were. There were 3 things regarding foundation, a paint brush sort of ….to hide her wrinkles. She turned MF Hussain while painting her lips.4 different shades of lip colour, something called lip liner, tissues….n hell lot only to prepare those artificial lips. Then came the eye-make up collection. Total 9 items- liner ,mascara, shadow,…. kaajal was something I didn’t get why she had…then many more, a tong-like object for her lashes. Oh God…! What will happen if her husband sees her real look?...will he run away?has he already run away?...or it is her disease?...i got busy in my thoughts.. Suddenly she interrupted with an air of pride..” why don’t you do something to ur skin?”

Rituparna has always got answers ready for the shrewd n the rude…” …I don’t need ma’am…I have age and bones on my side.”…..thats all I said. I turned sideways facing the mirror, fakely adjusting my top but mainly to compare her 46” waist-line with my 26” , threw my long hairs back and walked out smartly… Hi ha ha ha ha…….
I cud smell her burning inside. People say..”Men will be men”…today I got it…y they don’t at all speak about women..!!!!........
Wotever………………..I checked in….moving on to the security check area…these ppl have got into the habit of extracting things from me….they took away my Bisleri this time…!!!
“ sorry ma’am , you cant carry water or any sort of liquid as cabin baggage….”
I looked inquisitively at her trying to remember where had I kept my 20 SPF sunscreen lotion which I haven’t used at all in my trip.
“You dint get any restricted items …right?”…I asked happily remembering my arrival trauma of loosing my scissors n penknife..
This time the security got inquisitive….., frowned and silently noted my ticket no. as well as seat no. from my boarding pass….
Now people out there…..do I look like a terrorist?....Al Qaeda or sumthing???....do i???no naa???.............what if I asked foolish question to the security!!!...chhado ji…ki fark pehnda hai???...mainu kaunsa Bangalore mein settle hone hai???[…no offense, I speak Punjabi when irritated]

The lounge is really cool. Some stores were there. People simply crowded at the eateries n coffee corners. I faithfully headed towards the bookstore. 30 mins more before boarding, enuf time to sneak-peek through the pages. Reading was not the target…I chose picture wala kitaabe….some traveller’s guide. At last I picked up a free newspaper.I noticed very serious ppl there. They reminded me of physics practical classes.I hated them. The serious grim look that pupils n teacher wore just to talk about barometers?????!!!!!! ...barometers???!!!
Oh my God…I gotta leave.
Boarding had already started. The honeymooners were returning. One man asked me whether they will be served water on board or not. His new wife glared at him so badly that he felt emabaressed with her behaviour…
“ufff….air hostess der jiges korlei parte…ora besi jane…kake na kae jiges koro…”…she interrupted.
*[translation: why didn’t you ask the airhostess?...they know better. Why are you asking unknown ppl?]
The man answered..”ja bojhono ta nie kotha bolona…..”.
*[translation: don’t speak on topics you don’t understand well]
I smiled to myself. He has already taken over his dominating character and she, her nagging behaviour. This will continue throughout their conjugal lives till they die.[ …coz bongs hardly divorce their spouses, howsoever unbearable he or she is].

I boarded the plane and took my seat. A corporate guy in his late 20s turned up .
“ hello ma’am. Is that 30A ???
Yes, it is.
Stranger: “that’s my seat.
Me: It cant be. I have choosen this seat at the time of e-booking. please check sir. You can also see my boarding pass.
Without further conversation, he summons a chinky airhostess.
“ sorry sir…its printed 30B and not A.”….she remarked politely.
Stranger: “but they said I wud get a window seat?”
Air-hostess : Sorry sir, u did spot booking. Ma’am had prebooked the seat. plz be seated sir.
He took out his glasses and looked carefully and then showed it to me like a class 3 kid shows sums that he culdnt solve. The lettes had smudged..[ God knows how]..I saw it frm his hand and nodded. He gave an unhappy look. Very noisily he arranged his things. First his bag and then his laptop. His sony erricson fell on me during this. I stared with awe.
Stranger: “extremely sorry. I hope u r not hurt?..hello, I am an engineer at infosys. Hardware professional.i am a gujrati settled in Bangalore. Have some work at Hyderabad office. so…..
[he mentioned his name. I am not mentioning here due to security reasons]
Stranger: You?...you must be a Punjabi girl???...pointing to my kada in my right hand.”

