Sunday, May 17, 2020

Goa Diaries

This post is dedicated to all the youngsters whose list of must-do includes a mandatory trip to Goa with friends. After all, you are not really best friends until you can claim to have a few drunken memories (or for that matter, forgotten memories?) from a Goa trip with your buddies, right?

So here goes a story from one such wild and crazy trip I had with my mad gang...

Chapter 1: Never Have I Ever...

Let's set some context first. This story is about seven friends, and is set in March 2014, the Holi weekend to be specific. A little more about these friends before we begin. They were four guys and three girls, MBA batchmates in their mid-twenties, who had finally managed to plan a weekend getaway after a loooot of cancelled plans. The getaway was meant for a serene beach of Ganpatiphule along the Konkan coast of Maharashtra - about 7 odd hours drive from Mumbai. 

Why Ganpatiphule? Because it guaranteed a long drive, lay along the Konkan coast and promised a beautiful beach and some water sports popular among Mumbaikars  - basically a younger, sober sibling of Goa. Now, sober was important mind you. A sober place also helped getting permission from their parents easier. A more important reason was that all seven of them were still relatively "uninitiated", so to speak, to the world of intoxication. And so, Ganpatiphule it was. 

There was one problem though. Secretly, they all wished they were going to Goa instead. 

Especially Sanvi, for she had never been there before. In fact, she wanted to go there so bad that all her recommendations for a meetup started with Goa. And of course, there for Ritu, who said she had already been to Goa before and failed to understand the big deal about it. Upon probing it was discovered that her visit to Goa had been with her parents (big straight face). So let us put her in the "never have I ever been to Goa before" category as well. As such, even Noel fell in the same category, but the only difference was that he did not care about changing this status. He was the unadventurous one, preferring to play it safe, the quintessential "good boy" of the lot. 

And then there were the "been there, done there" lot of the group. This included, DJ (nickname, of course), who was also a "good boy" by standard definition. However, DJ had this hidden persona about him - a crazy, wild side that emerged only on occasions, among close friends. But boy,  how he managed to flip the entire gameplan on those rare occasions when his alter ego surfaced!

This category also included Anya, who had visited Goa in the final year of her engineering course. Albeit, she had been too goody-good at the time to taste the real essence of the place, and so had this desire left in her to revisit - this time determined to make the most of it in the true sense. Also part of this category were Jenish and Sukesh, again engineers who had had the mandatory factory visit to Goa during their respective courses. Having had tonnes of fun the first time along, they were keen on going once again and recreating some special memories with their best buddies. Sukesh was the more conservative one though, needing a little convincing, debating and pushing before he opened up. But he was also the reliable one, the one who could find a jugaad to a situation if it came to that. For that matter, Jenish wasn't any less of a jugaadu. Except, he was likely to show more enthusiasm to a plan most times. Always sporty and taking the lead, he was the official "organizer" of the gang. So basically, if you wanted make Goa happen, you had to leave matters in the hands of his truly!

Chapter 2: Aaj Kuchh Toofaani Karte Hai

The day of the trip was here. It was Saturday morning, 6 a.m. was the decided time to meet at Dadar, where the car that Jenish had already booked was to pick them up from. When they all arrived, the checklist of all things they were to carry along was quickly checked off - playing cards, USBs with all the latest songs added, camera, speakers, snacks for the drive and a new addition by the girls this time - beach shorts (new because they hadn't dressed sexy with the guys before this - true story). After the mandatory South Indian breakfast at an Udipi restaurant near station, they were all set to go. Car meter readings were checked and nuances on the estimated distance and duration discussed with the driver. The silly chap wanted to confirm if they wanted to go to Ganpatiphule after all, and not Goa. Strange that he would ask this, no? Anyway, the USB was plugged in and speakers tested. The car was put into gear, and it was finally get set go!

Like any other drive with friends, this one too started with high energy and a lot of excitement and cheering. A quick plan was drafted - they were expecting to reach Ganpatiphule by early evening. So they decided on having two halts, a short one near Mumbai exit and one longer break for lunch. The driver - a young chap by the name of Santosh - who was himself also having fun on the drive, was quite chatty at too. Jenish was seated in the front seat (and by default acting as the default DJ), was also having a good time having small talk with him. He had found a new topic of conversation - distance to Ganpatiphule versus distance to Goa. His justification was - so what if we aren't going to Goa now, we can always check the details for next time. Well, he had a point, and we all joined him in this. Optimism at its best.

So apparently, Goa was twice as far as Ganpatiphule. Every now and then, everyone would calculate the ETA to Ganpatiphule and then derive the ETA for Goa. For some reason, they kept feeling dejected every time the ETA to Goa was post 10 pm. That would mean a wasted day, and with just 1 day to spare in Goa (considering the return drive on Monday), the plan just didn't seem to be fitting in. But wait, there WAS no plan for Goa in the first place! Silly gang, I tell you.

More silliness ensued, followed with mad humor and some tuneless, chorus singing at the top of their voices. Exhausted, they reached their first halt, just outside the city limits of Mumbai. Here, they hogged on delicious wada pav, kanda poha and misal pav. Incidentally, they also bumped into Anya's ex-boss, who was himself planning a trip to one other beach in Konkan with his family - how the entire city just waits to capitalize on a long weekend! Anyhow, a little small talk followed, and without much ado they were back on the road. 

This time, the energy levels dropped a little quicker than before - hunger was kicking in fast. But on the other hand, the excitement level was increasing for some reason. The reason was this - the drive had picked up speed, and as a result the ETA to Goa was starting to seem more achievable. The more they discussed, the more feasible the plan seemed. To the extent that, soon enough, the driver proactively started updating them about the ETA every few minutes. But why get excited? It was too late to change plans now. Or was it?

The topic of Goa was slowly becoming an obsession. The lunch break was spent discussing possibilities and impossibilities. Not that they were changing the destination as such. And this was why this discussion was not healthy anymore - Ganpatiphule was starting to seem too dry already. How would they put their hearts into enjoying wholeheartedly if they kept thinking of Goa subconsciously all the time?

But who was going to explain this simple fact to this silly bunch? And so, the topic: "to go or not to go Goa" took over the remaining of the drive. All the merriment they had set out with - the singing, joking, playing - went out the window to be replaced by a singular objective - to decide on whether they needed to change their destination after all. Most still found it impractical. But yet, every time they saw a signboard to Goa, their hearts just skipped a beat - hoping against hope to make it happen. But how?

Jenish and Sukesh to the rescue. They started - just for the heck of it - checking stay options available in Goa, and charting out a clearer plan. A couple of agents promised to show them affordable service apartments to fit seven people. On the other hand, the gang also decided to live with bare-minimum fun just so they could make Goa happen. this meant, they were okay with just one night at the beach, one day clubbing, one day-time chill and a rushed and tiring drive of over ten hours each in a span of 3 days. Desperate, I tell you.

As the possibilities of finding an accommodation improved, the earlier dejection was starting to be slowly replaced with excitement once again. Jenish and Sukesh were ready to go ahead with the super-packed itinerary, however, Sukesh was a little more neutral. So was Sanvi - after all, this was the moment she had been waiting for all along! Anya was always a sport, as long as she was able to win her mom-dad's confidence. Ritu was a little confused, but after being told fun stories about Goa, she was also tilted in the positive direction. In fact, she was willing to lie at home to make this happen. So much for "decency"!

Now there were just two people remaining to be convinced - Noel and DJ. Noel was strictly against the plan. He did not like last minute changes, and found it too risky to go there without a confirmed booking for stay. DJ was also tilted towards no, for a more practical reason, that there was no point visiting Goa with such a packed itinerary. The whole point of "chilling" would be lost. He was of the view that there can always be a next time which could be better planned. 

Time was running out now. The driver had just informed them that they would soon reach a junction from where the roads to Ganpatiphule and Goa would diverge. If they wanted to change the destination, this was the time to do it, else forget Goa for the rest of the trip (and perhaps, many more to come?). 

Now what? the pros and cons were discussed quickly, without reaching an agreement. At last, they decided to put the decision to vote. 

Jenish and Sanvi - IN!
Sukesh, Anya and Ritu - Neutral
Noel - NO!

