It
was after a tiresome day in office. It was the delivery date and somehow
managed to squeeze the application through. Was longing to be at home. I always
feel so, but without exception when the work load is too much. Call it my
laziness or whatever else, but who won’t desire to fall into safe hands at such
needy times? Though the level of desperation may vary.
Instead
I fell into the front seat of my friend’s car. I was too tired to take my bike
that day. I switched on the music system. The speakers blared off some heavy
metal songs. I was feeling dizzy and navigated through the playlist to change
the music. I was so happy to find a folder ‘Malayalam’ and played it. I
wondered if the player is smart enough to sense my mood when it played ‘Olathumbathirunoonjalaadum
chella painkili..’ from Pappayude
Swantham Appoos.
I
was falling through the tunnel of time to my Second Standard days. My father
used to sing that song while bathing me. My mother had stopped bathing me as
she was too busy in the kitchen to manage my giggling prone to tickling in the
busy morning hours. He would sing the lines ‘..Ente bala-Gopalane enna theppikumbam padadi..’ repeatedly. Not that he singed
extremely good, but I loved it very much because I thought he was singing for
me. It made me feel very special and in the centre of the universe. He called
me Gopalaa, so I deluded myself into believing that he made the lyrics for me. I
was never tired of those same lines every morning. It never occurred to me that
it could be a movie song even when I heard it in Anand-ettan’s auto rickshaw on
my way to school. Its true that we see only what we want to see as we are
blinded in love. But I did not know then that it was equally applicable o the
sense of hearing as well. It was only when I saw it in Chithrageetham – a music
programme in DD4-Malayalam Channel did it dawn on me that such a possibility
exists. It was a shock not so mild and also a disenchantment not so grave. After
this episode of edification, the song did drop a few places from my popularity
chart before it soared back to the top in a week’s time.
I
was feeling so light and soothed and pampered by the time it played the umpteenth
time that night, still was missing home, even more this time. My friend was
snarling at me and I was grinning, as broad as the Cheshire cat.
