THE NORTH REMEMBERS

Chapter 1 - THE HUSTLING FOUR

    It all started with a plan to go for a trek. The plan was confirmed only at the last moment and the green light was given by ourselves. Only few knew about this plan. And only we knew the timing of this plan i.e. just two days before. The plan was to go for a trek, climb a mountain and come down. If there’s more time, then we could go around for new places.

    We packed our bags, got whatever we could. Most important things were trekking shoes, winter jacket, gloves, cap and a torch. We moved from our homes early in the morning. Abdul and myself started the travel on a bike to Coimbatore. On our way, we bought medicines for cold, fever, pain killers as a safety measure.

    We reached Coimbatore and we bought a sleeping tent and made our way to the bus stop. We met Plato and Arun who were also accompanying with us for this epic journey. We boarded the bus by 1 pm to Chennai. We stopped at a place for the lunch where we purchased few clothes. After few hours, we noticed that our departure of the Delhi train was at 10.30 pm and we were running late. So we went to the driver and asked him to drive fast.

    The driver was friendly to us and he did his best to go fast. At one point, the driver said that the bus wouldn’t go past the 100 km/hr mark as the speed control was enabled in it. Still the driver gave his best efforts. Abdul and myself dint move from the front seat. We stayed with the driver till the end.

    We came to know that we would never make it. So Abdul asked his friend to come to a stop named Tambaram. The driver risked everything for us. Then we got down and went to a stop called Perungalathur. Plato clocked around 110km/hr on that heavy traffic road and we made it to the Perungalathur stop. We carried our bags, which weighed around 8-10 kg and ran through the platform to board the train.


Chapter 2 - TRAGEDY OF TRAIN

    Unfortunately, we missed the local train. We boarded the next train and were heading to the Central Railway Station. We got down and ran all the way to the platform 6 to board the Tamil Nadu Express. We could not make it as it took of 2 minutes earlier. We acted quickly and booked tickets to Nagpur. In few minutes time, the counter was closed. We just booked the tickets in time.

    We had around 40 minutes for the train so we came out to have our dinner. After dinner, we had to search for the train and we boarded it. Luckily, we got our tickets confirmed in a matter of seconds and that too the same compartment and same bay.

    We thought we would catch the Tamil Nadu Express as it was 1 hour late. But next morning, we came to know that our train was 6 hours behind the Tamil Nadu Express and we couldn't catch it. So we planned to book another train from Nagpur to Delhi.

     We booked the train from Nagpur to Delhi. It was around 2.30 pm and our train was supposed to reach there by 2 pm. Shockingly, our train was 2 hours late and we dint know whether we could make it in time. We even thought that, if the train was operated like a bus, we could convince the driver to go fast. Funniest thing was that, we got the ticket confirmation for the Nagpur tickets as well. The journey, whether we would make it or drop it depended on the train.

    To our surprise, the train reached the station by 2.40 pm and the Nagpur train was 15 minutes late. We boarded the Nagpur train and continued the journey to Delhi. We managed to get a glimpse of the railway station as there was few minutes to spare.

    We bought some oranges as Nagpur was famous for oranges. We boarded the train to Delhi and only then we found out that they were not oranges but mozambi. All we were thinking was about the train and were blindfolded.

Chapter 3 - TO THE ROADS

     We spoke about these all night and went for sleep. Next day, we were closing into Delhi and a person asked us to look a mountain closely. We dint find anything special about it. When we came closer, we came to know that it was the garbage dump of Delhi, that turned into a huge mountain. It was too big.

     We came out of the station and boarded a bus to the ISBT (Inter State Bus Terminal). No one knew hindi, but we managed to ask some people and finally boarded a bus to ISBT. The only Hindi we knew was, "ISBT bus hey, kithna time hey". From there, we booked the tickets to Kulu, Himachal Pradesh. We had to wait for 3 hours for the bus to come.

     It took nearly 15 hours to reach Kulu. We reached there by 5 am and were shivering. We boarded another bus to Kasol. We reached Kasol by 8 am in the morning. We booked a room and rested for a while.

Chapter 4 - KNOWLEDGE, FUN & EXPERIENCE

     We explored Kasol, visited the Manikaran valley and the hot springs in there. Later that day, we ran out of money as there were no ATM’s. We were able to get back to Kulu. We had money for 2 persons to make it to Kulu. If we couldn’t find ATM’s working it would be an one way trip. Fortunately, we got the money from an ATM and continued our journey.

