The King, Queen & Phoenix!

He would always dream about having a big house with huge round brass staircase, that would be lit up with the glow of the crystal chandelier. His thinking was limited, as his idea of being rich came from Bollywood movies. For him, being rich meant having a round staircase and a crystal chandelier. He would often think of the girl who works with him in the office as his wife. Clad in red chiffon sari, her brown eyes would sparkle when she would see him and they would dance a little before they would embrace each other and kiss passionately, just like in movies. He would hold her hand and they would drive around the town in his new car, which he just ordered from this luxurious showroom. He just knew 3 pointed cars are driven by rich lot.

And suddenly his motorcycle started coughing. Yes! With a jerk, he was back to his reality. He was poor and would often daydream about getting rich so he could change his bike and ask out the lady of his dreams. But that didn't happen. At least it's been 3 years now. His bank balance was constantly declining, given the inflation. He had to support his family too as he was the only breadwinner. Living in India wasn't easy. Though he thought Mumbai would change his fate but it didn't. The only favour he was hoping to get from his fate was to get back home instead of going to the mechanic. Life was tough for him, but he had a habit of daydreaming. It seemed he enjoyed daydreaming, as it was his only escape.

Rajesh was a young, skinny dark boy in his late 20’s. He was working as a clerk in Mumbai City Center, and although he had a diploma in IT, he didn't pursue the field because he did not understand what he studied. He wanted to get rich; as soon as possible! and working 9-5 job and that too for 35ooo wasn't enough. Shortcuts would be fine too but he didn’t want to end up in jail. He was tired of being poor. He was drained by the financial burden that he was carrying. He would often wish to rewrite his fate but it wasn’t easy. He wanted to work hard but he didn’t find the will or motivation to do so. Then he met Hina. A petite girl who had just joined his office. She was his supervisor but that didn’t stop him from falling in love with her. And so he did! Head over heels. Her brown eyes, and black hair which were often tied in a bun, were enough to make him think about her the whole day. She was ambitious and he was hopeless; a match made in hell but he didn’t care.

When Rajesh was a little boy, he heard a lore about ‘Huma’- a Phoenix. If a Phoenix flies over your head, you are destined to become a king. He believed in this folklore and knew it would fly over his head one day. This was the beginning of all those daydreams. He knew if he could find that bird and make it fly over his head, all his miseries would end. He will become the King and Hina will be his Queen. But right now he had to think about getting home as he saw no chance of his motorcycle getting fixed.

When he reached home, he was perturbed and the only thing that would soothe him would be seeing that phoenix. If he could see that red bird, he would caged it and would never release it as he feared it could make someone else the king and then Hina would be his queen. ‘NO, I won’t let this HAPPEN!’ He shouted unconsciously. He looked around, but there was no-one in his little quarter. Only the murmurs of the beggars in the street, asking for some food. He ignored them as he was hungry himself. He needed to calm himself. It was the end of the month and he had to pay Kumar his loan, his rent was unpaid for the third consecutive month. His mother needed money so she could get her medicines. He didn't want to think about his siblings at the moment as he was too tired to do so. On top his motorcycle was also acting up as if he needed that extra tension in his life. He needed to get rich so he could ask Hina to be his life partner. Too many things to do!

The hunger pangs were getting harder in his tummy but he had to sleep. He just wanted to sleep on his worries so he could think about phoenix in peace. Without anyone or anything disturbing him. He knew that phoenix was going to change his fortune.

He woke up groggy the next morning. But the mere thought of Hina’s brown eyes made him smile and he was ready to start his day. When he reached his office, he saw Hina smiling. It was rare to see her smile. For a minute, he thought he saw his phoenix and the fortune, he had been waiting for, has been found. Hina came to his table and held out something towards him. ‘Khao(eat)’ she said. Why? Rajesh was grinning and gleaming with joy. His heart was bursting. ‘I got engaged! I am getting married next week. Khao!’. And she gave him some meetai(the traditional Indian sweet). With mixed feelings of being shattered and happiness, he kept grinning and ate some of the meetai she gave him. She went away but Rajesh kept grinning till a tear came out of his eye. And that's when he realized that the pheonix he had been waiting for, will never arrive now!!

Words: Motorcycle, Fortune, Phoenix