‘May I come in, sir?’
Nishith does cordial formality while entering Mr. Sinha's cabin..
‘Come in.. come in.. Mr. Nishith, have a sit, please’
Nishit took a seat in front of Mr. Sinha. takes out the testimonials file from the backpack, wondering how the interview would start.
‘Thanks for coming down to our office from Ahmedabad specially for interview’ Mr. Sinha initiated. Nishit smiled in response.
“So Mr. Nishith Mehta ... can I speak Gujarati with your permission? '
‘Hmm ...’
‘You may be surprised but I have had many Gujarati friends since childhood so you know .. I am quite comfortable with Gujarati. Etle mane gujrati bolta sara rite aavde chhe’
'Nice sir'
‘Mr. Nishith, if this is what you are talking about then you really have neither the qualification nor the experience as per our requirement ... but I shortlisted your name first and called you for the first interview.
'Thank you sir'
‘First of all I will brief you about our company. Me and my bestest friend Suhas Patel started this company some decade back. Was a very meager start. Believe it or not, we started with an ad for a vest-making company. It was a great experience. There was a sensation across the country and in the ad world. Today, That banyan (Vest) company is as big as a huge baniyan tree.
‘Wow !!!!!’ Nishit responded in appreciation..
My partner Suhas Patel had been a huge contributor to the company's progress. I was in charge of administration and finance while Suhas was looking after creative department. But he died tragically in a serious accident a few months ago. He was traveling with his family to Lonavala and on his way back, his car had an accident. 'Mr. Sinha was little sad as he spoke .
‘That’s so sad .. so sorry you hear this.’
‘Sorry Nishith for getting Sentimental’
Mr. Sinha lifted the glass of water lying on the table and gulped in no time. He then continued after a deep sigh.
‘So Mr. Nishith, I am very impressed to see your CV. B. E. Mechanical ... A job as a maintenance manager with a well paid salary in a reputed engineering company in Ahmedabad which is known all over the country ... When a person with such a good position applies for a job as a script writer, I understand that you will be very fond of creative writing. You were called first for this interview. "
'Thanks again sir'
‘First introduce yourself briefly. I'd like to know what you think of yourself. '
Nishith settles the self-introduction and proceeds with the interview.
“Mr. Nishith. It was nice to hear about you from yourself ... by the way, are you interested in sports? '
'Yes sir'
‘Which sports?’
'Bedminton sir'
‘It’s badminton and not badminton as you use to say. Even in your CV,You have mentioned badminton as of bedminton. I didn't expect that with you. On the one hand you want to be a script writer and such a big mistake ? Unbelievable .... ’
‘Thanks for noticing sir. I made that mistake on purpose. To be honest, it's not just a mistake, it's a fact. '
‘Fact? how?'
"Sir, since I was a child, when I slept on the bed, I would roll from side to side all night, so my father would wake me up in the morning saying “Get up.. And you roll on the bad as shuttlecock strikes from one half to the other in badminton court.? Sleeping or playing badminton? ” And that's why I wrote this on purpose. And honestly speaking sir .... you are the first one to find it out Correctly ”
‘Wow ... that’s quite interesting and funny to ...... I’m quite impressed’
'Thanks a ton sir'
'You didn't mention anything about your expected salary'
"Sir, I don't mind the rules in your company ... rather I never tag price on my forehead"
‘It doesn’t work ... you have to state your expectations. We can't move forward without it. "
Saying ‘OK sir’, Nishith stated his expected salary according to his current salary and the difference in standard of living between Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
‘Thanks Mr. Mehta .... by the way this is your first attempt to become a script writer or have you tried anywhere before this ?. I think you're born for such job. Can't think of you never gave it a try before."
‘You’re right sir. Years back I tried it for the first time when I was in my final year of college. It was a great success but parents forced me to focus on my engineering and then I started gave up idea of making a career in ad world. '
‘I’m interested to know more about it if you don’t mind.’
Sure sir .. but the story is a bit long. This is when communal riots broke out in Ahmedabad and the year was 2002. That year the Football World Cup tournament was to be held in South Korea and Japan. An excellent slogan was playing in my mind that I was confident of being an unmatched. I made up my mind to watch this slogan on TV at any cost. On one hand the condition of the city was quite turbulent and my stubbornness on the other. Now it remains to be seen who wins. It was twelve o'clock at night when the idea came into my mind. Internet was not as accessible those days as it is now, especially for middle class families like us. I kept thinking all night about which company could effectively present my slogan in the ad and how I could catch it and move on. At dawn, a cool idea hit my mind of the well-known TV company of that time. Located on the S.G. highway, which was also a leader in providing TVC those days. Just thought about how to get there in burning situations. I called my peer, my cousin Bhushan. I was as smart in studies as I was quiet and shy ... while Bhushan was moderate in studies but very active in extracurricular activities and quite adventurous. Whenever I was stuck in any work, He was always ready to save me... If he was not available, it was not possible for me to go out in such unpleasant conditions . I got up early in the morning, got ready for a quick bath and ran to Bhushan. Bhushan was still asleep. I made him woke up after bunch of efforts .
