""Desires, thousands of them..."" ""desires I could die for"" ""I had so many desires..."" ""and yet, so few they were"" ""Dear Gita, Calcutta was awe-inspiring"" ""I'm now back in Delhi, my beliefs totally strengthened"" ""We have to change the world." "And change it fundamentally"" ""I always knew the facts, but when I met some of the mothers..."" ""and widows of thousands of students who had sacrificed their lives..."" ""during the Naxalite movement, I felt completely humbled"" ""They were the best and the brightest of Bengal"" ""But instead of taking the comfortable roads..." ""that their parents had laid down for them..."" ""they went down the dirt and the muddy roads to the villages..."" ""to end the vulgarity of oppression"" ""The violence of the oppressed is right"" ""The violence of the Oppressor is wrong"" ""And to hell with ethics"" ""I mean, weren't Bhagat Singh's actions correct?"" ""It made me think of ourselves"" ""I mean, who do we think we are?"" ""Strutting around, sprouting radical jargon, a little politics..."" ""some rock-n-roll..." "but mostly shock value"" ""Isn't it shameful that I, Sidharth Tyebji..."" ""son of a Muslim father and a Hindu Bengali mother..."" ""neither can speak Urdu nor Bengali?"" ""My parents did not give me the one thing of value that they could"" ""This has to change"" ""Gita, I have now become a card-holder of the Party"" ""Eventually, you must also." "More when you get back"" ""Love" " Sidharth"" ""Dear Gita, first things first." "I still love you"" ""I'm still stuck in Meerut because the trains have been cancelled..."" ""due to the Hindu-Muslim sibling rivalry that has flared up again"" ""This time it's not so bad." "Only 38 dead"" ""Two of them were eaten by the circus lion, when one rioteer..."" ""chased his victim into the lion's enclosure"" ""But most of the town doesn't give a shit"" ""An announcement:" "The town is under curfew"" ""Citizens are requested to stay indoors"" ""What really gets everyone here excited is the news..."" ""that the local hardware merchant's daughter ran away with their cook"" ""Some of the family members finally caught him and put him in a pot..."" ""and boiled him." "Just kidding; they only castrated him"" ""This state of affairs only worries my father..."" ""thirty of his Gandhian colleagues, seventy socialists..."" ""and a hundred and two others no end"" ""But being worried is my father's main profession"" ""He should have been more worried about us, though..."" ""and we wouldn't have been stuck at the lower-end of great middle-class"" "Not now." "Go away" ""Which is why I can't understand you rich kids playing..."" ""the let's-change-the-world game"" ""While you're looking for a way out, I'm looking for a way in"" ""Into your heart, I mean"" ""See you soon." "Love" " Vikram"" "Is your hero through Uncle..." "Here's some yogurt for luck" "Look after yourself" "Don't worry." "It'll be all right." " It won't" "But you concentrate on your studies" "Enough of this filial love!" "Come on now" "Move it." "If anyone asks, say you're dropping my nephew at the station" "Father, I'm leaving." "Why enact this farce?" "You know who started it all" "If everyone shirks responsibility, then God help us all" "Go on, you're getting late." "Write to your mother as soon as you reach Delhi" "What does he want me to do?" "Become a martyr and die in this shit-hole?" "What's up?" "Your wife threw you out early in the morning?" "No, it's because you're going to Delhi" "So I thought why should I waste money mailing this letter?" "At least you'll deliver it, safe and sound" "Give this letter to Randhir bhaisahab." "Tell him everything is fine here." "St. Stephen's College New Delhi, 1969" "Kiddo!" "Come on, pick up my bags." "Damn you, it's my room too." "You haven't even unpacked and your guests have taken over" "When you meet someone after a long time you're supposed to say hello." "I can't even sit alone in my own room?" "It'll do you more good to sit with them than to jerk off." "They are Youth Congress..." "lots of power, kiddo!" "Randhir bhaisahab!" " Hey kiddo!" "I've been scratching my balls, waiting for the last two hours" "Where have you been?" " The train was late..." "Screw the train." "Hows everyone at home?" "Fine." "The riots are also under control." " Screw that too" "So, where's my letter?" " How did you know about it?" "Back home, if you shit and don't wipe your ass, the boss gets to know" "Otherwise, he couldn't have led a political party" "And engineered the riots too?" " Balls" "The boss hasn't budged from here for the last nine days." "Now tell me, what's all this?" "No Gandhi, no Nehru, no Subhash...?" "And what's going on downstairs?" "Some rock show, your room-mate told me" "Saw some weird-Iooking girls... eminently screwable, each one of them" "Wow, what a jeep!" "You like it?" " Yes" "Keep it." "To all you fans of Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan... who fought against injustice in their own country... we want you to think, question." "Don't just listen, not even to us" "But what would Daddy say?" " Tell Daddy life's not just fun." "Tell Daddy there's a famine in Bihar." "Tell Daddy people are dying in the countryside." "Tell him that he's responsible for this." "Because he's a collaborator in a state... which is a state of big landlords and bourgeois capitalists." "And tell Daddy that life's not just about getting proper English education... earning a fat salary and loving one's parents" "There are countries in this world... where people have established a new order." "China..." "Vietnam..." "Telengana!" "Once upon a time, a princess was walking down the street all alone" "Abandoned by her prince... when a gallant knight rode up to her on his royal steed." "He swept her off feet and they rode into the