NEIGHBOURHOOD

KALIKAPUR, COGNIZANT & LOST LOVE



“Dad cant we move after my semester exams.” – I enquired.


“No son, the landlord is least interested about your exams and so we have no other way than moving on. And in any case you are going to do well in the exams.” – Dad said with a confident voice. I never knew from where dad gathered so much confidence in me. The fifth semester was just a day away when we moved to our new house in Kalikapur. I was happy to have a room of my own but tensed because I was running short of my revision time. I imposed some self confidence in me and was ready to take the examinations. Mom needed some time to get the kitchen up and running. The aunt next door had invited us for the lunch but I needed a brunch. Antara aunty happily cooked it for me before I left for the exams. That was the first day when I saw Kuhu, Antara aunt’s daughter – a girl studying in first year of graduation with majors in Botany at the Lady Brabourne College.


You can take a boast in superstitions when they help you fetch good marks. I never shaved or cut my nails during the month of the semester exams. Being a consistent topper somehow made me feel that not only studies can help you reach there but also your superstitions have to play a part in them. Time went by and as the first candidate of my batch, I cracked the campus interview.


Cognizant – I wanted it like anything. I always had the zeal to join the software industry. The opportunities to travel abroad appealed a lot to me. Well I had my dreams accomplished; I was on the list of selected candidates – the first and the only one from my department. Happiness flooded my home and I became an element of observation in my class.


It is difficult to find girls in a engineering college, especially good looking girls apart from the Computer science department. Mine was Electrical, an engineering loaded with high voltage machines. Unlike to the characteristic of our stream, we had two beauties in our department. The first was our network theory teacher and the second – Piuli, my classmate. The boys in our class used to flock around Piuli in every single chance they got. Piuli never disappointed them and always had some means or the other to shorten the conversations. I felt that she was a snob and kept a safe distance from her. It was till the end of first year that we hardly spoke to each other.


“Hey Avik, we know that the topper takes pride in himself but that doesn’t mean that he keep distance from his classmates” – Piuli was furious. She had asked me to help her with a circuit theory problem but I ignored her completely.


“Well no; that’s not the case with me, you are getting me wrong. Actually I had a call from the classroom” – I defended my self.


“Hey buddies look at this Teacher’s boy of ours” – she pointed at me laughingly.


My rivals started to sneak into the opportunity of embarrassing me.


“Hey Piuli superb adjective man that why he gets good marks. Don’t you see that? Everyone knows that 40% of the marks are internal and that is where he scores”. I felt like dogs barking at me.


“Shut up you assholes – I didn’t mean that. He is damn good and that what fetches him marks. The only problem is that he is a snob and that what bothers me.” – The boys felt silent as the class never confronted Piuli.


“Me – a snob. Well I think the other way miss beauty” – I was astonished.


“Oh ok, but whatever may it be I am social”.


“Sorry mam lets sit with the problem. I am at your service” – I was in a hurry to end the show.


“As you wish sir” – Piuli winked at me.


Starting with the circuit theory problem, soon we began to share the problem of our lives. I still remember the day when I proposed to her. It was raining heavily and Kolkata was water logged. I walked all the way from college to her home nearly 10 kms through the water logged streets. I pressed the bell and prayed for her to open the door. Piuli opened the door and was surprised to see me drenched and shivering.


“Hey – what makes you come here like this?” – Piuli enquired


“Actually there are no busses running from college so I thought that I would better walk some distance and try my luck to board a bus from the bus stand at Sinthee” – I fumbled


“Mine mine that’s what has brought the man here. How lucky am I. Come in. It’s not good keeping guests waiting outside.” – Piuli smiled.


“Thank god that you are here. I was getting bored staying alone” – Piuli said.


Her parents went to their native place to attend a marriage ceremony and she was alone at home. She handed me her fathers Punjabi and Pajama and ironed my wet clothes.


“Piuli”


“Yes”


“I wanted to say something”


“Now I see, you won’t even talk your mother without a reason how come you be at my place, drenched, just for the sake of meeting me”


“That’s not the case”


“Is it so? Then don’t say anything”


“But Piuli” – I was desperate. I had set the perfect stage of proposing a girl just like I answered to the questions during exams. I couldn’t let it go.


“Come on Avik, say it”


“I have a crush on you” – Ah!! I was so relieved.


“What!!”