It was all upto DJ now. If he did not favour the decision, they would all have to live with Ganpatiphule and the trip would be forever labelled as - the time we almost went to Goa.

At last, DJ uttered the words that would be etched in the gang's "DJ's famous quotes" directory forever. 

He said, "Jab sabne decide hi kar liya hai ki aaj kuchh toofani karna hai, toh chalo Goa!"

A shrill of screams followed this epic statement. The driver was quickly informed to change the route, which according to the gang, was just over five minutes away. 

The driver, however, was a smart chap. He declared he had already rerouted towards Goa sometime back - that's how well he had figured out the group dynamics in such a short time. Well, so much for the voting!

And that, my friends, is how my gang managed to finally create a most memorable trip to GOAAAAA.


Chapter 3: Fun, Frolic and Faux pas

Although the decision to head to Goa was a done deal, all was not smooth for the girls of the gang. They had yet to inform at their respective homes and more importantly, seek their permission in order to be able to happily enjoy the next 2 days. Now, this part might seem like no big deal to most of you, but for girls coming from simple, middle class, moderately conservative families, seeking permission for a Goa trip with friends (which also includes boys) is as stressful as an India-Pakistan final in cricket world cup. It is high stakes and high emotions. Every sentence they must say to their parents must be well thought, because one wrong move and it is game over! So, all three of them discussed the strategy first. 

Anya decided that if she makes it look like a risky affair, her mom will sense her emotions and panic as well. So she needed to play it cool, and make it sound just another casual, routine trip with friends. She also thought she will use Sanvi as an excuse - even her mom knew Sanvi wanted to go to Goa so bad! Maybe, just maybe it might work?

Sanvi herself decided to talk to her sister instead. Being young herself, maybe she will see her perspective and be kind? The risk was that it was her sister who was more protective (read: strict) about matters concerning Sanvi, and so seeking permission from her was a risky gamble.

Ritu kept it simple. She would avoid informing her parents until she really needed to (read: until they actually reached Goa), because well, she had neither any good excuse nor the guts to tell at home at this point. Maybe, sometimes having no plan is a good plan?

And so, they all halted for a cuppa tea to make quick calls at respective homes, informing respective elders about change in plan. Anya's call went quite smooth - her mom in fact was cheering that Sanvi was finally going Goa! Sanvi got a bit of a warning, but she dodged the bullet this time. The boys just acted like boys and "informed" rather than "asked" at home. So now, it was only Ritu who was left. This is where the epic part comes in...newbies: watch and learn...

She called her dad much later in the evening. As such, it was merely a formality now, since they were in Goa already, and not like a denied permission would make them all go back! So here's how one of the most interesting permission-seeking-cum-informing conversations went:

M: Dad, so here's the thing. There has been a slight change in our plans. Actually, we reached Ganpatiphule earlier in the evening today, but it was very empty, nothing to do and we could not even get a good location to stay. So we just drove further in search of a better place. And now we have reached Goa. I will be back on Monday as planned.

(Confidence defined)

M's D: Oh! So if there was nothing to do there, then why did you not just take a nice, long drive and come back?

(Confidence destroyed)

Well, nothing he could do about it now. So her dad eventually accepted the fate, and the strategy worked like the magic of a sixer in the last over!

NOW the party was on! But first, house hunting...

Immediately upon reaching Goa, which was at around 11 pm, Sukesh and Jenish met up with the agents they had called on the way, and the boys headed out to check the apartments. The girls stayed back in the car (which was when Ritu made the call to her dad) and basically hoped the guys would find something soon. And find something good. 

After a lot of search, at midnight, the gang finally entered their service apartment in Calangute, North Goa. The building complex was this cute C-shaped 3-storied affair with a swimming pool in the centre. Their apartment itself was a 1-BHK, and needless to mention the girls claimed the bedroom while the guys crashed in the living room. There was 1 washroom, so getting ready was going to be a veryyy time consuming affair. But hey, they made it after all, and that's all that mattered! Quickly they freshened up and headed out to the Calangute beach to grab a bite at one of the shacks.

It was post midnight. The cool night breeze blew over the calm water of the Calangute beach. The near-full moon gave a silver glow to the playful waves that gently lapped the now cold sand. Walking bare-feet on this sand appeared a pretty damsel in the distance. Dressed in a low back, black dress, she completed the beautiful vision the night was drawing.

Enticed by this stunning vision was none other than Mr. Sukesh. It was obvious he was smitten, for he could barely take his gaze away. While the rest of them enjoyed teasing him about it, all he could wish for was for her to turn around, so their eyes could meet, and then...who knows!

And turn she did. But wait, this was...ahem...not quite the vision he was hoping for...

Why did the face not live upto the expectations her bare back had set? Such an anticlimax, after so much build up. Obviously, a laugh riot ensued looking at Sukesh's fallen face and open mouth. Poor guy, jokes about his "almost" black-beauty would not leave him alone for the rest of his life!

Several good laughs, a scrumptious meal and a few hookah-drags later, it was time to call it a night - or day, as it was close to 4 am now.

The next morning brought with it tonnes of adventure. First off, it was time to head to the beach for some water sports. First off was parasailing. It was Sanvi's first time, and she couldn't be any less thrilled. DJ enjoyed the banana boat ride the most. This was  followed by a few catch-and-cook and form-a-chain games in the water, while Sanvi laid back on the beach chair, lazily clicking embarrassing pictures of everyone. This was why beaches are always so much fun.

Come evening, and the girls were ready to step out in their much-hyped short dresses. A warning was given to the guys to not give awkward reactions when they step out of the room. And hence, when Sanvi and Ritu adorned their shorts and Anya decked up in a floral mini-dress, the boys simply pretended to look away. They tried to act so extra-normal that the girls had to literally fish out compliments from them - not being awkward does not mean not complimenting, duh!

The plan was to grab a bite on the way - so they had some cheesy Domino's pizzas - and head to the casinos of South Goa. Sanvi was most excited about this part, and the moment she set eyes on the majestic looking Deltin Goa, she knew she was destined to go in!

Jenish was excited too, as was Noel. After all, who wouldn't want to make try their luck and make ome quick bucks, right? But going inside the casino would mean giving a miss to clubbing. This trade-off made the option of gambling appear a little less appealing to Anya and Ritu. On the other hand, Noel was not at all keen on the clubbing scene. Some mixed reactions from Sukesh and DJ meant the group in a state of confusion once again. Fortunately, this time they were quick to go in for a vote, and clubbing won with flying colours!!!

But, of course, there had to be a catch. Clubbing in Cubana required a formal attire, or atleast "closed-toe-shoes" for the guys, and Jenish did not have those. For that matter, Anya's floral, flowy dress wouldn't make the cut either. This meant they needed to go shopping, NOW!

A rush visit was made to the street market of Goa. After a tiring two hours, Anya spotted a smart green dress, but even after searching every shop - big and small - Jenish was unable to find one that sold a proper pair of shoes (all of them seemed to be having only beach-slippers for some reason). Disheartened, they decided to take their chances with whatever boots they had with them, and went back to their apartment to get dressed. Maybe as a last resort, he will borrow the driver's shoes. Desperate, right? But then, desperate times call for desperate measure.

There was one more challenge, though. Cubana allowed only couple entries. The group had 4 boys and 3 girls, that is, they had one stag guy who was likely to be refused entry altogether. If this happened, the entire night would be spoilt, not to mention, a missed chance to atleast visit the casino instead.

So they had a few options they could try. They could use the Indian jugaad - the standard resolution for any stag guy to gain entry into a club: find a single girl to tag along with. Or maybe this time Sukesh would find his real black-beauty and use his charisma to get in? Or maybe they could bribe the gatekeeper. Or maybe they could just sneak one of them in? And if nothing worked, maybe they could just beg and beg and beg until they were let in?

Or maybe, even after all their attempts and jugaads, they could still be refused entry.

Will the gang be able to gain entry into Cubana? Or will their dreams of experiencing the true Goa spirit be dampened after coming all this way?


Chapter 4: Drinking in the Goa Spirit, Literally

It was time. The girls put on their fancy party-wear, applied some fancy make-up, wore the best pair of shoes of the lot they were carrying. They stepped out of the room, assuming the guys would be ready as well. But a surprise awaited them.