sunset." "Not every story has a happily ever after, Vikram." "Well, because every story has its Sidharth, right?" "Come on, I'll drop you" "Your knight in shining armour will escort you to the lion's lair" "As long as you don't keep me from the lion, Sir Knight." "Wow, and these guys are supposed to be Marxists!" "Ah... come on!" "Join us for a drink." "No, I'll go upstairs and meet Sidharth." "I'll join you later." "I think I will also leave in a little while" "Listen, you have to drop me home!" "If we are really convinced... if we are really moved... then let's go and take some affirmative action." "If we want to make a change, we must go and work in the villages." "Look at Castro and what he did in Cuba" "Cuba is small." "We're an enormous country" "We have Probir-da here." "He has worked in villages all his life" "Instead of letting him speak, we're getting into this intellectual..." "Probir da..." "Gandhi understood the importance of villages before much Mao" "He said no revolution was possible without organising the rural poor" "But what social revolution did he bring?" "That's exactly why our party has gone much further" "Alongside the worker, the rural poor must also be armed" "Did we bring any changes in those villages." "All that M.K. Gandhi did was to become a guest of big Marwari businessman." "Don't you have anything to say, Gita?" "What can I say?" " Why?" "I've lived all my life between England and Delhi." "I've never been to a village leave alone know anything about their problems" "But you people seem to know everything." "So why ask me?" "That's not the attitude to have" "How will you ever learn if you don't discuss..." "Do you love me, Sidharth?" "What?" " Just answer." "Do you love me?" "Yeah, sure." "Do you really love me?" "I just said so." "Say it." "I love you." "Sorry." " It's okay." "We're going to join the University strike tomorrow" "You're with us, aren't you?" " I think it's load of shit" "I don't know what you're trying to accomplish" "We're not trying." "And even if doesn't work..." "Sidharth says, it's worth it." "At least we're there..." "Sidharth was born with a silver spoon in his mouth." "His father is an ex-judge." "He can afford to think the way he does." "We can't" "Why are you so against him?" " I'm not against him" "Personally I'm just worried about you;" "you're too gullible" "These guys have their dads' connections ...and, there's your dad." "I appreciate your concern, but I can take care of myself." "Sorry... sorry." "Forgiven?" "Dad, that's Vikram." "He looked after me last night" "Ask him in for a cup of coffee." "Come inside and have a cup of good South Indian coffee" "These are my uncles." "These are my aunts" "Grandma!" "Is he the one?" " No, grandma, he's not the one!" "Political parties are just interested in getting our votes." "They have become pimps for the management" "And let me warn you about one thing" "Many parties attach the word "Socialist" to their names but that doesn't make them socialist" "Even Hitler's party was called the Nationalist Socialist Party" "Who's Hitler?" " Who knows?" "Wasn't from my village" "See, they don't understand what's happening here..." "Until the workers are organised..." "The management is trying to intimidate us with strong-arm tactics!" "Let's get out of here!" "I have to leave." " Where are you going?" "I'll tell you later" "Rajan, take the bag." "Leave!" "Get out of here!" "This is preposterous!" "Only I have a right to question whom my son brings home" "And who the hell are you to talk about my son's character?" "It looks ridiculous coming from people like... anyway, never mind" "We've taken enough shit from you, sir" "We had information that your son was hiding anti-social elements" "We have a search warrant" "If you still have a problem, talk to my superiors" "What is it?" "We've got to search the place." " Go ahead" "Come" "This son of a bitch is a total degenerate." "That's an understatement." "The jerk's got it all." " And here we are tickling our balls." "Lucky bastard!" "Thanks... for stopping the cops." "It's getting chilly, why don't you take your grandmother inside?" "She insists on sleeping in the open" "It's an old habit" "In her father's house, the kids always slept on the terrace" "What will she do when you leave?" "So are you serious about this Bihar thing?" "I'm serious about going to Bihar... yes" "Of all the stupid...!" "Sorry." "Can I ask, why?" "You mean you don't know why?" " No, educate me" "Because I'm sick of people like you who sit and pontificate about India... its problems... the oppressive political and social systems and... then do nothing about it" "So you have faith in an ideology that talks of annihilation... and the murder of people as an acceptable way of changing the system?" "What gives you that right?" "I met a couple of Englishmen" "They say a revolution in our country is just not possible" "I told them to come with us to Calcutta... where thousands of students have laid down their lives" "It's amazing how ignorant they are" "They'll get a shock when they see that forty boys come... from a single hamlet in Bihar." " I talked to the student leader" "He said that around 15 students are coming from his college" "It's a pity." " Why?" "There's just eight of us." " So what?" "Comrades, Prahlad called..." " Where is he?" "He said he's not going..." " What do you mean?" "The upper-class bastard!" " Look man, things are not easy" "I mean this whole business about the cops..." "Why are you justifying that punk?" " Look, I'm also not going." "Okay?" "There's this West Indian poet coming to the British Council..." "What...?" "What?" "If my brother finds out I'm going to Calcutta, I'll get screwed!" "So this's the level of your commitment?" " This thing is too dangerous, man!" "I have to think