     Our next stop was our trek to Shrikhand Mahadev. We spent some time in Kulu before boarding the bus. We had our breakfast there and explored the city. We had momos for the breakfast. It was the first time I had momos. We went in each shops and started to bargain all the things we saw. We had around 2 hours to board the bus and we wanted to do something useful.

     We got some information about the trek and few places to explore. Later, we boarded the bus to a place called Aani from Kulu. It took around 8 -10 hours of journey. We made friends with the driver and the conductor. We came across lots of apple trees. We went through a traffic congestion. It was a small road and only one vehicle could pass at a time.

      It took some time for our bus to pass through. That was the time, we planned to make use of. We got down the road and managed to gather as much as apples we could. When the owner came, we were no where to be found. We were in the bus and the driver understood what had happened, so he switched the headlights off and we moved pretending to be invisible.  We shared it to everyone and still we had around 2 kg of apples left.

Chapter 5 - Aani and Base camp

   

We reached Aani and rented a room. We met a person there, who has been to Shrikhand twice. He said that it was a tough trek and it would take a minimum of 3 days to complete it. We spent that night there. Next day, Abdul and myself got up early as planned but Arun and Plato couldn’t get up. They said that they would come next day. So we had to leave them and headed to Rampur.

     It was nearly 3 hours of journey and we got down before Rampur as per the conductor’s instruction.
We found few people who are heading towards the Shrikhand. We spoke with them and travelled with them to Shrikhand. They were Virender, Satpal, Rajesh and their friends.

      We made it to the first base camp, where we were issued with medical certificate and had to register ourselves. We moved around 1 km and had our lunch and started the trek. We managed to keep half of our luggage in a storehouse, including the tent. So we had only the necessary items in our bags. Still, our bags were heavy.


Chapter 6 - Day 1

     The total trek was 72 kms. According to us, it was divided into several sectors. The jungle, rocks, woods, rocks, flowers and finally steep hills with snow.

     Our friends whom we met, asked us to wait in a camp as we moved fast. Once we reached, we bought some noodles which was the only food that we got. It costs around Rs.80 -100. We waited for the others there and once they came we continued our journey. We stopped in a camp for the nightfall with our new friends. It was too cold out there, despite the sweater and the jackets we wore.


Chapter 7- Day 2

     We got up in the morning and started the journey. We checked the altitude now and then. We really got upset only when we climbed around 3000 meters and had to go down for 1000 meters. It was the only way, and we made it through. It was during then, we saw the glacier for the first time. It was a great sight.

    After few kilometers, we had to cross a huge glacier. We could even see water flowing underneath it. It was not that safe as it would break anytime. We crossed many glaciers and it served as the source for fresh water.

     Finally, we made it to the last base camp at noon. We thought of going to the peak, but the entry was closed. So we had to wait in the last base camp. On our way to the last base camp, so many people asked about us and encouraged us to make it to the top. They were unable to reach the peak, so they wanted us to reach there.


Chapter 8- Day of Hustle

     Next day, we started by 3 am leaving all our bags in the tent, as it would be the toughest part of the journey. It was raining and it made the trek even tougher. We climbed the mountain as fast as we could. At one point, I went too fast and got slipped due to the rains. It was a slope and thank God, that I had a pole to support. Then, Abdul and myself started to take the lead. We went so quick as if we knew the way.

     I stopped him and asked him, whether it was the correct way and he said, “in order to reach to the peak, we had to go top”. I was convinced, but then there was no way. So we turned and shouted that it was the wrong route. Suddenly, they started to move right and we found the way. Since we moved way too top, we had to cross a glacier while others had to cross a river.

   
After so much of hustle, we made it to the top. I was so happy, but it dint last long. They said that it was the Mansrover, the last water spot. I hardly found any water, everything was ice. I didn't find a way from there. All I could see was a stee hill. Actually, the real trek started from that point.

Chapter 9- Trek

     We made up our minds and dint wanna go back, so we started to climb the hills. It took lot of effort. Like, we used our hands, legs and even our body to support us, but we made it top. We had everything but that was our weakness. We had a pole, water bottle and a torch to climb the hill. But, we can't use them if we need to climb the hills. I kept the water bottle in the winter jacket and put the torch in my mouth. Only then, I could use my hands to climb.

   It was 3 am and the only light source was the torch. So, we had to do something. At one point, we had rocks covering both the sides. After that, when I turned to my left, all I could see were clouds. We were like standing above the clouds. After few minutes, once I climbed another rock, there was nothing to support me. I was on the peak of some mountain and I had walk over it to the next peak.

     Suddenly, we had to come around the peak, as it could not be climbed. We got to move quickly around the corner to maintain our balance and to reach the other side. In some situation, we faced ice around the corners of the mountain and we had to support ourselves with the poles and move slowly. This was the dangerous part of the trek.
Once we completed all those, we had to walk straight to a mountain. Then, we had to climb the final glacier to reach the peak of Shrikhand Mahadev. It took some time to make it to the top, but we made it to the top. It was a glorious moment, as the sun started to shine like we were gifted with enlightenment.

     We were sitting on top of a rock for 20 minutes talking for sometime and still couldn't believe that we made it to the top. We saw only around 25 people who made it to the top. We surely were gifted. When our friends came they asked us to move closer to the peak. To the Shivling. We would've moved earlier, but then it was a footwear restricted area. Can you imagine that a place above 4300 metres high and covered with ice was a footwear restricted area.


Chapter 10 - The Peak

     Yes you've read it right. It was a very big Shivling sitting right on the peak. That's why it got the name Shrikand Mahadev. We dint wanna remove our shoes but then wanted to go closer. So we had no choice but to remove our shoes. It took some time to make that decision. We even thought not to go any closer. But we got the chance to reach top that many have desired.

     We removed our shoes and dint know where to keep our legs. It was shivering. Everything was covered with ice. It just lasted for few minutes. Then, we dint feel a thing. We took part in the ritual. We thought it was over, but one of our friends asked us to go around the peak. We went with him.

     We had to step down and then move around the peak, yet another treacherous path. The way was too small and only one person could pass. According to me, if one has to pass through, they had to lean to the peak. The are more chances to fall if we miss step. At one point, we could barely keep a foot. We had to move through inorder to make it to the other side.

     On the other side, they had some tridents or thrishools for worshipping. We came around 80% of the peak and I thought there could be a way from there. To my disappointment, there was no way but to go back through the way we came. I found it difficult as I was complaining to Abdul about the small pass. Everyone found it difficult and I was the only person to speak about it. All these took around 20 minutes and we've been there for 40 minutes. We took some pictures with our new made friends and they left as soon as possible. Abdul and I took some time in wearing our shoes and were amazed by the beauty of nature.

     After few minutes when we found everyone leaving, we also started to leave. We spent nearly an hour there at the peak. It was on our way down, that I realized that going top was easy when compared with coming down.



Chapter 11- Memories

     We clicked few pictures on the way to the last base camp. Since we started early in the morning and faced lots of hardships, we were not in the mood for photographs. But once we were nearing the peak, we started. We kept our phones inside our jacket so that it stays warm enough.

     Our phones worked only few seconds before shutting down. We had to come up with other ideas to capture the awestruck landscape. We used a power bank to power our phones and it worked. It lasted more than few seconds. So, taking pictures also was not easy. We couldn't check whether the picture was good or not.

     We made sure to capture as much pictures as we could. It was tough time operating the phone wearing gloves. The touch screen doesn't work and so we had to remove the gloves, which was even more terrible. We improvised it by using selfie stick. No matter what we did, it just lasted few seconds.

     Our phones doesn't work due to the severe cold and altitude issues. So we thought that from next time, to use a cam instead. That would do the trick.

     We took lots of pictures on our way down. Every five minutes, the clouds change and provide spectacular views. We never wanted to return but stay. The flowers in the Parvati valley were amazing. It was sad that we had to go through the Parvati valley early in the morning. Since we started by 3 in the morning, we never knew what was in our way. Only on our way down, we realised how beautiful it was.


Chapter 12 - Way Down

     We couldn't stay on the peak for long, so we started our way down. Some were skiying on the glacier. We had to be careful on the glaciers. So it took some time. We tried to ski but turned out bad. We couldn't control the momentum. We moved slowly and on our way down we saw people who wanted to make it to the top so badly that they don't care how their body responds.

     We were so lucky that we were young and made it to the top where many failed to reach. A proud moment filled our hearts. We had to go back the same way and that means to cross all the glaciers and treacherous paths. A person in front, suddenly slipped and fell over a slope. To be precise, it was a slope of a mountain. My brain processed a notion that he's gone. But to our surprise he stopped at the edge and somehow made it top. We nearly witnessed an accident. From then, we took extra effort to be safe.

     People who are afraid of heights never look down once they are top. But in this case, no chance. We had to climb down a cliff. At one point, there was nothing in front. We had to place our foot at correct places to maintain balance. Worst scenario was looking down. We were above 4000 ft from ground level.

     Once we reached the Manasrover, the end of cliffs, we sensed a moment of relief. There were lots of rocks and we had to go over them. It wasn't the correct way. But still, we took it. The local people there were so fast in moving over the rocks. They jumped from one to the other. We couldn't do it for long. Finally, we came to the end of Manasrover.