I was the sixth one in class to propose her and feared rejection like the other five. In addition to that, I feared of losing her as a friend. But I couldn’t stop my feelings and right now I felt that the ground beneath me was shaking.


“Piuli”


“Only a crush on me” – Piuli enquired raising her eyebrows. She was so calm in reacting.


“Actually I am in love with you. Will you be my girl?”


“I can certainly give a thought to it” – Piuli smiled


“Now go home and rest.”


I could hardly sleep that night waiting for Piuli’s answer. The next morning I called up Piuli – “Piuli what’s your answer”


“I am in hurry for the college. See you there”. She banged the phone.


Leaving my fantasies on the bed, I rushed towards the bus stop. I reached college and the classroom to find out that I was late for the first class. The teacher let me enter the class and I squeezed myself to my desk. I thought of having a glance at Piuli but restrained myself. As soon as the class was over Piuli walked up to my desk.


“Hey Stud can you please walk up to the library.”


I was too afraid to ask her the reason. The other students in the class gazed at us as I silently followed her to the library. She almost dragged me to an isolated corner and smiled – “Guess what?”


“Sixth rejection?” – All I could think of at that moment.


“Dumbo – first acceptance”


I could neither believe my luck nor my ears. I thanked her and rushed towards the classroom. Soon our relationship was evident to everyone and even the teachers knew about it. However, I did not had enough courage to disclose the relationship at home. Piuli was bold enough in everything she did. She loved me boldly and even was not afraid to disclose it to her parents.


For two years we shared food, lips and all other things that come after that. Tata Indicom offered free calls from Tata to Tata and hence we changed our service providers from Hutch (now Vodafone) to Tata as a cost cutting measure. Being a student and wanting to lead a luxurious life are just the opposite sides of a coin. My funds were cut short as soon as a well-wisher informed my parents about Piuli. Piuli was considerate on my part. She always paid for the food bill or taxi fare whenever we went for a date.


With a campus interview in your bag and being a blue eyed boy of the teachers, you can be rest assured of spending the final in leisure. The manly pride of mine was hurt every time Piuli paid our bills. So I decided to join the BPO industry. I was successful once again and joined Globsyn as a trainee. Spending the night in office and afternoons in college are not very soothing. I often dozed off in the bus and was a subject of regular complains. I had money at the end of the month and household quarrels as the desert after every dinner.


Life is not easy when you have to choose between staying with your mother and girlfriend. Mom left me with no other option when she developed an ischemic heart disease. I was forced to breakup with Piuli. People who are in love with their classmates know how difficult are the breakup days when you still have to continue a year sitting in the same class. Piuli developed a chronic breathing problem after our breakup. She cried every time I disconnected her call. Piuli was smart enough to make sure that her parents never knew she was crying and so she used to cover her face with pillows and gasp for breath. I came to know this from her friends, a year after we left college.


Piuli failed to crack the campus opportunities and ended her college in sheer disappointment. She never complained me of being too fast during our love making sessions but always said the same thing after we were done.


“Avik, there are more important things in life than having a great career” and then she would break down in tears. I knew exactly was needed to be done and did exactly by holding her cheeks and placing my lips on hers. I had the fantasy of a great career and with the job in my bag I just needed the wings to fly.


“Guys Welcome to the corporate world” – our training started and with increased pressure of performance, Piuli began to fade out of my life. I started working hard realizing that the ransom of being workaholic was huge. Soon, I got my first project and within a month I was a favorite of my manager; not only because I could do things in a proper and timely manner but also because I never complained working on weekends or late night.


I started getting addicted to smoking. I desperately wanted the late night calls, I desperately wanted to hear Piuli kiss me over the phone but alas our paths never crossed. Piuli managed to bag the post of junior engineer at NTPC and a boyfriend. Standing on the balcony, I looked at the stars. That was the distance between me and Piuli. Frustration was creeping up within me and finally on 23rd July at midnight I dialed Piuli’s number.


“Hello” – Piuli sounded husky and sexy as usual just like when she used to respond to my late night calls.


“Happy Birthday” – that was all I could say.


“Oh it’s you – thanks, at least you remember dates apart from your meetings”.


“Enjoy Piuli – Guess a lot of people are waiting eagerly to speak to you” – tears were edging my eyes.


“Well I can keep people waiting but guess what I do have someone waiting in the line who I would better not keep waiting. So - goodbye!!”.


My handkerchief helped me to soak the salty water drops.