about my future!" "What about documenting our struggle and all that?" "Sidharth, even I'm not going" "I know you'll be very upset, but my parents..." "Sidharth I'm not going!" " It's okay" "Probir-da, we don't need these guys." "Prahlad, Amit... we don't need them" "Police!" "Hey Vikram." "I just got my U.S. Visa" "Hey Pablo..." " Got into Brooks, still photography" "Take care" "This is Vikram Malhotra speaking, sir" "I'm a friend of Mehmood Tyebji's son Sidharth" "Could you do me a favour, sir?" "I wish to speak to the Finance Minister" "Sidharth would have himself called, but he's not well" "Only for five minutes...?" "Yes, I'll hold" "Hey Sidharth, I'm sorry" "I wanted to be with you all" "I still believe in the ideology" "But my dad's just too rich..." "I can't give up all this, can I?" "So you're leaving on the 17th?" " Yes" "I have just applied for my M.A." "Good." "I mean, that's the right course for you" "Good, yes" "We might not see each other for some time" "Maybe" "Gita... sweetheart, I'll be back in about six months time... it's not the end of the world, is it?" "No" "It's not the end of the world" "May I have the next dance with you?" " Sure" ""I'm crazed at heart, I've lost all sense of reason"" ""It wakes all night, my crazed heart"" ""A thousand desires..."" ""desires I could die for"" ""So many desires I had..."" ""and yet, so few they were"" ""My crazed heart, it won't be placated with you..."" ""what does it seek...?"" ""Dear Gita..."" ""You'll probably tear this letter without reading it"" ""But you have to let me try and explain myself"" ""I know I said I'd be back in six months and then disappeared"" ""But you must realise that when I left for Bhojpur..."" ""I didn't really know what I was getting into"" ""Bhojpur and Delhi are not separated merely by a thousand miles..."" ""but also five thousand years"" ""You must have heard of exploitation, disease, lawlessness and apathy"" ""There's all that here and much more"" ""But once you've been here and seen the despair, you cannot leave"" "For how long are you going to take this shit from the landlords?" "You can't even sit in their presence even if you are about to collapse" "Raping your womenfolk is their birthright" ""Here, I am on the run." "An extremist in the eyes of the law"" ""Member of a banned party attempting to galvanise a people..."" ""subjugated for centuries"" "Raise the Red Flag!" "It's a fight not just for land, but for our dignity!" ""It's really complicated." "Let me try and explain"" ""One day the untouchables in the village were up in arms"" ""The landlord's son had raped one of their girls"" "All right, maybe my son has made a mistake" "So what are you going to do?" "Kill him?" ""They had all gathered outside the landlord's house..."" ""to chop off his balls"" ""The feeling was overwhelming"" ""To my naive mind it seemed the revolution was at hand"" ""Then suddenly, the cursed landlord had a heart-attack"" "Are you okay, saheb?" " My chest is hurting very badly..." "What happened father?" " Shut up, you bastard" "This is all your fault" ""The lower-caste villagers who had been screaming for his blood a minute ago..."" ""were suddenly overcome by some ancient dutiful urge to save him"" ""After all, he and his family had been their lords and masters for centuries"" ""So, a jeep was despatched to summon a doctor"" ""Being lower-caste, the only doctor they knew was also a lower-caste"" ""So here's the problem"" ""The landlord's son did not want a lower-caste doctor touching his father"" ""But the father who was dying, didn't give a damn"" ""At that moment, he'd have eaten goat-shit if the doctor asked him to"" ""This strange compassion of the villagers towards their oppressor..."" ""in his moment of need, taught me something"" ""What...?" "I'm still trying to decipher"" ""Please try to understand." "There's no place for you here"" ""Our paths must necessarily be different, Gita"" ""I'll write again, if you do" " Sidharth"" "New Delhi, 1973" "I spoke to Daddy about your idea about the hotel deal" "He thinks it's a waste of time." " It's not" "Converting an old palace into a hotel is a great idea." "So screw what Daddy thinks" "It's the deal of the year if I can clinch it" "Oh, shit!" " What happened?" "I just remembered..." "I've got a meeting with these Bombay builders" "And I've given my car for repairs" " That's okay." "You can keep the Chevy" "Dad's going off tomorrow so the Mercedes is there" "Shall we go to Shimla some day?" "Just you and me" "What happened?" "Someone died?" "Your girl ran away...?" "What are you giving cheques like that for?" "Where is the money going to come from?" "We've already paid the prince 50,000 rupees... to convince his dad about the deal." "But he's not calling!" "We're doomed... we're finished!" "You worry too much" "Sometimes, there's nothing to do but wait for the phone to ring" "This phone has not rung for the past two weeks" "It'll ring, it'll ring" " Yeah?" "When?" "It'll ring now..." "Just count to three and this phone will ring" "One... two... three" "If the mountain doesn't come to Malhotra..." "Malhotra goes to the mountain" "Tell them I'm busy..." " Are you crazy?" "Tell them I'm busy in a meeting!" "Ask them to call later!" "He's a little busy" "Will tomorrow be good?" "That's the place where we dispensed justice" "Flogging?" "With whips?" "No, actually an elephant used to crush their skulls" "Much better system, don't you think?" " Why not?" "Makes it easier for vultures" "This is not right" "Vikram, when we make this hotel, this damn thing has to go" "Don't tell my father that..." "we still have an elephant here" "If he loses his temper, there's no saying what he'll do" "This is the harem" "Seven hundred wives, my great-grandfather had" "My father studied in England and dropped