Page 24 - Love Story of a Commando

miss the person you were at that time because you will never be that way
ever again.
So when I got an invitation for the college convocation ceremony, I
enthusiastically packed my bags for a brief stay at my alma mater. The
reunion began with hugs and kisses among friends. The trunk of memories
was opened mercilessly. We laughed, complained and blamed. That day was
dedicated to the nights that turned into mornings with the friends that turned
into family and we agreed unanimously that our college times were
legendary, and nothing could replace those memories.
The convocation was organized on a very large scale and Mr
Amitabh Bachchan was the chief guest, and his speech was mesmerizing.
He said, ‘For what it’s worth, it is never too late to be whoever you
want to be. I hope you live a life you’re proud of and if you are not, I hope
you have the strength to start over. Every dream is supposed to be hard, if
it’s not hard everyone would do it. The hard is what makes it great. Believe
in it and stand for it.’
His speech was followed by the distribution of degrees and medals
and a grand dinner.
The next day, we bid our goodbyes with tears in our eyes and a
heaviness in our hearts. We exchanged numbers and promised to meet soon.
At that time, you think the best days of your life are in front of you. And you
decide what they will be and aim to take control of it. No apologies or
excuses. No one to lean on or to blame. The cage has been opened and
you’re a free bird ready to fly high in the sky, but little do you realize that
the sky is endless, and you will always crave to go back into that cage. The
carefree days of chirping around were long gone.
Life begins at the end of your college life and you miss college for the
rest of your life.
College life was over and the reality of growing up was still sinking
in. People had expectations from me. For taking initiative and carrying out
responsibilities! Of what I would do in my career five years down the line
and who I’d get married to. These were the side effects of staying at home
for a long duration. Even the bai would ask about my pay package and
Sharma uncle would always be inquisitive about my ability to pay rent from
my own pocket, Gupta aunty’s hawk eyes would look at me as if I were a
bride over the expiry date, which would make my parents restless.
The aunties of our times have a weird theory that getting married at
the right age is more important than marrying the right person.
There also came a time where my mother insisted I learn some basic
culinary skills which she thought would be more important to me after my
wedding than my engineering degree. I also attended some of the mohalla
weddings and mingled with the guys who had once been roadside Romeos