2004 - Chennai was the place where I met all these guys, during the course of our ELT training for Cognizant. This one was about two "loving" roomies - Basheer and Akku(names changed). Fate, along with circumstances, ensured that these extreme characters, had to share a common roof, during the course of the training at cognizant. Basheer was a staunch Muslim, who tried to incorporate almost each and every line of the holy Quran, into his life. As per the narrator, he had a long beard, prayed 5 times a day and kept away from all mundane pleasures in life.That included the basic necessities of bachelor life - Films, Liquor and girls(Ogling, mind it !!!!).
That he got such a dynamically opposite roomie in Akku, was the biggest irony. Akku had the reputation of having drunk from at least one bar, in each of the 14 districts in Kerala. A chain smoker, he was a compulsive flirt who changed girlfriends every season. The difference in character, was evident in their respective rooms, as well. Basheerkka's room was the epitome of cleanliness, with each and every corner tidy and not an object out of it's place. If there was speck of dirt, one assumed that it would have blown over from Akku's room. Akku's room looked similar to those pics of devastation that one saw on the net, after Louisiana was hit by Katrina. Amidst the chaos, one could see a path that lead from the bed to the bathroom, that was flanked on both sides by undergarments. Akku shared the room, along with a host of other creatures like bed bugs, roaches, lizards, spiders and what not. A perfect example of "cultural Integration" of the third kind.
Amongst Akku's fave activities, was pulling Basheerkka's long beard(pretending to unearth an imaginary spider from those locks) and taunting his religious belief's. Akku was lucky that Quran contained a line that encouraged it's followers to love all fellow beings, including their enemies. I am assuming so, accounting to the fact that Akku is still alive. Basheerkka put up with every action of Akku, with a tired smile, the signs of a man with infinite patience.
Now to the story. Chennai 2005 was famous for it's huge downpour during monsoon and the resulting flood like situation. For 2-3 days, most of the shops were closed and people were confined to their homes. IT folks were the worst hit, as most of them were put up in low lying areas near the IT corridor, which were worst hit. One had to wade thru almost 4 feet of drain to reach the bus stop.
On that particular Friday, offices were all closed, due to the flood like situation. Most of the shops were closed, and it was almost impossible to get food from outside. Akku was amongst the lucky few, who managed to get a few slices of bread, from a friend of his. The good Samaritan in him, usually makes very infrequent appearances. And(as luck would have it), it chose to make an entry, as he was wading thru those waters, to reach home. He envisioned a tired and starved Basheerkka, who surely would not have had a morsel of food since last night.
Thus, at 12.30 in the afternoon, Akku started his journey, trudging thru waist deep water filled with garbage, in search of some food for his dear roomie. The thought that this deed would act as some sort of penance for all the trouble he had caused to his roomie, would have egged him on. The quest that started from PTC quarters, ended eventually, at the Adayar bus stand, a rough distance of around 5 kms.Akku managed to locate a roadside biriyani eatery, whose owner was just about to close the shop, as he had managed to sell off his stock to the needy. After much pleading & cajoling, Akku managed to get a packet of biriyani from the owner, for double the price. Seems that the owner had reserved the food for a special customer of his. Akku again started his journey back and this time, got a lift back home from Thiruvanmiyur.
At around 4 in the evening, a weary Akku burst into Basheerkka's house, sporting the sort of victorious smile that Odysseus would have flashed, after the victory over Troy. Clutching the food packet in his hand, he limped over to Basheerkka's bed, sat down beside him and with moist eyes, opened the packet. His eyes then frantically searched for any emotions on Basheerkka's face, hoping to find some form of acknowledgement/gratitude.
Basheerkka stroked his beard in deep thought, peered at Akku from behind his glasses and shot the question - " Any idea if they used Halal meat in the biriyani" ???
They say that Akku threw both - the Biriyani and Basheerkka , out of the house.
1 comment:
I am laughing here!!! really nicely written too :)
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