the custom... pity" "So, what did the wives do when the King was not with them...?" "They did it with the palace staff... anyone who got caught had his balls cut off" "So what did they do with the balls?" "Bloody hot, what?" "Hello Dad, I've been taking them around" "This is Mr. Wadhwani..." " How do you do?" "Dad, this is Vikram Malhotra." "He's..." "What do you do, young man?" " I fix things, sir" "Oh... a fixer..." " Fixer, dealer, broker, pimp" "Depends on your point of view, sir" "Cocky... good for you!" "Go away... this is my home!" "This is my house!" "My younger son... he's not quite... right." "But sir, if you take the price of land itself at about 5 million..." "The price of land is not more than 3 million 30?" "What are you saying?" "This is royal land, not some servant's field or something" "We're giving you a good deal at 3, Maharaja" "Nonsense!" "This land is priceless!" "History lives in this place." "You're right, Maharaja." "And we're willing to pay for that history... for your memories, for your tradition... but I'm afraid it's worth 30 million only" "Enough!" "I have had enough!" "Excuse me..." " Do something, please!" "My father's final offer is 35 million" "Done!" "Good God!" "Dad, what happened to you?" "That bloody idiot fired a potshot at me from the roof!" "Stop him!" "Who was it?" " Your brother, you fool!" "Brother...!" "Dhani Singh, go up there and bring him down safely" "Can you give me a job in your hotel?" "Welcome Vikram, welcome Randhirbhai" "Randhirbhai is too busy for us these days" "Vikram is the boy I was telling you about" "He got me the hotel contract." "Now we go for the big one!" "The kid's got real talent!" " What talent?" "His job is the most simple one" "Everyone in this country is totally corrupt" "Not everyone, sir." "The trick is to know who is" "That's where I come in" "Come and see me sometime, Vikram" "Where have you been?" "You were supposed to pick me up!" "I got stuck with these political types..." "I was telling them how to run the country" "Now can we dance?" " After you." "Howre you doing...?" " With fancy girls, Balbir!" "What happened?" " I just remembered something..." "Excuse me." "Can I take this handsome man away from you for just 5 minutes?" "Get Anita out of here" "You've found someone again?" "I'm not doing it!" "What do you take me for?" "A bloody pimp?" "Just do it, kiddo" "Hey, Dumpy, son of a...!" "Sorry, I thought you were an old college friend" "It's alright Vikram Malhotra." "I say, Paddy Malhotra from Doon School?" "No, Vikram Malhotra from Jabalpur Municipal School" "I'm Arun Mehta, I.A.S. Finance Ministry junior in the ranks but getting there" "Someone was talking about you" "Aren't you the chap who fixed some deal for Wadhwani?" "Jolly good, my man!" "We need people like you... people who can get things done." "Keep it up, my man...!" "Gita, over here!" "Hey, that's Gita Rao!" "She was in college with me" "My God!" "You look like an upcoming tycoon!" "Well, he is..." "Haven't you heard?" "This is the chap who got Wadhwani his deal" "Really...?" "That's wonderful!" "And you look even more beautiful, if such a thing were possible" "Hello, what's this?" "An old college romance?" "Well, we all had a crush on Gita in college" "She didn't have good taste in men those days" "Oh well, all that has changed." "Thank you very much." "I'm going to get a drink." "Anyone...?" "I was just going to ask Gita for a dance." "Excellent!" "Excuse me" "Once upon a time, there was a young boy who wrote many soulful letters" "Once upon a time, there was a girl who was very lost" "Between university in England and a year in Nairobi... she didn't know how to respond to those letters" "So what did the young boy do in the meantime?" "Oh, he pined and he drank, and he yearned and he drank." "In the meantime, he decided to make pots of money anyway he could" "I'm sorry" "So, where did the lost soul meet her Prince Charming?" "England" "He had everything a girl could possibly want" "Oh, come on, we're having such a good time" "I think we should leave" "But can we go to the Narain's party for a bit?" "Sir, I take your leave." "It was lovely meeting you" "Nice to meet you too" "I'll just say bye to Mrs Wadhwani" "I'll see you later." " Come, I'll drop you" "Have you been in touch with Sidharth?" "Bye Vikram." "See you later" "Hello...?" "No, Madam Gita's just left" "No, she's not coming in tomorrow, she's going to Bhojpur" "Yes, she'll be staying at the forest rest-house, I think" "Who should I say called?" "Got word from the District Magistrate sahab that you'd be coming" "We've been waiting for ages" "If you want anything, you'd better tell me now" "As it is, the sahab gives us so much work" "I shouldn't be doing this" "Sidharth..." "Arun loves me" "This is wrong" "That's the problem with poverty!" "This road is too long" "I don't know how long my struggle will last..." "But I'm not running away like Rajan" "What are you looking at?" "I was thinking..." " What?" "You frown too much" "Coming" "What's this?" "I didn't order this." "Just as well, 'coz it's not on the menu" "So the lost soul continued her search in the heartland of India...?" "Sidharth, no...!" "It's Vikram!" "Are you going to say it..." "am I?" "What the hell are you doing here?" "I heard she was here." "I thought I'd stop by" "Well, thank you very much." "Now get lost" "I'm hurt!" "After so many years, such animosity?" "Listen, I'm not going to tattle" "I understand." "You guys meet, old passions ignite and..." "Let's get together and have a drink" "To pee under the open sky!" "If there is bliss..." "it is this!" "None but this!" "I've always wondered... whether this chap was a clown or an asshole" "Now I know." "He's both" "You know something, Sidharth?" "You should work on this place" "Make it into