Sunday, July 17, 2005

Facets

6:04pm, Sat, May 14 2005, Marine Drive
“My family is no more. The studies of my children are gone. Why did I go to the distant country and earn so much money? Why did I settle in a house in the city, far away from my siblings? It was all for my family. But my wife, I don’t know what happened to her. I don’t know what she did with that huge amount from our account. She is not saying a word about it. Matters worsened so rapidly that now we are staying in two floors of the same house, the house of our dreams, not talking to each other; as if we are strangers. With all these in mind, I am not able to spend time with my children, let alone talk.”

Sanjiv’s sorrows remained unheard in the sound of the boisterous ocean waves.

6:05pm, Sat, May 14 2005, City Central Park
“Ours was the happiest family around and others used to envy on us. Don’t know when things changed. What should I do when he returns home late night. What should I do when I hear others saying unbelievable things about him? I don’t have anyone to tell my worries. My children! I don’t know how much they are suffering due to this. Everyday I come home longing for consolation and I am not able to find it in my house.”

Tara’s tears were carried to somewhere unknown by the wind which went past her.

6:06pm, Sat, May 14 2005, Sagar Vihar creek side.
“I was the class monitor. I was a good performer in the class too. I appeared for the district level Mathematics Olympiad last year. But my studies went bad this year. And I was not promoted to the higher grade. I hate my house. I always wanted to get out from that place. My parents won’t fight with each other, but they don’t talk either. I know there is some problem going on in between them, but don’t know what it is. It’s been quiet some time that we all went for an outing or even for a film. Oh my God, when will these come to an end?”

The gentle breeze took away Abhijit’s feelings with it. He was twelve. He started hating his parents.

6:07pm, Sat, May 14 2005, terrace of the house.
“My parents don’t love me. How many times I wished they would get me at least a comic book. The only time that my mom talks to me is when she calls me for dinner. The only time that my dad talks to me is when he wakes me up in the morning for school. This year when my classmates will be studying in the next higher class, I will be continuing in my current class. The teachers are saying that I haven’t performed well in the last year. Now, Nisha won’t be talking with me anymore; neither will be Ram, Manu and Rahul. What will my juniors think about me? No one will be friends with me anymore.”

A few drops of tears fell from the eyes of Abhishek, the seven year old. But he didn’t cry. He had learned to control it long before.

6:08pm, Sat, May 14 2005, Dr. Patel's psychiatric clinic
“The divorce hearing is to be held at the family court on Monday, May 16, 2005. They say Indians are well known for family values. They are well known for their long-lasting family relationships. They understand each other better. Arranged marriages last longer. But... Now, I have to prepare for tomorrow’s case. I don't know what I should argue for? Sanjiv's win and Tara's defeat? Sanjiv's defeat and Tara's win? The children, what will happen to them in either case?”

Ravindra, the middle-aged lawyer was in a dilemma.

6:09pm, Sat, May 14 2005, outside the diagnosis room
“It is a severe case of Multiple Personality Disorder. Five alter egos in the same person. Kiran thinks himself to be Sanjiv, Tara, Abhijit, Abhishek and Ravindra. These are the five personalities that control him.”

“I talked with all the five alter egos of Kiran. Sanjiv is the father who doesn’t have the time to take care his son Kiran. Tara is the mother whose love he didn’t get. Abhijit is the repulsive child with in him who revolt against all these. Abhishek is the child existing in his mind who without complaining suffers everything. Ravindra is the only person who is concerned about him. He is the alter ego which has got control over all the others. They all think themselves to be in different locations now. Sanjiv at marine drive, Tara at city central park and so on. This is the first time I am dealing with such a complex case.”

Dr. Patel, the psychologist continued.

“But there must be some strong reason behind this mental disorder. Has Kiran got enough love from both of you during his childhood?”

Dr. Patel asked the lady and gentle man standing outside the diagnosis room. They were Kiran's parents. They were managers working for two multinational firms and were usually away on one company tour or the other.

Kiran's parents remained silent. In fact they were thinking about this for the first time ever...

PS: Inspired by the following.
Warning: Spoiler ahead.

/* Spoiler Start */
Tell me your dreams – Sidney Sheldon.
Manichitrathazhu – Malayalam flick by Fazil.
Identity – 2003 James Mangold flick
Me, Myself & Irene – 2000 Bobby & Peter Farrelly flick.
Anniyan – Tamil film. Immediate cause.

/* Spoiler End */


30 comments:

Mahdi said...

I like everything up to the diagnosis room.(very nicely depicted,gives a feeling as if watchng a film)

Anonymous said...

Jithu..u treated the theme very well..read this story atleast twice, u will appreciate the genius in Jithu...

Sujith said...

> ms
:-) i think the twist is after that :-)

> anand
athrakku veno... :-) isnt it understandable in one read? :-)

kickassso said...