     Our eyes were set for the most beautiful things, as we came across the valley of flowers. It was a beautiful sight until we realised that was the way we took top. Soon the valley of flowers were not that good, as we stomped our way through it and the early morning rains made it worse. What a wonderful sight it would be to see the valley of flowers untouched!

     We made our way back to our tent in the last base camp. We had some food and slowly started our way down to the foothills of Himalayas. We couldn't stop taking pics as the landscape kept changing every now and then. We stopped at every camp to have some tea as it was too good. We managed to come half way down by nightfall. We gazed at the countless stars and dint wanna move from that place.

     Next day we started a bit late and made it to the exit by noon. It was hard to depart from that place but still we said goodbye our new friends and headed to Rampur. We checked for the bus from Rampur, unfortunately there was none and we had to spend the night at Rampur. We bought some apples, oranges and charged our mobiles in a nearby shop. We stayed all night and finally boarded a bus to Rehkong Peo.


Chapter 13 - Monastery and Rekhong Peo

     Rehkong Peo is the closest place to Chitkul which is the last Indian village. We woke up early in the morning and were awestruck by the roads. We were indeed traveling through one of the dangerous roads in the world. We made it to Rehkong Peo by noon. We checked in a hotel and dint waste anytime and started to explore three place.

     We went in a Buddhist monastery and found it amazing as it was peaceful. We are the only people there. We spent sometime and sat over a slab until we fell asleep. Our body was so tired as we had no rest after the trek. Once we realised it, we went to the hotel and slept for a while. We woke up by 7pm and found the climate to be shivering.

     We had some food in the hotel. The hotel had pictures of Himalayas. View of Pokhra lake, Everest, The Annaporna range and more. We admired the interest of the hotel owner and put them in the list of places to visit in the near future. The food felt so tasty as we had only noodles and tea for the past 3 days.


Chapter 14 - Last Dhaba and the border

     Next day morning we packed some bread and Hershey's for our breakfast and headed to a nearby fishery. After that, we had our breakfast there. Then we boarded the bus to Chitkul by 12 in the noon. We reached Chitkul by 1.30. We made some new friends on the way. From Chitkul, we heard to the Indo-Tibetian border. We had to walk for 40 minutes and we came to know about our new friends on the way.

     When we reached closer, a cop came and warned that we are not allowed after that point. Even photographs were not allowed. But we managed to click some. We spoke with him and then he bought us a ride back to the village. On the way back we clicked some pictures of the border which we were never meant to. We had to come back soon as the last bus to Rekhong Peo was at 3.30pm. So we made sure that we are on time. We said goodbye to our new friends and headed back to the hotel.

Chapter 15 - Cross roads of destiny

     Next day, we planned to go to Kalpa. While waiting in the bus stand, there was a bus to Tabo and we boarded it. A sudden change of plans. Tabo is a village in Leh. The roads were so dangerous as we had to stop due to falling off rocks. There was a crew whose job is to clean the fallen rocks from the road. The roads were so thin that only one vehicle can pass at a time. It would be a one hell of experience for the bikers. 

     On the way, there were so many river crossing, sudden land slides and we can't expect anything on how the roads would be. It was a great journey. We stopped at a place called Naco. It was the only place looked green. We met someone from Tiruvanamalai in South India. He worked for the government and was there as a minister was visiting the place. We spoke with him and moved to Tabo.

     We reached Tabo by 4 in the evening. We had no money and thank God there was an ATM. Then we moved into a monastery and checked in for the night. We roamed all over the place and the next day, we explored as much as we could and headed back to Rampur. 

Chapter 16 - Chandigarh and way down

     We managed to get some apricots and dry fruits. From Rampur, we boarded a bus to Chandigarh via Shimla. We stopped at Shimla by night. It was cold and we had no time. So we headed to Chandigarh the same night. Next day morning we reached Chandigarh and we reached our room. We spent sometime with our friends talking about the experience we gained in the trip. We roamed on the roads on Chandigarh and started to explore it for a while, as we had to wait for our friends Plato and Arun.

     That night, we went to the Sukna lake. We had a spectacular view of the lake and spent few hours there and finally headed back to New Delhi for our train to Coimbatore. We reached Delhi by time and boarded the Tamil Nadu express and we were all set.

Chapter 17 - Running, Chasing

     It was a two day travel to Coimbatore. On the way back, our pockets were empty. We had to buy food for the night and the next day. There's no way of withdrawing money from the ATM. We checked the timing of the train and came to know that it would stop in Vijayawada for 5 minutes. That was the maximum time it would wait. So, Abdul and myself planned to go to the ATM in the railway station and come back within 5 minutes. 

