The Bull’s Eye

Parikshit was two days away from his 18^th birthday. His excitement was not just because he would soon be eligible to cast his vote and could legally drive around his father’s car. He was waiting for this day for a special reason.

For as long as he could remember, Parikshit and his family would go to his grandparents’ house on the eve of his birthday. Every year, unfailingly, Parikshit would celebrate his birthday with his grandparents. He loved his grandmother and her culinary skills amazed him to no end. She cooked the best food in the world! He loved to talk more to his grandfather though. His grandfather had immense knowledge and could talk on most things under the sun. His grandfather always made his birthday a special affair. After dinner on the eve of his birthday, his grandfather would take him to the terrace of their spacious bungalow. They both would sit and talk to each other into the wee hours of the morning. Parikshit loved the way his grandfather would take him into another world with his exemplary story telling skills. With the moon, stars and night sky as audience, Parikshit felt very special as he transcended into a different world of characters, events and action. How he wished the stories wouldn’t end! Grandfather ensured that the stories would convey a good message and inspire Parikshit. These stories had definitely shaped Parikshit’s personality and contributed to him becoming a very humble and nice boy. On his 17^th birthday, Parikshit asked his grandfather about the best story he knew. The generous as ever grandfather told him that the next story would be the most special. The story that grandfather would narrate to Parikshit on his 18^th birthday would be the most special!

Parikshit and family were driving towards his grandparents’ house and he couldn’t wait to get there. The curiosity of the special story was killing him. He somehow wanted to be there on the terrace with his grandfather. However, ‘time’ had decided to take its own sweet time.

After what seemed like eternity, Parikshit and his parents reached his grandparents’ house. They spent a few hours talking and laughing like any great family. Grandmother soon announced that it was dinner time. Parikshit could see all his favourite delicacies laid out on the table. He wanted to hog like a wolf but decided against it. He ate well (though not to his heart’s content). He wanted to be all ears when his grandfather would tell him the story. Sleep was the last thing on his mind.

The wait was finally over. Parikshit’s parents and his grandmother were off to sleep. He was where he wanted to be – with his grandfather on the terrace.  

It was a full moon day and the night sky was adorned with a lot of shining stars. Grandfather did not make him wait any longer. He began.

Terrible circumstances but a glimmer of hope           

  

Dharavi – a slum founded more than hundred years ago is today one of the largest slums in Asia. Its residents include people from all over India. They are from different regions and are followers of different religions. It exports leather goods to all parts of the world. There are many household industries in Dharavi which employs the slum residents. This story is about one such resident. His name was Arjun.

He did not know who his parents were. He did not even know who named him Arjun.

He worked in a small restaurant in Dharavi which used to serve tea to these household industry employees. These employees used to come to the restaurant for their breakfast, lunch and dinner. The huge population of the slum also comprised of a lot of children. Many of them were Arjun’s age. Unlike Arjun, most of them went to school.

Arjun was just eight years old and worked till five p.m. in the restaurant. The workers took a break from five to eight. They would then come back to cater to customers who would walk in for dinner and then they would wind up for the day.

The three hours from five to eight were very enjoyable. Arjun had the deepest desire to study but there was no one to either sponsor his education or take care of him. Not one to crib over his destiny, Arjun would spend time with these school children, often asking them about what they learnt and trying to gain as much knowledge as possible. During one of these evenings, Arjun decided to visit a nearby garden with four of these children. It was summer season and the garden had a mango tree. 

The garden was pretty deserted till six in the evening. People would often stay confined to their homes to save themselves from the scorching heat. Children, however, had no such concerns.

The mango tree had a lot of ripe mangoes and the children decided to throw stones and get the mangoes to fall to the ground. A smart child among them decided to turn this into a competition. He said that each one of the five children would get five chances to aim for the mangoes and the one who would get the maximum number of mangoes to fall would win. The smart child got carried away and in a moment of madness, he also declared that the winner would take home the mangoes that all the others had cumulatively succeeded in targeting.

Arjun’s turn came last. By then, two children had gone completely unsuccessful and two of them managed to get two mangoes to the ground successfully. The sadness of having missed was very relevant in the facial expressions of the first child. She wanted the mangoes desperately and Arjun had seen it in her eyes. While the two children who had a tie were wondering about how to deal with it, Arjun took his first shot and bang! The first mango fell to the ground with a thud.