I handed over his cell and stared at him as if he had given all wrong answers to his viva questions. My cold and frowned looks made him uneasy.
Me: “no… I am a Hindu Bengali girl by roots from kolkata and I strongly belive in Guru Gobind singh and the sikh religion.” My tone was very grave and serious. I watched him from up to down like a PT teacher does if a student is dirtily dressed for his PT exam.
“Formal shirt, I-card, a watch he looked very often, high configuration mobile that he is checking out now n then 4 texts, a parker pen peeping out of his chest-pocket, oiled hair, rimless spects and a behaved look. I name him Curious Cat.
As I look out of the window,I give a good-bye look to Bangalore.
“where do you stay in kolkata?”….the curious cat enquires.

oh God…..I will change my seat if he keeps on irritating further. To hell with his window seat. I looked at him and said…”outskirts…you wont know.”
“salt-lake???”he grinned.
I think that was the only place he knew in kolkata. Most non-kolkatans know only salt-lake and consider that to be kolkata which is absolutely wrong. Its about 20 kms away from the main city. Salt-lake sector 5 is the city’s IT hub. All IT offices are there.
Me: “no. far away..”
Cat: “Do you take a train?...or Volvo…? Or private car???”
What the hell? I want to be left alone. Doesn’t this e-fellow understand that? He was creating a detest for all gujjus by his not-so-cool ways.
“No…sir. I take a train and now I am having slight headache and I really want to get some rest”….i said to him softly.
I closed my eyes. After about 2-3 mins he answered.. “actually its all because of the computer screen, late night shifts and so… you should not be continuously staring at the screen or else you will get spects like me. All IT professional have same prob. By the way you are also from IT sector …right?...
That’s the limit. He has done it. I wanted to punch him right on his nose ,snatch his Icard and throw it away, and break his cool phn to pieces. Instead I smiled. I have learned this at AIIMS—how to smile at patients in critical conditions.!!!
“yes……………what else do you want to know about me?….”…I looked at him and asked seriously. “ I am a student…MSc from CU. I don’t share gud relations with computer science. Whatever minimum knowledge I have that’s enough for me to sustain normal living.”
He was speechless.
I laid back in my seat while the plane started to take off. The small hills and roads below looked beautiful. God has been very careful about this miniature handwork while making this place.. Good bye Bangalore ,,I said unhappily while the view got lost in clouds….May god bring me here again. I really liked the place and people.
I tried to catch some sleep while my fellow irritant took out his laptop to keep himself busy. Now guys, I have this dying urge for electronic things, nothing specific for comps…all electronics…whenever I visit a city, I make sure I go to the electronics adda of that place. Bangalore being famous for this, I had planned to go with swadhin but he cudn’t make out time. Delhi…Nehru place, kolkata –chandni, even mumbai’s chor bazaar.
My b’day gifts from dad and relatives are mainly electronics…a dig-cam last yr, laptop last-to-last yr , pen drive hard drive …name it and ritu is a freak….!!! Lately Neelanjan’s sound amplifier is my latest crush. [neelu is my colg frnd].
The cat took out his laptop and placed it in the tray before him. A small HP laptop. It gave a raped look. God knows how many times this fellow had ripped it open just for his inquisitiveness. The black beauty’s keys were all white, a wire jutting out from behind, the LCD had turned pinkish , a strange tinkling sound came from inside.
When he saw that his laptop has caught my attention, he beamed again… “ very good laptop, hi-fi company….great service….evryone should opt for HP….”…he fitted something like a transistor with the lappy from behind ….”extra battery”..he smiled.
After switching it on he was introducing the laptop to me like a hardware salesman.
After 10 mins of lecture I said… “ sorry sir, an atom processor is never reliable and this set indeed do not have dual core processor. And please sir ..take care of it. Even if you luv a machine, it will be hale and hearty. Please do not separate its parts so often. And yes…Apple is the best. I use DELL, that’s the next best, I guess”…
I concentrated back into my magazine.
This time he stared at me. “ you said you know nothing of computers?”…as if that gave him the right to fool me…!
“ Its that I am not interested… I never said I don’t know.”
Nevertheless to say, I was the man of the match. He switched off his laptop and waited eagerly for Hyderabad to arrive.
My flight was to land at Hyderabad first. Thank god …rest of the journey will be calm and quiet. I closed my eyes and switched on my MP3. IHLS latest songs were there. ‘bin tere- guitar mix, my fav song was playing. Suddenly , that curious cat took off one of my ear phones and pointed out of the window.
I was enraged like anything….” What is your problem Mr. ?”
Cat: “Nothing, that’s Begumpet below. I worked here 2 yrs ago. Beautiful city. Have you been to Hyderabad? Golconda fort?”
I closed the windshield. And laid back again. Cat felt bad.
The airhostess turns up to say that winshields must be kept open during take-off. Cat eagerly opens it and resumes his guide task. “That’s Begumpet, the main Hyderabad. I don’t think you can see Golconda fort from here. Biriyani here is famous. So are pearls.”
I looked at him and said directly..” Don’t you think I am a very rude person?”
Cat: “ are you disturbed?”
Me: no..
Cat: I am seeing that you are disturbed since the boarding lounge.
Me, aghast: whatttt?...you have been noticing me since there?…
Cat : no. I am noticing you since the u got inside the airport all alone.
Me: whatt???
Cat : sorry ma’am, no offence. I am just being honest. A single girl smoothly passing security checks without mistakes. No extra luggage. No phone calls. You chose bookstore to pass time and then carried newpapers, looking thoroughly…. something unnatural , that girls of your age don’t do.
Me, to myself…: this stubborn will carry on till I slap him. Should I ?
Me: you should not have followed me. That’s an offence.
Cat: I am sorry again. But still….hyderabad is a beautiful city. You should visit here.

