SONS OF THE SOIL

JFK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

DUE TO HEAVY SNOWFALL, ALMOST ALL FLIGHTS ARE EITHER CANCELLED OR DELAYED. BETRAYED TRAVELERS HAVE NO OPTION BUT EITHER TO WAIT OR RETURN

The waiting area is over crowded with travelers who are tired, annoyed & adjusting themselves. The luggage is scattered with all over the place. Not a single seat is unoccupied. Many are standing or sitting over their own luggage. In all they are not happy.

STRANGER 1: Hi (to another stranger). Can you please pass me that “Time” magazine”?

STRANGER 2 GIVES THE MAGAZINE TO HIM.  STRANGER 1, UNINTERESTED IN THE MAGAZINE IS UNABLE TO IGNORE THE BOREDOM AND FEELS RESTLESS. HE WANTS TO TALK TO SOMEBODY.

STRANGER 1 (after a while): Hey!! What you think……….snow will stop??

STRANGER 2 (seems uninterested): It will, if it has to.

STRANGER 1: Yaaaaaaa. I wish they had cancelled my flight. By the way I’m Shahnawaz. Shahnawaz Khan (forwards his hand to the Stranger 2).

STRANGER 2: (Shaking the hand) Hi!!!! Myself Dev. Dev Mehra (still uninterested in the talks)!!!!

SHAHNAWAZ: So DEV, where are you heading?

DEV LOOKS AT SHAHNAWAZ FOR A WHILE. DOESN’T SAY A WORD. BUT SHAHNAWAZ IS DESPERATE TO KNOW AND GIVES AN IMPRESSION THAT HE HAS 1000 QUESTIONS

DEV: I am…....I’m going to Pakistan (says softly).

SHAHNAWAZ: Pa….Pakistan (says questionably)??? But you look like a Hindu?? Are you in media?

DEV (Smilingly): I live there. It’s my home and yes I’m a Hindu and I think Hindus can go to Pakistan. Where are you going?

SHAHNAWAZ: Going to Mom. India. Dad is calling me back. (After a pause) Hey, what a situation----a Hindu going to Pakistan and a Muslim going to India. Ha-ha.

DEV: This is post 1947 Naa!!!!

SHAHNAWAZ: Absolutely. So what are you doing in US??

DEV: I used to work for a bank for the last 7 years. Now finally going home!!!!

SHAHNAWAZ: Lost the job like other bankers (he is so happy to say that)??

DEV: No-No not at all. I decided to quit before letting the big crisis catch me. I myself wanted to go home.

SHAHNAWAZ: But man, your country is in such a mess. I mean, you never know when will Taliban take over Pakistan & you cannot trust anybody as everybody is same. Why don’t you stay back in America? You can do some other job if not boring banking. Atleast you will earn safely. A suggestion!!!

DEV: Shahnawaz, when there is a fire at your home, you don’t leave it or run like a coward. But you arrange for water. If people of Pakistan keep running to other countries then one day Taliban will definitely rule Pakistan.

SHAHNAWAZ: Hmmmm!!! You are right. But my question is that what you will earn there?? Moreover will you be safe (He looks straight to Dev’s face)????

DEV: Situation is not that bad. We are still stable & one can earn his living in Pakistan. Time will change and situation will definitely improve.

SHAHNAWAZ: Insha'Allah!!!!

THE TRAVELERS AROUND ARE NOW LOOKING CALM. SOME HAVE SLEPT, SOME ARE READING AND SOME ARE CHATING. BUT THERE IS TOO MUCH ACTIVITY AND NOISE. EVERYBODY IS WAITING FOR THE SNOW TO STOP

DEV: By the way, why is your family calling you back?

SHAHNAWAZ: Well I came to do my MBA but recession broke the backbone of this part of the world. So dad says to come back and make future in India. He says the country is growing at 9 Perrcentt every year (his eyes expands while declaring this).

SHAHNAWAZ: What an irony (says with sad expression)!! You are going to your country because it is in a mess and facing crisis. And I am going back to enjoy my country’s growth at 9 Perrcentt every year. (He Pauses). Why can’t our countries grow together?????

DEV (Dev turns to Shahnawaz and is now completely in the debate): Shahnawaz, if capable people like you and me keep coming to this country then our motherland can never-ever actually grow. We dream of finding a job, marrying a girl and then settling comfortably in one of the suburb of US, thinking that we are developing ourselves (sarcasm is his voice). But we never ever realise that in the end we lose the battle. In the hunt for our personal growth we don’t even know that how much profits we have given to this country and how much loss we have cause to ours.