     The train reached Vijayawada and before it stopped, we got down and were running on the platform. On the way, Ticket collector stopped us. He understood our emergency and showed us the nearest ATM. To our bad luck, the ATM was not working. We went outside the railway station and managed to withdraw money and came back running to the train.

     The train already started to move and I managed to get in but I couldn't find Abdul. He managed to get in the last compartment of the train and we were lucky. We finally reached Coimbatore and managed to get home with nothing but empty pockets. We shared the apricots as many started to rot. Thus our North trip was filled with running, chasing and sudden change of plans. 

       

                                    THE END

College days

Book 1

Chapter 1- First days of College

    It was a clear day when I joined the college. Like the most people, I too had some expectations about the college life. My parents told me that they should not be called to the college, other than for the graduation ceremony. With this in mind, I gladly accepted it.

    The day came when I had to leave for the college. It was time to say goodbye to my beloved friends and moved to the college. All my friends chose engineering and were waiting for the engineering counseling. But then, I was not alone, my friend Suvadhan accompanied me. Not to drop me, but to sit with me and spend the entire 3 years with me. He was that type of guy who would abscond at crucial times. Like, he didn’t join the day I joined. I managed to make friends with my roommates on the first day.

    I had one advantage which kept me one step ahead of everyone. My friend, Vivek was studying in the very same college but was senior to everyone. He was in the final year of his graduation. He was a good friend to me and to my brother, as they were best buddies in class. With his support, I had nothing to fear, he even introduced to another senior whose name was Sidharth. With everything being good, my parents left me in the hostel and went home. I dint feel anything as I was experiencing something new.

    I woke up the next day; the first day of the college. But then, my expectations started to fade. I came to a realization that not everything that portrays in the movies is true. Even that ragging scene was a fake. May be it was a tradition that was followed few years back. The first day was something similar to school. They held an induction ceremony, with no fun and lots of rules and regulations. It was way too boring and many dint show up on the first day. Only then I understood why. Day one was a dull day and then my friend showed up. Then we went to our class and made sure that we got the last bench. But that dint last long. We made some friends and came to know that one of them is from the hostel. So we spoke with him and made him our new roommate. His name was Sankar.

    That day as usual went with introducing ourselves so many times, to all the professors who came to our class. It was boring as well, but then a girl showed up and introduced herself in a different way. I thought she showed some attitude like the way the movies portray.

    I saw some folks playing basketball and knew they were freshers. So I joined them to play. I dint know that one of our seniors were there at that time. His name was Santhosh. After sometime, he made me to play with him against 4 first year boys. It was a 2 on 4, and we need to play really hard to win them. What actually happened was, it was 1 on 4. He just stood there and watched me play, while I was struggling on the court.

    Whenever I passed the ball to him, it would come back to me as if I’ve thrown it to wall. So, I had to play the entire game all by myself. Only then I understood that he was trying to push my limits, so that he could see what I’m capable of.
From next day onwards we started to go to the basketball court and see how they were playing. It was all big boys and we were not considered at all. Few weeks passed by and a new guy showed up in the court. I dint know this guy at all.

    Suddenly, everyone started to play with him, as if they knew him too well. After sometime we came to know that he was a student who completed his Bachelors and has applied for the Masters and his name was David.

    One evening after practice, when I came to my room, some seniors were ragging our roommates. When I went in, I too had to join the party. There was no other way. It was so funny that one guy was measuring the room with a match stick and other guy was trying to put off the bulb by blowing. It was funny to me. Since I was just joining the party, I had to brush my teeth. Others completed their breakfast and now into their tasks of measuring and blowing. I was asking on how to brush without toothpaste and then one of my roommates showed me and I started to do it.

    Actually, it was a good time for me and a pretty much a bad timing for the seniors that my friend Vivek came looking for me. When he entered the room, I started to brush my teeth and did so well in it that I sold that act. He totally believed that these seniors were ragging me. Actually that’s the real scenario. He then scolded the seniors and they asked for an apology and never came back to us. That was a big deal.


Chapter 2- Beginning to Settle in.

    During the second month of college, we had an essay writing competition and I took part in that. Not that I was good in writing, but for bunking the class. By that time, I started to bunk classes saying that we are preparing for several tournaments.

    The competition was planned after the lunch. But then, it was postponed after 4pm i.e. after college hours. So, I had to participate in the competition and should make it to the court by 4.45pm, only then I would get a chance to play. So I made sure to complete the essay as soon as possible. I couldn’t write it fast as I thought, because it was meant to be written in Tamil. I gave everything I had and completed in time just to make sure that I had a place in the game too.