What the hell???!!!I think he was paid by Incredible India on tourist-basis.

Due to landing problem, the plane was taking 60 degree-angle rides around Hyderabad. Feeling nauseatic, I drank water and then gave way. After 5 mins or so of excessive uneasiness,I took out the air-sickness bag and puked. I hate flying. Its obnoxious for me. I cursed these pilots, their flying tricks and etc etc.

Cat, with eyes wide open : Are you married???
I know what he meant….whether I was pregnant or not. But I was not in the condition to get angry. It was 10.30 in the morning and he thought I might have been having morning sickness. I really don’t care what cat thinks. I dint answer. After 20 mins of air-touring Hyderabad, we landed Rajiv Gandhi International Airport. I was more interested in the airport. It was said to be 1 of the best airports in India. The cat left after waving me goodbye. He was not happy about the fact that I was having “morning sickness”.

With Cat gone, I looked out of the plane. It was cloudy and would rain. If it rains too hard., we might be requested to get down off the plane to wait at the airport and that would mean further delay. Passengers got down and some came in. No one replaced Cat. I placed my handbag there and sat freely. After 30 mins the plane prepared to take off. Another round of boarding pass check was done along with thorough luggage checks.
I put on my MP3………
“Teri nigaaho ke ….Teri hi raaaho ke
kareeb se gayi hai zindegi
Tune kyu dekha naa ………..tune kyu jaana na
Sikaayate karu ya nahi?
Tu ha meri saanse, pare hai wo aankhen..
Sahoo kaise sahoo ye faasla……………?
Bin tere bin tere bin tere…koi khalish hai hawaon mein bin tere…
.....
…….the plane sped through the runway. The rain poured hard hitting the windshield. Everything became transluscent…. The airhostess came to tell me to switch off my electronic item: MP3. I lied…”its off…..I am avoiding pressure difference with its earphones on.”…she left.
Soon Hyderabad was covered by dark clouds…about 2000 kms apart from Kolkata…this city will never be treaded by me by my wish…..unless I am complelled to do so..!
I fall asleep as the rain beats outside…now just droplets vanishing like vapour just as they hit the Pyrex pane. Mother Sleep rescues me as usual, the words of song fading away..
“…….Kuch bacha hi nahi darmiya…saas leti hai ab ye duriyaa
Dil nahi janta ke rahomein
Haath se haath chhute the kaha
Kyu nazar ke kinare, toote hai khwab saare
Tu bata?
Suna suna sama hai ,Khali khali jaha hai
ab mera..
Bin tere bintere…bin tere…koi khalis hai hawaon mein bin tere………..”


At 2, I reach Dumdum. Sad daughter meets Happy father. We had contradictory emotions coz of the same cause: I dint get through IISc. I reach home. Kolkata was badly drenched with excess rain. This monsoon rain brought sorrow with it for me…, rains never brought sorrow for me…never. This was the first time.
I felt great as I reached home. Mom invited me with chicken. I felt so much at home.
First things first. I snatched my laptop from my sis. For the last 7 days it was with her. I culdnt resist the fact that my dearest is with some else. I am extremely possessive about things I love….my Dell being my first priority….!
My student turned up that evening . I almost dozed and gave tution.
Bed was calling me like anything. I fell asleep at 9. I wish I hadn’t been 2 Bangalore. I shouldn’t have given the exam .
Reason???: I wasted a lot of you ppl’s time. You guys read this boring stuff and instead of cursing me , some of them also praised me. Thanx for your patience. Moreover IISc ditched me. anyways…ritu will keep writing if u guys want so. Till then……khuda haafizzz……bye bye…