3 boys

3-Boys A journey through the LIFE of the Youth


“Get up! Do have any idea what the time is?? Get up!!!”
I woke up from the bed hearing my wife scolding me. Oh these women…don’t they know the joy of sleeping? And my wife is not going to leave me even on this Sunday.

“Oh…it is too early to get up dear. What’s so special today?”, I asked her. Ma wife’s face said that there was a bit of anger in ma words. I hoped she would walk out of the room and leave me and my bed alone again in my room. But she didn’t. She gave me little slap on my back and shouted
“Did you forget that today is Guddu’s birthday? What a father, oh God! Doesn’t know his own son’s birthday”, saying this she walked out.

Yes, today my Guddu turns 22.How on earth could I forget that! Guddu, my son, is studying in an engineering college in the city. Gautam, that’s his official menon. Very brilliant, studious, always in the first slot in the school days, sings well, plays well…..oh am sorry.. when I tell about my son, am like this. But really, really he is good.
I planned to visit him today and handover my gift to him by myself, which is going to be a surprise for him. In order to do that, I have to catch the 6.30 am train and I had to wake up by atleast 5.Oh! no its already 5.30!

“Hey, stop dreaming there and get ready fast! You have to catch a train!”, my wife shouted from the kitchen.


I just got into the train and the train moved with a grunt. Oof! that was a close call. I had to literally vroom on my old chetak to reach the station on time. Luckily there was no rush in the train and I got a window seat.I was thinking what I should buy for Guddu. A shirt? Pen? na…a pair of shoes?? No No.. sunglasses…yes, he always liked to have those. But never persuaded to buy him because he was well aware of our financial situation. Good boy, na? Lucky me.

I did not mind a boy and a girl sitting right opposite to me until I heard an ‘ouch’ from that side. I looked at them and the boy smiled at me. I smiled back and observed them. The boy seemed to be around the age of my son’s and so as the girl. Obviously they were lovers. I did not feel any awkwardness in that as some other people of my age may feel because mine was also a love marriage.

The morning had a calm sky and a cool breeze. As I was about to fall into rest of my interrupted morning sleep, a voice woke me.
“Hi Uncle”, that was the boy who sat opposite to me. I looked around but couldn’t find the girl. As if he knew what I was thinking from my facial expressions, he said, ”She got down in the previous station”.
I wondered.I was awake till seconds ago and I did not see that girl going? I realisec the people can sleep even by keeping their eyes opened.
“what’s her name?”, I asked. He didn’t say it but smiled. I asked again but he smiled. Oh, he had his ear phones on. How world has changed…no social mingling…nothing. A cell phone, some songs and a head set. A journey will be done with that. My guddu is not like that. He said he doesn’t want a cell phone because that will affect his studies. That’s my son. Lucky me.

The train halted at the next station. Another girl came and sat besides that boy and instantly he removed his ear phones and started talking with her.I didn’t mind because I hought this might be his friend as his girlfriend had already gotten down at the previous station. But as the train moved along I could hear more ‘ouchs’ and giggles from that side and I was confused. Two more girls joined that boy from other stations one after the other. No two girls met each other also. Clever boy, handling multiple lovers in a single journey. As I was a sincere lover at my age,I couldn’t stop my self from asking that boy about this.
He replied, ”Uncle, this is new world. I love one girl and when I get bored I go for another and so on. This is my life and I find enjoyment in that.”
Wow.. what a cute reply. I was shocked at hearing that. But at the next moment I was relieved at the thought that my Guddu is not like this guy. Lucky me.
But as the train sniffed and halted at the City station, one of the older people sitting near to me said, ”Do u know that guy? At that age of 22,he is one of the wanted criminals in the City. No evidence, no arrest. He pretends love to girls and cheats them. Sells them to a big gun behind this business. What a world”

I couldn’t speak.

I walked out of the station and started searching for a good shop to buy the sunglasses. It’s been more than a year that I have been here and thus I was a bit of alien to the City. I passed through the streets. Big malls, small sweet shops, Wine parlours, Clothe shacks, roadside vendors, hawkers but I couldn’t find a shop that sold sunglasses. I was a bit disappointed. I decided to have a cup of tea and walked into a small restaurant.

“Sir, what do you want, sir. Tea, coffee, dosai, poori, ghee roast……..”,a young boy asked me. I ordered a tea and I don’t know what made me observe him. He was tall, dark and had long hair. His eyes were small and his smile was cute. When he smiled I wondered where on earth his eyes would have gone. Anyway I decided to ask him about his whereabouts.

“Anything else, sir ” he asked again as I was about to pay the bill.
“Nothing, but I want a help from you. Can you find me something in this city for me?I am a bit new here.”,I asked.
“Sure sir.I think I can get an hour free from this hotel.Let me ask the manager and I’ll be with you in ten minutes”,he seemed so happy to get a free hour.

