Autograph

First things first. My dissertation is in its final stages. Stress levels are at an all-time high, mine and everyone else's around me. Five minutes do not go by without someone shouting at someone else. A few weeks earlier all of us were dreaming about the day uni would end. Today, we dont, not because we dont want to, but for the lack of time. I have been dreaming of numbers for many days now, statistics from my dissertation. We are too busy during the day and too tired at night to do anything even remotely creative. That said, I blog today to get some normalcy back to my sleeping senses.

There is exactly one month left before I finish uni. We will all go different parts of the state, my classmates and I, my friends from the hostel, people who have been part of my life for two years now. I shall not see most of them ever again. That brings me to a movie that is making waves these days, a movie I watched the last time I was in Madikeri.

Cherian, a Tamil director, brought out this movie called Autograph. It was adopted into Kannada by Sudeep who called it My Autograph. Both movies have become immensely popular. I watched the Tamil one, I hear the Kannada version is good too.
It is the story of this one guy who revisits his village to invite his old friends and teachers to his wedding. He begins to think of old stories and his loves. This movie makes you think of your own past, the good part mostly. You begin to remember all that had, till now, been pushed away into a corner of the mind, almost forgotten. The tree that you first climbed, the long walks, the shops, the people, the antics, your friends, people who were friends once, school....the whole deal. Great movie, I would say, though I did have a few objections about him concentrating a lot on his love life.

Anyway, the movie was special because I watched it on the threshold of a different life, one that is just a month or two away. All that we are doing today in class and hostel will become memories in a few days. We will now be expected to behave differently, we will be expected to 'act' out more roles than we do today. And as I write this, a large lump builds up deep down my throat, one that has been building up for a few weeks now....

Despite the stress, my friends and I in the hostel desperately try to stretch time, to try and put in an extra day, an extra hour, even an extra minute before The Moment arrives. The moment when it will all end. It is futile, we know. It must end, we know that too. But all of cling on, in the hope of creating just one more special memory that we shall carry on with us.

I have changes schools and colleges a few times. Each time, I knew I would not see most of my classmates again. But its different this time. I end not only my association with a few people, but I also end my life as a student. I am being flooded with books to write autographs. Each time I open a page and put in a few words, I know this is the last time I shall be telling these people something.

The movie Autograph made me think of my old friends too. I ended up calling many of them. With some I revisited my school days, some had moved beyond such memories. The point here, I have had fun at uni. More fun than I thought I would have. I have made many friends, each different, crazy and lovable in their own ways. Best of all, I have created something very beautiful for myself. I have created special memories.