I am sure that looks like a complete mismatch. If you
observe keenly though, some of the best partnerships have blossomed due to the
union of absolutely contrasting characters; sometimes diametrically opposite.
This happened about 7 years from now. Social media was in
its infancy, at least in India. The thrill of internet communication was in
writing mails and chatting. Yahoo messenger seemed to have a reservation on
each desktop we could see.
As we were good at studies, my lazy friends and the lazier I
would know that we had to do some serious work in the last week before the exam
if we had to pass. Our belief in crisis management, as MBA students, was
paramount. We would allocate a few chapters to each one of us, then get into a
joint discussion and teach each other. This would somehow ensure that we pass
the exams.
It was during one such stay at a friend’s place at around 11
p.m. that this happened. I am very fond of books and reading. The only issue is
that they would invariably not be the books I needed to study for my exams.
The books that I needed to go through for my exams had
immense power of hypnotism. They could put me to sleep in less than 15 minutes.
I was at the verge of coming out of such a hypnotic session when I saw this.
My friend, whose bed I was comfortably sleeping on, was
typing away hysterically on his computer, without a care in the world.
Intrigued by this rather unusual behavior, I went near his desktop to see him
frantically pressing the keys on his keyboard. The monitor showed Yahoo
messenger and what I saw next had me in splits. I was laughing like a mad man
and he had no clue what happened to me. The laughter wouldn’t die down but in
its midst, I asked him, “Why do you call yourself Vitamin B”? I mean who on
earth would have such a name on Yahoo messenger.
My very sporting friend saw my humour and laughed along.
After it settled, he said that he was talking to his girlfriend who was in
London. She was to take Vitamin B tablets thrice a day but she used to forget
it often. The unusual name on Yahoo messenger was to gently remind her that she
had to take these tablets. My laughter died its natural death and a sense of
embarrassment took over. I was laughing at, possibly, one of the best romantic
acts in history. My respect for this friend grew manifold.
A year from that incident, and again we were to have our
final examinations. Nothing had changed but the year. We were all unprepared,
scouting around for notes, question paper samples etc. To compound the myriad
problems, this friend of mine was down with Malaria. I was studying hard when
my mobile phone rang. It was a call from London. I recognized the voice. It was
the lady from London for whom my friend had become Vitamin B. She told me that
Malaria had not allowed him to study and requested me if I could help him out
with some of the chapters. She was too concerned and did not hesitate to ask me
to help him out.
Not only I, but our group of friends did help him and we all
did well. In those two years at college, I saw six couple going around – all
happy together. Not one of those relationships lasted the two years of the
course.
And then there was this couple. They weren’t in the same
college, not even in the same city or country. Yet, they were together all the
time, celebrating each other’s joys, overcoming each other’s sorrows. I think
they are a role model for most people who fall in love these days – for getting
into a relationship is not difficult but ensuring that it sustains is.
The couple I am talking about is my friends Dinakar Menon and
Snehal Thakur who celebrate their third wedding anniversary today. I wish them
all the very best and many more years of togetherness. Romantic tales are not
my forte, so if you like something I write in this genre, the credit goes to
couple like them who I am fortunate to know.
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