Memories of days gone by

I had a long and refreshing talk with one of my closest friends back from engineering days. It was like taking a trip down memory lane. There was so much to talk about; all the great times we had had, the places we had bunked college to visit, the pranks we had played and the absolute insensitivity with which we used to behave with others.

Those four years were among the best and most fun years of my life. The pure enjoyment of pulling people's legs and eating and roaming around aimlessly, the complete disregard for rules we exemplified accompanied by a heightened desire to waste time doing totally useless stuff! I dont think those days can ever return. We barely studied for the exams, buying books and checking question papers with just a few hours left for the paper. All the long telephonic conversations the day before the exam, cursing all the jobless souls who studied for longer than a day per paper, wishing them a life of misery and sorrow, these were among our favourite passtimes. The most classic and historic scene would definitely be a view of the Xerox room on the day of submissions and evenings before exams. We would be photocopying notes in wholesale after getting hold of the mastercopy!

The early morning 9 o'clock lecture just was not meant for us. We would never step into college before 10.30 and if we were ever less than 1/2 an hour late for any lecture, jaws used to drop in shock. Reaching late, hiding and asking if it was safe to enter and then shamelessly entering and making a grab for the attendance sheet, often signing it without attending the lecture! Talking nonsense during practicals when we were obviously not doing anything, and in the process not letting anyone else do the pracs either ;D

It would be a sin if I did not mention our college canteen, by far our favourite hangout spot. We used to visit it at least thrice a day. I loved the Chinese, Richa loved the sandwiches and Tanvi had a thing for cutting chai! Aakanksha simply used to dig her fork into everyone's plates. We had a hard time keeping Maggi away from her, or anything for that matter! Towards the end of college, our class had made it a habit to eat and leave without paying. I think all of us got caught doing that at least once :D There was this small sharp guy who always kept an eye on us after that ;) And when, if ever, we had sufficient money we used to go for Mexican/Italian or Mughlai to the restaurants outside.

Andddd this was the best part!! Asking for treats. Catching people at random, torturing them incessantly and the murderous attempts to take away their mental sanctity. So much so that some even started getting scared of us. I have often been complimented on the aptness of my orkut about me :P The four of us were infamously known as the "Torture Group". The audience obviously found it entertaining, the victims terrorizing. Our valiant acts were photographed on more than one occasion :) Dragging people to the foodspots, demanding for chocolates. We were more unsuccessful than successful, but who the hell cares! It was so much fun.

And of course, our photography loving class. Given any occasion, any stupid reason to stand and smile before the flash, be it a trip or an outting or a bday, all the cameras and cells would be whipped out. Our favourite spot was the new college entrance behind the quad, where the light was just brilliant and there was always a light breeze blowing. Remember the amazingly innovative and weird poses and concepts we would come up with!

And then, the annual trips!! The best one was undoubtedly our 2nd year IEEE trip to Chandigarh and Shimla. It was so hilarious and fun-filled. I could spend hours remembering that one. Thinking that we were locked outside our rooms when all we had to do was push open the door, accusing all the hotel staff of stealing a SIM card from a CDMA phone!! All of Chinchu's "kaarname"; torturing her to insanity in Shimla, throwing and pulling blankets, colouring her face with toothpaste, saying Akbar Birbal stories (new form of ragging?!?), all preceded by the incessant and vain efforts to wake her from her deep naps standing against the wall! The snow fights in Kufri and freezing in the snow wearing just a jacket and t-shirt. The 3rd year trip was a contrast as we spent most of the time cursing and swearing ;) Though the endless gardens in Bangalore had us pissed, the trips to the palaces in Mysore were memorable. I wont forget the way I got caught using my camera in a no-photography zone and the guards actually helped me escape! I could not possibly end this without talking about all the times we played "Killer" in the trains and buses. That was goddamn awesome fun!! Cheating and colluding, et al.

Now comes the best part. Bunking college and going to our favourite spots, i.e. our canteen, the amphitheatre near the lake, the quad. Sick of the never changing stock at Westside, we would flop down on our favourite sofa. We had a wide choice of hangouts even at Andheri station! like Shoppers Stop (remember some eventful occurrences and strategizing here, Richa?), McDonalds, Merwans, the mall where we spent god knows how many hours hunting for jewellery. I still have that amazing collection, totalling about 70 earrings at the last count :P Sitting on Worli sea face enjoying the cold wind, lying on Azad Maidan till 9 in the night and of course, walking on Marine Drive all the way to Nariman Point :)

Linking Road was always worth a visit for shopping and window shopping. Must say we discovered a wide array of mindblowing places during all the time we spent there. Bandra was always great for the nonveg and the roadside chicken! Wont forget all those evenings walking down to Bandstand and sitting on the rocks, discussing our past, present and future :) But the best by far was Juhu Beach. We would sit or sleep on the sand and talk endlessly, wade through the water, play khokho and saklee, watch all the "interesting" characters and couples. This was always a special place for me. I miss my morning and evening walks there, just me and the wind and the waves, and the music playing.

Could I ever forget the several hundred prank calls we must have made during those four years. We were never short of stupid ideas like cancellation of tutions, someone getting married, someone else getting selected by a modelling company or winning a beauty pageant, being selected as treasurer of some arbit club or if there was nothing to talk about, then just general bullshit. Yeah, I sure was skilled at that! We would bombard all the people in class with calls at the same time so that there was no way they could not find out that it was a prank even when some were foolish enough to believe the shit we spoke ;) This continued for a long time until people actually started storing my landline no. :P

We used to be so utterly unconcerned about academics. We were fooling around like crazy and deciding where to go out to eat the day our 7th semester results came out and we found that all the CAT givers had fared badly. I had even worked so less for my final year project that I was in grave danger of being flunked by the prof ;P Vivas were the biggest joke for some of us. Most of the time we knew nothing and we passed just by improvising and talking a brilliant amount of bullshit in such confident tones that it led the examiners to believe that we had all conducted research on the topic :D Well I have to hand it to Mumbai University for this, it taught me nothing except how to talk crap and make it sound like it is the gem of a thought :)

So much has changed. We now live in opposite ends of the world and yet we were talking as if it were only yesterday that we had last met. We had completely different lives now, we had to undertake different journeys, go through joy, pain, defeat and happiness for different reasons and yet we were the same kids that we used to be. We could still identify with each other completely. The senti talk, all the reminiscing, bitching and making plans, sharing all that had happened with each of us in the short space of the last four months, it still seemed exactly the same.

They say that people change with time. I dont know if I will and then I dont know if I will be able to recognize those old times. But I sure hope things remain the same between us forever. No matter what life throws at us, I know we can win every challenge just by being us. We've always shared so much, I wont ever forget it. I love you all.
:)