They noticed that Noel was lying down on the bed, while the others were ready.

"What happened?" they asked in chorus.

"I'm not coming" replied Noel.

What?!

Apparently, he had made up his mind about abstaining and had no interest in clubbing. No amount of persuading seemed to change his mind, not even the agreeing to skip clubbing altogether to do something he would enjoy as well. So unfortunately, that was how it had to be.

However, here was a brighter side to it - if Noel wouldn't come, then they would be 3 guys and 3 girls...no more stags! Not just that, Noel insisted Jenish to use his shoes. Miraculously, they were also a perfect fit. The stars seemed to have suddenly aligned themselves to make a memorable night happen. Now it was time for some magic...

The club Cubana exceeded all of their expectations. A multi-level structure, with several segregated zones for dancing, dining, drinking and just chilling. There was a swimming pool at the lowest level; a large seating area with several wooden benches in one section of the first level, a bar in another and a lounge area with some cozy couches laying around; second level had a dance floor, another seating area and washrooms. The rustic stairway between each level was brightly lit, giving a youthful, peppy vibe to the entire place. The deejay was playing loud party music in the background. The crowd seemed fairly sophisticated (barring a few, as is with any place) and provided ample eye candy to the boys. Party mode was on, and Jenish offered to start with some shots!

So off went Anya, Jenish and DJ to get some for everyone. However, they seemed to be a very long queue. So Jenish suggested that they make the most of the waiting time, and have a couple of them at the bar itself. So they had a couple of them at the bar, a couple of them with everyone else. But it still seemed they were running out of shots very quickly. They needed something to last longer. So they went back a second time, this time Sanvi also came along, and got some vodka with sprite and Coke in addition to the shots. Of course, this time too, all of them had a couple of shots on the way to make the most of the waiting time...

One shot led to another, which in turn led to yet another. Before they knew it, they had each had for to five shots, topped with a drink or two here and there. Very soon, the atmosphere lightened and their mind and bodies loosened up. They headed to the dance floor now, and had a gala time swaying to the peppy beats the deejay played. And then...

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The girls were now in the girls' washroom, after having waited a long time for their turn. Anya had been in for quite a while now and Sanvi knocked every couple of minutes on her cubicle checking if everything was okay. After what seemed like ages, she finally emerged, washed her face, and "appeared" to have recovered, but then...

_____BLANK______

They were seated at the couch on the first level, discussing DJ's injured hand. They tried to recall what had exactly happened, but then...

_____BLANK______

Anya was clearly dizzy now. The others made her sit in the corner bench so she could be more comfortable. A girl - stranger - was trying to comfort her, handing some water as she spoke. When DJ tried to check in on Anya, she kept repeating that she was fine, only a little "tipsy", about fifty times over. She seemed to be getting a little better, but then...

_____BLANK______

Sanvi was crying ceaselessly and Sukesh was trying to console her. Something had happened in the last few minutes that had made her cry. Wait, hadn't she been on a call with her sister? Maybe she got scolded bad for partying. They tried to make her understand as to not worry so much, but then...

_____BLANK______

Ritu had just started running downstairs, and Jenish was following her. Did she just reach the swimming pool?

"Wait!" Jenish screamed out to her as he tried to catch up, but then...

_____BLANK______

They were all now heading back to the car, including Jenish and Ritu. Anya was clearly unsteady, but not yet ready to accept it. She confidently repeated, "I am not high, I am tipsy. I don't know what I am talking, but I know where I am walking."

_____BLANK______

Were those some hookers they just saw on their way back?

_____BLANK______

They had reached their apartment, and were subjected to shocking looks from Noel. The girls finished helping Anya change and everyone seemed to be back in their senses now. However, they were too exhausted with the day's events to discuss anything. So off they went to their beds, leaving a scandalized Noel to tend to himself.

What had happened that evening after all? Will they at all be able to piece the jigsaw puzzle together?

Well, whatever had or had not happened that evening, will need to wait the night out to sort itself.

Chapter 5: The Incomplete Jigsaw Puzzle...

Around 9 am Monday morning.
It was the last day of their trip. However, the atmostphere was strange today. The group had freshened up quietly and quickly. This was their check-out day and if they at all wanted to get back to office the next day, they had to get going fast. But first, they had to face the repercussions of yesterday.

Noel was smirking to himself, having witnessed his closest friends at their embarrassing best. The girls, particularly Anya, were feeling the most awkward, and avoided the topic of last night as much as possible. DJ was sporting a dressing on his hand, and a broken watch. Sukesh was trying to make small of whatever had happened, but Jenish was the one most interested in fixing the jigsaw pieces from last night together. Sanvi started helping him out with whatever little she could recall. Gradually, everyone joined in the conversation, filling in lost bits from their leftover memory flashes.

The conversation picked up at breakfast (South Indian, of course) at a nearby restaurant. It was Holi, and looking up from the first floor glass window of the restaurant, they could see passersby with colours on their faces. Some foreigners were enjoying a chilled morning beer. How could they have beer such early in the morning, they wondered, for all their heads were throbbing with hangover from the previous night!

"I think it were the Vodka shots" Jenish muttered.

"What do you mean Vodka? I thought they were Tequila..." Anya was surprised.

"Haha! Tequila was expensive, Vodka was covered" Jenish laughed at his little secret.

"And you didn't bother to tell us! No wonder we landed up here!" Anya exclaimed.

Noel had just given a brief download to the others about the state they had arrived in from the party the previous night. Sukesh had entered the apartment, followed by DJ who barely dragged himself in. Ritu and Sanvi were half dizzy and barely able to walk in, yet supported Anya who was completely out of her senses, it seemed. Jenish had entered last, fairly dazed himself, and was muttering about how their driver had tried to keep a neutral expression after looking at the state their seemingly "decent" passengers had been in. After changing, everyone seemed to be returning gradually back in their senses, but were too exhausted with the day's events to discuss anything. So off they had gone to their beds, leaving a scandalized Noel to tend to himself.

"Forget all this, first tell me, DJ how did you get this cut on your hand?" Ritu diverted the topic...

"I think it was when we broke the glass while dancing..." DJ replied.

"Dude, your watch is broken as well" Sanvi noticed.

"Yes, even I noticed it only this morning. Must have been when Anya broke the glass..."

"I broke a glass!!!" Anya exclaimed, clearly not having the slightest recall of her previous nights' endeavors.

"Yes ma'am, and that was followed by the washroom fiasco.." Sukesh recalled.

"Do you girls remember how long you all took in there? At one point I tried coming in myself to check if everything was okay. But then someone stopped me, so we had to send in those girls to ask about you...how we had to describe you all to them!" Jenish said confidently.

"But then when was Ritu's chase sequence? You know I almost thought you would jump into the pool!"

"I think that was after Anya's fifty repetitions of her rhyme - I'm not high, I'm tipsy...I don't know what I'm talking, but I know where I'm walking..."

"Now that rhyme I remember vividly..." She laughed this time, and the others joined in.

An hour of scrumptious meal later, they were no closer to fixing the order of events of the previous night, or even recalling all the events, for that matter. Little did they know that it was going to be a long, long time before the pieces could finally fit in together...

What had happened that evening after all?

***

Their bags were now packed and loaded. This time round, they were going to take the new Mumbai-Goa highway so they could reach back in time - given it was close to noon when they left. Jenish had been desperate to see the much acclaimed "scenic" route the old highway was hyped for, but that had been a rather disappointment. So now he claimed he had confused the two highways, and the new highway was actually the scenic one, and not the old one. He hoped for the best and got ready to get the front seat view. Music was on, and the car was once again on its way. This time though, more important than the music was the task of assembling the jigsaw puzzle.

"So here's what I remember..." Sukesh initiated.

"We went in and the three of you got shots for everyone, having a couple of them on your way. After two or three rounds, we went towards the dance floor. On the way, next to the bar we also saw some girls dancing on top of the tables."

"Oh yes! I had almost forgotten this part..." DJ muttered, "But the main story starts on the dance floor. Anya - you had no idea the shots you were having all this while was vodka and not tequila. So clearly, you were the first one to be out. And Ritu who, as you will see in all the pictures, was completely high too by this time."