SHAHNAWAZ LOOKED STUNNED AS IF HE HAS HEARD SOMETHING HURTFUL. FOR THE FIRST TIME HE WITNESS THE INSIDE ANGER OF DEV MEHRA. AN ANGER BURNING FOR YEARS

SHAHNAWAZ: Nice dialogues man!!!! Bollywood needs you (he says to cool the debate). I know you are right. Sometimes I too feel the same. But why you only blame the brain-drain? Don’t you think that our countries should also end our cold war to grow together? It’s like two brothers tearing each other over a shit of papa’s property, trying to be as ignorant as possible to each other and saying “I don’t need you”. But the irony is that both desperately need each other. And in the whole circus, it’s the outside audience that’s having fun. The longest running circus of the world for the last 63 years (he try to justify his point with his hand movements). What you say??

DEV: I think you should write for Hollywood (Both laughs). We all know that what our common problem is. And that is, that heaven piece of land (his index finger try to point something) that has made our lives a hell. So better to ignore the problem and focus on other things which are not at all any problem for us.

SHAHNAWAZ: Don’t you think that ignoring will multiply the problem??

DEV: The problem is that this problem can never be solved. Even if the world’s greatest problem solvers sit and vomit their wildest imaginations or their bestest strategies.

SHAHNAWAZ: But why??

DEV: Because they don’t want to solve it, God dammit (yells)!! SHAHNAWAZ (Dev sounds irritated) the world doesn’t want our biggest problem to be solved. Can’t you see it? Every year, this superpower giant gives billions of dollars to Pakistan to fight terror which Pakistan uses to buy weapons and artillery from China at special prices in the name of fighting terror. And that money is used against India. At the same time China keeps India busy in fighting naxals. Like Pakistan it also supplies large number of weapons to Naxalites. And together both US and China are world’s top 2 countries.

SHAHNAWAZ: Then what to do??

DEV: Stop the fight. The more we fight the more we will burn. History says that wars and violence has burned more economies than recession and depression together. E.g.: Great Britain—World War 2, Sri Lanka----LTTE, Pakistan—Taliban war, Russia---Cold war, Now US----Iraq & Afghanistan War and India-----Naxalite and Kashmir war and Afghanistan-----Invasion of Afghanistan by Russia.

SILENCE ELUDES BETWEEN THE TWO AS IF BOTH HAVE TIRED VISITING THE LAST 100 YEARS. MEANWHILE SNOW HAS STOPPED ALREADY

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SHAHNAWAZ: WOW!!! What a day. I never imagined all this. But in all these talks I’ve imagined that you and I are discussing as if I am the Prime Minister of India and you are the President of Pakistan. How quickly we get to know each other and how quickly we realized what the best solution is without even solving the problem. I wish if this could have been a summit like Agra and like this we would have beaten our differences to death

DEV: Agra Summit?? Even thousand such bullshit summits cannot even solve the problem. Every PM of yours and each President of ours is such a big coward who neither has the balls nor the heart to take a landmark decision. Both the loosers only meet to complicate matters and make the mess even more messier. You know the actual problem is that this problem has become so old and outdated that we don’t even know what to do with it. It is big mistake committed by our ancient leaders. Now we are facing the brunt.

As I said---people like you and me. Common people of Pakistan and common people of India can solve this problem. Because it is the problem of our home and it is the problem which we created. Politician’s sucks and they will only divide us.

(Announcement)

Attention Please: Flight US—210, US---561 and US---117 heading towards India, Pakistan and South Africa respectively are ready for departure. I repeat……….. (Continues)

SHAHNAWAZ: Now I understand what drives you back. I will take your message to India. In the entire conversation I stupidly wished a lot. And now again there is a wish---A wish you and I could board the same flight and that too, to the same nation where we live together. Together we will make the difference. Let me have your contact details.

BOTH EXCHANGED THEIR DETAILS. THEN HUGGED EACH OTHER AS IF TWO LOST BROTHERS HAVE FOUND THEMSELVES AND NOW THEY DON’T WANT TO BE LOST AGAIN. AND THEN TAKES THEIR DIFFERENT PATHS!!!!!!

To be contd………..

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The Conversation was written by the author during an entrance exam!!!
Feel Free To Comment!!!


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