Childhood Friends

I was 4 years old. My dad is with a State Bank. We used to live in a house in Kacheguda, Hyderabad. This house is a very big area, which was shared among some ten to twelve families. We used to have a partition between each six set of houses. There was this huge banyan tree, some fruit tree and many other plants in our house. It used to be very shady and very beautiful. I used to study in a school called Raina's School. I guess that school is closed now. There is this neighbor of mine, whose name was Mini Gerewal (Last name Changed!). She was my classmate also. We used to go to school together and come back together. Not that the school was very far off. It was just behind our houses. I can hear the lunch bell from our dining room when I had to hurry.

Mini and I used to play together. All other kids in that block were of different ages, all of them are much elder to us. We could not get along with their speed of games or with their general awareness in many things. Not that they had a very good political opinion/awareness etc., just that we both did not know who is the land lord of all these twelve houses and what is the relationship between those landlords. Later I came to know that all those houses belonged to two brothers - bade bhaiah and chote bhaiah. I never knew their actual names. Just becuase they are brothers, they are called like that. And my girl friend, Mini was daughter of Chote Bhaiah.

Once, I had a fight with Mini for some truck-toy. I told her that my dad promised me to gift me a real gun when I grow up and that I will shoot her if she did not let me play with that toy. Immediately she gave me that truck-toy.

My dad and mom both used to tease me that she is my wife. They used to say that my wife has come to see me, play with me etc. I always used to feel happy from inside but I used to show off the irritation on outside. Frankly speaking, I did not even know what marriage meant but still I used to feel happy. After some time, they stopped saying because I used to show them my irritation.

My dad took so many photographs of mine with her. I still have those with me. I only remember one another friend from that school now, his name was sunny - the only curly hair boy of my class. I do not know his full name. I never knew that I had to know the last name also. Once, I ate off his lunch. I stole his lunch box, even before the luch time, I was hungry, I sat in the last bench and I ate his food. He complained to my granny when he saw her getting me the lunch box that day. My granny used to get a lunch box to me once in a while. She did not want me to walk home during lunch as it is not safe to walk on that road due to traffic. Also, probably, she did not want me to complain that I have a leg pain in the nights. She told Sunny that he can have the lunch that she brought it for me. I always wanted to share the lunch that she used to bring with Mini, but she never used to like it. And today, she was only offering it to Sunny. He agreed and that issue was sort out that day.

Mini had a brother by name Tillu. He was also called Teenu. I am not sure of his real name, again! I used to like him. He was a very pretty and cute little guy. Very innocent and I used to like him a lot. He used to tell me whenever Mini hurts him. Then I used to tell him that I will give him a chocolate, which I never gave him but trick used to work all the time.

Rajesh, the senior most of all the guys in my locality, was in seventh standard. He was so famous in our group. He was famous because he can fly a kite without any one's help. We all used to admire him for his tremendous ability of flying the kites independently - without his father's help. One more quality of Rajesh due which he was famous was his ability to ride his bicycle. None of us knew and he could just whiff away on his bicycle. I am not sure, but I guess he was a little arrogant. He never used to say hi to any of the smaller kids. He used to talk only to Pappu and Sunny. This sunny is different from the one at school. They liked to play with my tricycle but my granny used to shoo (!) them away. She did not want them to use it because they were big and that the tricycle might get spoilt. She used to yell at them, "You guys have grown up like donkeys, still you want to use a tricycle?". Now, I wish I had a picture of that tricycle too.

We moved to our own house in Asmangadh in Malakpet. Things have changed. Many of my friends grew up. After I grew up to my sixth standard, my dad wanted to gift a chocolate box to both Teenu and Mini. They looked very different. They grew up, as I did. Everything felt new. Is this the same girl I was so very close with? Is this the same guy that I found him so cute when he was a small kid. Dad gave them chocolates. Dad asked if we can take Mini to our house in Asmangadh once. They agreed and we took her on our scooter. I spoke to her all the way. When she came home, she was very happy to see this environment. We had this garden kind of think next to our house. It was maintained by government. Actually, that area was ruled by a French king. There was a huge palace near my place. And this 'garden' was actually the place where this French Kind, Raymonds, his horse and his dog were burried. It is said that the king loved his dog and horse a lot so they were also burried near him. She liked that place a lot and told, "yeh jagah to kashmeer jaisa aur jannath jaisa hain" (This place is like Kashmir and heaven). I was happy that she liked that place. I sent her off. Dad went to drop her. That was the last time I saw her. After that, it was only the news I heard about those friends. Dad used to tell me that Rajesh got a seat in Engineering college. I heard many, many other news. I heard that they are looking for a guy to get Mini married. And one fine day, I heard that she is getting married. But never felt bad, as the movies will show. I felt very happy for her. Infact I wanted to attend her wedding. But I guess was busy. But I felt very happy for her.