    Few days passed and the winners have been announced.  Only during the next day at practice, I came to know that I have won the prize. I’m not sure which one. A friend from commerce department said that they announced it in the mike. Next day I went to my class and enquired about it, and they said nothing about it. I went to the staff who was in charge and enquired about it. They said that no one from my class knew my name. So the certificate went missing. Only then I came to an understanding that I’ve been to class only for few days.

    Then, I started to participate in more competitions and events. Wherever we took part, it was me and Santhosh, my senior. We lost few competitions, won few but then learnt a lot. We don’t go for the case of participation or winning, we just wanted to learn more. So we took part in more events. Our names will be enrolled in more number of events and we’ll be qualified till the last round.


Chapter 3- Friends

    I made a friend whose name was Tamil, from next room. He was a basketball player as well. We used to go for placement classes together. And placement classes were fun. The placement classes start by 8.15 and we’ll make it in time. But for the regular classes it will be the opposite. We never miss the placement classes. Santhosh used to volunteer for the interviews. He was in his second year, and he would assist the placement officer during interviews. Since we are close, he asked me to volunteer for the interviews as well. It resulted in the increased bunking of classes. We came to know how a HR recruits a person, what type of question he asks, what he wants to hear and everything. We even helped our seniors clear few written tests as we knew the answers.

    The days which we were in the hostel were one of the best days. At night, Santhosh, Prasana, Ponraj and myself used to walk around the corridors of the college. We used to talk about various experiences. The most tragic and funniest ones were mine. They won’t stop laughing at me. But still I would continue the next day and the result would be the same. It was funny. Prasana was our friend and used to come play basketball with us at times. Ponraj was also a basketball player who was looking to be a tough guy in the beginning. Then we came to know each other.

    All these understanding between our team came only when we went for a practice to Nehru stadium and David bought kulfi for everyone. But then, there was one black sheep who bought papaya to someone other than us. That was the moment we all became one.

    Our team includes players David, Jayaram, Karthick from physics department, Inba, Karthi, Ashik, Siddharth, Santhosh, Tamil, Ponraj, Suvadhan and myself.

    We had a friend named Sahir, he was from Mumbai and he doesn’t know tamil. So we were with him whenever we could. He used to come to our room, as we were in the same hostel. We used to talk a lot. Only thing we did in our college was to talk. He used to bring some kind of sweet which was made of ghee and wheat, like the varkey in ooty, but a lot tastier and a milk chocolate. He was the eldest but his younger brother was his senior in the college and the youngest brother was in school at that time. According to them, South Indian education was better than theirs. But according to me, Indian education was worst. We stayed together till the end of the college days.

    I stayed in the hostel only for the first year during which we (Santhosh, Ponraj and myself), broke so many rules like going out after 2 am. We used to climb the compound walls and go out for tea and then come back by 4 in the morning. We went out so many times until one day we got caught and then wrote an apology letter. We stated that the security guards caught us as we were roaming out of our rooms and we just turned the tables against them. Finally our first year came to an end we went back to our homes.


Chapter 4- The Hostel

    Our rooms were the cleanest ones in the hostel and we kept it that way for 2 months. Then, dust took care of our room. That's how every hostel rooms turn. We spent our time wisely. Like, we started to play cricket in our room. That was one of the craziest games we've ever played. The rules were,
 You hit the ball hard, you're out.
 If you miss the ball thrice, then you're out.
 If we catch the ball, after hitting the floor, roof or wall, then you're out.
 Each player could bat for 2 overs.
 We could use pads, water bottles, books and our hands to use as a bat.
 The game consisted of six players and no formation of teams.

    Our hostel rooms were small in size and could accommodate three double cots. We couldn't buy the ball high as we had two fans. No one could judge where the ball would go, once it hits the fan. Everyone took that as an advantage and started addiai for the fan.

    Cricket dint last long until we managed to sneak the carromboard in our room. Everyone started to come to our room and finally we moved to board to the next room, where we had some space.

    Laptops changed the trend, as it came with lots of high quality games. Everyone started to play games like FIFA, NFS, CRICKET, BASKETBALL and even SUBWAY SURFER was played. Many missed their classes and were addicted to these games in such a way that they completed them in a span of a week. Once again, everything started to get bored.

    Then came the movies. We started to watch all the movies from the recent ones to movies that came before 6 years. Some started to watch the movies which came in the 90's. Some dint care about the language, so watched movies which came in different languages.

