Tale of a கஞ்சா குடுக்கி
He was on the way to his friend’s house. It has been 3 months since he visited his friend. He couldn’t able to forget the adventures, he had with his friends, on his last visit. They all planned and went to Ooty on a winter’s day of 2020. Though they couldn’t able to visit all the places as they had planned, they all enjoyed the trip because of one thing. And that’s,
BEER!
Ramakrishnan was an ideal teenager; your average next-door boy who had the adventures of love, the aftermaths of love failure, got average marks in school, failed in college exams, had fun with friends like hell, but, has a weird temperament. He had the most awkward teenage ever. He had experienced what it’s like to be rich and sad – you know, like getting bullied in school, getting 2nd rank and crying all night in his sleep – he knew what its like to be poor and happy – like living in a single room with his family, eating food without salt because his family cant able to afford that and experiencing adulthood. He had lost his father on the first year of his college, tried to become a punk and then failed… and then succeeded and then again, he got failed. Basically, he has a sorry ass.
And there you go my friends – we have our hero of this story.
July 2019.
It was a Friday night. The evening sky gave way to moon. The weather of July month in Bangalore will give us goosebumps. Its one of those things where one can’t explain in works. One needs to experience it to know it.
“Dei Ramki, are you sure about this?” – Dinesh was both frightened and eager while asking this question. He wants to do it but at that same time, he has second thought above the plan.
“Believe me. We are going to have the best evening of our lives.”
Due to Ramakrishnan’s long name, hereafter we are going to call him Ramki. That’s what his friends, parents and all the people who knew him well, call him. Initially he didn’t like his nickname but with time, he got used to it and even started liking it. But I have to say – It’s a weird name.
“Shall we go guys?”
“Ah! Yeah Poorvik. What about Dinesh?”
“He’ll come in the car with the other two guys”
“Oh okay” – An evil grin crossed Ramki’s face. He’s going to do something dirty that day.
It had been 1 year and 6 months since that day. It was Ramki’s first ever experience in drinking alcohol and beer combined with smoking all at the same time. He had smoked before in college. It was just a puff here and there for the sake of his friends. He had drunk before in college. It was not even a complete single shot and that too happened for the sake of his friends (more like insisted). But that was the second time, he consciously and eagerly decided to get drunk.
The first time happened in a secret month of his. He maintains that month a secret and never reveals anything that had happened in that month every year.
After getting graduated in a கேவல புஸ்ஸி college in Coimbatore, Ramki joined an MNC in Bangalore. It was the second month of his life in Bangalore and he never had a chance to explore the beauty of it yet. He wanted to start his experience with booze. So, Ramki and Dinesh planned to have party on that July night. Since then, Ramki had his gigs with alcohol. Once in every three months or 4 months, he would drink alcohol. He liked Old Monk Rum and soon it became his favourite drink of all time. He had tried Whiskey, Rum, Brandy and even Jin.
But he soon preferred drinking only Beer.
Beer!
It had opened new worlds to him. Whenever he drunk HOT DRINKS, he would always feel weak and sleepy. But beer is a different thing. It makes him sleep but doesn’t allow him to sleep. It won’t make him high, but he gets high ENOUGH! That’s the magic of beer according to him.
Ramki made a habit of drinking beer once a month.
And then, COVID happened.
His habit had been halted for nearly 6 months. Little did he knew, a new kind of high was awaiting him.
The secret Month of 2021
I have never experienced anything like this. Now I know why they call this as GETTING HIGH. Alcohol always makes you sleep. But this is… this is something else. It makes you to jump from the top floor of a building. It makes you to run, run and run till your legs go numb. I want to jump. I want to touch the fun above me. I don’t want to sit. But my friends are pulling me sit and asking me to sleep. Fuck ‘em. I am going to fly. And then I stood up. The smoke was all around me. My friend opens the window and makes way for the smoke to go away. Now it is so clear. And accurate. The wind is bending. I can feel it. It feels like a mirage. I wanted to stop the wind before it bends completely. I focussed carefully. I moved slowly and caught the wind in my hand. And when I disclosed my hand, I saw the most terrifying thing I had ever experienced in my life.
Ramki was planning on having a beer party once he reaches his friend’s house. It was a Saturday.
He reached the city and called him.
“மச்சா! நா இங்க பஸ் ஸ்டேண்ட் க்கு வந்துட்டேன் டா! நீ எங்க இருக்க?”