"What is all this, Nishith?" It's early in the morning You know, I don't like it when someone disturbs me while I'm sleeping. What's the matter.”
When I told him about my state of mind, he said .. "Forget Nishith .. In such a frightening situation, crossing the entire city from Maninagar to SG Highway is a more difficult task than Abhimanyu entered the chakravyuh in the Mahabharata. Sorry..this time ..... can't help you. '
"Hey Bhushan, you are the only one who can help me. You have been like fire brigade to me, Please ..... there might be a way, just give a thought.”
Bhushan thought for a while and then took the news paper gave it a quick look.
I asked .. "Hey Mister ... I haven't slept here whole night and rushed to you in the morning and you are the one who ignored me so much and grabbed the news paper ? You careless guy."
He turned his head from the news paper for a moment and signaled me to be quiet for a while. After a while he jumped up in joy.
"Yeah ... Nishith, got the way ... I was just looking in the paper to find out in which areas of the city have been relaxed from curfew today . In our Maninagar there is absolute peace so there is no problem and so is SG Highway. Now if we leave home at twelve o'clock in the afternoon, we will be back in comfort by three o'clock. We have no chance of facing the problem of traffic jam at such a time. ”
Deciding to meet at twelve o'clock in the afternoon, twe parted ways. After lunch, I left home on the pretext of studying at friend's house who lived nearby. Bhushan was also ready. We set off on the route determined by Bhushan and we drove to the office of the famous TV company. Bhushan explained the purpose of our visit to the receptionist sitting in the reception corridor. After some deliberation, we got approval for a meeting with the regional head of the company. But the time of the meeting was fixed at half past two in the afternoon which was a little stressful considering the urgency of the time.
At exactly half past two, the Regional Head Mr. Vachchharajanisaheb called us to his cabin. And a discussion ensued between us. I made him aware of the ad concept running through my mind. ”
‘Hey, what was the concept? I am impatient to know that. 'For the first time in all this time, Mr. Sinha asked, interrupting Nishith.
"Yes, that's what I'm saying sir ... you must have seen this slogan on TV in the 2002 Football World Cup ..."
‘Which slogan?’
‘Enjoy the GOAL-DONE moments’
‘Oh my God ..... oh my god .....”
Mr. Sinha got up from his chair congratulating Nishith.
‘Thank you very much sir’ Nishith was excited on response .....
‘Mr. Vachchharajani also stood up and embraced me after hearing my slogan. He promised me, "I'll just report it to the Concerned Department at our company's corporate office, and we'll be seeing an ad on TV soon." And then what happened is history. '
"Wow ... then why didn't you go ahead in the field of your hobby ?"
'Sir, then I started preparing for the final semester of my engineering and after that whenever I tried to contact an ad agency ,couldn't get through and I joind an engineering company thereafter. I always wanted work with a big ad agency and it is what brought me here today. '
‘One more thing..Didn't you find any difficulty while risking yourlife that day for the meeting ?
‘Yes we did.. On the way, everything went smoothly, but as a little more time passed in the meeting, it was a little difficult to return. With barely fifteen minutes left to reach Maninagar, stone pelting started between the two mobs in the same area where we were passing. People came face to face with weapons. Seeing bloodshed for the first time in my life. We both felt like we were finished. The excitement of the moment began to wane. I was watching TVC built on a script I made in a forest of ideas and now it seemed like that day might never come to life. Bhushan was continuously encouraging me to get me out of panic. "
Whatever happens to us will happen" he told. . To me he was a wonderful man. Death is playing havoc in front of our eyes and our hero is absolutely cool. Someone from a crowd looked at us and started running towards us shouting 'Kill them ... kill them ...'.
Now Bhushan speeded up the bike. Someone from the crowd threw a sharp weapon at us which fell two inches away from me and I just blinked. I had no idea what would happen next. After a while I opened my eyes as if the bike had stopped and I realized that we had reached a safe place. Bhushan brought a bottle of mineral water from a shop which we finished with one breath at a time. There was a sense of applause on both faces. Then we drove home thinking What would have happened if it got through any of us.
Oh ... what a horrible script !!!’
‘Sir .. this is not a script .. this is exactly what happened’
"I'm not talking about you ... I'm talking about the script of god."
‘Oh .. yes. It was indeed horrible. '
‘OK .. Mr. Mehta ... It was quiet interesting to meet you and I really enjoyed your golden moments. I can't say anything right now. But for sure ... will inform you very soon, all the best. '
‘Thanks a lot sir .... will be my great pleasure .....’
Nishith walks out of Mr. Sinha's cabin. He is surrounded by bunch of thoughts in his mind.
"Will I have to come to this place again? Will all the faces I see today become everyday companions for me or will all this always be a thing of the past for me after I set foot here? Just ... one thing is for sure. It is the day that carries a lot of possibilities to change the direction of my future ... Thoughts were running like anything in Nishith's mind. .
"Hey Mister.. ..... just be careful " Nishith brakes on thoughts
to be continued..
