Tuesday, February 10, 2009

A Dream Fulfilled!

Out of the many dreams I have (like all of us), one was to see someone reading my book some day in a train. I still get goose pimples on the mare thought of it. It actually came true!!! I was my way back from Kolkota. I had fallen in love with the place and the people there. They make the most amazing sweets (really, I am not exaggerating, it makes your soul smile – its so sweet), politest people they are, so cultured and civilized. Anyway, I can go on and on forever on this, but coming back to the point – the dream coming true. I was in the train, happy to know that my WL 25 had been confirmed to B3 23, and the best part – it was a Jab We Met seat, next to this huge window in Rajdhani. I sat down smiling looking out of the window. Things were going so great. Just then this gentleman came and requested me that if I could shift to another seat as I was traveling alone and they were some 5 people traveling together who could not manage to get seats together. I was so fulfilled from my Kolkota trip that I didn’t feel like saying no. So with my 4 heavy bags, I went all the way to the next coach (as informed) only to realize that their seat was not in the next coach but in the same coach only – there had been some confusion. Sweating like anything, I marched back to B3 again and located the birth I was supposed to occupy – B44. As I was putting my luggage on the upper birth, I saw my book lying on the table thingy we have in the trains right between the two windows in every compartment. “Hey! That’s my book!” I said to myself, “and when did I take it out of my bag?” and then it struck me - it was someone else’s copy and someone else was reading it!!!!!!! (The thought did not come so instinctively as the only hands in which I had always seen my book were mine.)
“Hey! Where did you get that book from!” I exclaimed. I was louder then I usually am, oozing with joy. All the fatigue had just evaporated.
The young man sitting next to the window gave me a weird look; “I bought it from Delhi some days back.”
“When! And from where?!!” I knew the book had been out of stock most of the places. From the Delhi railway station.” That is all he said. He didn’t ask anything else. But I just could not help telling him – “I wrote that!” with a huge smile on my face.
Now he had an expression of… confusion and … well, I think he felt that I was just trying to fool him. “No, you have not!” Yes, believe me, these were his words, or that was what a voice said in my head.
“I have,” I said. Can you beat that? I had to prove that I had written the book I have written. May be I should have put my picture in the book. “Wait, let me show you.” I opened my bag to show him some 6 copes of my book I happened to carry.
His name was Ram (yes i did get flashbacks from Main Hoon Na - Major Ram)and he did not seem to believe what was happening. But it was great fun! He took some pictures of me as he said it was for the first time he met an author whose book he was reading. And I took his pictures coz he was my first reader who I saw reading my book in a train!!!
It was after like some 30 minutes later that he told me something about himself that overwhelmed me way more than he was by my presence in the compartment he was traveling – he turned that he worked for the Indian Air Force!!!!!!! Meeting an Air Force person is an honour, talk of the one who appreciates the book you have written!!! It was a dream that came true with a double bonus!
So, once again, for Mr. Ram and his Friend/senior officer (as I could sense it) Mr. Bhupinder (If I remember the name correctly – I suffer form a weird case of amnesia), thank you so much for making my dream come true. It was truly fantastic meeting you both. And sorry for forcing you for the morning ‘photo session’ when you eagerly wanted to move out of the train. This is a set of memories that is gonna stay with me forever (despite of the amnesia;) And by the way, I have been trying to find you on Orkut and Facebook, but no luck. I hope you still have my contact and would be sending the pictures, as I want the picture you got clicked with me. They are more important for me then you can ever possibly imagine. And I am waiting for your email id also, to send the ones I clicked.
And yes! Shekhar! If you happen to read this! (I met him on my way to Kolkota) I am still waiting for you to contact me! Don’t you want the pictures I clicked for you? please shoot me a mail.

26 comments:

  1. mubarak ho mubarak ho ji!!!
    so very well expressed that i can really feel how u wud have felt seeing ur dream coming true :)
    all the very best ji!

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  2. Congrats!!!

