Catharsis

He was an adjunct faculty member of the Ramoji Academy of Film and Television ("RAFT") for Sound in Hyderabad. After taking a class, he came back to his cubicle. There was no water in the water bottle. So he called the caretaker, Ramu. Ramu came and took the empty bottle from him. Then he opened his laptop. He was an unmarried bachelor. So he opened a free matrimonial website, simplymarry.com. He browsed through a lot of profiles and sent requests to a lot of girls. Ramu came back and handed him the bottle of water. He drank from it. As there was no more work, he went to the cubicle of the production coordinator Shyam and asked for a car. Shyam called the driver, and within fifteen minutes the car arrived. He then left for his living quarter.

The living quarters were the last building within an enclosed campus with a playground and hotel. He went upstairs to the second and last floor. By mistake, he had left the key at the office. So he called his colleague, Sandip, who would come a bit late since he had an afternoon class of cinematography. He was his neighbour, on the same floor. He was also bachelor. Fortunately, the staff of the campus kept a duplicate key with them for washing the apartment. He got down again with his laptop bag and went to the office of the caretaker staff. A caretaker staff came with him and unlocked the door. Then he entered the room. After entering the room, he changed his clothes. Then his phone rang. A girl called. Her name was Priyanka. She said that she got his contact information from the matrimonial website. He became happy. She said to add her on Skype. He did so. After that, she started chatting with him. They chatted for a few days. She told him that she works at BARC - Bhaba Atomic Research Centre - in Kolkata. They chatted about family, work, and, of course, sex. When they got too intimate with each other, she requested that he come to Kolkata in case he managed to get leave for a few days. The bachelor mind wanted to visit Kolkata, his home town, immediately. But he was an employee of RAFT. So the next day at the office, he went to meet the dean, Mr. Manvi, and asked for leave. The dean was a very polite and homely person. And since it was a film institute, the routine was not like other typical corporate offices. So he gave him permission to visit Kolkata. He booked two-way flights on Yatra.com from the office and took a printout of the ticket.

On the day of the flight, he booked a local cab since it was a remote area and the online cab service companies were not so reliable. However, he reached Hyderabad airport one hour before, with his trolley and laptop bag. Priyanka called him and told him that she would come to receive him at the airport. He boarded the flight after all the formalities, and within two hours he reached Kolkata airport.

At the exit, Priyanka was waiting for him. They saw each other, and both of them became happy. They boarded an AC bus to Garia, where his parents lived. Priyanka's house was near the airport. So she got down much before at Ultadanga. He reached his home within another hour. It was winter in Kolkata. So everything seemed pleasant around. He took rest for the day and phoned Priyanka and planned for an outing. Both of them wanted to spend as much time as possible together. But Priyanka was busy with her job. So she planned to visit Eco Park in New Town. They met at Hudco, Ultadanga, and took a cab to Eco Park. There they walked for a while, and then they sat by the lake. It was evening, and they kissed each other. After that, the young hearts beat so fast that they did everything that was possible to do there in the wintry dark evening. The next day they watched a cinema at Mani Square Mall. They could not kiss each other that day. So the next day they planned for Victoria. There they French-kissed each other and did other things that all the lovers usually do there. But they could not get naked. Meanwhile, he told his parents about Priyanka. So his parents invited her for lunch one day. She came and tasted chilli chicken prepared by his mother. She liked it very much. The next day he took her to a big restaurant at Park Street. They had pilaf and mutton. But they could not get naked. So the next day, Priyanka invited him to her house for lunch. He bought a purple salwar kameez for her from Dakkhinapan Market, which was nearby his house. He gifted her that when he visited her house. Priyanka's house was a small, two-storey building. She had her own room on the first floor. So he met her mother and showed respect by touching her feet. Then they had lunch together. After that, she took him to her room. She closed the door. And fortunately, her father was away. They got naked at last. They had sex on the bed. After they had it, Priyanka pulled the harmonium, which was kept with the stacks of her physics books on the bed. She sang a Rabindra-Sangeet so that her mother did not doubt anything. Then they came out and they left the house. They walked past a park to the bus stop. Priyanka requested that he write a poem about her. He said he would do that for sure.

He came back home and wrote a poem immediately:

Sometimes, time does stop.

The fragrance of love spreads across.

The hopeless mind discovers the joy of life.

The rain-soaked flower finds a new vibe.

New words emanate from day to night

To discover many things again, the alibis

Appear in new life in a new form.

To cross the sea bravely; life goes on.

It feels good to love once again.

It feels good to be wet in fresh rain.

It feels good to look once again

At those two dark eyes to forget all pain.

Sometimes, time does stop.

The fragrance of love spreads across.

 

The next day he left for the airport. He met her at the airport and gave her the poem written on paper. She read it immediately and liked it. They bade goodbye to each other.

The End.