The four children accompanying him couldn’t believe their eyes as Arjun managed two, three, four and five in very quick succession. The children reluctantly handed Arjun the other mangoes. He now had nine in all. However, he took only one and gave the children two mangoes each. His generosity, amidst victory, was cherished and the children became very good friends of his. The five children decided to walk back together into the slums. Their friendship was as thick as the bark of the mango tree they targeted. That night, after he reached home, Arjun couldn’t sleep. The girl’s eyes, which expressed disappointment so beautifully, were not letting him sleep. He wondered why. But he was too young to know. 

The mystery man!

Arjun’s immaculate targeting of the mangoes and his subsequent generosity had not gone unnoticed. A tall, well-built man was sitting in the garden a few meters away and watching the entire episode unfold in front of his eyes. The man, thought in his head, that the mango tree which bears the most fruit will have to bear the most stones hurled at it. He had often heard of such a mango tree being used as a metaphorical reference to very talented or skilled people. He has found one such mango tree. The mango tree was Arjun. The only doubt he had – would Arjun be able to bear the stones?

The next day – the destiny detour

For Arjun and his friends, this ritual continued. The next evening at the same time, Arjun and his friends came to the same tree, played the same game and ended up with the same result. Arjun never missed even once! He was as surprised as his friends. Soon, they started checking if Arjun could hit other targets. They placed a glass bottle a few metres away and asked Arjun to take a shot. He hurled a small stone and the clinking of the glass could be heard the very next moment. Arjun had become a superstar among his friends. They, again, walked back into the slums after their evening of fun.

Arjun worked diligently at the restaurant and after completing the jobs assigned to him, he left. It was nearly midnight when he started walking towards the small flat which he shared with his fellow workers at the restaurant. Unlike his colleagues, Arjun would not go home and sleep. He used to sit outside the house and read till the wee hours of the morning. He had managed to befriend the owner of a shop dealing with books and newspapers. Every evening after work, he used to visit this place to check if he could get a book to read. Most often, he returned with a book and newspapers of the day. The appetite for knowledge that Arjun possessed was unmatched. He had managed to learn to read and write, all by himself. He leveraged every opportunity that came his way to learn more.

He was reading the newspaper under the streetlight when he heard a vehicle come to a halt near him on the road. He looked up to see who it was. He had seen the shining white car for the very first time. From it stepped out a tall, well-built man. He came to Arjun, looked at him and asked him if he would like to study. Arjun was a bit terrified but the man made him feel comfortable. After a bit of scrutiny, Arjun decided to believe the stranger. He told the stranger that he would go with him the next day after intimating his colleagues, his employer and his friends. The stranger reluctantly agreed. He was confident he would take Arjun home the next evening.

The new life

Arjun was in a new house in two days. Life had taken a complete U-turn. His one room with five colleagues was replaced with a mansion with five bedrooms. He slept alone on a lavish bed. However, he felt cramped and suffocated. He could not experience the same feeling of freedom. He consoled himself that he would get used to it.

The next day, the man, Abdul Yusuf (known as Lala) came to his room. He told him that he had got a home tutor arranged to teach Arjun everything from english to mathematics to general knowledge. He told him about the timings, when the tutor would come and what he could do for the remaining part of the day. There was abundance all around. A lot of food, time, money. But Arjun felt deprived.

As he was getting used to his new life, Lala brought him a dart board. He told Arjun that he would love to play dart with him. And they did. Arjun hit the target at will. Little did he realize that Lala was trying to test if Arjun could indeed hit targets at will. He was now completely convinced.

With a big grin on his face, he hugged Arjun, wished him a good night and walked out of the room. Arjun was oblivious to Lala’s plans. However, he was fast getting comfortable with his new life. 

The rendezvous

Lala had planned a rendezvous with Arjun besides the swimming pool of his lavish bungalow. He had informed Arjun that they would have dinner together. As they had dinner, Lala told Arjun that he wanted him to listen intently. For the next fifteen minutes, only Lala talked. There was no one around.

Lala told Arjun about his job for the very first time. Lala told him that he was an undercover cop. He told him to keep the entire conversation a secret. Lala convinced him that he was assigned the task of wiping out the underworld and their increasing acts of violence. He told Arjun that he was required to be “undercover” so as to covertly understand the modus operandi of the underworld and formulate a plan to eliminate the dreaded gangsters.

Arjun could not understand why Lala was telling him all these things. Lala did not make him wait any longer. Lala told him that he had seen Arjun while he was busy targeting the ripe mangoes in the garden. He told Arjun that he saw a special talent in him. He said that Arjun would be trained in shooting with a gun.