a home for retired people" "Small cottages, small farmhouses..." "You do it, Vikram." "I have slightly different ideas about this place" "What?" "That all the peasants will rise up in revolt some day... and there will be peace and prosperity in the world" "It's a load of shit!" "I'd like to kill him..." "maybe I'll just leave" "So leave!" "Who the hell are you anyway?" "Bloody coward!" "Privileged man's son playing games with the poor!" "Sidharth, wait." "I'm coming" "Sidharth, I'm sorry." "I got carried away" "I'll shut up." "I'm sorry, I say" "You guys know me." "Come on now." "Forget it... come" "Forget it" "To the revolution!" "Had too much to drink last night, sahab?" "Is Madam still sleeping?" "She left early." "With some asshole" "Tell me something, what's the price of land in these parts?" "Welcome to India" ""Your man is away in Calcutta, O fair maiden"" "I have to go really far." "I'll call you" "What happened?" "The landlord's men have lynched and hung four lower-caste men" "They weren't letting me into the cinema hall" "I wanted to know which jerk could stop me" "The cinema was goddamned full." "I asked for the bloody manager" "I said, "recognise me?" And he shat" "One scene was worth the effort" "Lighting...!" "Rain...!" "A girl..." "What legs!" "Her navel... totally exposed!" "She squealed "where are you"?" "The bastard's telling them about a movie" "The villain jumped on her and tore her sari" "I thought... what a shit film!" "But then suddenly, the real hero appeared" "He said, "Hail Mother Goddess" and charged at the villains" "Stop farting around and tell us how many people can we mobilise" "Now how many are there from the cobbler caste?" "There are many" "People are really charged up." "We just need some more arms" "I'm not in favour of this, comrade" "Do you think these people are ready?" "Can they stand up against the police and state machinery?" "They'll all be butchered, comrade." "And we'll be responsible" "Fed up of the movement?" " I'm not talking about running away" "I haven't come here for this" "I'm talking of a different strategy..." "of expanding our mass base" "We broke away from Somu Chatterjee's group for precisely these reasons" "Have you forgotten?" "We must prepare the villagers first" "Till that happens, will the police sing hymns in their praise?" "I'm not against specific actions for self-defense" "But I can't knowingly lead them towards their death" "I'm sorry comrade... it takes time to bring about a revolution" "And I can give that kind of time" "The question is whether you can" "This can't be just our decision, Sidharth" ""Dear Gita..."" ""I will not be able to meet you next month"" ""We have to shift base to somewhere close to the Nepal border"" ""I'll tell you the details later, but at the moment..."" ""things are extremely tense here"" ""Scores of our comrades have died and our organised is split"" ""Probir-da and some others have accepted my point of view"" ""We have to rebuild our organisation"" ""Till we meet again..." "Sidharth"" "I'm D.K. Manchanda And you?" "I'm a first class gazetted officer with a bank" "Are you married?" " I'm expecting" "So friend, all well?" "Shall we call your wife?" "What did I do?" "I'm just reading the paper" "So, you finally need me for something?" "Yes, I need to make use of your agile mind" "Let me guess." "Something financial?" "No... wrong" "It's just... silly" "What are you doing, Vikram?" " You're not saying anything, Gita!" "I'm leaving Arun." "It's just not working out" "And it was all a big mistake" "C'mon..." " No" "Arun, please... no!" "Okay, what is it?" "Is it my drinking?" "Because if it is, I can stop." "I want to stop... seriously, I can stop..." "Listen, please" "You don't like my friends, I know that" "I shouldn't have brought home those bores" "Please stop torturing yourself." "It's not about you" "Gita, it's not fair..." "you can't do this..." "There is nothing wrong with our marriage" "You can't just walk out of a marriage" "Who is it?" "Who are you screwing with?" "Here, householder" "From now on, this piece of shit belongs to you" "So here's where the sparrows shit" "You can tie your buffaloes here" "I don't want to hurt Arun" "You bastard!" "You're screwing my wife!" "I could..." "I could... kill you!" "I don't know if this is going to comfort you but Gita is not sleeping with me" "Unfortunately" "Vikram!" "How are you?" "Gita, look who's here..." "Mr. Fixit himself" "Hi, want some coffee?" "Guess what?" "Arun paid me a visit" "He asked me if I loved his wife..." "I said yes" "Thanks, Vikram." "I was just beginning to get horribly sentimental!" "So, Vikram, wine bottles instead of commissions?" "With commissions." " Lucky." "Smoke?" "Gita, you haven't unpacked yet?" " Actually, I'm not staying" "I've just been thinking about it for some time" "I think I'm going to leave" "Vikram, imagine, actually going in a village and living there" "To a village near a forest rest-house..." "Look Vikram, if I don't go now, I never will" "I know you went through so much trouble to get me all this..." "I'm really sorry" "Well, life goes on folks..." "I'm getting married!" "What?" " I'm getting married!" ""Dear Vikram..."" ""Once upon a time, there was a girl called Gita." "Remember her?"" ""She was arrogant, opinionated and thought she could change the world"" ""And so she came here to Bhojpur." "And then... what happened?"" ""I don't know." "It's too difficult to describe"" ""Guess what?"" ""I've started an adult literacy class for tribal women here with Darryl"" ""Remember him, my editor friend?"" ""Sidharth says our set-up is a bourgeois feel-good scheme"" ""This naturally forms the basis for most of the unnecessary tensions in my life"" "I haven't seen my husband for months" "One of these days, the villagers will betray