Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Dreams on Wheels

He worked far away from his country, creating a family out of the other young bachelors who worked at the office – playing pranks, eating with them, confiding in them. His parents lived in a small town in the depths of India – and when he offered to buy them a car they protested the expense out of habit. He wore down their resistance, telling them to go ahead, visit the showroom, pick a color, take a test-drive. After repeated assurances that he could afford the EMIs, they accepted his offer to buy a car while he waited in the sharp desert sun to take a bus to work every morning.

The car was chosen, the color picked, the downpayment made, with him pulling the strings by remote control with the power of a foreign-currency chequebook. They drove it home, stopping by the temple to submit a coconut to the Gods before driving home along palm-lined narrow paths in a sturdy 4-wheeler that shone black against the green all around.

And he sat at his faraway desk, with a picture of the car on his desktop, answering to clients and pouring his creativity into making a living. Dream 1, at least, was achieved.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Loved that. Simply loved it. I think human interest stories grab me most. And this one is so simple on the surface, but the layers peel off as you approach it.

Thinking Cramps said...

Thanks OJ. That's really what Dubai is all about. With everyone here to make money, there are dreams driving every individual. Someone's building a house in Kerala, someone's sending their kids to school, some are just staying alive.

Suku said...

Wow..thats was just wonderful. Your writing is simple yet has so much depth.
I check your blog everyday waiting for new stories and updates but you havent been regular and sometimes I get disappointed. I know know....what can I say... I am demanding:-)

To more beautiful writings....

Hope you are settling in well.

dipali said...

This was lovely- a short little piece which said so much! More please, and sooner:)

Thinking Cramps said...

Suku: What happened to sbora? I thought you were someone else till I clicked on your name! You are getting closer to your sukhdev avatar! Or did you ever really forget it?

Dipali: Lots of such stories here. Every cab driver, most of my colleagues, the construction workers...

Suku said...

'suku' is what my friends used to fondly refer to me back in my delhi and college days...(from the famous movie song-junglee-aye aye aye karu mein kya suku suku)and it stuck.

~nm said...

Wonderful read!

Reflections said...

good read. related to the story oh so well.

u've just described the story of our lives...the HE in this case is my husband.
we(H, me & 2 kids) stand in the hot sun waiting for the bus or a taxi(whichever comes first) while the parents in Home country travel comfortably in a car purchased by us.
well I dont have any grouses...as such.
I mean its not their fault that their son cant be bothered about getting a DL;-D

Thinking Cramps said...

Suku: ai-ai-yaaaaaa! :)

NM: Thanks

Reflections: Thanks for dropping by and glad this touched a chord. Good of your husband to do that. But I hope the hot sun treats you softer than most since your car quota is being used elsewhere :)