Arjun’s face showed mixed emotions – one of complete displeasure and anger. But Lala was no pushover. He was a skilled negotiator. In the next fifteen minutes, he made Arjun believe that he should learn shooting with a gun to help the police force and make his nation proud. Arjun agreed, albeit reluctantly.

The first shootout

Arjun soon started getting trained and he actually started liking it. He was a unique talent and he did not even know it. Before he realized, Arjun was a well-trained sniper. A sniper is a marksman or qualified specialist who operates alone, in a pair, or with a sniper team to maintain close visual contact with the enemy and engage targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the detection capabilities of enemy personnel.

Arjun was by far the best sniper Lala had seen. He would set up his targets and then get Arjun to shoot them exactly at the intersection between their two eyebrows. Even Lala wondered how Arjun managed such levels of precision!

Arjun had shot about nine people in the last ten years. The deal with Lala was that Arjun would be allowed to study as much as possible. Every time Arjun shot a target, Lala would convince him that he had done a great job for the country. Many a times, Lala would tell him how he wished to announce to the world about the great work that Arjun was doing but he had to protect Arjun from the underworld.

Those Eyes- again!

The twenty one year old Arjun was having a relaxed weekend. He was standing at a beach. Looking at the sea gave him inner peace and a sense of calm. He loved staring at the waves for long hours.

While staring at the sea on one such occasion, his near meditation state was disrupted by a screeching voice of a girl. He turned left and saw the same disappointed eyes that had not let him sleep on that night a decade ago. He wondered what the reason for the disappointment was. There weren’t any mango trees around this time so it had to be something else.

The girl’s screech soon turned into desperate calls for help. A petty thief had run with her purse. Arjun took a pebble and threw it at the running thief. He ran behind him and got her purse. The thief managed to escape. He brought the purse back.

The girl thanked him. Her eyes now expressed the same emotion that it had a decade ago when he gave her those mangoes.

The eyes were still the same. The expression of disappointment was still the most beautiful one he had seen. He was feeling the same way he felt that night, a decade ago. But today, he understood what he was feeling. He wasn’t that young anymore.

They soon fell in love and decided to get married. Arjun decided to confide in Lala about his love. Lala gave him a patient hearing. What he said next was what shocked Lala. Arjun told Lala that he wanted to live a normal life, work and earn and start a family with his lady love.

Lala congratulated him and requested him to become a sniper one final time. Arjun agreed. Lala then hugged him and told him that he would personally get them married off. He said that he would meet the ‘lucky’ lady the next evening after Arjun finishes off his assignment. Lala told Arjun that he couldn’t wait to meet her.

Lala jokingly asked Arjun if he was sure he would hit the target bang on its head, now that he was in love. Arjun told that if he were in his senses and if he shot at the target, it would hit right between the eyebrows of the target.  Lala had successfully managed to scratch Arjun’s pride but Arjun was oblivious to Lala’s intentions yet.

The moment of Truth

The mode of operation had not changed in all these years. Arjun, the sniper, parked himself neatly on a concrete structure with his long range rifle. He was all set for the last shot to kill. He had promised himself that he would now lead a normal and happy life with the lady he loved.

Arjun had set his sight on the area where the target would reach in a few minutes as per Lala’s instructions. He could see two people walking towards it and he was all set. He was completely taken aback when he saw the first person to arrive there. It was Lala.

He slowly moved his eyes towards the person who came in to the area with Lala. To say that he was shocked would be an understatement. The target that he had to hit was none other than his lady love. If he hits the target, he would kill his dreams of a happy life forever. If he misses, it would be the biggest hit on his pride and self-esteem. He had never faced such a predicament. A quagmire of such proportions is very rare. Did Lala know his lady love? Was he playing a game? Was Lala a devil? How could his lady love be of any threat to the country? This was, for him, his moment of truth, with a million questions unanswered. With a tear in his eye, he soon placed his fingers on the trigger and ….

Part 2:

He focused on the target. He felt a metallic orifice just above his right ear. He turned to look. He saw a lean man with intense eyes focused on him. From the uniform on him, Arjun could make out that he was a police officer. The next six words that the cop said turned Arjun’s life upside down.  “Javed Khan, Crime Branch”, the man told him. “Shoot Lala”, the next two words.

 From the way he looked, Javed seemed to have a good amount of experience. Arjun was still wondering why he would ask him to shoot Lala.

Javed spoke. And this time, it was a bit more than just “six words”.