Havent we all , at some point in our lives , wanted to be someone else, dont we act as different people to our friends , parents, and spouses? If these actions are acceptable, what is wrong with kirans actions.Or maybe what is wrong with ours?

Mirage said...

Wow...quite interesting!
I've read Sidney Sheldon's book and I've also seen Me Myself and Irene...the latter was truly hilarious! Jim Carrey is the master of Comedy! :D

Sujith said...

> kickasso
hmm.. isnt it bit out of reach ;-) man, u seem to be in a philosophical mood today. ok now how i feel to ur question... in all those cases u mentioned, v had the conrol of our mind. in Kiran's case, he hadn't..

< mirage
ok, so the story is not that confusing cool! ;-) btw the Jim Carrey film was hilarious.. if possible see Identity as well.. its serious and different..

kickassso said...

How about the movies 'girl Interrupted' and 'anger management'?.... the lead characters in those cases...did you think they were in control? It is often a grey area

silverine said...

Children are always the sufferers.
:(

Sujith said...

> kickasso
actually i havent seen both the movies.. lemme see if i can get it :-)

> silverine
long time no see :-) yup dont know why i am inclined towards children's hardships these days. hw many different ways are there for them to suffer :-(((

Anonymous said...

amazing story!
- vishal

Sujith said...

> vishal
thnx yaar..

> niki
it is.. in the begining it was hard to believe that somethin like that exists

~*. D E E P A .* ~ said...

read SYBIL ...... u wont find another like that ,....

and itz a true story ...

must read ...

SYBIL .... it affected me for very long .... way, way better than Sidney sheldon

Deepa

~*. D E E P A .* ~ said...

and Roark ... yes ..i really admire him ... and more than him , Dominique ...

Many times, i feel like her

messys musings said...

hey i have read sidney sheldon... but it didnt impress me that much... urs is way too good...

thanx for visiting my blog...hope to see u soon there...

nibujohn said...

to add on the subject of multiple personality, i personally think you should watch the movie 'fight club' where this subject is handled rather interstingly different.

and need i say the blog was cool? ok. let me do it. it was really cool. :-)

Sujith said...

> deepa
yup, SYBIL i will try to get it.. thnx for the suggestion. well, i'm a fan of Ayn Rand. Her classic, FH, is the best philosophical novel i have ever read; the best ever love story too..

> musings
haan.. Tell me ur dreams was not that good a book compared to others. bt that was the first one i have read abt MPD, so... :-)

> manu
yup! Fight Club I've seen. It was also too good! handled the idea differently.
ok ur second sentence.. hmm... ok lemme say it.. thanxxxx... :-)

Invincible said...

Hi Jithu,
That was an intriguing post.

also went thru ur b'day post .. it was fun ..
n thanks for dropping by my blog.

khwaish said...

nicely written..I've seen manichitrathazu and read the sheldon book. Been meaning to watch Identity for quite some time now...

this is one complex probelm...imagine how bad the situation must be for someone's mind to develop different personalities..scary...

Sujith said...

> invincible
Thank you very much!

> sanaja
yup! contrary to the thrill in explaining & reading it, the situation of the ppl who actually are suffering due to this is unimaginable... a little care in interpersonal relationships would easily extirpate such disorders in its budding stage itself..

-Poison- said...

i wish i had multiple personalities !!!

SRILAXMI said...

hey jithu....
i've not yet found out the controversy. no time yaar....
anyway, nice blog. and thanks for visiting mine...
SRI

~*. D E E P A .* ~ said...

yes i agree .... FH is the best ....

have a copy that i treasure so damn much ....

Sujith said...

> poison
ohmegawdd!! any particular reasons?

> srilaxmi
:-) thanx yaar.. i heard abt the controversy thingy from ur blog.. have to find out :-)

> deepa
there u go! howard rock, dominique francon, peter keating, elseworth toohey all are still afresh in my memory :-))

Praveen said...

Hmmm... good imagination, especially where you mention the MPD bit :).
I remember another good film on Split Personality called Primal Fear. Watch it if you havent.

Sonia said...

i've read the sidney sheldon and that's what ur post reminded me of too! :o)

scorpigle said...

That was well written and fabulous.

Sujith said...

>praveen
thnx praveen.. yup will try to get a print of Primal Fear.. thnx for the suggestion..

> sonia
yup! eventhough Tell me your dreams is not an excellent novel, it pretty conveys the gist of the topic..

>scorpigle
thnx man!!

Mrs. Dalloway said...

The saddest part being, even in all these escapisms, he is unable to escape the one thing called sorrow...

Anonymous said...

excellent story da. liked the way you had put it across.

Sujith said...

> poornima
hmm.. true.. :-(

> atul
thnx man!