the Naxalites" "Then we'll be there to perform the last rites" "What's happening there?" ""Our school is serving as a hospital because of the malaria epidemic"" ""14 people have died so far"" ""It looks like the worst is over, but then again..."" ""you can't be sure of anything here"" ""You know something Vikram?" "Nobody gives a damn about this place"" ""It's as if it doesn't exist"" ""Still people here laugh sometimes"" ""Now enough of my rural trivia"" ""The major news is that our son Chetan was born last week"" ""By the way, it was very generous of you..."" ""to offer that we name the boy after you, but Sidharth wasn't too keen!"" ""Well, what about you and Anita?" "You better have a large family"" ""So you can do justice to the wealth and fame you've amassed"" ""Drop by my father's house sometime"" ""We've sent them a photograph of Chetan"" ""It'll be worth the effort for you"" ""He looks just like me - ha ha!" "I have to go now"" ""Be good and write to me"" ""Love, Gita"" "Go and see what's happening" "When I shove it up your ass, you'll stop coughing" "You think because you keep changing your names all the time... we don't know who you are?" "You're the one who's instigating the villagers" "Troublemaker!" "Get the hell out!" "Else, I'll shove some saw-dust up your ass!" "So, madam?" "There's no basis for the arrest of these men" "They are simple labourers!" "They're not as simple as they look!" "These vermin killed a police officer near the rail track last night" "That's ridiculous, there's no evidence to support that!" "So you're going to teach me about evidence?" "You know how serious an offence killing a police officer is?" "Gita, the officer they've accused the villagers of killing is outside!" "Bastard, always lying drunk at that whore's place!" "The bastard keeps getting suspended, but it still has no effect" "I'll get you transferred this time!" "Laxman, take him to the quarters." "You beat up and tortured an entire village for nothing!" "Don't show off your English!" "Someone was killed, wasn't he?" "It could've been anybody!" "It could've been a guard who fell off a train!" "It could've been anybody!" "They're blind!" "Blood-thirsty beasts, all of them!" "Who do you think you are?" "God?" "Are you sure they are influential in the government?" "Go right in." "They're waiting for you" "We can't be sure of anything" "Mr. Taneja" "I don't want any trouble" "There will no trouble" "Why are you scared?" "You're doing it for the interests of the nation" "We'll get him a medal for this" "I came because Mr. Malhotra said" "Relax, Mr. Taneja" "But an overdraft is illegal" " What illegal?" "It's just a question of a couple of months." "No one will get to know" "As long as we're there, it'll be okay" "That's all right, but..." " But...?" "Suppose you're not here anymore?" "I could be in..." "Not here?" "Do we look like the kind of people who won't be here?" "I'll call you" "Vikram is a good boy, not like those other bloody rats... deserting a sinking ship" "Is the ship sinking?" "Well, that's what they say" "That's what they think." "By the way, one of the biggest rats... is your friend Randhir Singh" "Just in case you ever thought of denying it" "He's an old family friend." " Sure" "Besides, I don't agree with him" "In the land of Mahatma Gandhi, in the land of Subhash Chandra Bose... it's Hitler who rules" "Friends, don't be blind agents for that dynastic party" "Wake up!" "Down with corruption!" "Down with corruption!" "Long live Randhir Singh!" "I wouldn't have missed this for the world!" "Stop screwing around with me" "Aren't your new colleagues the ones you were abusing yesterday?" "Oh yes." "Times change." "People change" "So you won't be needing this cheque anymore?" "Kiddo, the wheels of progress and revolution need to be greased" "So when the revolution arrives..." "remember, we too were revolutionaries" "That's the problem." "You businessmen think of only your own interests" "And we have to think of the entire country... we have to awaken people's..." "what do you call it... conscience!" "What would your kind know about socialism?" "Sure, so now Hindu Fundamentalists, Muslim Fundamentalists..." "Capitalists, Socialists and Communists will all work together" "It's possible." "Why not?" "Yes, and a true Congressman like your father." "See" "Forget it, father..." "You know it's Pablo's birthday" "Why screw it up for him?" "Then why do you talk about things you don't understand?" "Who are your friends to talk about all this?" "And who the hell is Sadiq?" "I just know him." "Since they run things in the party now, they want change..." "What do you mean?" "Change doesn't mean that you will appoint goons... as office-bearers of the Congress Party" "If you must, appoint those who have worked among the people... and we willingly step aside." " Okay, I'll talk to them" "You'll talk to them...?" "So you will now talk on my behalf?" "Hey guys, listen to this." "It's finally happened" ""It has now been confirmed, that a state of National Emergency... has been declared in India"" ""In a midnight swoop, all the top opposition leaders have been arrested"" ""This includes the Gandhian leader..."" ""who spearheaded the anti-corruption movement against the congress Party..."" ""and its supreme leader Mrs. Indira Gandhi"" ""This follows the Allahabad High Court judgement against Mrs. Gandhi..."" ""which indicted her on corruption charges"" ""Calling the opposition agitation as a conspiracy to destabilise the nation..."" ""the Congress Party spokesman said it was necessary to save the country..."" ""from total chaos and anarchy." "He also labelled the opposition call..."" ""to the country's armed and civil forces an act of treason..."" "You're trying to tell me my father's a threat to national security?" "What