There are a lot of things I wanna write today. A whole load of things are revolving in my head but the problem as usual is that I have nothing really concrete. I am enjoying the last days of my final summer vacation of college life-so that is one thing going through my head. Another naturally, is the impending final year of college life. 4th year starts on 20th July and honestly-I can't wait for it. There is so much to do, so much to see and so many more memories to make. Sticking to the college thoughts, as I look forward to my final year, I also can't help but look back on the last 3 years in Manipal. Was it really that long ago? Have 3 years really passed? Because it seems as if just yesterday I had landed in Manipal and looking forward to the best days of my life. And these 3 years indeed have been the best of my life. Riddle with fun, frolick, memories-each semester has been like the passing of an era. And now, in 2 semesters time it indeed will be the passing of an era. No more college life. No more waking up till 5 in the morning with friends and then rushing for that 8'0 clock lass lest you get an attendance shortage. No more those impromptu trips decided just 2 hours before departure. "Bore ho rahe hai yaar...kuch karna chahiye!" said one of the gang. Others agree. Plans are duscissed. One agrees and another raises objections. "Mangalore-lets go for Shoot out at Lokhandwala!" one puts forth. "Nahi yaar...pagal hai kya? Vivek Oberoi dekhne tu Adlabs jaayega!" and another plan goes down. "Malpe beach...Kapu Beach...Turtle Bay...Gokarna...what about Jog falls!" "Baarish ho rahi hai be...beach jaake kya samundar mein doobna hai?" "Hanging Bridge or wait...what about kudremukh?" "Kudremukh? Nahi yaar...bahut door hai!" And then somene comes with a genious of plan and simply says, "Goa." Looks are exchanged, everyone stares at each other. Words are not needed, a consensus has been reached! Goa, ofcorse! The magiv words. And so in 2 hours the bags are packed, cash is withdrawn from the ATM and we are all set to spend a weekend in Goa. No one points out that its rainy season in Goa as well and also that it is much further than Kudremukh, the reason for which previous destinations were rejected. Because it's Goa...and no one says anything against Goa. And so we are off.
And so...I am going to this a bit of a personal post and right down my favorite memories of College life, in no particualr idea. As they come to my mind, I will list them down. Please be warned, this could be a long post. So here we go:
1. IMPACT IN CLASS(1ST SEM): I hadn't said much during my 1st few days of college. A bit apprehensive, a bit shy and well-a lot nervous, I kept to myself and used to sit with Anish(a friend I knew from before coming to Manipal), listen to the teacher and then go back to my room! In our first english class on a Saturday morning, our teacher told us we would have to give a speech on a topic of our choice. There were groans around the class but I kept quiet. No reaction. Inside-I knew exactly what was going to happen. So people started going one by one on stage and speaking. Those who were confident went first and those who werent stayed back and didn't go until pushed by the teacher. I waited. I didn't volunteer to go and speak unlike the confident one's. I slowly wrote down the points I was going to speak on a piece of paper. My topic: 'the greatest invention made by man.' Then I sat and listened to everyone's speech. Some were good. Some were average. Some were horrible and some couldn't speak at all. After every turn, teacher asked for the other students' feedback. I never spoke a word. Jut sat quietly. And then-when all the students had finished speaking the teacher asked if anyone was left. I simply got up from my seat, brushed my shirt to make it neat and walked to the podium...slowly and confidently...walking straight ahead without looking at anyone. The stage was mine. The stage is always mine. Very few people can own the stage like I can. And the best part was-only I knew that. Rest of the class was probabaly thinking-'he is going last...clearly he can't speak for crap!' I stood on the stage, looked around the class, looked at my audience and slowly smiled. Then I started-on the greatest invention made by man. For me-it was the pen. And hence, my first words were 'the greatest invention made by man...' and then slowly taking out a pen and showing it to the class I said, "I am holding it in my hand!" I rattled off points one after another to a stunned class and a smiling english teacher. She probabaly knew what all good public speakers know-'you always make your entry last...just when the people are least expecting it' and walk away with a standing ovation. The nervousness was gone, the impact had been made and Farid Baig would never be that weird guy who talks to no one. It was also after this speech that I first spoke to Ritayan and Sameer-3 years down the line they are one of my best friends in this place.
