Posted:
"Change"
To exist is to change. To change is to mature. To mature is to go on creating one's self endlessly.
It's been years since I stepped into this city. The city which promised me unexpected events for each moment I had spent in it. The city which held many precious memories.
It was the city that stopped for no one; the rustling streets, jammed packed traffic and the aloof people.
I leaned back on the car seat as I pushed down on the brake and waited for the traffic to open up and let me pass.
"Madam madam... le lijiye na!" A poor boy pleaded as he pointed to the bouquet of roses in his hands. I smiled at him and handed him a Rs.50 bill as I grabbed the assortment of roses. The colours were vibrant and lively, just perfect to cheer me up in this gloomy rainy weather.
I sniffed them and cherished their natural fragrance.
I turned on the radio and began to hum the lyrics...I knew for sure I was going to be reaching late to work but certain things just can't be controlled.
Finally the car ahead of me started rolling forward and I diverted my attention to the road. It took me a good thirty minutes reaching the polished glass building that I needed to arrive at. I quickly parked the car and speed walked into the office floor.
As I entered many employees got up and greeted me good morning.
"Welcome to Mumbai ma'am," my secretary said.
"Thank you Aliya. Now...can I get the files for the London project so we can all start working on it as soon as possible?"
"Of course ma'am. Oh...and you are staying here for a few weeks right?"
I paused. Did I want to stay here for a few weeks?
"No. I will be here for only a week or so...leaving as soon as this project is done and over with."
Aliya nodded and went back to bring the files. I entered my cabin and sat down on the comfy rolling chair. I swear everytime I sat on it I wanted to just roll around spin everywhere in the cabin like a little kid. But, I couldn't do that in front of 50 employees now could I.
As soon as Aliya got the files, I got to work. From the big ideas to the little details...I had them all down and accounted for with perfection. It had been 6 hours straight that I had worked and my stomach started growling.
I ordered pau bhaji from the stall right beside the office and munched on it. The taste and the food which I missed so much. The flavor present in each bite was unexplainable...it reminded me of my mother and my grandmother's cuisine.
My eyes went moist thinking about them. My Aaji...a comedian and a blunt speaker, and my mother...the righteous lady of the house.
I looked at the roses and chuckled slightly. I would have never imagined in my life that I would ever have taken a bouquet of roses from some poor child from the streets. If it was me 20 years ago, I would have pulled up my window and yelled at him to not come near my car ever again. The poor boy's heart would have broke and I would have slammed the steering wheel in frustration.
I smiled again at the empty plate of pau bhaji I had sitting on my desk. Never in my life would I have had ate or even ordered from a restaurant that ranked less than 5 stars in the city. However, here I am...20 years later...savouring the taste of the pau bhaji made at the local stall.
20 years is a lot of time and coming back to Mumbai I now realize how much I have changed. My outlook of the people beneath me has become less authoritative and demeaning. And how could it have not?
When I was all alone with a few months old baby in my hand, these people had come out to help. I lived with the middle class families in Bangalore where the neighbours stayed up all night taking care of my baby while I slept after a tiring day at work. I let out another grin as I thought of my first job...as a waitress. Oh the days...the sweet old men healthily complimenting me and the old ladies pampering me. Anna, the owner of that little restaurant was like an older brother and the only family I had in these 20 years apart from my daughter.
My daughter. The struggle to provide for her was difficult. Initially I had hated my decision of leaving Canada but I thought it was the best to leave than stay there with a family that resented me for betraying my sister.
But things had been hard in India without much money. Employers didn't want to give me a job because I lacked experience and I wasn't completely qualified. So, I had to start everything off from scratch. I didn't want to model, instead I wanted to do business which could provide enough money for me and my daughter.
The job as a waitress helped me connect with people and truth be told I had lots of fun. However, with the low pay and the baby's needs for diapers and such, there were times I would sleep on an empty stomach. Worse came and I fainted at work...I remember how worried Anna had gotten. That day he decided it was enough and I needed to go find another job that won't keep me on my feet all the time. So, then somehow I landed at a job as the typist and secretary at a fashion company. I progressed in that company and gained experience, enough to start my own business. And here I am...20 years later...sitting in one of my six branches.
"MA!" I came out of my trance seeing the troublemaker enter the cabin.
"Kya hua?" I asked worried.
"Are aisa kuch nahi hua...I was just yelling because you looked so lost," she laughed as I glared at her for freaking me out.
"Pia...tu bhi na kabhi nai sudhregi."
"Uffo Mumma...you should chill a little...enjoy life," she said happily.
Honestly, who would have thought that my daughter...the bratty, annoying, childish Ovi...could have possibly birthed a daughter like this. Cheerful and positive in every aspect of life.
"I AM enjoying life...but iska matlab yeh nahi ke mein kaam karna band kar doon."
"So what...I'm becoming a doctor aur mein kitni relaxed hoon...you should be that way."
"But I wasn't stressed...I was just thinking," I say the last part softly.
She mellows down and asks, "Were you thinking of papa and your family?"
I smile, "I was thinking of Aai, Aaji, Baba, Teju, Sachin...everyone..." I sulked a bit remembering my siblings. Teju and Sachin were extremely close to my heart and I longed to see them for these 20 years.
"Are! Toh mein kahan gayi...sab ko yaad kar liya mujhe chodke?"
"Toofan ko bhi bhala koi yaad karta hai," I say teasingly and she gapes.
"MAA!!! So mean!" She says and I laugh.
"Accha...chal nautanki band kar aur ghar chal..."
She grabs my purse and files for me while I walk out waving Aliya goodbye and instructing her for tomorrow's events. I walk into the passenger seat allowing Pia to drive. I told Pia we would go home but in reality she would never visit her real home...the home in which Baba and Aai lived in. We headed towards the apartment I had purchased out of the city.
I sighed and pushed back my seat. I looked up at the clouds and felt the content and satisfaction one has in life. I wasn't the insecure desperate young girl I once used to be. The one that had separated her sister and best friend from each other. I wasn't impulsive or outspoken as before...and cold hearted.
I had changed...changed for the better. I had found my security and contenment in my daughter and my self built business. I warmed up to the people around me, whether rich or poor. For once, I, Ovi Deshmukh was truly happy with life...and that...I hope never changes.
This post was my insight on a reformed Ovi, the Ovi Deshmukh that I want to see after this 20 years leap. I, myself, am guilty of calling her annoying, dumb, in need for a rehab etc. However, at the same time I think its time that her character showed some growth and went on to the positive side of the parabola.
Do let me know how it is...I know no one really wrote on Ovi so I hope I don't get sandals and eggs thrown at me for that...
