The googly-woogly queen

Readers, thank you so much for all those cheer-up comments on my last post about being homesick. So here is something to prove that I am in good humour now.

Some people have been pestering me if I have ever paid any compliments to a girl. I keep telling them that I don't like to pay compliments unless they are worth mentioning and remembering. Ok-ok, I know that your radars are now at full alert. So before I go further, let me clarify a few things. The 'some people' are friends. The 'worth mentioning' part comes into the picture because if you are a girl reading this post, and I have not paid you a proper compliment as yet, then you must wait for that worth-mentioning idea to strike me (try wooing me, if you want that quick ;). Now, again, what qualifies as a worth-mentioning compliment? Did you watch the Ponds' googly-woogly ads recently? Or maybe you heard them on the radio? Well, they are the ones I am talking about.

I was in my final year at my engineering college. The Times Public Speaking Contest auditions were being held in Surat and I had applied. The elimination round was being conducted through group discussions, at the Taj ;). After waiting for some time in the lobby, we were called in for this 'discussion'. The girl who this post is about had entered sometime with us, and was seated at the far end of the table. Anyway I did not take much notice then. The GD topic was a much more important than who all were speaking (now, please don't look so scandalized!). We got a topic: "Abhishek Bachchan --- failed in comparison".

Lets not worry about what your opinion on the topic is. Instead, let us recall what happened. I got to speak just a couple of sentences during the entire melee, and that too much later in the discussion. I call it a melee because whoever has been to a similar GD will know. As far as I remember, this girl spoke up just after me and supported the only couple of sentences I spoke. And of course you understand that in a GD where you know nobody, a girl speaks right after you and actually supports your argument automatically ensures that you take notice of her. I did that. She was fair-complexioned and well, generally well-dressed. The discussion continued, and then ended after some more discussion. We were asked to stand outside in the lobby and wait for the result.

This girl came out along with the others. I went about getting to know others, while glancing at her at times (ok, if you want it, staring). She, however, was with her folks at a corner of the lobby. As any guy can confirm, you don't want to invade a pack of girls standing and giggling at a corner just to say hi to one of them. Therefore, I waited for my turn.

In the meantime, the results came out. Six people were selected from among the 30-35 people for the regional rounds. The names were called out one after another, and her name came in second, as far as I remember. The last name belonged to yours truly. What was the name of the girl? Hold on please... let the story go on. So, as I was saying, we started leaving the lobby. I went towards a lift at the far end of the corridoor as the nearer side was rather crowded, and most people did not want to venture too far out ;)

She followed me down the corridoor, and entered the lift. Inside, there were mirrored walls with glowing lights and golden-coloured steel frames, etc. You would suddenly feel as if you had walked into a sea of very bright yet unobstructive light. But the jewel in the crown was definitely the girl herself. You do not get to see such people everyday. There was something so supremely lively about her that I began to wonder. Now, this lift was one of those uncontrollable lifts where you push the ground floor button from the second floor, and the steel doors close, but it starts moving up. It is bound by its nature to move up and down in circles, irrespective of where you want to go. So this lift started moving up, and so did my heartbeat.

She started talking first. "I liked what you said", said she, and I thanked her. I also had to support whatever she had said, although I would have been stumped if she had asked what it was :) Anyway, things went on... and the sparkle in her eyes seemed to grow every moment. I came to know that she was going to become a 'dietician' and was in some college. The conversation drifted into other things, and we had a very lively conversation going. The lift was now on its way down and stopped at the second floor. All this time, we had been alone in the lift, and nobody had went by from outside. As it stopped at the second floor, some hotel people went about talking very animatedly in 'chaste' hindi outside the lift. Inside, a sudden silence followed. I suddenly found myself having so many things to say to her, but saying nothing. It was a very discordant silence. After what seemed like an aeon, the doors closed and the lift started moving down again.

I looked at her and our eyes met. I smiled, and she smiled back. Ahh... the sparkle again. I took a gulp and said, "Hey, wanted to tell you something...". The looked at me expectantly. I continued, "Would you mind if I told you that you are looking beautiful?". Her reaction was something between a blush, a yes, a no, and a startled expression. She could not speak anything then, however. So I went on, "Ok, so if you do not mind, you are looking really stunningly beautiful". She went silent for a while and the doors of the lift opened. We had reached the ground floor. She said "Thank you", with some reddened cheeks and a big cheerful smile, as we moved out. Once in the car-park she said, "Good bye". I wished her all the best and said "See you tomorrow" as I waved good-bye. However, that was the last I ever saw or heard of her.

Why?? Well, actually I was disqualified from the actual contest which was scheduled for the next evening. Why and how that happened is a different story, the next post, maybe. Suffice it to say that even as I was hoping to futher this little story on the next day, a little phone call told me that I was to sit in the audience if I decided to come the following day. Even after that, while I was contemplating a little dekko at the place on the next evening, I found Sehwag hammering the crap out of some bowler (Mohammad Sami perhaps) on that evening. I felt too lazy to go and chase the gal when I had some real good cricket going on at the same time that evening. Besides, truth be told, I was depressed a bit as I was not being able to speak that evening.

That, dear readers, was the only time I paid some memorable compliment to a girl. That was a comment worth mentioning; well, worth mentioning for the Ponds' googly woogly contest. Lady, if you are reading this, you have my permission to quote this.