ABSINRAW

11 January 2020 – 0450 Hours

I am sitting here at the Dabolim Airport, Goa at 4:50 AM, wishing for the clock to move faster so that I can check-in to our abode this vacation at 9:00 AM. This blog is not being scribbled just because I wanted to at least try to make the clock seem faster. I am writing this because narrating an accidental encounter I had a few minutes ago takes priority. Before my brain dilutes it by playing it repeatedly and putting elements that may or may not be factual, I would like to note it down laying it all bare. Because this encounter was beautiful. A pause that awaited me at the lonely Dabolim Airport.

Thanks to the well-coordinated itinerary planned by my friends, I found myself sitting at the airport at 0100 hours, 45 minutes after my flight landed, searching for the cheapest option to reach my abode, on a 2G network with 9% battery. Because the next best option was to wait for their flight at 0600 hours to land and accompany them. Amidst this contemplation, the phone battery nosedived sharply to 8 and beyond, before the google search results could load. This was too much! Sleep kept dulling my thoughts and fanned irritability. Finally, I decided to seek water to cool off, and charging point to function properly around the 2BHK airport, with neither a water dispenser, nor a public charger.

Some of us are good with new people and seemingly small talk. They’ll meet new people and will turn out to be their distant relatives in 5 minutes tops. Unlike me, who struggled to find a book to purchase from the airport bookstore, in order to ask for the favour of using their charging port, where Chetan Bhagat covering 2 rows in an aisle (It’s not that I don’t like Chetan Bhagat. On the contrary, I have read all but one of his books. But I don’t do repeat purchase) and an avoidance crept within towards joining the 4 AM club or to learn the subtle art of not giving a F***.

My disappointed face droning across the book aisles repeatedly was witnessed by the store manager, who magically appeared beside me as I turned to finally give up and look around for something else other than a book in the bookstore. A lean, lanky guy in his early 20s, forced to handle the solo night shift in such rush of customers.

“Do you have anything else?” I asked him to figure out if they had something which can help me initiated the barter of accessing the charging point hidden behind the cartons at the store end.

“No sir, only these books,” he replied with an enthusiasm that would make a sloth blush. His eyes clearly had no hope that I will buy anything, and he started moving back to the counter. That was the time when my eyes found this book.

I took the book off the shelf and turned a few pages, before searching for the price, and found INR 500 too costly to charge the phone. Though identical to the costly cab fare that I had decided not to spend on. After weighing pros and cons for a few minutes, I dejectedly reached out for my wallet to complete the transaction, so that I could initiate the main one, and then start reading the book. As soon as the manager looked the book in my hands, he looked at me and asked, “Are you from JNU?”

This wasn’t an odd question, but the tone of his voice made me look up. I found his eyes staring at me, looking at me as if the answer is quite important to him. “No, but curious to know about JNU, or why they think what they think.” A silence followed my answer, which made me think if my answer was that complex or that complete. Before I could delve deep into it, he spoke again.

“What do you think about what happened in JNU?”

Recent times have made me aware of the fact that people who can behave in a neutral manner, irrespective of their opinion, are very rare these days in these rare times. I knew my answer mattered — more than just for the charging point.

“Students being beaten up is wrong. No matter who did it.” That was the most diplomatic and non-accusing way I could find to frame my opinion. He was silent for a few minutes again, before he slowly spoke, “I put status about CAA. I also attended every rally against it here. Usually, people reply with abuses and everything, but a few days back I received a threat on call.”

On one hand, I was relieved and happy to find that I was safe, that this guy even voiced his opinion publically. On the other hand, I was surprised to find that the threats are now not limited to high profile people, which gets attention. “Now the so-called amended version has been implemented too. It’s all a prelude to chaos.” I waved my hand off in resignation as I took the book off the counter. “We live in times when people make opinions before even asking what they are making opinions about.” He had no reply to it.

Nobody said anything for quite a while again, after which I asked him for access to the charging point. He hesitated a bit as it was not allowed generally, but then thought of something. “You have to be around the phone while charging.” He stated while pointing to the socket. I smiled and nodded in approval while moving to pick the charger from the bag. After the phone was in place, we again stood facing each other with nothing to talk about, when he suddenly questioned in a meek voice, “So, that’s it?”

“That’s it?” I was puzzled as I looked at him again. His gaze was restless, but his face was completely calm. “We do not have any option?” I suddenly realised that we were back on the topic. I could feel the frustration and powerlessness he felt, which made me respect him a bit, as he was asking the right questions. “Maybe keep asking questions. Not to win — but to understand what shaped someone else’s path.”

He listened with rapt attention, which I was surprised about. And after this, I saw him smile for the first time during the 30 minutes we talked. It was as if, he had something that made sense. Our discussion went from revoking the special status of J&K to internet bans, US-Iran to China-Pakistan, to the standing of our country at the global platform, the changes these internal issues would have on it and its impact on our global image as a neutral country that prioritized harmony. He attended a few customers in between while we talked, whereas I kept track of the battery percentage of my phone.

45% later, I finally decided to take my leave. Before I took my leave I asked him to keep the discussions alive and keep himself safe. He smiled back and I started walking. Suddenly I realised that I didn’t ask his name. So I turned around and said, “Hey, what’s your name by the way?” His smile halted as he looked at me with some struggle. Then he told me his name and said something which I’ll remember forever. He said, “Please don’t think that whatever I feel, think or say is because of my name. In my village, two people were taken in by police during these few days without any evidence. Our village chief tried his best to get them out, but they are still inside. And they are not even of my faith. Wrong is wrong. Why should we not speak about it?”

That was perhaps one of the best random encounters I have had till date. I don’t want to reveal his name because he is real. I didn’t write about the rest of our talk in detail because those were my opinions and theories which I don’t want to dive into again. But I wish this guy to keep a sensible head over strong shoulders with an empathetic heart for the rest of his life.

The airport didn’t feel as small anymore.