nonsense!" "Just get the hell out!" "Perhaps, you haven't heard the news." "Send him outside" "Else, we'll have to use force." "I'm waiting outside" "Father...!" "Give me my diary" "Let me talk to Sadiq and put an end to this nonsense" "No photographs!" "Confiscate his bloody camera" "Get the hell out of here!" "Where the hell is everybody?" "Can't get through..." "The bastards have kept their phones off the hook!" "You don't know what you're doing!" "You're making a big mistake" "You're arresting a man who never bothered about his own interests" "He has worked all his life for the good of the country!" "If you want to arrest someone, I'll tell you whom to arrest" "Govt." "Sterilisation Camp, Bhojpur." "Bihar 1975" "What petition has she brought this time?" "She claims we're using unhygienic equipment to sterilize the men" "Things are getting really dangerous, Gita" "Run"!" "It's the police!" " Someone has surely tattled!" "The police are out there" "Now look, this is too much!" " If you go out, you'll be killed." "Listen up!" "You better give up your urban comrades." "I've warned you before no Naxalite activity in my area!" "You've seen for yourself... the dirty politics of getting involved in naxalite politics" "He lost his life overnight" "But you still didn't see sense" "Your crops were ready to be harvested" "You could have had your daughters married." "I wanted everything to go off peacefully too" "But you guys have made life difficult for me." "What do you want me to do...?" "Beg you with folded hands?" "This is a habit you can't give up easily!" "Once something goes wrong..." "Just some old crazy women..." "Listen kiddo, those bastards came to my house with a warrant yesterday..." " Don't worry..." " What do you mean, don't worry?" "If they arrest me..." "You don't know them..." "Listen... do something... tell them I'm from the same caste... from the same village..." "my grandfather's uncles are the Home Minister's third cousins... you talk to him, he'll help me..." "What happened to your conscience?" "To hell with conscience!" "Is this any time for jokes?" "Why is that cop staring at me?" "He's not..." "He's just here to pray that he gets transferred... to the Connaught Place police station." "Never mind." "If they agree to take me back into the party..." "Listen, I'm not coming empty-handed I have my entire constituency." "Otherwise, I'll tell them about the funds you gave our party..." "Tell them." "Help me... you must..." "for old times' sake..." "I'm like your brother..." "I was your father's student..." "Don't talk about him." "He's is jail." "But unlike you, he's not shitting in his pants." "He doesn't wish to see anyone." "He has a slight fever." "He's grown taller, have you noticed?" "I messed up your life, didn't I?" "I'm sorry, Gita." "I..." "You could've left me." "Sidharth..." "it's not only about you." "I want to be here." "I love you." "Time to go." "Say bye to Chetan." "I've arranged for him to go back." "Try and understand." "It's just not fair to keep Chetan here anymore." "I've spoken to my parents, they're coming to pick him up now." "Hello..." "Mr. Tyebji." "This is Vikram Malhotra speaking." "I was in college with Sidharth and Gita." "How are you sir...?" "I hadn't heard from them for a long time, so I thought..." "If you could tell them that I'd called..." "Goodbye." "Friends, I have this great urge to express... my feelings in a couplet..." "I, Jhanda Singh, Senior Inspector In-Charge," "Badhaiya police outpost, on the day of 7th July, 1975, at 12 noon," "All of us had gone to enquire after a fellow officer who had diarrohea." "Taking advantage of our absence, the local populace attacked the extremist Naxalities... who were in custody at that time." "Probir Mitra and Sidharth were badly beaten up by villagers." "Also, Gita Rao who has been carrying on subversive activities in the name of... running a school also had to bear the brunt of the villages' outrage." "Fortunately, we arrived just in time and prevented the matter from getting out of hand." "Station-in-charge Badhaiya." "Jhanda Singh." "Sorry, Mehmood." "Please be sited." "As you know, we're expecting Madam soon..." "Grandpa, Fluffy's run away again..." "Oh dear, just a minute, I'll have him found for you" "Hey... is somebody there?" "Rashid... come here" "You know, my son... the over-zealousness of youth..." "I tried to stop him so many times." "Now, I believe he's been arrested." "Where's he now?" "Don't know, in some village in Bihar." "Please do something...!" "Just 5 minutes, we'll handle it..." "I'll try my best..." "We don't control things anymore..." "A younger lot has taken over..." "They say it's for the better..." "All these problems are arising because... nowadays, I'm handling trade unions." "But don't lose hope" "Hello, sir." "Remember me?" "I was in college with Sidharth..." "Are you okay, sir." " How are you?" " I'm fine, sir." "Have you heard from Sidharth or Gita?" "They've in jail..." "somewhere in Bihar..." "I want Gita Rao found." "How ought be every leader?" " Like Indira Gandhi" "Sorry sir, but we got information from our local intelligence..." "Here she is, sir." "Come." "Vikram told me where you were." "Leave me...!" " It's okay." "It's okay, Gita, but I may not be there the next time." "Look at me!" "Do you know what they could have done to you in there?" "You have any idea." "Oh, you poor thing!" "Arun, will you do something for me?" " What?" "Find Sidharth for me... please!" "Did you know I'm Married now?" "I have a kid." "It's lovely." "But you haven't charged a bit." "New Delhi, 1976" "I thought you wouldn't come..." "What's up?" "I just wanted to thank you..." "that's all" "Give me another..." "Howre you?" "I'm alright..." "I'm okay." "You?" "Me?" "Well, acquiring wealth and power at an alarming