FLIGHTS OF FANCY

Brahmamuhurtham was a thing to read another to savour. On the assigned day which took me to Delhi and back on the same day, I beat the auspicious moment to hasten to the airport. After the security drill and the flight to Delhi which was largely uneventful, the day's proceedings largely kept me awake. A thunderstorm towards the evening led my hosts to literally throw me lock, stock and barrel out of the building which sheltered us and hurtled towards the airport for my return sojourn. The water logging made me muse on the "commonwealth" of Bangalore and Delhi. The cab driver who richly deserved a bravery award managed to keep all of us afloat and delivered me for the return. The long day had taken its toll and beauty sleep was whispering " veni vedi vici" in my ears. The security drill was through and just to keep my eyelids open a la Mr Bean, I chose to stroll only to be tracked by the vigilant cop who checked my credentials. Thankfully, the flight was announced and after a mini seat swapping episode, I settled for a middle seat in the front with the fond hope of resting my weary body.

The take off through I was greeted by a chuckle by my young neighbour who could only get a remorseful look from me. Unlike the famed airfarers who are known for their British behaviour, the young man motioned to the screen in front and even turned it on. Helpfully, he retrieved the earphones for me. Reluctantly, I plugged it on as the pilot requested us to keep our seat belts on and the backrests erect. Finding it difficult to doze off, I chose to heed to the neighbour's suggestion and paid attention to the movie being screened. It later turned out that this was the much talked about Karthik calling Karthik. Schizophrenia has been put across in as gripping as possible with all the elements of masala thrown in. I empathised with the character in the movie and for the first time acknowledged the need for psychiatrists and psychologists in India. At the end of the sojourn, I thanked the young boy for having enlightened me on this front. He was amused as he found the movie hilarious and my serious outlook only made him guffaw.

Couple of days later, I was put through the motion of watching the much hyped 3 Idiots. I have never been a movie buff. The only thing that the movie succeeded in doing was taking me to my own school and college days. Thanks to Facebook culture, we are busy networking and holding our own tete a tetes on the times that have gone by. It also brought back memories of a short stint of mine at Hyderabad where as youngsters we had shared hostel space. The end of the movie was custom made for box office consumption. The truth is when best mates get together after a decade or two the first thing they remember is the nickname and the best days they had. The last thing on their mind is what they are in the current day.

Many of my mates would find this piece a revelation to them as much as it is to me. A person who has not really gone to town on movies, actually penning on a review of movies watched over a couple of days. Flights of fancy indeed!!!