L : Love in Lockdown #AtoZChallenge2020

Love in Lockdown - A Short Fictional Story

On the evening of 24th March 2020, the Prime Minister made an unprecedented announcement. The lockdown was announced for 21 days with effect from 25th March 2020. Like all midnight diktats, this one also came with a lot of pain. Lokesh was definitely not prepared for this. His hostel was being closed and he was asked to evacuate immediately. The trains to his hometown, 300 miles away, were cancelled. He was new to the city and didn't have any friends. As he was contemplating his next move, nervously moving about his office corridor, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and was surprised to see Lata.

They had interacted only once before this and that too during a meeting. He had made a presentation on marketing plans for the year, few months back, and she had sought a clarification. Lata his colleague, from engineering department, had a very delightful countenance. The moment he saw that face, his troubles melted away instantaneously. She also seemed to understand his problem, without him saying anything. She said, "I have a spare room in my apartment, as my room-mate left for her hometown last week. It is a private space and no one will disturb you. And we can share the rent too."

Lokesh agreed and moved to the apartment immediately. Lata had maintained the house very well - spick and span. She had also stocked groceries for a week or so. Lokesh was looking at her with admiration. Unlike him, she was so well organized. But he was still little awkward. Sharing a home with a woman, was a first for him. They divided the household chores that night itself, post dinner. For next few days they both were largely confined to their respective rooms and only used to eat together in the dining hall. On the 6th night, Lata heard him singing. He was humming some old Bollywood song while ironing his clothes. Lata went towards his room and stood near the door without being noticed. It was her favorite song. At that precise moment, something changed. Her heart fluttered. She came back to her room, and couldn't sleep that night. 

Lokesh completely unaware of what happened the previous night, offered to go out to buy groceries for the week. He didn't return for almost an hour. The grocery store was allowing only 4 people inside at a time. Lata got anxious and called him thrice to check on him. He took a shower after his return and completely sanitized everything. She wanted to hug him. But she wasn't sure.

As the 21 days of the lockdown were coming to an end, Lata was jittery. She couldn't imagine her life without him. Lokesh was a good companion, great to talk with and had a great taste in music. He even made her laugh several times during this dreadful lockdown. But Lokesh didn't seem to notice her at all. Yes, he was nice to her. But he didn't seem to reciprocate her feelings. She felt engineering is easier to understand than the matters of the heart. 

Today morning, on the 21st day of the lockdown, they both were watching TV at 10 am. The Prime Minister was to make a key announcement. Almost 10 minutes into his speech the PM announced that the lockdown will get extended till 3rd of May. 19 more days! Lata and Lokesh moaned in delight exactly at the same moment! Now both of them knew what they have been feeling for each other for weeks. Lata switched off the TV immediately. They didn't listen to the complete speech. 

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My theme for this year's #AtoZchallenge is Lock-down Blues. I intend to write and talk about how I deal with it, what it inspires me to read or watch or any aspect of it which fascinates me. You can read the theme reveal post here. 

Previous Challenges : Letter L

2017: Lucknow

2018: Left Behind

2019: Lost & Found Formula in Hindi Films / Bollywood

L : Lost & Found Formula in Hindi Films / Bollywood #AtoZChallenge 2019

Hindi films first perfected this formula and then took it to such absurd levels of stupidity, that the formula became cliched. And then the Hindi films abandoned it. I miss the formula at times. Lost & Found formula is a great literary device that creates potential for drama. 

Imagine two people sitting in a restaurant on different tables. This is a normal scene. They are doing normal things. But as an audience you are aware that these two people are brothers who got separated in childhood and they now don't recognize each other. If you notice, the scene lacks any thrill or drama, but in your mind a lot is happening. No wonder, almost every second film from 50s to 80s used this device to further the screenplay.

Lost & Found formula had a standard arc. A happy family was shown. A disaster (natural / man-made) would strike. Somehow all family members would end up at different places, with no way to reach the others. They would then grow up oblivious to others' conditions. They would grow up in different socio-economic situations leading to a natural conflict between them when their paths cross. Their paths would cross. They wouldn't recognize each other. By the time third act starts, there would be something which would make them realize that they are family. They would fight the main evil together. Happy Ending!

The two films that did it so well were Yash Chopra's Waqt and Nasir Hussain's Yaadon Ki Baaraat. These two films were really well made, because the lost & found formula was not used here for just cheap thrills. The formula was important to make the point of the story. The separation was inevitable and not forced. In Waqt an earthquake strikes and in Yaadon ki Baraat, the three brothers get separated while fleeing away from the killer of their parents. The reunion at the end was also not based on some flimsy logic. In Waqt, the elder son, recognizes a childhood picture and in Yaadon Ki Baraat, the youngest brother sings in a club daily, a song which the three brothers knew by heart, in hope that one of the club patrons, someday might turn out to be his brother. Here are the reunion scenes from both the films. 