"I remember the dance clearly, okay?" Anya tried defending herself, but was cut short by Jenish.

"So do you remember your sensual moves? And that while dancing your hand bumped into a waiter carrying the tray of full glasses and you broke one of them?" This time, Anya looked away.

"Apparently, a piece of that glass hurt DJ, and that is when his watch must have broken as well," Sukesh added, "and so we had to get the dressing done by some staff over there."

"Where were we in the meantime?" Ritu asked.

"Wow, you don't remember, do you? You went out of the dance room at one point, and Sanvi went after you. We joined you all after the broken glass fiasco, and that is when Anya felt like using the washroom" DJ explained.

"No, no. Anya left with the girls" Sukesh remarked.

"No, no. We all went with Anya, but it was before getting the dressing done," Jenish poured in his point of view.

"Basically, you guys do not recall either. So stop acting like we girls were the only ones acting out" Sanvi teased them.

"Haha! That much, I definitely agree! Looking at you girls' state, I had asked DJ if he was fine. And I remember clearly, he had said that he was in enough senses to handle himself, and the rest Sukesh and I need to manage."

A good laugh followed this. A few more details were recalled, before the topic turned to Sanvi's outburst.

"Why were you crying, after all? Was it your sister scolding you over the call?" DJ inquired.

"Yes, mostly that, and some other things. Everything was just so overwhelming in that moment and I don't know what overcame me but I could not control myself..." Sanvi said with a mix of emotions.

"It's okay. We get it. But the hilarious bit was that everything seemed to be happening all at once!" Jenish went about detailing the entire incident.

"So it was something like this - Anya was high and out, muttering that she's okay all the while, when clearly she was anything but okay. While everyone is trying to control her, Sanvi gets on a call, and within a minute bursts out crying. Now Sukesh and I divert our attention to pacify Sanvi, while DJ tries to help Anya with some water, having a few sips himself in between, trying to recover from his own high. We are about to get the story out of you, but before that, all out of the blue, Ritu breaks into a sprint and starts running. So now, I leave you two and start following her instead, running after her. I try to call out to her, but the more I chase her, the faster she elopes. Within moments, she was at the lower level, with the swimming pool right in front of her, and she was showing no signs of slowing down. I almost thought she will jump in, but then, just at the edge, Bang, she takes a turn! Finally, I thought, she will come back. But instead, madam chooses to run in the opposite direction - the club exit!"

More laughs ensue, leaving a stunned Noel even more confused in trying to make sense of everything that was still clearly messed up for him, and everyone else!

"Oh please, I knew pretty where I was running" Ritu  defended.

Yeah right," Sukesh ignored her defense, and instead picked up from where Jenish left off, "So anyways, finally I managed to calm Sanvi down. But the next thing I see is Ritu and Jenish heading towards the exit. So I ask everyone to call it a night and return back to our car. I tried to support Sanvi, although she seemed to have fairly recovered from her earlier "moment".  At this point, Sanvi wanted to leave so urgently, she started dragging Anya, who apparently had not had enough of the night and wanted to stay some more! At last, we together got Anya to walk down the stairs to reach the Gypsy that was ferrying people to and from their cabs. Even then, our dear Ms. Anya - though it was evident that she was tripping over at every second step she took - was confident to claim she knew where she was walking. And then began her endless rhyme!"

A chorus of her now famous rhyme was sung by the group, before Noel concluded with a question, "Does even one of you remember the entire night completely?"

Their blank looks said it all.

As they mulled over a few more details, the car turned onto the ghat. One look outside their windows made them collectively gasp. Jenish's famous "scenic" highway was finally here, and boy, was it beautiful!

On one side were the mighty Sahyadri mountains, arching away into the clear, blue sky. The road curved around their base to lead into a short tunnel. Exiting the tunnel, they landed on a cliff that overlooked the voracious Arabian Sea.

Everyone seemed to momentarily forget their conversation, and simply took in the beauty they had been bestowed with. Nature had its own mysterious way of demystifying everything. It did not matter anymore whether the pieces of the memorable night were ever put together. It did not matter whether they could ever live such a night again. What mattered was, that somewhere in the midst of all the chaos, they had learned to explore their vulnerabilities, to shun it in front of those who mattered, to trust their close ones in their weakest moments. It no longer mattered whether they will get to recreate such a magical night again. What mattered was, that through among all the scattered pieces of the puzzle, one piece stood out; this piece was that of a bond - a deep, strong bond - that was to last a lifetime.

As the sun set beyond the sparkling waters, the March moon rose to shine its yellow glow over the winding road ahead. Musing about their magical three days, the gang bid goodbye to a most memorable journey; and greeted a warm welcome to a lifelong of friendship.

********* THE END *******

Monday, July 24, 2017

Re-Defined: 2

9:00 pm. Tuesday. Mumbai.

Two Hours. Only a matter of two more hours. And then…

It is unbelievable, almost fantastic, to think that one’s life can change so drastically, dramatically in a day’s time. And yet, that is how it has to be. Such an irony to think that the person you believed to be your well-wisher is to be the one who stabs you in the back. I guess it is true when they say keep your friends close, enemies closer.

Heck, there will be lots of time for philosophy later. For now, I just need to get to the garage as quickly as possible. I do hope Roy ready with everything as promised. I desperately need to get this deal done in time so I can cross the border immediately. That is the only way I can be sure of being safe.

Safe. I wonder how it might feel. It pisses me to the core to think of the things one has to endure to ensure a good, SAFE life. Unlike most people with normal lives, safety isn’t a given when you have seen a downfall in your life caused by someone you thought was your own. You tend to develop a fear of people. You begin to distrust those around you, even the closest of friends. Suspicion consumes you and everybody feels like an enemy and you are left completely on your own, for life. Imagine this happening to an eight year old. I can never forget those dark days…

To see your father being betrayed by his own brother, to see his hardwork of 17 years being stolen overnight, and your family being brought down from riches to rags in a matter of minutes. To see your mother suffer in pain as she sees your father kill himself, to have poverty as your steadfast companion on hungry nights, to see this hunger drive you to rob and beg and weep, and eventually, when all doors seem shut; to eventually let go of the one thing left with you – your pride. Suffering indignation at the hands of the ones habituated to using and throwing women like disposable tissues is the ultimate humiliation one can suffer in one’s lifetime.  And when that happens, your soul is on its way to a slow death.

Gradually, all emotions in you begin to die until you are turned into a stone yourself. That, my friend, is the tipping point of your life. From that point on, you give up on looking back. You begin to live for yourself and yourself alone. Means do not matter anymore as long as you are getting the end that you desire.

Yes, it is a bit of an irony to have desires without emotions. Human minds are complicated like that, aren’t they? So it sometimes chooses the weirdest alternative to meet its desires. I can’t deny of being any different. I was consumed as crazy by my desire to be rich again and throw it in the face of fate. To reverse the damage it had done to me. Silly of me to believe the damage can be undone. That time shall never come back, I know. But when opportunity glares you in the face, the numb mind trained to distrust and despise can only think of the uglier ends to means. Had it been otherwise, the sane me, maybe today I wouldn’t have been in this car right now driving at full speed to escape the country. But it all happened in such a spur of the moment, there was just no time to be sane!

Oh these flashes keep coming back to me again and again like a movie set on a loop! I know this memory is going to haunt me for a long, long time to come. His bloody face from few hours ago, with the shocked look on his face, stumped at seeing what I had done to him. How unrecognizable against his face from two years ago - that fine shaven face, that smell of fresh cologne, those gleaming eyes looking at something behind my eyes, that smile of his telling me he wanted me and he wanted more of me than what had been presented to him. Yes, he had been my client back then. Yes, he had fallen for me at the first sight. Yes, he said he was willing to leave his wife for me. And yes, despite all my coldness, I let myself go along with it.

Since then there had been no looking back. He got me a modest flat to stay at Versova. He would visit me almost 2-3 times a week. I was okay with this arrangement. It gave me my space, and the exclusivity meant I got paid more for half the effort. Of course, gradually the frequency of his visits went on increasing, and I knew that he had begun to lay his trust in me. I too kept him close to me; it was the best deal I was to ever get (since it is no rocket science to know that in this business we need to make the most while we are on the right side of age). His affection towards me kept steadily increasing. I know he shared with me what he could not share with others. He trusted me completely. Until this morning.