    You did an awesome job at expressing your happiness and feelings... I am also smiling after reading your post! :)

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  3. :) thank u soo much.
    but believe me, i was way more excited then i sound in the post.

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  4. Incredibly Unbelievable!! :)

    If you hadn't put the pics I'd have thought it's just your imagination running wild!! :D

    Congratulations!

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  5. ha ha ! very funny.
    it was a real incident.
    by the way i got a tetanus shot today.

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  6. Lovely incident...its actually like a dream. But your excitement level seems very high...great going yaar...

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  7. Cool..!
    Very interesting experience, nicely narrated too. It's easy to sense the joy in your words (those exclamations help too!!!!).
    See didn't I tell you to put your photo on the book or website? Wonder how many autograph opportunities you have missed! Although there would be plenty more to come anyway!

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  8. @ varun :) hmm. but then it would loose the charm of it no?
    @ deep ya, it was really cool. i wish i had a video cam! would have been a grt clipping.

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  9. wow! it was great... meeting ur reader by chance... that moment's thrill surpasses anything and everything... isnt it??? congrats mate!

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  10. Wonderful experience and beautifully expressed :)

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  12. ' “I wrote that!” with a huge smile on my face.'

    i can visualize you saying this....

    it no doubt would have been a great feeling ....& u have put that to words in in a OSEM way.........

    keep it up ... & also u should be thankful to those 5 co-travellers u exchanged ur seat with,,.... :)

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  13. @ Arindam - yes, it was very thrilling :)
    @ Vani - thnx.
    @ Varun - thank u soo much. and yes, i am indeed very thankful to those 5 travelers. and as the said in Yes Man - always say YES!

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  14. Really after reading this i feeling very very very honored. i cant express in my words hoe happy i m feeling .

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  15. :) you have no idea how glad i am to see ur comment here. I had been trying to find you all over the net. of course till the day u messaged :)

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  16. the other day i was readin ur book in train..
    n u kno wat, i realised oly then tht some 10-15 pages were missing 2wards the end of the book!! :'( ..
    i donno.. some kind of printing error.. :|

    there wer so many copies there in the mall.. aur mujhe yahi copy milni thi ..how unlucky!!.. :( :(

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  17. oops.. i read your blog oly now!..guess i posted the above post in the wrong place!.. sorry :s

    anywayz..
    tht was a lovely incident! n sweet narration! :)
    congrats! :)i cant stop smiling! .. :) :)

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  18. hey mr.rahul...i have read ur book and it was very touching to me. the character raj is very much like me ( i think so)...i wanted to ask- what end would you have liked to happen..rushi saying yes or rushi saying no ? (i mean answer to raj's proposal)...i liked the book very much but at the end you kept the sword hanging !! anyways i like happy endings i suppose thats why i am so irritated by that hanging sword thing !!

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  19. There you go! You have your ending then. Rushi said yes and they lived happily ever after :)

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  20. Hi Rahul..........

    Good book to read, you know why i bought this book, because it was ope of the cheapest book on the satll only 100 Bugs and i thought it will be a very good idea to buy a cheaf book to make your journey good from chandigarh to delhi........it sounds wiered, but true

    But after raeding this book, it was excelent, specially that boss section really all the bosses in this world are sucking, they should be removed from the earth, is this your story or a fiction or combo of both, whatever it is i really liked it, you are the second writer whom i appreciated, please add me on orkut also.......and when is your next adition coming................please let me know

    Hope to hear from you...

    Regards,
    Arti

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  21. aww.!dat ws a real cool coincidence

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  22. dats realli cool.. wish to meet u once lyk dat BY CHANCE :)

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  23. wow!! i wonder such interesting things happen to u frequently.....anyways, i loved reading ur article...it was really touchy....!!
    keep up the good work :)
    NiHa

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  24. heehee !! wish even i could have met u when i was reading ur book in the train from chandigarh to kolkata :)

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  25. Wow :) thats like really nice! even nicer the way you have put it! congrats filmy :)
    ps- even i was reading this book of you'rs in the train and you finding me there would be a dream come true too :)

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