It would be around 10:00. Room number 16 in main building
first floor (my class room) was actively functioning on that day. Professor
David was taking attendance. Shockingly, all of them were present including me.
The laptop was already connected with projector and they
were preparing themselves for presentations I sullied. Leo (the leader of our
class) should have brought them from the department I could guess. Our
professor Dr David had asked us to present for 20 minutes and my topic was
‘Motivation’ I recollected. I thought of asking them “Are we supposed to
present today?” But kept myself quiet since the professor was inside the class.
My mind was totally restive and many questions were circulating inside my head.
I couldn’t recognise any of them for all of them seemed intricate and obscure
to me. I attempted to clarify on my own.
“Why no one asked my pen drive to copy my PPT file?”
“Yesterday when I was conversing with Megha, she told, no…
no… I told her that the presentations may be held after November 21st.
How is it possible then?”
“Who has made it today? Why no one informed me about
anything regarding this presentation?” I felt like breaking my head but the
group of questions was still haunting me.
“Did they send any message? Or didn’t I receive?”
“By the way, what is the date today?” I stressed myself and
mustered braveness to ask my neighbour.
“You can start your seminar now.” The professor granted.
I was terribly collapsed and started calculating the date.
“August? No! September? No! October? Yes! Yes! This is
October! This is October!” I said to myself and felt glee for confirming it. But
that unnecessary exuberance didn’t last even for a second. What I needed was
date at that time. I once again started discussing with my mind.
“I was talking to Megha yesterday. Yesterday was 29th
October. Then today?” I paused for a while.
“30th! 30th! Today is 30th
of October 2014.” I found and said to myself.
“How did they prepare? That to over the night! Has everyone
prepared slides for the presentation? How is it possible? Megha too! Yesterday
she said she didn’t!”
“But I didn’t prepare even a slide! I thought of beginning
from today! Is that why they didn’t ask my pen drive?” too much of self probing
made me fatigued. By the time Leo had started his seminar.
“So, Krashan’s hypothesis.” He started and scrambled on the
podium to paint the board through the chalk while the Diwali was already over
and the Pongal was far from that day.
However, one more question occurred to my mind, “It can be
accepted that other have prepared. But this Leo, last minute Longfellow (compared
with an American Writer) deals with Krashan now! How?”
I couldn’t get answer for any of the question. By the time,
Prabhakaran, Gouthaman, and few more students had finished their seminar after
Leo.
“Take a break and be present at 2:00 so that we can finish
with the rest.” the professor said and left the class. This must be the right
time for me to prepare I thought, and our hostel would be the perfect place I
believed. Moreover, I had brought Laptop with me. Since motivation was my
topic, I felt happy because I had some materials in it. I took my bag and put
it on my shoulder.
“Where are you going?” Leo asked.
“Hostel.” I replied and left.
While marching towards hostel, someone told me that the road
was blocked and I can’t go to the hostel because some people are digging for
making new road. I put my bag down and lied on the centre of the road. A
stranger came and lifted me up.
“Where do you want to go?”
“Hostel.”
“Don’t worry boss. We’ll go by the other way.” He said and
guided me.
I don’t know whether I told the entire thing to him or not.
But he replied like this.
“Don’t worry boss. We’ll file a case against them. By the
way, according to you, who can be responsible for this?”
“I Joseph Arc Leo.”
He left me in the hostel. I met my junior Shanmugam while
walking towards 8th block. I didn’t know the reason, without turning
on my Laptop I said to myself, “53% battery will not be sufficient for my
search.”
I neither ate my lunch and nor prepared for my presentation.
Suddenly, I was standing in the classroom and the time was
2:00.
I called Prabhakaran and asked, “When did you make power
point?”
“Yes Vinoth, I made.” He replied with the snicker.
I was severely scared of David sir for not coming prepared
and thinking whether to leave the class or to apologise to him. “Only 3 of you
are remaining.” Somebody told I heard. One was Megha, other one was me and had
no idea about the third one. My mind forced me to call Megha to ask the same
question.
“Megha, when did you prepare?” she remained in stillness and
didn’t talk to me since morning.
The professor entered.
“It must be dream!” My mind was shouting inside. Meanwhile I
heard the noise of a crow; somebody was asking “Tea or Horlicks?” Surely it
wasn’t Janet’s voice. I tossed up the bed-sheet which was covering my body, but
my mind was strongly convincing me, “IT MUST BE DREAM! IT MUST BE DREAM!”
I woke up at 7:00 in the morning and the date was 30th
October. I snickered at my dream and recollected all of my M.Phil classmates.
Goutham would be gardening, sister Srija would be getting ready for her
breakfast, father Thomas would be pleading for tea in Tamil, Prabhakaran would
have reached the college and would be waiting in front of library, Janet would
be making tea, sister Veni would be getting ready for breakfast as well, Jennet
would be sleeping and her pet-dog would have been tired of waking her up,
Megha’s fan would have been switched off and she would be awaken up by mosquitoes,
and Leo would have set alarm in his mobile for 7 times and all of them would be
sounding like lullaby to him. Promptly I remembered about that stranger who
asked me to file case against them.
Even if I do as he said, for fun, what will I do when the
justice asks me the witness?
Who can witness my dream?
Note: this post and the title are unintentional.
Dear scholars, (my M.Phil classmates) if this post harms you
by any mean please inform me directly or indirectly so that I can remove it.
Comments are welcome.
Anna, on looking the topic itself I guessed that it was going to be a comedy. But, I did not expect that this would turn this much anticlimax.
ReplyDeleteAnna, on looking the title itself I guessed that it was going to be a comedy. But, I didn't realize that it would turn this much anticlimax.
ReplyDelete