But  then as it happens with most formulas, this formula was rendered useless by its overuse. Also in some films the recognition of each other happened in strange ways. Like a birthmark on the arm, which is common to both brothers. Look at the absurdity here. What are the odds that in a highly populated country like India, two brothers who got separated in childhood, would cross each others paths, in sleeve-less shirts and notice a birth mark?

Then there was another cliche - a childhood locket. Before separation the father would buy identical lockets for both his sons. As they grow up, does this locket keeps growing too? Or did father bought over-sized lockets? Why do the sons keep wearing this locket even when they grow up? What are the odds here, that the shop from which the father bought lockets didn't sell it to any one else?

In Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja, a miserable flop and the last film in which I remember this formula being used, took this absurdity to next level. One of the brothers had a lock and the other key to it. And they both carry it with them always. As if separated people don't move on in lives. 

I would love it if a modern film-maker makes a movie on this formula but root it in reality. It would be a super-hit!

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My theme for this year's #AtoZchallenge is Hindi Film Industry / Bollywood cliches. You can read the theme reveal post here.

2017 Challenge Post from Letter L: Lucknow - A post about my time in the city of Lucknow. Click here to read.

2018 Challenge Post from Letter L: Left Behind - A post which tries to provide solutions to some of the pressing problems in your life. Click here to read.

L : Left Behind #AtoZchallenge

* Do you cling on to things?

* Do you find it difficult to let go of your mistakes?

* Do you live in past?

* Do you remember things which you shouldn't?

* Do you seek closure for everything?

* Do you regret taking that gym membership which you never utilized?

* Are you unable to break up with your nagging girl friend?

* Are you missing your ex-boss, whom you hated, when you were working under him?

If answer to any of these questions is Yes, you haven't developed the art of leaving things behind you. 

* When was the last time, you left behind something and didn't think about it again, ever?

If your answer is "Never", I pity you. 

While only you can help yourself in this situation, I will give some helpful tips for few standard issues that you think can never be left behind. 

Disclaimer: Try them at your own risk. The author of this post doesn't take any responsibility for your actions based on the suggestions made here.

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Issue 1: You got a dent on your new car and you are constantly worried about it.

Tip: Hit your head hard on the place where your car is dented. The dent you get on your head is now a bigger issue. You will forget your car dent.

Generic Lesson: Worry only about bigger issues!

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Issue 2: Your boss asks you difficult questions everyday for which you don't have answers. Once a week you receive a public dressing-down from him. You are finding it difficult to leave thoughts of this behind you, over the weekends.

Tip: Always answer his questions. It doesn't matter if you know the right ones. Use phrases like "Totally agree", "As per the recent study", "I will do this provided you support on...", "What do you think about it" etc. liberally. Also keep smiling like crazy when he scolds you. Now your boss will be worried over weekends - confounded by your mysterious smile and your thought provoking, yet random answers. 

Generic Lesson: Face your problems with a smile and when life throws a googly at you, play it on the front foot!

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Issue 3: You are constantly short of funds. You worry that you earn less than others. You are constantly running and still not getting anywhere.

Tip 1: Make friends with people earning less than you. They will tell you their sob stories. You will not remember yours. (This kind of logic was actually given to me by one of my ex-bosses, when I asked for a raise. I am telling you, there are all kinds of creatures in this world)

Tip 2: Take risks and pick a high reward vocation . You can gamble, become a contract killer or a politician. Though in gambling and contract killing, you will have to do some work.

Generic Lesson: Others' misery is a great stabilizing factor and you can't expect different results by doing the same things. Shake it up!

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Issue 4: You are always worried about your calorie intake. You don't get time to exercise. You wish your weight was left behind in your past.

Tip 1. Marry the nagging girlfriend I mentioned in the 7th question above. She will make you dance on her tunes and run around her. You won't need any gym membership after that. 

Generic Lesson: Some issues can only be solved when you have a great partner!

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I hope by now you have understood that every bothersome thing can be left behind if you really want it to. For getting solutions to your specific problems, you can state the problem in the comments section and deposit the fees in my back account. 🤣

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My last year's challenge post from letter L was about my time in city of Lucknow. Read it here.

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My theme for this year's #AtoZchallenge is all about writing stories, anecdotes and observations from my life in form of easy to read listicles. You can read the theme reveal post here.