rate!" "Yes, that figures." "So... where's Sidharth?" "I don't know..." "I'm okay" "Come on!" "Hurry up!" "Gita there is bad news for you." "Sidharth and Kiru were shot at." "Kiru survived... but..." "Those bastards..." "Call me, if you need something..." "Stay... please..." ""Vikram, as usual, thanks for everything"" ""I thought about it, but I'm going back to the village"" ""It's for the best." "I will write to you"" ""Gita"" "What are you guys upto...?" "Hey you, stop that!" "Playing with the gun will explode in your ass!" "Is there a holiday?" "Some kid is fiddling with my gun... and you're sitting pretty here." "Could you please there are patients..." " What please, go, do your work." "So much tension..." "The wound is dry now." "You were fortunate that those cops brought you here." "But these ones are different." "They were talking of finishing you off on the way to the police station." "Who are you?" "Save yourself, Comrade." "Bullet?" "Soldier?" "Don't want to tell..." "I'm on my way..." "Soon I hope..." "Please comrade... call Delhi for me..." "my father... the number is 273857..." "Tell him he has to get me out of here..." "Tell him they're going to kill me... and give him the district magistrate's number as well." " Hello, is Gita there?" " No." "Oh no, sir!" " Who is calling?" "I have a message." "Please inform her somehow." "Someone just called from a hospital in Bhojpur." "They said the police is going to kill Sidharth sahab." "What do you mean...?" "Is Sidharth alive?" "I'm just a servant sir." "Sidharth saheb's father has had a stroke." "They're all at the hospital." "I don't know what to do." "Well, neither do I." "Gita's already left, son." "Please do something..." "You have so many contacts..." "You only can do something." "Just half an hour for the presentation." "What are you doing?" "Hurry up!" "Hello, yes Randhir... find out the Member of Parliament from Bhojpur, Bihar is..." "What are you doing?" "I don't want to be treated here... get me a taxi, bike..." "whatever you have." "Look how dirty this is..." "I'm going to catch some disease if you keep me here for another minute." "I want to make a call..." "take me to a phone..." "Sorry, the phones have just gone dead..." "What do you want?" "Money?" "Here, take as much as you want..." "Please Vikram, don't go..." "You shut up!" "Jerk, this is all thanks to you!" "First, I get the news that you're dead." "Then, you're alive." "What was I supposed to do?" "Have you checked for the air bubbles...?" "We'll nave to keep you under observation." "Tomorrow, doctors from the Bhojpur Hospital will come." "Then it's between you and them." "I understand why you're angry with me, but..." "Look at me, man." "I'm in deep shit." "Don't bloody well faint on me again!" "Hunh..." "We've come to pick you up." "We're all here, no problem now." "How about the cop?" " One's drunk" "One moment, there's Vikram." "Let's move, he's not in danger." "Eh... get up!" "Shit!" "I took a nap for just two minutes... goddamned hell!" "Who asked you to drink...?" " You needn't say that to me!" "Look they took away the whole bed." "And nobody is saying anything." "He was talking to this jerk!" "I've got little kids." "There won't be any complaint against me, I hope...?" "You'll be sterilized!" " But I'm a government employee!" "To hell with you!" "Go and ask him where he is..." "Hey, tell me, you bastard...!" "They carried him away" "And this guy was lying here, sozzled to his eyes" "Save my skin, please!" "I think they must've been partners or something." "Move it... c'mon!" " Let me go!" "Let me go!" "Leave me alone!" "Where are you taking me...?" "The other guy's escaped!" "But his friend is here." "We'll just shoot him and throw some acid on his face, no one will recognise the face..." "they don't walk around checking." "What are you doing?" "Come on, go ahead, shoot...!" "I'm Vikram Malhotra..." "I know your Member of Parliament Surender Singh, he is my friend..." "I'm not Sidharth that insurgent...!" "Go on, just shoot..." "It's empty..." " Where are the bullets?" "Shit, my kids must have taken them to play with..." "Hit him harder..." "We'll have to finish him off like this..." "Stop!" "What's happening here?" "Not my mistake." "This guy asked me to bump him off" "He was escaping from custody, sir" "I can't fool myself any longer." "I just can't do this." "They would have killed you..." " They should have." "I mean it, they should have." "Will you come with me Gita?" ""Dear Gita..."" ""what can I say?"" ""Sorry"" ""Our parting, I guess, was inevitable"" ""Maybe, even necessary"" ""You have to, I suppose..."" ""get over your first love, in order to be free"" ""Thank you for sending Chetan to London with my father"" ""It was inexplicable, the feeling of seeing him after all these years"" ""The last time I saw you at your father's house..."" ""I was too wrought up inside"" ""The world hadn't changed in the ways that I wanted it to"" ""I know that you're right, it has"" ""That no one can rape a lower-caste in those parts that easily anymore"" ""He might get a certain body part chopped off"" ""And I know that's a leap of about five thousand years"" ""But still..."" ""Anyway, Probir-da is still there"" ""And... you"" ""By the way, please give him the book I am sending you"" ""And tell him that I'll write to him soon"" ""As for me, you know I'm studying medicine now"" ""I'm the oldest student in my class"" ""Maybe the mysteries of the human body will be less confusing"" ""And someday, I will return..." "maybe"" ""Gita, I often think of Vikram"" ""Pablo told me that his wife had put him in some specialised institution"" ""But when Pablo went to see him, the authorities told him..."" ""there's no one by that name"" ""I smiled when I heard that"" ""I think I know where he is""