Chapter 5

With this, I got back out of the memories. It had started raining. Also, the car was blocked due to very heavy traffic. There were fan club demonstrations everywhere. Fans thronging to temples. Shashi, I didn't know if he had god by his side or not, but definitely his fans were always by his side. Special prayers were arranged in the temples. Many from the film fraternity were participating in them too. The directors association had arranged for a meeting to be held tomorrow. I had already been messaged, asking to preside over the function. I didn't know whether to feel happy about the amount of love the people and the industry showered on Shashi, or to feel sad about the present state of affairs.

The car slowly trudged towards the Apollo hospital. I got out amidst all the commotion, and made my way towards the ICU. There I met Rama, Shashi's wife, his daughters Shwetha and Ragini, and Shwetha's husband, popular youth icon and actor Ganesh. Ganesh took me into the ICU, and beyond the entrance, I went on, moving towards the bed. The protege of mine lay motionless. The very guy, one who would talk, and walk with a penchant for speed, someone whose speed had formed an identity for itself, and someone who was constantly associated with the idea of motion, was lying there, motionless. I saw him, my old body couldn't take more. I could feel the wetness in my eyes, and I did not want the family of Shashi see this old man, break down helplessly. I went upto Shashi, and caressed his forehead, as I had done nearly twenty five years ago, during the event of his mental imbalance. As thoughts clouded my mind, and tears clouded my eyes, unable to stay there any longer, I made my way to the car, on the way telling Ganesh, that all will soon be well. I said it, but I didn't know how much I believed in it. Until, I got into my car. As I got into my car, a procession of saint Raghavendra's idol was going on just outside the hospital. I gained extreme confidence, as I felt, saint Raghavendra had come to bail us out, exactly as he had done twenty five years ago!