L : Lucknow

There was a toss up between Ludhiana and Lucknow, while writing this post. 

Ludhiana, where I spent first 22 years of my life and where I keep going back for few weeks every year. Barring 2016, I have been to Ludhiana every year since I left my home there. But most of the posts in this April Challenge have been about stories from Ludhiana, so I chose Lucknow for this post.

I had spent a year and a half in Lucknow from January 2003 to June 2004. Though half of that time I had spent travelling to smaller towns of Uttar Pradesh. Long time back, I had written a post about my time in U.P. It was a strange land and an even stranger time for me. (You can read that post here.) I bet lot has changed in last 12 years. I have been there for work several times since then, but never felt that sense of belonging.

My time in Lucknow was very different than any other phase of my life. The four L's that define this phase are:

Loneliness - This was one of the most difficult times of my life. For a long time, I had no friends in Lucknow. It was only time in my adult life when I wasn't in a steady relationship with any girl. The long distance relationships rarely work. And that was a time, when mobile connectivity was still not like it is today. It was a struggle for very long, staying in a very small room where the bathroom was in the landlord's garage. Also I had to travel to mofussil towns and I witnessed things which I wasn't mentally ready for. I used to stay in really shabby hotels. There was no one to talk to. Later I discovered company of NS. He was 11 years senior to me. Never a colleague, always a friend. He had a house with garden and a balcony. I was truly myself with him. Almost every other night, I was sitting in his balcony drinking a beer and singing songs off key and out of tune. He was a good listener and that helped. I learned to enjoy my own company during this period. I think I was a good company to myself. Till date, I need some alone time to keep my sanity.

LML - As it was my first job, my father had gifted me a LML bike. I think having a bike helped a lot. It gave me mobility literally and metaphorically. The moment I used to mount it, I used to forget everything that was wrong. That bike took me to places, I wouldn't have gone to other wise. The streets of Aminabad and the roads of Chinhat (a tehsil in Lucknow). But the most important memory associated with LML is actually not a memory. I had an alcohol induced black-out after the Fish in the Pond incident. I was so drunk that when DS offered to drop me home, I declined. He told me later, that after 'Fish in the Pond' loop, I had moved to another one. I kept saying in Hindi (roughly translated here in English) "I will drive, It is my bike." He actually took a risk and rode pillion. I dropped him at his place. I think I created some ruckus there. Then I came back to my place that night. It sounds scary, but I remember nothing of it. But I am a wise man. Few months later, I decided to stop drinking  riding bikes. I never bought another bike and I never drive anything on my own, until necessary. So no drunk driving is my motto of life. Over the years though, my drinking has reduced too. It is a good thing for life and health, but very bad if you want newer memories. 

Love for Movies -  I used to watch lot of movies in Ludhiana too, in cinema halls. But very few middle class families used to go there. In Lucknow every class of people used to go to movies. And people used to love movies. They used to dance in the aisles, when songs played and I fell in love with movies there all over again and with this side of Lucknow. They appreciated cinema. Movies were my crutch to overcome loneliness. 

Once NS and I went for a Shahrukh Khan film. I think it was Kal Ho Naa Ho, but can't be sure. It had just released, and we could only get tickets of the stall and not of more privileged balcony seats. So when NS was about to sit, he realized that his seat was smeared with "Paan Peek" (Spit / Saliva that gets accumulated in your mouth when you chew Paan or Betel leaves with lot of condiments in it). By the way, Paan and related stories about that red spit seen in every nook and corner of Lucknow can have a post of its own dedicated to it. So NS was in two minds, whether to sit and watch movie ignoring the disgusting nature of the entire scenario or to go back home. We arranged for a newspaper to cover the seat so that he can sit without trouble. I am sure he was squirming throughout. 

Love for Food - No post on Lucknow can be complete without mentioning food. Lucknow is a food paradise. Due to loneliness, I discovered love of my own company. I learned to go on bike rides alone. I learned to watch movies alone and I still enjoy that. I also learned to eat alone. My favorites were well known Tundey Ke Kebaab in Aminabad and Prakash ki Falooda Kulfi. I liked Biryani at Dastarkhwaan. There was a small outlet in Dainik Bhaskar Chowk. His Boti Kebaab and Rumaali Roti were yum too. The food really kept my soul nourished. Even today, I like eating out a lot and I have been able to develop taste for multiple cuisines because of my stint in Lucknow. 

Lucknow taught me to appreciate other cultures. It taught me to adapt and adjust. It taught me lot about Life.