It was quite a tiresome journey to that coastal village near border. The company has asked me to personally visit the client and close the deal. The team down there was trying to get him in. But because of one or other reason it has been lingering for a long time. Finally we decided I will go for the kill. The guy is worth a fortune. It can be the best region for the company, businesswise, if we can wrap him in.
He greeted me with a warm smile. It was 3 hour long discussions after that. Finally we signed the Memorandum of Understanding. It was a bigger deal than what we had been planning for. I congratulated myself. After all, in my eyes, am the best. He invited me for a drink after formalities. He said” Sir it is customary here that we will have a drink together whenever we get into a new relation.” Ok let me not break the custom, Customer’s wish is a command.
“Sir everyone has seen me as a rich and successful businessman. But nobody knows the hard path I came through”. He said filling the glass for the fourth time. I was carefully listening to him with my drink in my hand for a long time. Its good to be a good listener. It pays.
“At the age of 15 Ieft home. My dad used to drink heavily and beat my mother and me severely. One day I decided enough. Now I won’t take this. Wandered a lot and finally reached this place. Here I got a job as assisstant to the driver of a truck. I had to wash the truck, get food and liquor for the driver, and do whatever job the driver asks me to do. In return on free time he will teach me driving.”
His servant boy came with a bowl full of dry fruits. He gave a half smile to me and left.
“By one year I became an expert driver.” Oh! God! He’s not finished yet with his story. I adjusted my sitting posture and made a feel in my face that am keenly listening to what he was saying. The sun has sunk in the horizon giving a great look. Smooth warm sea breeze added a majestic feel to the evening.
“Great sir. Still you drive vehicles?”
“Not that much. After a By-pass surgery I stopped driving.” He said and summoned his boy to get some more ice cubes.” Then I started smuggling spirit across the border. One day I was coming in a car, crossing the border. There were several cans of pure spirit in that car. I was fully tight with one full bottle of local rum. You know without spirit inside you, you cannot do these things. Suddenly I saw couple of Police vehicles behind me. They after me.” Now I was listening carefully.
“It was cat and mouse game for a long time. Finally when they reached too close I slammed the vehicle against a compound wall and started running. Running for my life, because I knew if they catch me it will by my end . At last I ran into a small house. Only one elderly lady was there. I fell on her feet requesting her don’t show me to the police. ” He stopped narration and sat looking into the distant sea for some time. His face became more tensed may be by the emotional hic up that the memories of old frightening days brought.
I sat there just looking at him carefully , watching different emotions passing by his face.
“ The police came to that house also , but the lady didn’t cheat me. In this game without an informer Police will never come to know about the smuggling vehicles. The informer invariantly will be an insider. For money or for revenge they turn against you. Sitting in the old lady’s attic I took 2 oaths.1) I’ll stop this business and go to some other state. 2) I’ll kill whoever has cheated me. Following days I fulfilled both the oaths.”
“You mean you killed the traitor?” I couldn’t stop asking.
He just nodded.” Then I went to other state. I did so many jobs. Finally ended up as a porn actor. There I made so much money. But that money didn’t stay with me. I tell you one thing, what ever money you make in that field at the end that money won’t be with you. I got jailed for the illegal porn business. There the biggest torture was they won’t give you food. You will go mad without food. If you can bribe an officer heavily he will arrange some food. But that was not at all suffient any time. Then I decided to take all my earnings and come back home . Here I started my current business and now as they say rest is history.”
Hmm..quite an interesting story. I was thinking of its potential to make into a bollywood movie.
“ You know something. They say behind every successful man there will be a woman. But I believe behind every successful businessman there will be a crime or many crimes."
I nodded in agreement and just swallowed those words with the remaining drink thinking why he was telling me all these things, may be he is feeling guilty of his past life and he wants to confess to someone to ease his mind. Eveyone's closet will have dirty linen like this. It is how fast you excrete those from your mind and move ahead determines the success of your life. Excretions, mental or physical has to be done regularly or it will make you sick. Now time to move ahead to new location for a new story. Let me say goodbye to this chap and start my journey.
