It was mid-night. I was done crying and cursing myself for opting here to get some “adventure” in final year of my graduation. Before me were lying Saapadu and a mug of coffee, both completely untouched. Finally I decided to pack my bags and return to my hometown, my people...Delhi.
I was in Karumathampatti, a suburb of Coimbatore city in the state of Chennai. My summer internship was in BHEL and was scheduled in May. I was given an option to join the company’s zonal office which was in my hometown but I chose to go to some place far, where I would be able to discover myself, my shortcomings, someplace where I can live free and breathe free. Actually it had been so long since last I stepped out of Delhi so I found it to be best opportunity to flee from mind-numbing daily routine.
Scorching heat of summers welcomed me from airport. I was ready for my voyage but the only problem I was able to see till now was language problem. South Indian cuisine was something I cherished since childhood. The day I landed, was my reporting day as well. In BHEL, I was welcomed by a bunch of colleagues who, from that very moment, started mocking me (for not being one of them), bullying and deliberately used to talk in Tamil so that I don’t get to understand a single word of it. There I befriend Vasanthi, who used to make my survival easy out there.
Day by day, due to this handful of people, I grew hatred for this place and thus making my endurance even more difficult. Then came this day when I decided to run-away from this place, leaving my internship in middle. Days passed and I was not able to overcome from the terror I faced in Karumathampatti.
Years passed and everything returned back to normal. One fine night I was chatting with my friend Sunidhi and conversationally told her about the trip and the reason why I came back before completing the training period. After few days, she gifted me CART FULL OF HUSK . This was the book that changed my life forever. This was then when I realized what those people would have faced or would have gone through when they had to leave their country forever and settle themselves in an alien hostile nation.
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