I guess I was still hungover from the drinks the previous night when the noise woke me up. So I thought I had misunderstood it at first. But then I heard it once again, louder and harsher this time. And I knew this was it. His yelling from the living room and the sound of things being thrown astray left no doubt about the extent of his angst. I woke myself up and saw my cell-phone laid on the bed, unlocked, the screen displaying the chain of text messages from Roy from last night. He had read it all, and now he knew of my deal with Roy - the details of our meeting point and payment that I will be receiving in exchange for his, yes HIS diamond necklace.

It began last evening. He came over late, but ecstatic. He had carried with him a bottle of champagne and was clearly here to celebrate. He told me he had struck a huge business deal – the biggest he could have ever dreamt of (I am not quite sure of what his so called business was – I never cared too much about these things as long as my fees kept coming in on time – but I do have an idea that it was not a clean one). To add to it, he said, he had received the advance pay in the evening and that was big money right there. So for celebrating this success, he had got me a gold chain from the money. It was lovely, I won’t deny that. But what he said next was what piqued my interest. Normally he wouldn’t talk to me much about his wife, but today in his excitement it slipped from his mouth that he had got a gift for her as well – a real expensive diamond necklace. Well, a pendant for me and a necklace for her. It got me real curious to see this pretty thing. I thought maybe I could have a look when he would fall asleep. In fact, it was the first time I was going to see a diamond necklace, so it got me so keen that I wanted him to fall asleep as quickly as possible. To do that, I got him drunk real bad. Unfortunately, I myself got quite drunk in the process – my biggest mistake.

As soon as he was down and out (which I knew happened real quickly after he was done fucking me), I got off the bed and went straight to his bag. As I was rummaging through his bag to find the necklace box, my hands found a certain packet. I opened it shamelessly. And boy; was I glad I opened it! It was raw cash! All green notes. I counted through it hurriedly, nervously. I could not believe the figure - a full one lakh fifty thousand. No wonder he was so thrilled. I could not let go of the packet, so I held it by my side while I started looking once more for the necklace. This time I found it and it was sheer beauty! So big! It must be worth lakhs I was sure. I went numb for a moment. Here I was, with a ton of money in my hand – something I had always wanted ever since I had been robbed of my rightful luxuries. This was my one shot that destiny had chosen to provide me. I had to decide right away whether to take it or let it go. Just then it struck me. There was one person who could help me out.

Roy had been a client of mine once, but once he found true love, he had felt compassion towards all the women he had slept with. Since then he tried to help all his women in ways that would legally not have been possible, since obviously, that was what he did after all. I dialled his number immediately and he was, of course, on-board with me. He said he will get back to me in an hour with a detailed plan on how I can get a good deal on the diamonds and then quickly escape from this hell before the sleeping bastard can find out about what hit him. I put away the packet and the diamond in a suitcase under the sofa, packed his bag and made it look untouched, crept into the bed next to my master and waited for Roy to call. I guess that’s when the hangover hit me and I must have fallen asleep.

Once awake, I could see Roy’s missed calls and messages on my phone. He had tried reaching me several times, but maybe when he could not get through, he had left message that he will meet me at his garage tonight, along with other details for the deal of the diamonds. This is what he had read and figured out he had been robbed by none other than his mistress of two years.

I rushed to the living room. He was there throwing things out from inside the shelves under my sofa like a crazy man until he found the money and necklace in the suitcase. As he did this he saw me standing in the passageway and he rushed at me in long strides, grabbed me by my hair and threw me on the floor. His look was like that of a lion ready to pounce on his prey. He grabbed me by the neck, dragged me to the wall, pulled me up and pushed me hard against the wall and let out a roar unlike I had ever heard. He was all red with rage and his eyes spoke what he was truly capable of. I knew I would never be strong enough for him. But then my hands found a stronghold. It was something hard and metallic and I grabbed onto it for my life. His clench got tighter on my throat and my knees were giving up and in that moment, my hands got a mind of their own and reached out to the back of his head in a full swing motion. Before I could understand what I had done, I could feel his fingers lose the grip around my throat. Slowly he fell to the floor, and I saw the red puddle gather around where he lay.

It happened in the heat of the moment. I was a thief yes, a whore yes, but a murderer – no.  For a full hour I simply sat there staring at his bloody corpse. I think it was afternoon when I was shaken out of blankness by the phone’s buzz. It was Roy.

I told him the full story and he heard it like he was hearing out some business deal. When I was through, he asked me he will take care of it. He asked me to pack my bag and he will call me in an hour’s time. I did as he said, and true to his word, he called me within an hour. He told me he had arranged for my escape to Bangkok. I needed to meet him at the garage at 11 pm sharp, where he will give me the documents I will need for my new life. He had also arranged for the guy for the diamond deal who was going to be there with the cash, and that should take care of my needs for a fairly sufficient time. And so, here I am, on my way to Roy’s garage.

I don’t think I feel guilty about what happened. Shocked; yes. What happened was in the spur of the moment, and definitely beyond anything I had intended. But then, I had learnt it a long time ago to not trust anybody – not even closest of kin – when it comes to money matters. Loyalty aside, the world only worshipped money. So I cannot completely empathize with what happened to him. He should have been more careful – the way he was around me about his wife. He allowed himself to be drawn into being duped, and I grabbed my one shot with both hands. Too bad it ended so badly for him. But I’m not going to let the same happen to me. Soon all this will be over. Once I get through this deal with Roy’s man, I will finally be on my own. A new me, with my past behind me.

I feel, somewhere, all of us live with our past. All of us allow it to shape our future. But some of us know how to shrug the past. I think that is who I am...and that is my blue sapphire.


THE BEGINNING

Saturday, August 1, 2015

Roopkund

It is said that treks are more about mental strength than about physical strength. It couldn’t have been any truer for Roopkund. Located at 15,750 feet in the heart of the Himalayas, this trek endures one as much as it mesmerizes. Perhaps that is why despite all the hardships and self-doubts when one reaches the summit, the joy of victory tastes utterly sweet. Perhaps, that is also why upon returning back to the city life one realizes that a part of the soul is left behind…

The trek to this mysterious lake began at Lohjung which serves as the base camp for the 6-day trek. At 7,600 feet, this small village in the Gadhwal range is exactly what a traveller would desire. A tiny village set amidst the mountains with just the bare minimum at your disposal. This was also the day we get to have our last warm water bath before we set out for our 6-day adventure. Introductions with the team were brief, instruction session long. Our first introductions were with the few trekkers who had returned halfway and were awaiting their teams before heading back home. We were told that 95% of each group completes the trek. Which meant the remaining 5% did not. Would that 5% from our group be us?



The next morning we proceeded to the base village which was a half hour ride. Anticipation was building up simply looking at the vast ranges around us. We began through the dense green trail of coniferous trees arching high up to reach the sun. Several birds singing sweet tunes kept playing hide and seek with us through the woods. Every once in a while a local house would pop up with kids standing outside wishing us Namaste and asking us for chocolates.


The stone trail gradually grew tougher and steeper. The climb started leaving most of us breathless – and this was just the first day! The first relief was the cool stream of Neel Ganga. The fresh splash of the chilling water was most refreshing. With rejuvenated vigour, we quickly replenished our bottles and got back moving. Albeit, our enthusiasm was short lived. The energy was getting rapidly exhausted, each step was proving to be a challenge. Some of the more experienced trekkers were way ahead of us and the gap was widening – causing all the more despair. Our sweeper Mr. Vijay was our only source of motivation. His constant mantra was “bas aa gaya, aage hi hai, aur 10 minutes bas”. He went on with this for at-least one hour.


Finally, after almost an eternity, we could see tiny black spots in the distance. Campsite at last! Ghairoli Pataal is the quintessential campsite set in the middle of the woods. It gave a rustic feel with the logs lying around, a herd of sheep passing us by and the campfire burning bright. The realization of being isolated from the world was beginning to sink in. As night set in, the only sound was of leaves being caressed by soft gushes of wind. Nature’s lullaby put us into an instant deep sleep.