We always knew that there was an expert sniper helping Lala. We could never find out. Today, we did. Lala is one of the smartest criminals around. While the world knows him as a businessman, he has many illegal businesses including smuggling and drugs. He believes in survival of the fittest in this business and has used you to cleanly eliminate threats to his business.

‘How can I believe you?’ Arjun asked the police officer.

I can shoot you now. I don’t need to talk to you. If a person is in a position to kill you in a second but still is talking about something that is a definite possibility, it would more often than not be the truth.

I don’t want you to believe me. You have two options here – shoot Lala or get shot. You choose.

Arjun was not a rookie having spent years with Lala. He had learnt some negotiation skills and was good at the art of cutting a deal.

‘If I shoot Lala, how do I know that you won’t shoot me,’ asked Arjun.

Javed was calm. He answered that he was a man of his words and he intended to save him. He said he knew about Arjun’s past and how Lala roped him in. He said there is no one here. My team is very close to where your girl and Lala are currently.

‘How do you know she is my girl’, asked a stunned Arjun.

If you don’t shoot within the next thirty seconds, Lala would think there is something wrong and move out. So, shoot now!

Arjun had never felt such an emotion. He did not know how to describe it. He aimed at the target and shot!

Lala collapsed. But the bullet never hit between his head. It hit his heart. Arjun conveyed his feelings without saying a word. Javed got what he wanted. Lala was gone.

The girl who he so dearly loved was shocked to see Lala collapse. In a second though, a few policemen arrived and escorted the girl out.

Parikshit was intrigued. He was living this story. He loved to be the central character and imagine the story as if it were his own. He had many questions. The grandfather knew his questions and he had all the answers.

The first question was about how Arjun’s lady love got there with Lala. It seems Lala had called her saying he was Arjun’s guardian and wanted to meet her in person as he was very happy for her and Arjun.

‘But why her?’ pondered Parikshit today. Arjun had the same question.

Javed told Arjun that Lala did not like him to have a relationship. ‘I am assuming, you might have told him that you want to get married to her. Lala wanted to eliminate her. He was confident that you would hit the target come what may! He knew that your self-esteem and pride are things you would never compromise with. He knew you would shoot your girl and eliminate his problem for him with your hands – the way you have been doing all these years.’

A teary eyed Arjun asked Javed, ‘Sir, I was always led to believe I was doing a great job for the country by Lala who always told me he was a cop.’ Over the years, Javed had mastered the art of looking into a person’s eyes and gauging if he was saying the truth or lying. With Arjun, he believed every word.

‘What happened to Arjun, was he not punished?’, asked Parikshit.

Javed was not only an honest man, he was also very intelligent. He knew that Arjun’s talent was rare and could be used for better things. Putting the youngster away behind bars for the sins he unintentionally committed was not going to do any good. He asked Arjun to go home and see him, without fail, the next day.

The Encounter Specialist

Arjun woke up to a newspaper article on Lala’s death. However, it was reported that the police found that someone had shot Lala. However, no weapons were found on the site and the killer was yet to be identified.

The next day, Javed met Arjun. He had come with a plan. He wanted Arjun to study, clear some basic exams and get recruited into the police force. For Javed, with his influence, this was not a difficult task to manage.

Arjun’s lady love had no clue of these events and Javed had clearly instructed Arjun to tell her that he would not be in this city for three years. Arjun reluctantly agreed.

Arjun met her on the day after he heard Javed’s plan. He wondered how he would explain the Lala story to her. She met him and started talking as if everything was normal. She did not bring up the Lala story during her discussion. Arjun was surprised. However, he was happy that he did not have to cook up a story.

Before his 25^th birthday, Arjun got to wear the cop’s uniform. Javed managed to pull a few strings to get Arjun to work under him. It had been three long years since that fateful day. Javed and Arjun seemed to have buried it within themselves. Javed seemed to be a man who would carry the incident with him to his grave.

In those three years, the Lala empire came crumbling down. All his men ran away for the city to save their lives.

Arjun got married to his lady love and started living the life he so desired. Over the years he had become Javed’s go to man. For Arjun, he could shoot at will irrespective of where the target was and whether the target was in rest or in motion. This rare quality got him to eliminate a lot of the dreaded gangsters over the years. He had become an encounter specialist – a quite popular one at that.

Javed ensured that he got the credit he deserved. He also encouraged Arjun to study further as he could see the insatiable appetite for knowledge.