2.COORG TRIP(1ST SEM):It was our first trip. Arranged by the college ofcorse-since just 1 month into college we didn't really wanna wander out on our own. It was the trip where the real bonding started and perhaps it was here that our group was born. Ritayan, Sameer, Abhijit, Nikhil, Balli, Sankhya et all were here and it was the first time most of us were actually really hanging out. The trip started at 11 in the night with around 70 first years in one bus. Clearly, there was no escaping from this. The masti started there itself. As we waited for the bus to start, chants started. Everyone yelled something or the other cursing the driver to start the bus. In the excitement I yelled-"abey bus ki hilao!" referring to a highly sexual slang. A lot more followed. Another popular chant started by Gaurav, Harsha and Suhail was-"Ladki dekhi..." after which everyone in the best yelled Haa jee. It went something like this-
"Ek Ladki dekhi!"
"Haa Jee!"
"Kya chaal this uski!"
"Haa Jee"
"Kya baal the uske"
"Haa jee!"
"Woh aage aage!"
Haa jee!
Hum peeche peeche!
Haa Jee!
Woh daaye daaye
Haa Jee
Hum Baaye Baye
Haa Jee
Woh Beauty Parlor
Haa Jee
Hum Baahar khade the
Haa Jee
Woh Baahar Nikli
Haa Jee
Woh Aditya Nikli
Haa jee!
Then everyone would clap in a loud fervour as Aditya(or the boy who had just been mocked) went red in the face. That whole trip was one of bonding and taking in a piece of what we knew was to come. These trips would form the best part of our life in Manipal. College buses would be replaced by trains or hired cars, instead of 70 people, there might be just 8-12 people...but the essence remained the same. And Coorg was where it all started!
3.END SEM EXAMS AND LAST DAY(1ST SEM): What on earth were we thinking? This is what I often think when I look back to the end sem exams of our 1st sem. The entire college was studying and looking tensed-but we...we were busy hanging out at Innovation centre, taking long walks, dinner at Thaloor's at Parotha Point and then walking back though KC and the girls block and singing "Tujhe dekha to ye jaanam sanam..!" in the loudest voice possible. Girls would stare at us blankly but we didn't give a damn. We were shameless, we were rowdy, we were crazy but damn we were awesome. Those carefree, careless days where we were just a bunch of juniors trying to have the maximum fun possible and in the midst screwing up our exams-they would perhaps live in my memory longer than any other time of College. Clearly-being rowdies is a hell lot more fun that being the good decent guys that so many want to be. Heck-I would do anything to return back to those days and scream 'Tujhe dekho to ye jaana sanam' near the Girls block. But now as final years-we are saddled with maturity and God knows what. Oh comeon-we are just in our early twenties..why the hell can't we be rowdies again? And on the last night of our first semester, the entire hostel went crazy going around ripping anyone's shirt who even dared to step outside his room. No one was spared and those who decided to stay indoors had their doors broken and their shirts ripped. No one had a t-shirt on that night. Pity it wasn't a co-ed hostel. Lol!
4.THE ALMOST GOA PLAN(2ND SEM):Oh...this one had to take the cake! So one fine night during our 1st semester we all went for our usual dinner and walk plan and ended up at KMC Greens with its lush grass and an amazing spectacle. As we sat on the grass, the basics of a Goa plan were discussed. It would be our 1st trip to Goa in College life and so it had to be grand. After all-since Dil Chahta Hai, the Goa trip has become the all important one during College days. So nothing was left to chance. We sat and discussed for 2 hours every little detail. Nothing should go wrong. Best time would be the Republic Day holiday during 2nd sem. We leave on the Thursday night, spend 3 days in Goa and be back in Manipal by early Monday morning. Expenditure was discussed. Which class ticket we should buy was discussed. It had to be General but some opposed as they wanted a more comfortable ride. Eventually it was general or no entry. Which cars and bikes to hire were discussed! An open jeep if possible...they are more fun. Otherwise a Swift to save cost. Avenger or Pulsar! Who would book the tickets...what would we tell our parents. So Jaju, a resident of Goa himself, was asked to email everyone's parents saying he was inviting all of us to his brothers' wedding so parents wouldn't have to worry about us getting drunk, smoking weed and lying wasted on the beaches of Goa. After all...it was a wedding. And all that was done...3 months before the trip was actually even going to happen. The email arrived in January and parents approval was taken. Everything was set. And 3 days before the actual trip-everyone pulled out for various reasons. I would make my 1st trip to Goa only in 4th semester. Yet-this almost Goa trip perhaps remains more memorable than the two Goa trips I did eventally take simply because that it never happened. The lesson learnt from this:'Never plan for a trip! And certainly not 3 months before itself' The best trips are the unplanned ones. Trust me. Speaking from experience!
Ok...know what? This post has already extended thr world limit I had set for it. So i am going to stop here for now. Maybe some day I will complete this list. And maybe someone will actually care to read it. But God-has it really been 3 years already?
