INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN.. 341 by dr K Prabhakar Rao

                                                             INTO THE PAST WITH PAIN..341

                                                                 Dr K Prabhakar Rao

   Gandhi, Patel and Nehru are  seen  walking  at  Dilsukh nagar main  road. They are in usual dress . the sky is cloudy and heavy too. Passers watch them curiously.Two guys Venkat and Laxan go to them

Venkat. Hello guys. How are you?

Gandhi. We are fine. How are you boy.

Venkat. I am fine . I am  no boy. I  am 25 years 

Gandhi. That is fine. For me you are a just a boy

Patel. Ok bhai. What e can do for you>

Laxman. Nothing.  We came to you because we thought you are  going for some shooting

Gandhi. Are we looking like that

Laxman. Yes. You are dressed as our past national leaders.

Nehru.  We have not dressed like them. We are they

Venkat. What is that

Nehru. We are  infact  they  as you think,   we are not dressed as them as you think. We are they and they are we.

Laxman. Eee..eee... what is this talk. I could not make out anything.

Venkat. I too.

Gandhi. Look  sons. Kindly leave us to us. We have to go some where. Plesae do not bother

Laxman. But you said you were they. But they died long long ago.

Nehru. Yes we died long long ago. But we are back

Laxman. How it is possible? How can dead people return

Gandhi. Have you herad about ghosts and souls

Laxman. Yes. We heard. I am scared of Ghosts

Venkat. I too.

Gandhi. We are in fact ghosts of them.

Venkat. Eeee...eeee Let us run

(Venkat and laxman run from the place. Suddenly the atmosphere becomes heavy and downpour starts like cats and dogs.  Within moments  entire roads are flooded. Rainwater carries away the parked scooters and people start running here and there.)

Gandh. What a changes so suddenly !  How can we walk on the road?

Patel. Bapu. Where  is the road now. It is flood gutter.

Nehru. This is not new.  Every year situation is same. The  govt wakes up later after calamity strikes and  orders to study why such flood takes place. Last year, they identified illegal constructions,  and occupation  of reservoir lands.

Patel. How govt is allowing construction of complexes and houses in prohibited lands ? Strange indeed!

Gandhi. Basically it is the fault of GHMC  which is responsible for sanctioning lay out and construction of houses. Everything is allowed for a consideration. Building contractors and officials are  hand in glove for these sordid acts.

Patel; Very bad bapu. It appears there is no governing by law.

Gandhi. I will say that the construction field has slipped into hands of mafia gangs.

( The trio slowly wades through waist deep waters on the  road slowly. Suddenly Gandhi  is trapped into a drain hole  that was open in centre of the road into which water was gushing.)

Gandhi. Oh  Bachao.. save me I am done. Pull me out

Patel. Bapu . hold my hand fast and tight

( Gandhi fails to hold hand and he is sucked into the drain hole. )

Patel. Bapu Bapu, Where are you? 

( By slanders scream that  the old man fell into the man hole and vanished. A Police man  standing at a pillar on a stone watches everything and  he is seen speaking over a cell phone . Patel goes to the police man )

Patel. Bhai . You have seen the old man falling in the man hole and vanishing,

Constable. Yes I saw

Patel .You could not do anything

Constable. What I can do? There is so much of water. Before I reacted he was gone. Any how I informed the head quarters immediately. They have already sent a search team to Amberpet area  where  the drain water reaches from drains pipes.

Pate. I see. We have to pray.

Constable. Why you guys are walking in water?

Patel. Who knows man holes is open?

Constable. That is the speciality of Hyderabad. Some are kept open by municipal staff  and some are removed  by people.

Patel. That means there is no control

Constable. How can we  take care of  whole city.? Everything is chaotic.on road. You take traffic, vehicle speeds, driving regulations,  road conditions  .. All is chaos.

Patel. I think ministers have no responsibility.

Constable. They are all busy in their jobs. People are living by their luck.OK Bhai.  Go home slowly. Forget about the guy  who vanished. Unless water subsides nothing can be done. If rain stops visit  Saroornagar PS and take a copy of FIR.

Patel. What we  do with that?

Constable. That is law of the land.

(Patel and Nehru slowly goes to the  shop side and claim stairs of a shop. There is  a tea stall on the stairs. There are  few persons who watched Gandhi falling in man hole. They are  narsimha, Javed  and Ravi)

Ravi. We saw the old man vanishing, What are you going to do?

Patel. Let us see.  Let rain stop.

 Narsimha. It is very unlikely that the old man  would  be alive

Patel. What can I say. ?I am sure he will get back alive

Javed. How bhai? Can any one live in such state?

Pate. The old man  knows yoga very well. He can stop breathing for few hours and stay alive.

Javed. I think you are joking.

Nehru. No. He said correct

( The tea vendor offers tea to patel and Nehru free)

Patel .Thanks brother

Nehru. Thanks brother for hot tea.

Ravi. Please do not bother. That is the minimum we could do. Thank god . the rain has subsided now.

Patel. Ok brother. The rain has subsided. We will go and search for the old man immediately

( Patel and Nehru walk away and vanish. They land up at Amberpet  Musi river. The river is overflowing the banks and a crowd is collected at a point. Patel and Nehru go to the crowd. They push through and find some police men.

Patel. Bhai. Constable sahib. Any news about an old man who was sucked into a man hole at Dilsukhnagar today in the afternoon

Constable. I am Rambharose, We are searching and waiting,

Nehru. Any swimmers have come

Rambharose. What they will do? They can not get into the pipes.

Patel. Wait and see

(Suddenly a  a mans body is  seen floating in the water and is being carried away by the current. A swimmer from the GHMC jumps into water  and drags it to the bank. It is fully covered by debris, Trash and mud. People carry the body to a  proper place and the police man  pours buckets of water on the face and mud is washed off. It is Gandhi )

Patel. Oh This is bapu our bapu.

Rambharose. I do not think he is alive. There is no  chest movement. He is  drowned.

Patel. We have to wait and see

( In the mean time a doctor arrives and examines the  body. He shakes his head)

Doctor. I am sorry. He has left us, A victim of GHMC negligence

Patel. Keep watching him.

Doctor. Do you have hopes, Relax. It is too late

( Suddenly Gandhi yawns and  sits up to the shock of all.Doctor is shocked )

Gandhi.. where  I am? Which is this place? Where are my friends? Which river is this?

Patel. We are here. I knew that you will  go into yoga the moment  you fell in the man hole

Police man. Really this is great. Strange. The person has survived after drowning in the  water for 6 long hours

Gandhi.This is nothing. I have some divine powers too.

(  Some one brings a cup of hot tea to Gandhi, Nehru, Patel and the police man and doctor . They sip hot tea)

Gandhi. It is very refreshing to have tea

Police man. Yes.

Doctor True.

Gandhi. Can I go now.

Police man. I think you can go.

( He takes a snap of Gandhi)

Police man. We shall publish in news paper tomorrow, I shall also inform HQ and PS

Gandhi. You may do that. Please leave us.A

Police man. OK. You can go. Please give your address

Patel. We have no address

Police man. Why? Where do you stay?

Patel. We stay wherever we want. We keep roaming. If you want  permanent address we stay in Vaikuntam colony

Police man. OK Thanks

(The Trio  sing Ramdhun and waks off to a distance and vanishes .)

                                             CURTAIN FALLS