    This too came to an end, when the era of the smartphones came into place. Everyone started to play subway surfer and Temple run games. There were some folks who would never come out of their rooms. According to me, they were craziest people who played the Clash of Clans game. They were so addictive that they wouldn't come out the game. When we call them out, they would still complete a task or level in the game and only then, they used to come.


Chapter 5- Food

    Only during Tuesday's and Thursday's we could see all the students rushing for it. Because, they would serve dosai only during those two days. We used to wake up early, like 7 in the morning. We would search for plates and we might easily find them as many would be still asleep. I used to go for breakfast only during those days. Earlier, I used to go during Fridays, when they served bread and pongal. I wouldn't touch the pongal.

  One day my friend had the pongal for breakfast and went missing. He dint show up for class. During lunchtime, we went to the hostel. We saw him coming from the washroom. I was the first one to laugh at him. Because, I've already told him not to have that for breakfast. I already knew this because I've been into that situation. He dint listen when I warned him. So I let that to happen.

  One Sunday, few of our friends started to play in the corridor of our hostel. They were throwing something at the wall and trying to break it. Then, we noticed that it was a idly which was served to us for the breakfast. It was so hard that it had to be thrown several times to break. That's how our hostel for was.

Our hostel had a TV in the mess. The only time when all join together and watch was during the IPL. There might be 8 teams playing in the tournament, but there would be supporters for two teams. That would be for the Chennai Super Kings and the Mumbai Indians. We supporters don't wait for a wicket or a boundary. Even for a dot ball, there would be much argument between us and sometimes chairs and plates might fly as boundaries.

We used to celebrate for Christmas, Ramzan, Onam, Pongal and even Hethai. We used to have functions for each festival. I've never been to one and so are my friends. We, basketball buddies used to play during those times and it would be a perfect timing for us to join for food after play. So that we don't need to attend those boring functions. No one would miss the food, as that was the only time people from hostel could have some good food.


Chapter 6 - THE BIRTHDAY

    Few of our friends were committed, so they had some happiness and lots of problems. Since I was withwthem, I had no other choice but to hear all those nonsense. It was like Greek and French to me. But, slowly it made sense.

Santhosh and I wanted to throw a surprise party for Ponraj's birthday. That's when Sushmitha gave an idea. Sushmitha was a friend of ours from biotechnology department. She managed to collect some of his pictures to make a photo frame.

    On the other hand, Santhosh, Gowtham and I managed to buy a Black Forrest cake. We also made sure that he gets a surprise gift from someone special. We made the planning in such a way that everyone took part in it.

   We planned to celebrate in Tickles, a coffee spot our senior owns. We planned everything to perfection. When the time came, we dint know how to bring him there. We made some silly lies and he finally showed up. Few minutes later, everyone gathered there.

    He was so excited, that so many people came to wish him. Finally, the celebration came to an end by serving the cake to everyone. Meanwhile, Santhosh and I, stood back and captured the moment. It turned out to be another memorable day.

BOOK 2

CHAPTER 1 - MOCKING BIRDS

    The second year started with lots of fun and enjoyment. Suvadhan and I was no longer in the last bench. We were forced to move to the first bench and that was the saddest part of all. This made us not to be in the class and we started to go out for more events and tournaments.

    Second year we had so many people joining our game. We saw Arafat, Vishnu, Srini coming for play. A talented young fellow named Pavan also joined our squad. We started to play well and our bond started to grow.

   We used to spend time in Karthi’s room where whole team settles and mocks each other. Karthi, David, Jayaram were special type of people we can’t miss. David and Jayaram will mock on Karthi’s playboy attributes. Suddenly, Siddharth and Santhosh would make fun of the English department (Karthi, David, Jayaram, Inba). It would go into a deeper conversation and finally be settled as everyone would mock Karthi. Karthi’s activities has brought him that mockery that he has to deal upon.

    Our Teams special product came into action during the second year and that was Suvadhan. We used to warmup before play and our shots won’t fall during the first 30 minutes. It’s the opposite for Suvadhan. For the first 30-40 minutes he’ll be like, “Where is the ball, I’m all free”. There would be like 2 -3 defenders near him and he would shout for the ball. We can’t blame him as he would convert all those into shots. Only after few days we unveiled the mystery. For the first 30-40 minutes, there would be girls roaming nearby and the canteen was very close, and so his shots would convert. After that, he would be free and we need to shout, “Suvadhan, where are you, please ask for the ball”. That guy won’t give a damn. He would get the ball and go for the shot at the critical time or he will try to take a good defense position but he’ll just let go the opposition. After that he would make a reaction that no one could make and no one could take it.


