Where you are called Local !!!

 

Who wouldn’t want to leave home?  At least at the age of 10 when your younger brother took a toy that you loved most, you decide to leave home. Or at the age of seventeen, you feel your parents are not agreeing to what you say, you feel like moving out so that you can live the way you want. In my case both these things happened but the reasons are different.

I was the elder son to my parents and as you know, in Indian culture the role of Elder son is very similar to the DC and marvel characters in Hollywood movies. So at the age of 10, when I received the admission offer for class 6 at Navodaya Vidyalaya, they were convinced of my intellectual powers and this was the time to say Adieu. I also accepted the offer as I felt away from home means more freedom. No early wakeup alarms or no pressure of studies. It is like jao simran, jee le apni zindagi offer. However, I was not aware of the Gurukul system until I reached the campus. It was like a timetable not only for the classes, but also for the entire day activities. Within 2 years, I said adieu to the system and came back home.

The next set of adventure of leaving home started 5 years later. This time it was in the form of engineering college hostel. In the earlier tenure, I did not have access to money and freedom, wherein the second one had those. First 3 years of Engineering, I was outside the classes than inside. Movies, Computer Games, Travel and if nothing, sleep full day in the room. Whenever I felt, all were present in the class, I silently walked out of class believing a perfect system is purely theoretical and it does not exist. Back to my DC/ marvel heroes, great power comes with great responsibilities. The 4 yrs of freedom had the responsibility of securing a decent job to survive, which made to the third adventure of leaving home, starting  in Mumbai- the city that never stops

The day I reached Thane Railways station, in Netravathy Express on a Diwali eve, my backpack was filled with polymer textbooks and expectations. I could have at least got rid of the former, if I did justice to my Engineering days. The change from village boy to a metro adult was quite difficult. As in the stories of DC/Marvel heroes here, the villain, who is my existential crisis- knew that I am the hero and I need to fight back. The initial days of Mumbai life was tough. Working 12 hrs per day for almost 7 days a week made me think whether I am staying in my 300 sqft one BHK with fellow colleagues or in the big shop floor filled with man, machines and rubber products. At one point, despite all these odds, I started to look at the brighter side. I enjoyed local train travels, had hangout with friends at Marine drive, ate tons of vada pav and pav bhaji, took trekking trips to outskirts of the city and so on. As the days passed by, the city started growing in me and I realized, you can take yourself out of Mumbai, but never Mumbai out of you.

6 years later, I moved to Bangalore. This time, it was not leaving home, but to build my own home. All these travels taught me something. It does not matter where you are born, where you are travelled or where you are currently in, it is all about where you are called local.

Also when you leave home, its all about leaving your comfort zone and exploring for new things.

However, with all the learning that I gained from my previous journeys, for sure, with the right companion I have today, I can leave home for another adventure any time.