“On the way டா! பக்கத்துல தா இருக்கேன். நாவீன பார்க்ல விட்டுட்டு வர்ற லேட் ஆய்டுச்சு! இலக்கியும் அங்க தான் இருக்கான். நாமளும் அங்க தான் போறோம்! இரு.. அங்க வன்ட்டு கால் பண்றேன்”
Ramki was waiting for his friend. All he could think was the fun he’s going to have that night. THE BEER PARTY!! He couldn’t able to take the beer from his mind.
In half an hour, Ramki and his friend reached the park and spent time there. They had planned to watch a movie that evening. Ramki was trying to talk about the beer party plan but he was not getting any chance. The show was going to start @ 6 PM and they had more than 1 hour to spend. So, they went to the theatre and bought the tickets. On the way, all of them talked about the movie and still Ramki couldn’t able to say his plan.
“டேய்! டிக்கெட்டும் எடுதுட்டோம். இன்னம் முக்காமன்னேரம் இருக்கு. என்ன பண்ணலாம்?”
Ramki was about to say his plan but he got interrupted by Naveen.
“அங்க ஒரு ஜூஸ் கட இருக்கு பாரு. அங்க போய் ஜூஸ் குடிச்சுட்டு இருப்போம் கொஞ்ச நேரம்.”
Ramki too wanted to drink the juice but it’s a different kind of Juice. One of its kind!
“படம் சுமாரா தான் இருக்காம் டா”
“அட விட்றா. நலன் படம் நல்ல இருக்கும். மத்த படம் எப்டி இருந்தா என்ன?”
There was a silence. This was the best chance to say it.
“சரி! படம் இருக்கட்டும். படத்த பாத்துட்.. ”
“ஆமா Anthology ன்னா என்ன?”
“அது ஒண்ணும்இல்லடா...”
Shit! Ramki missed his chance again. He could just ask them by shutting them up. But he didn’t want to show that he was too eager to drink beer. He was waiting for Naveen’s explanation of Anthology films to end. Naveen is a movie maniac and his explanation took longer than expected.
After few minutes, his explanation turned into a discussion and suddenly became an argument.
“ஒத்தா இந்த படத்த பாருங்க டா. உங்களுக்கே புரியும்!” Naveen became frustrated and paid the bill to the juice shop owner.
“சரிடா டைம் ஆய்டுச்சு. இப்போ கிளம்புனா கரெக்ட்டா இருக்கும்” - Elaki spoke by looking at his watch.
Ramki became frustrated. He couldn’t able to miss this chance too. He called his friend. He turned and looked at him.
“மச்சா SJ! ஊன்ட்ட ஒண்ணு சொல்லணும் டா ”
“ம்ம் சொல்றா”
“ஒண்ணும்இல்லடா.. இன்னைக்கு நைட்டு நாம.. ”
Suddenly, 4 of us heard an ear-piercing sound of bullet. Another interruption. Irritated, Ramki turned back to see the source of that sound. It felt like they accelerated the bike intentionally to make Ramki and his friend to look them. Ramki saw two guys coming in a bike towards us. One of them was his batchmate.
Ramki tried to locate him in his memory. He knew him. He saw him and his eyes.
His eyes.
That’s it!
He knew him now.
Ramki went near him. His friends were talking to him. But Ramki had something else in mind to ask him. He was the guy who used to smoke Ganja all the time. Ramki never smoked Ganja before in his life. Suddenly a funny thought crossed his mind.
Ramki neared him and punched softly in his belly.
“மச்சி! எப்டி டா இருக்க?” – he asked Ramki.
“அதெலாம் நல்ல தான் இருக்கேன்! நீ என்ன டா இப்டி இருக்கா?”
Ramki was pointing his reddish eyes.
“Stuffஆ?” – He teased that guy. That guy grinned sheepishly at Ramki. That grin didn’t answer his question.
“சரி எனக்கு கொஞ்சம் Stuffஉ தா டா! அடிச்சு ரொம்ப நாள் ஆச்சு!” He brushed him moustache as if indicating that he’s a Ganja smoker. But he’s not! Clearly NOT! And all he did was to tease him and have a laugh. But Ramki didn’t expect the thing that fucking batchmate of his did next.
“இருக்கு மச்சி! கைய நீட்டு” In a sudden shift of movements, he placed the dried ganja leaves in the palm of Ramki and closed his hands. Ramki couldn’t able to understand the situation. All he could do was watching the stupid grin of his friend.
Then it hit his head. FUCK BEER! NOW IT’S TIME TO SMOKE SOME GANJA!
Ramki grinned back.
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