Suddenly I was reminded of that cold night in the harsh winters of January 1999. Two teenagers with little more than their courage to hold on to were braving the cold morning chill and outrageously long train delays to return back to their boarding schools. As the elder of the two, I was in the unenviable position of making choices, all of which backfired. Except the last one.
The journey from Banda, my hometown in those days, to Gwalior should take 9 hours. It took 15. By the time we reached Dholpur ( a further 60 kms from Gwalior ) it was 10 pm. Ten pm in first week of January in the semi-arid regions of Rajasthan can be bone chilling. With no means to go to campus from railway station, we were left stranded with little idea of what to do. Frantic search of an old relative failed. At that moment, I dug up the telephone number of a batchmate (Ankur Garg, a day scholar at my school ) and sought help. Without a moment of thought, he asked us to come to his home. Two teens were spared the harsh night, when temperatures would have touched a low of 1`C . It was an evening I can never forget. The numbness induced by the bone chilling winds had scared me for an instant. And what kept me thinking was the fact that there was someone younger I had to take care of.

Head mein ek ho raha hai, kuch type karne ka mann nahi kar raha, aur ek long drive per jane ka mann kar raha hai. at the speed at which I drive, that would mean a trip to the next chaar rasta. Filhal, mein apne sapne ki gaadi chalata hoon:



Chupke se kahin, dheeme paaun se

jaane kis tarah, kis ghadi

aage badh gaye, humse raahon mein

par tum toh abhi thi yahin

kuch bhi na suna, kab ka tha gila

kaise keh diya alvida



Jinke darmiya gujri thi abhi

kal tak yeh meri zindagi

dono baahon ko, thandi chaanv ko

hum bhi kar chale alvida



Alvida, alvida, meri raahein alvida

meri saansein kehati hai, alvida

alvida, alvida, ab kehna aur kya

jab tune keh diya, alvida



Sunle bekhabar, yuun aankhein pher kar aaj tu chali jaa

dhundegi nazar humko hi magar har jagah

aisi raaton mein leke karvate, yaad hamein karna

aur phir haar kar kehna kyun magar, keh diya alvida alvida

koi puchhe toh zara, kya socha aur kaha alvida

alvida, alvida, ab kehna aur kya

jab tune keh diya, alvida




Hum the dil jale, phir bhi dil kahe

kaash mere sang aaj hote tum agar, hoti har dagar gulsitaa

tumse hai khafa, hum naaraaz hai, dil hai pareshaan

socha na suna tune kyun bhala keh diya alvida alvida

koi puchhe toh zara, kya socha aur kaha alvida

alvida, alvida, ab kehna aur kya

jab tune keh diya, alvida



kyun socha aur kahan alvida


dono baahon ko, thandi chaanv ko

hum bhi kar chale alvida

and here's the video: