I wanna break free

These days there is a new ad on air of an insurance firm which depicts a young boy being seen off by his parents while departing on a train journey. The parents are very protective of their son and give him all advices and comfort inside the rail compartment and caution him excessively to take care. Seated across on the other berth is a young pretty girl with a book in hand, who is blushing at the parents of a grown-up boy being so protective for him and the boy is visibly embarrassed to be treated like a kid in front of a hot chick. The ad begins with parents pamepring their kid inside the rail compartment and ends with them throwing bananas on the boy’s lap from the platform outside; all through the ad the boy is speechless and embarrassed while the girl, about same age as the boy, is enjoying the show of a pampered kid.

I never see this ad fully and either look away or flip the channel. That scene is too close to my own life, having been treated like a kid inspite of maturing in age and never allowed to see the world from my own eyes. Like the boy in the ad, I too have been embarrassed many times in front of peers and like the boy denied freedom which I see many teenagers commonly enjoy these days.

All my life I have been restricted and markedly sheltered; if you don’t believe me, then judge yourself: never been to school or college in public transport; not allowed to drive till I revolted a couple of years back; never rode a bicycle; still have driver dropping me off to office; not allowed to go out alone even now; during hostel life had a valet along; no friends coming over during teenage; never played a sport for I may get hurt!

I guess it is not very difficult to imagine why I have become a sort of recluse now and till a year back, remained confined, listless and sometimes lifeless. Perhaps it is for these reasons I have been long harboring ambitions to get away to a place far away; different people, different city and maybe a different country. In a way I am fortunate for it is now unambiguously clear that I will have to build my castle on a distant shore rather than continue to pity myself at my dilapidated condition amidst restricted environs here. I know my time will come when I will be far and away but the million dollar question remains: when?

Bachpan to gaya, jawani bhi gayi

Ek pal to humein, ab jeene do jeene do