Touche, RB. That's told me!
I agree totally with you and admit that I am as guilty of being a 'pompous git' that I accused them of being. That was a rather uncharitable comment to make against all young people.
I totally take back that comment which was insensitive and unkind and did not acknowledge the pain behind the letter. I did disservice to both you and your characters.
After I'd posted my comment late last night, it was way past midnight after a very stressful day working, I went to bed thinking and feeling uncomfortable about the pompous comment.
Believe me, I would not say that to any young person who came to me saying what Arnav said in his letter! On the contrary, I have been accused of being too kind to students.
Having read your very justified comments, I've looked to see where that comment came from. It is partly a feeling of terrible guilt about not doing enough for a student last year who was one of the brightest students in the class but very troubled and she failed in the course. I tried talking to her, bending over backwards with work deadlines and did all I could to help her, but I couldn't help her pass. The course finished and she's left but since then she's written to say she's been very troubled about something personal, almost wishing she was no more. So may be it was that guilt, hopelessness and sadness at a young person who should look forward to life is in this situation.
I don't know if that explains what I said, which in any case was an unkind remark.
And it blinded me to the cry for help that I now read in Arnav's letter since your comments. I should have seen it. Of course they would want to create a safe haven for themselves, away from it all- that is what we all seek, don't we, a place away from it all?
Thank you for pointing out about the 90s and the sense of alienation a lot of you felt. I come from a previous generation where we were made to wear blinkers form birth and pushed on to a path that had been decided for us, we just had to plod on., and the very few of us who did feel alienated did not even know that the unease we had was ok to have!! I still carry with me the sense of humiliation of not following the path that most of my friends did, that of becoming the doctors or the engineers that they all did!
I could have pmed this reply, RB, but I felt it important that as I had made my comments on a public forum, it is only fair that I do my retractions too in public,
Having read the latest update, all I can say is yet again, I feel this huge wave of sadness engulfing me. I am a very consciously and very determinedly sunny person on the surface- that is my fight against the inner demons, whom I can completely ignore despite their clamour for attention, , but your story is one of the few things that gets past that veneer and forces me to say to the demons inside- 'yes, you guys, I know you're in there'
But on a lighter note I must say you seriously undervalued your writing skills and sensitivity- only 2 samosas and a milkshake for such a brilliant piece of writing!! Seriously girl! And how did the girl friend respond? Did she read the need and pain in the letter? I hope she did.
Originally posted by: RockBarbie
Are they snobs - yes.
Are they cynical - yes.
Are they pompous - no.
Arnav isn't saying that he is surrounded by nonsense. He is questioning her if she would save him if her were so. It's one of those weak moments when his personal tragedies have morphed into physical entities and are bothering him to no end. Khushi simply echos that feeling.
Arnav has his own tragedies which from time to time make an appearance in normalcy of his daily life and mess around. It is possible that the sense of angst is deep rooted in him because of what has happened to him.
I am a child of 90s like Arnav and Khushi here are. Angst was more common than romance, desperation for being different was everyone's game. I don't find it odd because it's a reflection of my generation who wrote letters or made phone calls from a phone booth and had to keep it short cause there was a huge line behind them. We didn't have the access to share every damn thing we feel easily and quickly. They bottled up for a long time and came gushing out when had the time. Arnav and Khushi do not talk for several weeks before Arnav makes his first move. Yeah, calling would have been easy and maybe they even did. But there is only so much you can say over phone and so much more in a letter.
For the record, I wrote the first half of Arnav's letter when I was 17 for a milkshake and two samosas. A friend wanted to send a greeting card to his girlfriend back home after six weeks of first semester of engineering and I offered my services for a nominal charge :=)
Vanshaj
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Udne Ki Aasha
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