Sahapadi 1975 (സഹപാഠി 1975)

What?

Father you sit here and meditate like Valmiki

while a big war is taking place inside

Oh! What is today’s issue?

I will tell

Brother has to go to Kozhikode for college today right?

While I and my brother were packing things

mother found out something

Out of the items he packed to take along with him

mother found out a guitar that was packed carefully and kept

It is better not to say what happened after that

It was like thunderstorm, rain and then everything got worse

Strong stunt

Mother said she won’t allow him to take the guitar to Kozhikode

brother argued that he will take it at any cost

Father you will have to go and solve the issue now itself

else your dear friend Rajan’s guitar

will burn inside the stove and will turn into a fry

It is for sure

You come

Why do you need a guitar when you are going to study for engineering?

This guitar belongs to the person who had died from there right?

Are you going there to study or waste your time playing this guitar?

You answer me

No mother, only when I get bored after studying. Just for a change

You don’t have to opt for a change that would ruin your life

If you want to be an artist then it won’t work over here

It is my wish that you have to be an engineer

and live with dignity and not grow your beard and hair

and waste time on music and then ruin your life

Then why did you teach me this mother?

So that you will get prize in youth festivals

you have got the prize right?

And also to get grace marks for securing an engineering seat that’s all

What?

What?

Father, mother is the one who is getting angry

because I am taking this guitar to college

That. Father is the one who has pampered and spoiled this son so much

I have been saying it for a long time to put the guitar outside

I have been seeing this guitar ever since I have married you

Even sighting it makes me angry

It distracts studious children

He wants it to get away from the boredom of studies

What?

If this is to escape your boredom then don’t take it with you

Right?

Yes!

If you want to escape from your boredom then

there is a bar near your hostel

you get good items over there

Best father!

Put it down

Hey! Father look

Please don’t Hit

Move...Move

Let it sit here

Oh escaped

Give me the money as agreed

done

done

What are you both up to?

Come

Did you understand what I have said dear?

That’s enough

Come

Dear, once you finish your studies and reach a good position you can play guitar

learn music or do whatever you want to do

Come

Once you reach hostel you can buy a new guitar

You don’t have to leave music

I haven’t left father, the guitar is inside the boot of the car

I have paid Nimmi to get it

Come

Ok. I will call

Hello

I am the faculty of this college, Jhon Joseph

I am also the warden of this hostel

You are Sudheesh right?

Come

Room Number. 116

Ok Sir

Sir you have stayed in this hostel at the time emergency right?

Yes

Do you remember your room number?

Come

Sir

come

This is your new roommate Sudheesh

Hello

Good, now we can do western music as well

Ok carry on

ok

Bye

Even after thirty years, the college hasn’t changed much

The hostel is the same as before

I have read your memoirs Sir

I had the desire to meet you Sir

I have studied here only

Sir you have passed out in the year 1977 right?

yes

I have joined here the same year

Sir your room has not been used by anyone else since then

Sir I wanted to meet you some day and know the

real story of Rajan issue and about the emergency

The Malayalees who knows to forget everything must have forgotten that also

That story is still fresh in our mind like a misfortune

What all translations and what all stories

This campus has not forgotten Rajan

In memory of Rajan a meditation hut has been set up by the students over here

Only you can call tell us the truth Sir what others don’t know and can’t say

Jhon

there is a dobhi colony nearby

we have to go there

It must be to meet Krishna Priya

yes

Do you know her?

Yes I know her

We were college mates in predegree

Where is she now?

She has left this place

After Rajan’s death she found it hard to stay in Dobhi Colony

Police behaved brutally with all those who were close to Rajan

Sir you know that Krishna Priya’s mother was murdered and hanged

Sheer brutality!

She is now working as a school teacher in Ooty

What about her family?

She didn’t marry

It must be because of the hope that the truth of Rajan will someday come out

Can I say something openly?

As a writer your silence is like turning your face away from the truth

To be frank you are favouring the great lies and the unjustness

Today who is interested to know about the truth?

Is it the generation who are busy in the race for money and power

or is it the less patriotic young generation?

Who is bothered about it?

Anyone can be victimised in the news at any time and that is emergency

Rajan was only a martyr

fact that Rajan was an artist who would play guitar

to win in university youth festivals

and had distanced himself from all kinds of political affairs, how many of them know?

Moreover who wants to know about him?

I want to know Sir

There are many people over here who wants to know the truth

They all would like to know the truth

When they knew that Sir was coming

they together came to me and asked me to meet you

For 30 years we heard many things

Jhon Sir had mentioned about you Sir

We also heard about the Dobhi girl who was Rajan’s love

We want to hear the whole story

I will say

This is not a story but a real experience

The 30 years back Kozhikode Regional Engineering College

filled with political and philosophical views, the 70’s campus

Back then Murali Kananpuzha, was the hero of the campus

Inquilab Inquilab Zindabad!

Unity of students Zindabad

SFI’s, the student’s communist group’s, efficient leader

Murali’s personality and speech have attracted everyone

I was then the college union member as well as Murali’s political friend

Rajan was the apple of the eye of everyone as a great singer and guitarist

I have participated in Murali’s study classes as a co-worker

capital gains,communist manifesto, class struggles

revolutionary measures against the government etc

Murali would take class very well

How did Krinshna Priya and Rajan start loving each other Sir?

A colony was formed to wash the clothes of the students of the REC College

the Dhobi Colony

Krishna Priya was a young lady from that colony

Rajan, who used to go near the banks of the river to play guitar

somehow got close to Krishna Priya

We haven’t heard much about Murali

Sir please tell more about him

It is more interesting to hear about Krishna Priya’s story

Your interests, you just want to have fun that’s all

This story is not just about Murali, Rajan and Krishna Priya

It is the story of a generation

They were witnesses as well as victims of kerala’s issues of that time period

Hey Rajashekara

where is our singer Rajan?

He said he will attend the study class and I didn’t find him

He is out there looking up in the sky with his guitar

I have heard that you have written a song and asked him to compose music for it

He is doing what he likes

He himself has mentioned that he is least interested in politics

Can’t you write revolutionary songs? We can ask Rajan to compose music for it

Love songs and classical songs are all fantasies

Proletarian songs have to be written

it will rejuvenate the communist groups

Poems are not weapons Murali

The beauty of it is something that needs to be cherished right?

Poem, art, literature all have to be scientifically based

only then there will be progress in the society

Feudal signs and thoughts have to be wiped out completely

Communism brings law awareness amongst people and that is there in everyone

so almost every artists and writers will be genuinely a communist from inside

Where are they? Oh here. I have searched everywhere

Hello. Will see you later

Lal Salam