The second day was a light one. We were told to be up by 5:30 am, and were to depart by 7 am. Of course, being Indians, we took the liberty of following our own timezone. Nonetheless, we took a final headcount and started on our way to Bedni Bugiyaal. We had been hearing a lot about Bedni ever since the start of the trek. It was claimed to boast of the highest meadow in the world. But before that, we were to cross Ali Bugiyaal on the way - which was another pleasant meadow that was known to be a photographer’s paradise. We couldn’t wait to see it for ourselves.

After ascending for a fairly long time when we still couldn’t see any opening, we were beginning to lose hope out of exhaustion. And just then it appeared. The landscape suddenly turned from brown to green. The sky was draped in the purest shade of blue. Strokes of white clouds washed over it like a painter’s strokes. The snow-capped peaks of the Trishul and Nandagunti peeped at us in the distance painting a mesmerizingly beautiful picture. A small rock temple in the centre of the meadow, a team of horses rolling in a pit of dry sand, and an unbelievably beautiful carpet of yellow, purple and pink flowers completed the picture of this heaven on earth.


If Ali Top was heaven, then Bedni made us feel like residents of heaven. An endless stretch of the moor with a tiny pond in the backdrop, soft winds gushing unobstructed and the view of the snow mountains in the forefront. What more can one ask for! Oh, and we get to live there!

As if the view was not enough, we were in for another adventure. The army camp was set right next to ours. And when our group set out to play cricket, even the uniform could not stop them from joining us. And what a game it turned out to be! Team Army seemed to be pretty experienced in their game and set a target of 55 for Team Indiahikes. Poor team Indiahikes barely knew their teammates, let alone knowing their strengths. Needless to say, they got into a bad start, inviting several funny humiliations from the army opponents. But hold your horses. These underdogs were not to be mistaken for amateurs. After a Lagaan style game thriller game, the decision boiled down to the last ball, when Team Indiahikes hit a 4! A four at the last ball! A memorable win for Team Indiahikes!



The cricket game combined with steaming hot pakodas served as true ice-breakers for the group. Suddenly the group turned chirpy. Bedni had worked its magic and given us some amazing memories to cherish for a lifetime.

From Bedni to Paatal Nauchni and from there on to Bagwa Baasa, the trail changed its form from rugged rawness to snow-laden slipperiness. The rock structures became sharper and the valleys grew deeper. Each one of us seemed to have developed acrophobia all of a sudden when walking over the narrow paths overlooking the valleys. The might of the Himalayas was now becoming evident. Yet, sometimes whining, sometimes cheering, we proceeded slowly each day towards our campsites. The campsites were another spectacle by themselves – facing deep valleys without any obstruction, allowing the wind to blow over the plain camp area mercilessly. The temperature also started to drop steeply from this point on, and we knew that the most challenging part of the trek had just about begun.


At last, the summit day was here. As told by the technical team, the way forward was now to be an expedition and not just a trek. And truly, it was a test of determination and mental persistence more than the just physical strength. As we crossed one snow-clad mound after the other, energies started getting exhausted, technical difficulties began to increase and courage began to diminish. And yet, one step at a time, we moved forth. The lake continued to play hide and seek with us, making us believe that our destiny laid just beyond this last ascend, and then hiding again behind yet another small climb.

The Summit – at last we made it! What a feeling, what a rush, what a sense of achievement! The energies were revitalized just at the sight of our frozen lake. Our joyful cheering would have surely awakened the so called meditating monks had they been around. But what can one do, the exhilaration was beyond what can be expressed in words.



As a last word, I cannot say how many times during the 6-day period we would have questioned our decision to put ourselves through this pain through a conscious decision - decided to embark on this unpredictable journey in the mightiest mountain range of India with 20 strangers, to live through the difficult conditions, sleeping in cramped bags on hard rock or freezing snow, going without a bath for 6 days straight,  enduring aching knees and ankles and shoulders and necks day after day, finding that ounce of motivation from some hidden corner inside us to step out of the comfort of the tent to visit the shaky washroom tent or struggling through the chilling breeze to get a cup of coffee, and most of all, each day fighting and facing our fears and taking that “one more step” to keep going until we would finally get a sight of the tiny dots on a barren stretch of land that marked our campsite.

I found the answers in several forms during the course of this 6 days – sometimes in the form of the support from our guide and sweeper, sometime in the form of cheer and motivation from our trek buddies, sometimes in form of the reward that the Himalayas bestowed upon us in form of incomparable splurge of beauty, sometimes in the form of the rush and thrill we derived after successfully completing a difficult patch. But mostly, the best answer was the one I got only once I returned to the chaos of the city-life and began to feel this emptiness that craved for one more glimpse of the mountains that allowed us to trespass them and accepted us as a warm host only too happy to shower its mirth upon its guests. The answer hid in the answer to yet another simple question – would I do it again? Yes, a million times over!

Friday, October 31, 2014

Re-Defined

She knew that if she spent another minute pondering about it, she would break. And she could not afford to be broken. Not even if every cell of her pained body pleaded her to give up.

She struggled to get up. She failed. She tried again, this time a little more slowly. She tried to move her arm so it could support her broken body. It refused to budge. How was she ever going to live through this? No, I mustn’t give up, she kept telling herself. So she tried again and failed again and tried again and failed again, until her body refused to put up any more with the struggle it had been bearing for a very very long time now. At last she collapsed. Right next to the man she had murdered just a little while ago. Her mind, too burdened with the weight of the vacuum that he had left in her, began to drift. This time, she allowed herself to daze away into the unconscious emptiness that her mind was leading her into.

And so she just stayed. Stayed there for what might have been hours, perhaps even days, she couldn’t say for sure. Time seemed lost on her. 
Finally she woke up. Realization dawned upon her. The weight of her action struck her with such force it shook her up and made her jerk up from her dizziness to face her dead husband.

Only now, as she looked up at this dead man’s body, she felt different. Her emptiness was being slowly replaced by something else. She felt something move inside her. Very slowly, but surely this something was creeping inside her and moving to her heart. She let out a loud gasp! And then it was done. The heaviness, the unsettled feeling, the emptiness and the fear – all of it was gone, just like that. The creepy feeling now made its way up her throat and touched her lips. It made her mouth curl up very slightly. Very slowly it went up to her cheeks, and after a very very long time they showed a glimpse of colour. Finally, it reached her eyes. And it seemed to her that for the first time she actually saw. As if awakening from a deep trance, she realized finally that he was not around anymore. That she didn’t have to be afraid anymore. Saw that the endless cycle of hurt and pain had finally ended. Saw that she was free. 

And then she felt. No, this was not the feeling of guilt for taking a man’s life. It wasn’t the feeling of death. This was something else. It was the feeling of life. It was the feeling of her being her. It was the feeling of finding herself. It was; her redefining.

Un-Defined

She opened her eyes to see him at a short distance from her. Instantly, a cold fear gripped her. She was afraid. Not of this man. Not of what she had done to him. Not of his damaged body that lay lifeless in the dark corner of the house she had called home for the last 11 months. No. It was something else. Something deep enough to unsettle her very being. Something strong enough to weaken her soul to the extent of causing such turmoil in her mind and heart that she could not bear to think about it for even a moment longer. She knew she had killed a man.

And she knew she had done the right thing. She did not fear the consequences of a murder. Yet, she was afraid. Afraid of that unknown fear that gripped her from within and suffocated her in a way that made her feel as if she were drowning. Maybe she was indeed drowning. Was that how it felt to drown? Surely she was unable to find her breath. And her body wasn’t following what her mind was saying. What was her mind saying anyway? That she had murdered the man she once loved. Why was she not crying then? Where werethe tears? How can she feel so numb? Maybe she was dead too. Dead by drowning in fear? Was that possible? Yes, that was it. She was dead. She had been dead for a long time now.

