Glitter Tether

"Hum themlage lao tumlaroni eigi laidhibi", such a sweet Manipuri song, I said. A perfect way for me to spend the evening is listening to songs that soothes and calms my boisterous mind. It's been almost 20 days since I came to Delhi, a choice imposed on me by my parents. At this point I have to mention that never did my parents force me to act or do things in their way, it was always me taking the decisions, me acting like a crybaby-No, I want this, I want that (But I never asked for anything beyond their reach). This time it was the other way around, where the element called 'fear' brought in the cacophony into our lives. My parents feared that my life was taking a circuitous route, they said, " Why don't you go somewhere else for a few days, someplace where you can find solace, prepare for a better tomorrow? " I was reluctant at first, and Delhi was never in the list, but it seemed that my heart repeatedly longed for Delhi. Delhi? What nonsense! "A place full of raucous youths, disparaging remarks, foul tongue, and you want to go there to find solace?", said my closest friend. Think of it again 'doos'(that's how most assamese refer to friends in an informal tongue). I said, "I already have and I am going there." I could see the saddened look in his face, trying hard to hide his emotions, and acting to be happy for me. Leaving all that aside, here I was,in Delhi, dream city for many, but destruction city for many. Search for a Paying Guest House was over, "Kamla Nagar it is, near Momo's Point", said my Guardian. "Okay, let's go and check out", I said. Three days later I shifted to the new place, met a whole bunch of new guys, people from St. Stephens, Kirorimal College, Hindu College, Hansraj College, DSE. I mean you name it, and there is a guy from the college you just named. Quite amiable, soft-spoken, albeit there were some who couldn't even speak without the 'Delhi Wala Bhasha'(most of us must be knowing what that means). I thought," Well, you need to compromise to fit in." Slowly I got the hang of the place and the surroundings, I fitted in easily. My explorative nature led me to going here and there, in and around the famous Kamla Nagar (the hub for 'stylish' DU students), Malkaganj, Faculty of Arts building etc. Wooooaah! That was the exclamation. What a multicultural scenario! Glitter here, glitter there, glitter on top of me, glitter below my feet. "Better not get carried away by this pseudo-coolness", I said to myself. Never in my life had I seen people so materialistic, always craving for admiration, hungry for the 'Cool' tag. Kamla Nagar surprised me the most. Although not a very big marketplace, it has all the big players in the retail market-Levi's, Nike, Tommy Hilfiger, Converse etc. It also has an umpteen number of food outlets, some whose names I haven't even heard before, the only familiar names were-KFC, McDonalds, Gelato Italiano, Subway and Costa Coffee. And everyday I see this area bustling with college students, always filling up every single outlet out there, sometimes I wonder," Why don't they join the fashion industry?" "We look so trendy", I overheard a girl saying it to her boyfriend. I felt like telling her, "You sure do miss, at the cost of your....". Couldn't even finish that sentence. I thought, "At what cost, ah, leave it". Among this glamourous ensemble of people around me, something which caught my attention at Kamla Nagar-poor children sitting by the footpath with a small weighing machine and a small can, probably some used up can thrown into the garbage bin, with a few coins in it. These children were dressed in rags, torn to such extent that their genitals were highly vulnerable to exposal. People were indifferent to their cries, all heading off to those outlets, ready to spend 5000 rupees on some branded pair of boots, ready to spend 500 rupees on a cup of coffee and few sandwiches, but always refraining from giving a one rupee coin to those poor children. It was as if a tether was tied to their necks like cows, restricting the bliss of a free childhood. Over and over again these thoughts came to me, "What would have happened to me if I were in their place?” I thought. I surely don't have the courage to withstand such a life, a life where you have to think everyday about your survival, where you have to silence your demand to abrogate your hunger. A lot of coins gets saved with me after buying tokens from Metro Stations, and every time I go out for a stroll in Kamla Nagar, I freely give these children few coins, I can't promise them a better life, not even education. But I definitely can help them get at least a meal for the day. The song ended but it wasn't entirely successful in sweetening up my mind. "Ah! I should go out", I thought, and quickly put on my Jacket.