Dire straits to winning an Oscar

When it was the ‘perfect’ time, 10, I realized I was working late on Sunday. It’s no big deal. If you’re working towards a particular goal, time is never a concern. I looked outside the window. The rains have been lashing the city for almost 2 hours. Since it appeared to have ceased, I straightened up and left.

Since I didn’t have my bike with me, I decided I’m going to take a bus back home. Bound by silence, I walked to the LIC building. For an hour I waited. My optimism wore off and frustration began to take over me. 11:30 and I’d reached my breaking point. Drawing out my cell-phone, I rang home. My mother answered and I explained my situation to her. She advised me to take an auto and come home soon. But you know, it’s the age and I wanted to make my own decision. It didn’t take me too long before I charted out a plan and decided to walk home.

11:45 and I had 14 kilometers to cover on foot. Few calculations in my head and I inferred it will take me an hour to reach home. My odyssey commenced and with the frustration covering my face, I was cursing the situation and myself. 10 minutes gone by and I gradually calmed down. Looking ahead, the night appeared unusually stimulating. The road was brightly lit and it was deserted. Being a Sunday, the fear of Monday morning must have put everyone early to bed.
My head was like the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Too many thoughts kept racing each other, each wanting to be ahead be the first to capture my mind. Eventually the night prompted me to take an inspiration from the scene ahead and start scripting a Hollywood blockbuster. There was also an instance when I imagined I’d be meeting someone along the way and our conversation would change our lives forever. It was the magic of the movies that gripped me at that very moment.

One thing was certain. Now I had all the time the world could offer me and I presumed an exciting and breathtaking idea was in the offing. So I started taking snapshots with my eyes. The wet roads and the hazy reflections took me back to the 70s New York in Scorsese’s Taxi Driver. Keeping that aside I was filing certain thoughts for future references to be used in one of my Hollywood ventures.

Just look at my city at night. Drenched in rain, it was a captivating sight. I couldn’t imagine transporting myself to LA, atleast for now. By the time I’d finished dreaming, I reached the flyover that crept over Dr.Radhakrishnan road. A government owned bus sped past me and came to a screeching halt a few meters ahead. It was going to the place where I live and I didn’t think twice to decide not to take it. I simply wanted to walk through my city and let its magic grip me.

A few kilometers down the road and I thought I was done for. Just then, a temple ahead grew in size as I neared it. It was Lord Shiva’s temple and the sight of the ‘Lingam’ on its façade refreshed my mind like nothing else in this cosmos could. Immediately I looked in front and my gaze lit up the road. With four stories up my sleeve, I began analyzing them. It was 12:30 and I was just reaching Mylapore.

I was looking for an idea that I could use as a bait to entice the golden lion at Cannes. With dozens of ideas appearing out of thin air, I was approaching this playground near a road that shot out to Marina and I encountered a patrol vehicle. Instantly I started visualizing a chase that was going to ensue from a Mitsubishi Lancer speeding atop a building and landing on the road. Perhaps a dose of optimism would set things right.

The Adyar Bridge! I’ve been living in this wonderful city for more than two decades and yet not once have I walked across it. Now was a chance to do it and I decided to walk the side that faced Kotturpuram since the river was open to me and on the other side, some construction work prevented me from looking beyond. Wanting to get a good view of the river I paused and turned around to face it. People usually only chatter about its stench but the sight of the river actually took me to Amsterdam. No pun intended.
I remember using vivid descriptions and telling my friends the scene I had in mind that’d take place on this river with intense action and breathtaking camera angles. A look at my watch and in half an hour, it was going to be one o clock. So I decided to leave the fate of the river in the hands of Corporation officials and crossed the bridge in no time.

As the Adyar overpass approached, a BMW X5 zipped past me. By now I’d covered 8 ½ kilometers and the number straight away took me to Italy and I found myself walking in a movie set much to Fellini’s annoyance. With the blink of an eye, I was back in Chennai and found the cops ahead summon me. The usual FAQ’s were over and they finally suggested that I take an auto. Being adamant, I continued my journey on foot.

It was four hours to daybreak, but something else dawned on me. My mother must have been awake at home awaiting my return and here I was like an imbecile wanting to keep walking. I was actually trying to exaggerate Johnnie Walker. Since it’d be another 45 minutes before I reach home, I quietly hailed an auto and got down in front of my house 10 minutes later.