The constant fear of this man had killed her soul long before he could harm her physical being. Fear of those drunken eyes and how they glared down at her. The eyes that once had affection and love floating in them, had gradually given permanent refuge to anger and arrogance – arrogance that turned this caring, affectionate man into a monster. Her body shivered as she looked at the dead eyes that had humiliated her every night, the limp hands that had hit her face with any object they could find around, the broken legs that had not hesitated to kick her in the abdomen on the days she had taken the bottle away from him. How did it matter that her body still had life remaining in it? Her soul was long dead. She had been full of life once. But this man had taken the life from her and replaced it with fear. And when he left, he had taken away this fear along with him, to leave behind emptiness. That was all that she was now. A piece of undefined emptiness…

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Agra Confessions...

This post is dedicated to all the awesome memories created during this very unplanned and unlikely trip - which in fact turned out to be a one very special and close to all our hearts. 

It was unplanned for we had not really been looking forward to it, had not anticipated that we would actually end up going for it (though the tickets were booked long ago!) - especially looking at the trend of our plans in the past which clearly indicated the fun part ended at the discussion stage. So, when at the last minute everybody managed to figure out an excuse to drop out from office for a couple of days, the plan was finally on!

Before I begin, here's an introduction of the characters:
Ankita: The Bride
Sneha: The late lateef
Mansi: The townie
Jinesh: A harrowed guy
Surbhi: A family girl
Suken: Let's not describe him :P
Aditi: That's Me!

Here was our planned itinerary: 
Day 1: Suken and Sneha to leave for Agra in afternoon
Day 2: Suken and Surbhi to attend the Sangeet. Jins, Mansi, Surbhi and I to leave for Agra
Day 3: Jins, Mansi, Surbhi and myself to reach Agra in evening. All 6 to attend the night wedding
Day 4: Fatehpur Sikri, Agra market
Day 5: Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and any other place feasible. Depart for Mumbai by night train
Day 6: Reach Mumbai

Here's what actually happened:
Day 1: Sneha manages to almost miss the train - again!
Day 2: Sneha misses us in the middle of the night...shares the phone with Suken?
Day 3: Surbhi raids the rooms
Day 4: Epic impromptu dance by Suken & Jins
Day 5: Monkey fight
Day 6: Robbery!

How did we manage to get so off the plan? Read on...

Day 1: The Ritual
As it is a well known fact by now, a trip cannot be complete unless Sneha manages to almost miss it. The record remains unbeaten till date - thanks to the fact that despite leaving well in time for the train (for a change), Sneha and Suken managed to enter the 3:00 pm train at 2:59:59 pm. Of course, we shall not blame her because it is obviously never her fault :)

Day 2: The Chaos
The Train: Adi, Mansi and Jins realize they are all in different compartments! Incidentally, Surbhi, who had booked her ticket separately manages to get a seat right next to Jins. So much for ladies quota! 

After about 5 trips to and fro between the 1st and the 6th compartment, and after having all the passengers in these compartments memorize our faces, Mansi and I manage to shift to the same compartment as Jins and Surbhi. The trip had finally begun! Fortunately for us, the uncle who was travelling with us had booked all 6 seats for his family, but could not be accompanied by them due to last minute changes. What was more fortunate was the fact that he had not cancelled those tickets - which meant we could have THE ENTIRE BOGIE OF 6 for ourselves upto Jhansi!

No sooner had we settled in when Surbhi does a Surbhi when she accidentally blurts out about her "family planning". (Please refer to the appendix for a full list of trip dictionary). This wasn't enough. So Mansi does a Surbhi too when she plugs her cell phone on charging and begins cribbing endlessly that it is not getting charged - only to have Jins point out that she has not put on the switch :)

Meanwhile at the Sangeet: Sneha was having a very nice time when she mixed some 2-3 varieties of drinks and started feeling reallllyy good. Things only got better when she started playing games.........

Back to the Train: Just as the lights were turned off and we were about to go to sleep, we get a message from Sneha: Miss you girls! That was it. Jins was offended that he wasn't being missed and we got extremely curious as to what made her miss us so much as to message us at such an odd time. She told us she was just playing games. Well, the next 2 hours were spent knowing more about the games Sneha was playing ;) For some very odd reason, only one of Sneha and Suken would talk at a time. Strange, isn't it? 

Day 3: Lessons of Life
This day turned out to be a crash course for Jins on "What Women Want". Okay I'm exaggerating. Actually it was just what we girls do that he may or may not have known earlier. We entertained him with a nice hour long session on how to spend an hour removing and applying nail paint and teaching him the difference between bright orange and neon orange. The session also added some more words from the female dictionary - the easiest one being "Awwwwww!!!". I can proudly say he has learned the usage of these words very accurately :) For those who think we girls completely overpowered him - hold on. He had his own fun when he taught us the mannerisms of an upmarket townie lingo which included some expressions such as being harrowed and mannerisms on how to make things look decent


We were having a good time enjoying the compartment to ourselves. But like everything good - this good time too came to an end - for an even better time. Enter Mr and Mrs Dadaji and his grandson. The three of them were travelling to Delhi to get the granny operated. She was such a sweet thing, smiled and said it all with her expressions, without uttering a single word for hours. Well, her husband more than made up for it. What started with a seemingly innocent query of "Where are you all headed to?" resulted in 2-3 hours of non-stop elocution by Mr Dadaji. In these couple of hours we got to know almost everything about him (quite an intelligent, learned, broad minded, interesting old man), his family (in all parts of North India), his achievements in life (being the Sarpanch of his village at some point), his opinion on politics (that was because we saw Mayawati board our train at some random station) and also got enlightened about some random topics ranging from India's freedom struggle, Gandhiji's biography etc. etc. etc. But the best part were the unforgettable 2-liner poetries he made up on the spot:

"Chai garam honi chahiye
Swabhaav naram hona chahiye"

And with that amazing session of chit chat we reached Agra...

The Wedding: Anki's wedding was bound to be the grand affair that easily qualifies for the title of a Big Fat Indian Wedding. It had all the essentials that a Marwadi wedding must have - an awesome venue in the Mogul Sheraton banquet hall, a royal dinner with more dishes than one can count, the Band Baaja Bride experience with extravagant dresses donned upon by both families, and of course, who can forget the belly dancers (Yes, that's right - belly dancers on the side stage throughout the reception procession)!

The expose: Well, Anki looked stunningly gorgeous. She made a beautiful bride :) Little did we know at that point that there was already another wedding being arranged at that very moment, right under our noses!  Enter Ms. Surbhi with her amazingly ancient cellphone. Surprisingly, we had noticed her spending a looooottt of time on her phone throughout the trip. Definitely something was fishy. So this time when she left her phone carelessly on the table and it buzzed, Mansi managed to steal it away and lo! The screen was flashing a message pop-up. The moment she read the pop-up, she left out a shrill scream and came running to Sneha and me. Our reactions were almost similar when we read the flash on the screen. It said:

"I hope I am not crossing  my limits"

Yes, it were exactly those same words. Surbhi was coming running behind Mansi to get her phone back, but of course, it was too late by then. Poor thing had to explain the entire story to us in detail. That's how we got to know of Mr. Jay (or Jai Ho! as Suken addresses him). Congratulations Surbhi! We let her enjoy her time and had our own fun seeing her blush at every mention of Jai ho!

The dinner: We wished her and then proceeded to the dinner area. Now, there were just so many options on the menu that we had a difficult time selecting what to eat and what to skip! Bust somehow, we managed to finally reach the Pav Bhaji counter. A point to note here is that by this time all of us were almost full, so we wanted to simply "taste" Pav Bhaji. Obviously, as everything else on the trip, this also had to go weird. So here's what happened. Suken got us a plate of Pavs and Bhaji. We finished the Bhaji but were left with Pav. So he went back and got more Bhaji. This time we finished the Pav but were left with Bhaji. So he went back and got some more Pav. Again, we finished the Bhaji but not the Pav. So he went and got some more Bhaji. And the same story repeated for about 5-6 times! As you can guess, we were too full for any desserts :)

The Pheras: Finally, the reception dinner was over and we had some time to relax before the actual wedding. So we freshened up and changed to something lighter, mingled with Anki's other friends, the normal chit chatting here and there. When the ceremony finally began, it was almost 3 am, and the bidaai was to happen after 7 am or so. We were too exhausted by this time to wait up through the ceremony, so we decided to head back to our rooms and take a nap so that we could be back for the bidaai.

