BREAKING NEWS

Redefining Storytelling!

I started the blog so that someday I could figure out its purpose!
Today while reading the papers I realized the purpose actually I have a better and simpler word… I realized a need.

The news today is filled with corruption, rape, murder, extortion, embezzlement, betrayal… filth. That’s a story we have all heard a million times. I don’t remember the last time I opened the papers and actually read a story which made me feel warm with contentment and meaning inside. Stories are paid for now-a-days.

Somebody’s nobody is on page 3 and nobody’s business makes the headlines!

What’s happened to the news! Current affairs? Bullshit! This is criminal. I would never advise my kids to read the newspapers at this rate! Poor kids would live in fear… they would on the first chance bribe a cop rather than talk and resolve! Or better receive whatever punishment with grace and humility.

Maybe I stretched that too far but I honestly do feel that if the ‘news makers’, by news makers I mean channels and editors, wanted!!! Their channels, papers or magazines could have a section that focuses only on the good that’s happening in our town, city, state and country.

Not long ago! I read a small article on the left hand corner of a TOI. The article or story was about a man who married a lady. Not entertaining? Well the lady was banished from her village and her family because she was diagnosed with AIDS. She used to travel in the local train for 4 hours or so everyday to go to work and would then return home. A man on the local train saw her and fell in love. She at first, though she wanted to, did not reciprocate his love as he did not know of her ailment. He persisted, she finally told him …

Best part of the story… he didn’t mind the fact she had AIDS he said ‘we will take the required precautions”… they got married had a child and till date the child nor the Husband have AIDS… and she is living a ‘normal’ life!

The man here is no hero... he’s just educated. But this story has never left my mind!

I don’t know what’s happened of that family or of the lady or her husband and child! But that story gave me hope! It gave me reason to believe that mankind had some humanity left in them.

FEELGOOD FACTORS are important to make you feel good about yourself. And reading, listening or witnessing these awesome moments makes one feel so good about themselves. That story has kept me going for years… I scan the papers daily to try and catch a story just like that again… but with no luck!

If there is a person getting robbed every minute of the day somewhere in the world then I’m sure there is someone giving charity every minute in some way or the other somewhere in the world. Everything has a balance… hence our news needs a balance.

Therefore, just for starters… let everyone contribute. If you did something good like… made it to your dads 50th birthday on time, or helped a lady cross the road or helped a little girls cat down from the tree… whatever the act write about it here and let the world know… it all just has to start.

I don’t necessarily mean something you did to make someone feel better… it could be something that happened with you that made you feel better too… Something someone did to or for you that made you feel great! Something as simple as a smile!

I’ll start with my story.

I was on my way back from work, this was a year back, and I was tired, irritable hungry and was obviously stuck in traffic. I was at the Golden Dragon fly over before IIT flyover and it was raining. While furiously cursing my misfortune I heard the typical tape of an urchin on my window. I ignored, he tapped again and again and again… I didn’t even look. Finally one small faint tap hit my window and I swiveled my head, rolled my window down and in the crudest manner yelled ‘KYA HAY, NAHIN CHAHIYE, CHAL BHAAG’ (What do you want? I don’t want anything! Get lost). The little boy was just smiling, teeth and all. I felt stupid. He then said four very simple words… “Please! Take just one…”

He was holding up a heart shaped balloon…

He had just one with him… it was more or less deflated.

I smiled back… paid for it … took it… and rolled up my window.

Suddenly the rain didn’t seem so bad, the traffic sort of melted away… I put my music on, drove home… and on reaching realized… what that one smile did to me…

What I hope to achieve is that someday when we have enough stories we could approach a publication and maybe just maybe convince them to devote one page just one page to these articles and stories…

If you’d like, you could email me your story at arjunbhimwal@gmail.com as well. Or just comment on this blog and let the stories do the talking.