The rise and rise of Arjun

He did not have a head start in life nor did he have great teenage years. His life till 22 years of age was rather forgettable. However, his talent in shooting and his quest for knowledge could help him rise. He only needed support and encouragement. There was no one better than Javed to provide the support.

He looked upto Javed. He had come to know that Javed was about twenty years older than him. Javed wanted him to appear for civil service exams and join the Indian Police Service (IPS), one of the three all India services of the government of India. He did appear for the exam and he cleared them as well. Before his thirtieth birthday, Arjun became an IPS officer.

In the next eight years, he garnered immense accolades. He was one of the most known and decorated police officers. He was different and led teams from the front. Even after becoming an IPS, he had shot a few dreaded criminal. He could still hit the target at will.

Javed was a proud man. On the day of his retirement, the police force had thrown a great party. Arjun was his biggest contribution to the police force. In spite of his busy schedule, Arjun made it a point to attend the event and gave a brilliant speech in honour of Javed. He expressed his gratitude. He told India would need many more people like Javed to ensure that people can unlock their true potential.

Arjun went on to spend three decades in the police force and set an example for the generations to follow with his exemplary service.

He retired a happy family man.

Back to Parikshit

Parikshit loved the story. He was convinced that it is a real life story. He wondered who Arjun was and asked his grandfather about it. He also made an intelligent guess. I am sure Arjun is a friend who worked with you in the police force.

Grandfather was silent. He gave a wry smile. He paused, like a master storyteller. The silence was killing Parikshit.

I will show you a few pictures of Arjun. Come with me. Parikshit wanted to run but he respected his grandfather’s age. He was more than seventy five years old and could not run like a youngster.

Grandfather walked towards a room in his huge house and took a key out of his pocket. With trembling hands, he opened a door. The room was beautiful. There were a lot of paintings, photographs and a cabinet full of trophies and medals.

Parikshit minutely observed each and every painting, photograph and also inspected the cabinet. After five minutes, a flabbergasted Parikshit spoke.

But this is you, Dadaji (grandfather). The grandfather smiled. They looked at each other. They could connect without uttering a word. And they did. Parikshit cried like a small child. He hugged his grandfather. They embraced till what seemed like eternity.

When logic started overpowering emotions, Parikshit asked his grandfather. ‘Dadaji, your name is Vijay Singh. How can you be Arjun?”

Vijay was what I was rechristened after the day I shot Lala. Javed said I should go by this name. He believed I had the power to conquer fears and come out victorious and the name ‘Vijay’ symbolized that.

Intelligent deductions

Parikshit was a very intelligent boy. He could connect things in his head and find patterns. He believed everything from nature to human beings exhibited patterns which revealed their true self.

‘Who named me Parikshit?’ asked Arjun to his grandfather.

‘I did,’ pat came the reply.

In the story of Mahabharata that you told me during my last birthday, who was Parikshit’s grandfather?

‘Arjun’, came the reply with a smile. Vijay’s face beamed with pride. His grandson was very intelligent.

So, who all from the family know about this story?

‘No one knows about it. Neither your grandmother, nor your parents.’ said the grandfather. I just told your grandmother that my real name is Vijay and I used to be called Arjun. I requested her to call me Vijay after I joined the force and she has referred to me by this name ever since.

‘Why did you choose to tell me’, asked Parikshit.

‘I knew of no one, other than Javed, who would carry this story to their grave. I immensely love my son and he immensely respects me. I am very happy with him. However, I never connected with him to the extent I did with you. I was never confident that he would be able to keep the secret. However, I have closely observed you from the time you were born and I am sure, you are the man who can carry the secret to his grave.’

‘Today, you are an adult. You are eighteen. The government thinks you can vote. People think you can drive. I think you have become a man who can stay true to his words, a man who can keep a secret.’

‘Can I pass on this story if I find another like me when I am as old as you?’, asked Parikshit.

Vijay laughed. He said you have inherited this story from me already. Now, I leave it to you and your rationale to decide what to do with it. I told you what I expect. I will be gone in a few years. I wanted to leave this treasure with someone I could trust the most. And that is you.’

A beaming Parikshit said, ‘Got it, Dadaji. This is the best birthday gift anyone can receive. I will cherish this all my life.’

Parikshit moved two steps behind. He stood in attention. He then lifted his hand to his head and saluted, like a police officer. Arjun (Vijay) was used to this gesture from his sub-ordinate officers. However, the gesture never touched the softest part of his heart ever.

Parikshit knew how to shoot and hit the target – just like Arjun.