Well, going by the exhaustion we had had through the 2 days, one would have expected us to be asleep within minutes. Once again that was not to be. As Mansi, Surbhi, Sneha and I got into our bed, we suddenly felt at a loss of sleep. Someone brought it up and someone else suggested that if we are not sleepy, we shouldn't let the guys sleep either. Surbhi, however, was an exception and still felt drowsy. So we told her that she can go to the guys room and go to sleep there. But first we must wake up the guys.

So we headed to their rooms and knocked. The moment they opened the door, Surbhi barged in, practically raiding the room. Before we could figure out what was happening, she had occupied the bed and slid into the blanket. The rest of us, including the guys, were left standing, surprised at Surbhi's speed of the takeover.

Anyways, after a while of nonsense chit chatting here and there, we headed back to our rooms, setting the alarm for 6:30 am. Needless to say it was snoozed and dismissed without even realizing, and we missed the bidaai. Sorry Anki!

Day 4: Expect the unexpected

The next day was thankfully pretty uneventful. after a quick relocation to another hotel, we headed out for a visit to the Fatehpur Sikri and Agra market. It was a lovely day and the place was even more lovelier - except for the honey bee hives that occupied practically the entire roof of the Sikri.



After a delicious lunch at the Sikri, we returned to the city for some shopping in the city. This is where the guys sort of underestimated the girls and had to re-do the shopping ;) After an awesome session of hogging on street food - Alu Chaat, Gol Gappas, Tokri Chaat, Rabdi and the likes - we headed back to our hotel. today we had planned for a night-out and couldn't wait for the excitement to begin.

Later that night, we and Anki's other friends assembled in our room for the night sessions. A night full of craziness, silliness, weirdness and madness had just begun. After a happening game of cards and some other silly games, Anki's friends had to call it a night for they had an early morning checkout next day. So it was just us from then on. At some point, Jins and Suken lost some sort of a bet and had to give us a dance performance. Surprisingly, they agreed!

What followed next was mind blowing. A 5 minute long duet performance on Chhammak Challo with atleast 6-7 different variety of steps, and all in sync! We were astonished beyond words! Not just were they both sporty enough to agree for the dance, but each of their moves, each one's expressions and each step! It had to be seen to be believed.

Day 5: A chase sequence and a robbery

It was our final day at Agra and we wanted to make the most of it. We woke up with the driver's call. He had already arrived and we were still asleep, too hungover from the previous night. Somehow we gathered enough motivation to get out of the bed and pack up our stuff for the day. The plan was to check out and keep our luggage in the hotel lobby while we go visit the Taj Mahal, Agra fort, Vrindavan and Mathura. then we would return to the hotel in the evening, collect our bags and board the return train. Based on the time our driver had explained to us, it seemed like a perfect plan. Of course, we had been forgetting that we had Sneha with us :)

The Taj was beautiful. More than beautiful actually. Floating amidst the winter haze and soft white clouds, it looked like a fairytale woven in dreams that had just decided to come down to earth to mesmerize us petty human beings with its spellbinding beauty.


We then moved on to visit the Agra fort where our guide had amazing stories to tell us about the Moguls and their court at the time. We then headed to hog on amazing parathas for lunch. With our stomachs full, we were now ready for a long journey to Vrindavan.

Here we visited the local gullies of Krishna's hometown. Later we headed to the newly built temple of Vrindavan - a massive structure with fascinating murals and beautiful lighting that threw lovely patterns on the artificial scenes created to depict stories from Krishna's life.

It was already evening by the time we departed for Mathura, so a little crunched on time. But we are not the people who give up so easily. Mathura here we come!

The departure: We could not make it to old Mathura. We did manage to see the new temple there outside the original boundaries, but were running too late to visit the Yamuna. So this had to be it. We needed to get going if we had any intentions of not missing the train AGAIN!

We were running so late by the time we reached our hotel, and the hotel guy just wasn't being cooperative. We were all completely harrowed! We were trying to gather our bags and other belongings, when suddenly some guests from another room came to the reception and began complaining to the manager. Apparently they had a terrible sleep the previous night because of some chaotic noises coming from the floor above theirs. Okay, we realized that should have been our noise. Hmm...glad we were checking out.

Quickly we rushed out of the place and got into our car. We had exactly half hour to board the train and within this time we had to manage loading our bags into the car, dodge the evening traffic to the railway station, settle the driver's payments and climb the bridge with bags and find the correct bogie. Oh, and not to forget the pedas! With pin drop silence we made our way to the station and having realized we had some time to spare, quickly rushed to purchase the pedas. Thankfully we were able to board with five minutes to spare.

Our trip had been a super success and it should have ended at that point (after another awesome dinner of course). But as it were to be, picture abhi baaki thi!

Robbery!: We were to reach Mumbai very early the next morning. A couple of hours before that, Jinesh gets a call from his brother in the US. Now some background here - Jinesh was staying alone in Mumbai at that point and since he was travelling, his house was locked and empty. Or atleast that is how it was supposed to be. But that is not what his brother told him over the call. He was in fact quite surprised to know Jins was still on the way, in  train. Who had spoken to him over video call just a few minutes ago then?

According to his brother, Jins had received his call over Facetime just 5-10 minutes ago. Though they were not able to speak, but the description of the background - a brown sofa, a well built guy answering the call - quite resembled Jinesh and his house. Was it what we were thinking it was? Immediately Jinesh's sister in law (in US with his bro) panicked. We were worried too. There was definitely something spooky here.

Either his brother had dialed a wrong number or someone had broken into his house. Wrong number over Facetime was not a possibility. So it meant a robbery was taking place at his house right this very moment! The thief must have picked up the tablet and when he saw the incoming call, he must have accepted it in his panic. So the guy Jinesh's brother saw on the video call must be the thief himself!

This was beyond anything we had ever anticipated. What could we do sitting here in train? Was there actually a thief at his place? Likely - he said. Just a few days ago there had been an incident where the rods of his window had been widened when they had been out - as if someone had tried to break in. Maybe the thieves had been keeping a close watch on his movements all along! And so this time they grabbed the opportunity.

Jinesh placed a call to his neighbour and requested them to open his house with the spare keys he had left with them. The neighbour aunty, very gutsy indeed, agreed to help. She went into the house and checked every corner of it to be double sure. No thief there. His ipad was also on the bed - right where he had placed it before leaving for the trip.

So no robbery. Thank God! But then, who was it that his brother had seen on the call? Nothing was making any sense. Well, nothing we could do at the moment. So we urged them to take it as a case of cross connection and ignore it atleast for the time being. At the back of our minds, though, we were all still worried.

Mystery un-revealed: We reached Mumbai before sunrise. Exhausted with the endless ordeal of even after event, we just wanted to go home and crash for a while before heading back to the routine of our jobs. Only, there was the mystery of the robbery yet to be solved. And solved it got. The next day Jinesh explained to us all as to what had actually happened. The silly error that led to this huge chaos. Here's the gist of it: Jinesh had visited the US just a couple of months ago and had taken a temporary sim card there for using during his stay. When he returned, he had discarded the number. But the telecom company had not. They had re-assigned it to some other guy (also well built, and who stayed in a house having brown sofas similar to the ones at Jinesh's place). His brother had the US number still saved, and that night, had dialed the US number instead of India number. The other guy had received it from his home in US and caused all the confusion.

Wow! Who could have imagined that! But we were all super relieved after hearing this. No robbery AND no mystery. And an awesome trip with loads and loads of memories. Well, all's well that ends well. But for us, it was a new beginning of a treasured friendship of lifetime :) Cheers!

AppendixThe Trip Dictionary

1. Family Planning: A planned outing with your family
2. Doing a Surbhi: Managing to innocently pull off a joke on yourself
3. Townie: A person who often attempts to flaunt his or her lifestyle through usage of superfluous words such as "harrowed" etc. or through high handed behaviour
4. Harrowed: Expression used by townies when they feel annoyed
5. Awwwww: A feminine expression used by girls to either a. express warmth or b. annoy guys
6. I do!: A term that always succeeds at scaring off guys
7. Decent: An act of good doing done solely with the intention of showing off your nicer side - just for the heck of it
8. Playing games: Left open to audience interpretation....