The Star and I

I was particularly tired that day as I sat in Madurai airport – back to back meetings and last minute rush to only find out that the flight is delayed. Madurai airport in those days (2003) was like a large kalyana mandapam. The small waiting hall was filled with dhoti clad gentlemen and Kancheevaramed ladies.

Settling down for the inevitable long wait and dreading the soggy samosas that the airlines ration out whenever their flights are delayed, I saw a bit of commotion near the security entrance. Suddenly there was a buzz all around and the Star walked in looking dapper as usual.  There was a posse of men surrounding him and the security guided him into the waiting hall.

My instant reaction was to go up to him and say hello. But then there were so many people mobbing him that I decided to wait. Sensing a small lull and seizing that moment, I just walked up to him called him by his name and stretched out my hand with a big smile and introduced myself. “Prince…” he drawled for a brief second, then he recognized me and said “Hi, how are you ..” but soon he was surrounded by autograph hunters and overzealous security personnel. I moved out quietly as there is no space to stand there anymore.

Came back to my seat and my mind raced back to the years in college when we were just good buddies roaming around and having fun. I wondered if I had noticed any ‘super star’ qualities back then. Of course, he could sing well –trained Carnatic singer and also had acted in some ad films (I was told, I had not seen) though he came from a filmy background, his uncle and cousins were involved in films. He commuted by cycle to college from just round the corner like any other college kid. While I went on to complete my degree without any hitches, he was laid low by a major accident 

The boarding announcement woke me up from my reverie. Like a giant vacuum cleaner, the plane sucked us all in. For the next 55 minutes, we will be cocooned in its metal belly and thanking the Wright brothers for not getting it wrong. I took my seat in the first aisle as it is an ATR aircraft and therefore closer to the exit. I glanced around to see where my Hero is sitting, predictably he was seated in the second last row with all the other rows around him completely empty. He did not notice me.

After the mandatory waving of hands and assorted gestures by the stewardesses to denote the exits and how to sashay around in mid-water with a life jacket, the plane took off. I dozed off. I was again woken up by the stewardess, “sir, the gentleman in seat no 14d is calling you” I turned to see him from seat no 14d and waving to me to join him.

I quickly went and sat next to him.  With the plane now quiet with most of the passengers fast asleep, I could hear my palpitating heart loud and clear. First words he spoke is, “I am hungry da…what about you”. I mumbled something and without really waiting for my response he called for another serving of food. When I said, no I don’t want anything more, he smiled and said it is for himself. I could see he is really hungry as he demolished the rice and curry in micro-seconds. Taking a swig from the cute 200ml water bottle that airlines used to give out freely in those days, he settled down for what turned out to be a most memorable chat

  

We started off from where we had left 20 years ago. Recollecting our batch mates by their names and their idiosyncrasies, we had a whirlwind flashback.  I asked him about the accident during college and how he is coping with it. He said, it is very painful to fight and dance with his injured leg, however, he had to carry on … I winced in pain as my last recollection of seeing him was in the hospital bed, with his mother fervently praying outside the ward and asking us who had gathered outside his room not to disturb him.. 

Changing the topic quickly, he turned to me and asked me “Have you watched ……movie” I knew this question would come from him and was prepared to lie. But when he asked me directly, I blurted out – “no da”. He showed surprise, but knowing my penchant for silly movies rather than serious movies, dismissed it as no big deal and he added that he is presently shooting for a silly, action movie which I would love. I made a mental note to see both the silly action movie and the more serious award winning work of him. He signed his autograph on the back of my business card and wrote a special message for my kids – who were still in school that time.

The flight landed, we walked out together and I could see several pairs of eyes following me enviously. As he walked out of the door he called out his number… “it is from Hutch ..all 9. Call me anytime” he waved to me and got into his waiting car.  I waved at him and walked towards the luggage carousel. As I waited there, I just smiled as the enormity of the celebrity encounter that I had just experienced sunk in.  I smiled because during the 55 odd minutes, the thought that he is a celebrity never crossed any of our minds.  

The next month, I watched the serious movie that had made him a name to reckon with– and cried so loud that my wife thought I had a nervous breakdown. I was crying not because his acting was so good and the emotions gut wrenching, but because, I knew him long before any of you even heard about him and I could see what no other fan could ever see in him. I mean, I really saw everything – the pain, the passion and the way he made it look all amazingly simple. Today, he is really a super star, but for me he will always be my friend with whom I shared dinner on a lonely plane from Madurai. 

I still have in my wallet, the business card where he had written “ O Podu”