“A pair of sunglasses?haha.that is not a hard task uncle.I know a shop right opposite to the State Bank building.”,he laughed and said.
I thought why should anyone laugh at this.Is it a big joke to buy sunglasses?
Suddenly he turned a left and quick right and we entered into a place that seemed to me like dungeon.Both sides of the narrow road were flooded with small shops with cloth roofs and bamboo pillars.The boy with me told me that you can get any thing from here you want.Ranging from those that are used in New Jersey to even in Pakistan.he was right…I can see that.Every shop had items that showed international tags.The complete world in a small street.

“Don’t admire much.Those are all duplicates.You can get duplicates of anything from here.Watches,casuals,shoes,sunglasses,even underwears”he smiled.I always wanted to wear a Jockey,but certainly not the duplicate.
“you can even forge govt documents,papers,marklists and even more.And no one cane even decipher them as duplicates.That is the perfection this street has” he said.
Perfection in duplicating the originals.Great irony.I thought.

“Do you mind if I ask about you? Your name, where you live and all? I tried to divert the topic.
He said his name but I don’t remember it.
“I live in the backdrops of the city with my mom and my brother. As you see and hear in every tragic sad stories,I am very poor and mom has this and my brother has that and all those blah-blah-blah.I work in that hotel for a small money and that is not enough.So I sell drugs here.”

What?i was surprised at his coolness in saying that.I am walking with a drug-seller?I thought he was a good guy.But?i somehow wanted to run away from that street.

“Show me the shop.I want to give the glasses in an hour”,I asked him.I think I sounded a bit harsh.He smiled again.That smile had everything.Disappointment,sadness,longing to live in a good way and the thought that he made one more man to hate him.
But I didn’t hate him.It was the circumstances that forced him to jump into this shit pool.I prayed to God to bless him.

It was a hazy brownish one. I liked it.Eventhough it had cost me a 5000 I was happy.I was happy because my son would be happy.He will surely like it.
I said thanks to the waiter-boy and gave him a 100 rupee note.He smiled again and said good bye.Eventhough his eyes narrowed I could see his eyelids becoming wet.
I sighed and walked to the bus stop.

Oh! What a day! I thought while I was sitting in the bus on the way to my son’s hostel.Met two boys and both of them revealed the darker side of this world.Some great man had once told ‘catch them young’ and now the evil hands are doing that.I felt happy for my son because even when he is in the midst of all these things,he is still my Guddu.I smiled and said to myself,”Love you my son”.

I reached the hostel and I could see boys wandering here and there.Some were playing football outside,some busy on their cell phones,some watching tv in a hall,some smoking…smoking?oof!
I didn’t find the warden there.So I called a guy and asked about Guddu.
“He has gone out”, he said. Adamant.
“Where to?” I asked.
“Don’t know.May be some project stuffs.He always goes out in the evenings.busy guy”,he said.Adamant.
I felt sad.But the very next moment I felt happy that he has gone out for studies.How can any one study between guys like this one!
“When will he come?any idea?” I asked again
“No idea.Usually he comes late.Shall I pass any message to him?”
“No..err..just giv this gift to him and tell him that his dad gave this to him.It’s his birthday”
I placed a note on top of the box,”With Love ,dad”.

I reached home by around midnight.Throughout the journey I was thinking how my Guddu would react when he see my gift.Will he jump with joy?Will he say ‘ love you daddy’?Or will he call me from someone else’s cell phone??gosh…now I wished if he had a cell phone.Cell phone is good at times.

I walked into my house and my wife ran into me and asked me:
“Did you see him?what did you buy for him?What did he tell?How is he?Gone thin or still ok?” she was asking questions just like bullets are fired from an AK-47.
“easy..easy…he is fine and very happy.Asked about you and asked me to give you a kiss for him”,I lied.
“That’s my guddu…I believe the first part and I know you made up the second part just to find an excuse to kiss me”,she left for the kitchen.
Women.They are clever at times.I had a bath and went to sleep.I slept fast and you know why.

I woke up the next day again hearing the same alarm of my wife.I had to go to the office.
But I felt lazy.i walked out into the drawing room and switched on the tv.i ran through the channels and…wait.
“5 boys were arrested for drug business and usage in the City”
I stopped at that channel.I listened.i just came back from that city last night and look what happened there.I wondered whether that waiter-boy would be involved.
“5 college students were arrested last night in the shipyard while trying to sell 2 kgs of Heroyne.All of them were under the influence of the drugs too.”,the news went on
“The accused are Narein,22,Vijay,21,Alex,22,Bejoy,22 and Gautam,22.”
What?Gautam?My heart beat got faster and I started to sweat.No it cant be.That might some other gautam.i tried to console myself.But…
“Gautam a.k.a ‘Guddu’ is the leader of this gang and is suspected to have contacts in Mumbai drug markets”,

the remote fell down from my hands.

I thought…Lucky me?











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