Chapter 2 - THE CREW

    Our Team’s fastest player Karthi, who could run from one end to the other in no time causes the offense to keep a eye behind inorder to avoid the block. No one has ever escaped his defense. He was a better rim protector. David was a better offensive player with lots of shot selection and a long 3pt range in his package. His team always wins and he made lots of his team’s points. Jayaram was his teammate and they never separate. He shoots long range 3pts which cannot be guarded.

    Siddharth had some athletic abilities with long arms, flexible body and tough to defend. He has a wide range of shots. Santhosh, also called the Kobe a prefect replica of Kobe himself. Does the same, take critical shots, misses lots, but at the time of need, we could count on him. Quick hands, better handles and lots of ankle breakers. Arafat, a quick catch and shoot guy. He could knock off 3’s and quick jumpers. Vishnu was unpredictable. Srini was tall and made some funny moments in the game but still a good player.
 
    Tamil was an aggressive player, who could drive easily in the lane, creates the momentum the team needs, has lots of shot selections. Inba was too aggressive on and off the court but plays hard to win the game. Ashik, was the lighthouse of our team. He was so tall and could easily shoot the ball.

    Pavan was a short player, perfectly suited for a ball handler. He had his own play making abilities. Totally unpredictable and anyone could count on him. Ponraj, the roadblock. No offense/defense was safe. He could break the offense as well as defense easily. He could do everything as a basketball player.

    And finally, there was me. Somewhat good in defense/offense but not that good. Could do crazy stuffs that anyone would imagine. That’s how our team was.


Chapter 3 - FUN AND NIGHTMARE

    After game, we used to sit on the court and talk nonsense. Actually, it does makes sense to us. We used to talk about movies, songs, conspiracy theories, Nostradamous, end of world, basketball, history of Lebron, Ronaldo, dissing Curry and the Golden State Warriors. Myths and the sciences which were not proven.

    Everyone would share their perspective and there will be no argument as there will be no disagreements. Disagreements would come only when we mock each other. But nothing would be taken as serious.

    The second year went with lots of competitions and events, so dint have the opportunity to attend the class. We went for various tournaments where we won and lost. During one Tournament, we won two games in a row and we were into the round of 16. We won the next game to move into the Quarter finals. We fought hard to make it there.

    The opponent gave equal tough and at one point of time they were 6 point lead and we had to play really hard to erase the deficit and take a lead. Finally, we managed to win the game with 12 points. It was a great game from both sides. But then, there came the biggest disappointment.

    We were to face Sathyabama University. At that time, they were the National Champions and we were supposed to face them. The game started and there was no noise at all. There prevailed a pin drop silence. Only our coach was shouting. Actually, he was yelling at us to open our mouths.
Pavan started to play well and finally ended up with 8 stitches in his face. He was carried off in a stretcher. After that, even our coach stopped yelling at us. We dint speak anything about the game after that night.

 
Chapter- 4 PASTIMES

     We started to go out every now and then as we vacated the hostel. We used to go out for movies, and lots of long walk. We managed to bring a TV to our room and every morning we used to watch NBA. People who don’t even know basketball started to talk as if they were the professional players.

     Everyone would come to our room to watch WWE specials. Our room was like a small box office to everyone. We would watch every cricket match, football match and even movies. At one point, even serials were taken into account.

     I still continued my placement class and was still a volunteer for the interviews. So I had on duty for interviews, events, tournaments and other college events. This time we had a new friend in. He was Gowtham, from Ponraj’s class.
Santhosh, Ponraj, Gowtham, Suvadhan and I would roam around and outside the college. We were the outstanding students at that time. We used to sit and spend time in the canteen and run around the back of the building when we see the principal coming for rounds. We’ve been to every nook and corner of the college.

     Suvadhan and I would go to Sahir’s room to spend time with him. We would get some things and cook in his house. Sahir’s youngest brother joined the college for the Bachellors. All three brothers took a house and were living there.
Suvadhan was my partner in crime. We used to bunk classes and edit the dates in the on duty forms. But during the exams, Raghu was my partner. We used to share our question papers.

     From the second exam we started to share our answer sheets as well. Whatever written in my paper will be there in his paper and vice versa. We managed to make it in our own words, despite copying the answers. We were the exceptional cases in studies.

     And then, David, Jayaram, Siddharth, Santhosh were in their final days of the college. Everyone got placed and soon gone pursuing their dreams. It was really hard to take in, but life has to move on. I had to vacate the room and need to move with a set of new and old pals.

     Despite all the hardships, the second year of college still made a memorable one.