Jayanthi Ranganathan Mishra looked into the full length mirror in her bathroom and decided : not bad. Not bad at all. At 23, she had managed to side -step many of the `done things' which her peers at the college so gigglingly boasted of : she hadn't got a face job done, had never shot for 'a product-Ad', and had never succumbed to a full date, whatever that meant. Though not pretty by conventional standards---- she had that stubborn `Madrasi light tan---- which tube after tube of 'Fair and Lovely' had not been able to lighten----she had many things going for her. She was very tall, statuesque and had very dark curly hair. Her eyes had a very special way of merging and melting into each other whenever she felt shy, which, incidently, was quite often. Dark, inscrutable- she had all the boys doing mental somersaults to figure her out. On the cerebral side, she had a Masters in literature and had imbibed quite a few thing from her study of it : she would never sell herself short, would never use her charms to further her career, `would make her own destiny' and would go `the road less travelled by'. Add to it her filip repartee, and you could say that she had quite an `attitude'. It was a lethal combination."yeah, you are a bit of an OK, Janu", she told herself.
But today the usually unflappable Jayanthi was not so sure of herself, even though she had been waiting for this moment for long : fly the nest, `realise her full potential'----her favourite teacher's favourite line----forge her own identity and ,a few years down the line, marry for love and have her own little Jayanthis. Today she had got three `calls', through Naukri dot com from three multinational companies for interviews.The nature of the jobs offered was not very clear to her except that, in each case she was to report directly to the CEO. That's great, she thought, putting her nervousness aside.
'Life, here I come ", she sang to herself.
Today was her first interview in her own Chennai. She put on her best `Maheshwari' cotton saree, even though it was not the proper outfit for such an organisation. She took a cab and reached the daunting campus complex of Cerberus Computers. The waiting lounge was full of plush garish chairs.Ugly, thought Jayanthi. But not so the the stunning array of ah-so-modern girls sitting on them, But then when she was summoned, pleasantries exchanged, Jayanthi sat down and looked at the man. Her first thought was what Lil Red Riding Hood must have had after looking at the wolf. "SoMiss, ah, Jayathi",he began "My business involves extensive travelling, even abroad. Indeed an intelligent girl who can handle all the nitty gritty of office work, and also look after all my needs.There are no speciffic duty hours .We can be away for days on end But you will be very comfortable, we'll stay at the best hotels.Your yearly package would be rupees ten lakhs plus perks.Jayanthi's mind did a double take.She had never imagined that kind of money. But a warning bell jingled in her brain "All his needs", what did he mean? Then the answer hit her with the force of a juggernaut."You bet", she thought,"You crusty, miserable Cocker Spaniel, I will take care of your needs, with a kick on the seat of your infernal pants". Her idealism had taken a severe beating that day...
The next interview was in Bangalore. However, the scenario was almost the same except that the Boss was dressed in an Ivy-League suit, was urbane, suave, and was utterly Kool,"There's hope here", thought Jayanthi. As he started the interview, Jayanthi, Icarus-like, came crashing back to mother earth: travelling, .five-star hotels Salsa, late nights, the entire Page-3 works.Her heart sank. She walked out, wondering about this fetish for five- star hotels among the CEOs of this world.
It took Jayanthi a full week to steel herself for the next interview at Mumbai .During this period, she had often checked and rechecked her premises Everything she had believed in , till now, seemed utterly and horribly wrong. What did the Robert Frosts of this world know about this world anyway ? Dreamers all, worthless, misleading, benighted souls, she thought, tears streaming down her face. Once, she had even hidden her face in her Amma's pallu, crying, as if her heart would break. Her Amma had stroked her head, wiped a silent tear off her own cheek secretly and had said nothing. Jayanthi, slowly, under her Amma's knowing caresses, had calmed down.When she raised her head, her eyes were `washed'..clear and understanding.
She reached the office of `Udai Katoch International' in Mumbai in a better state of mind. She hadn't fully got rid of her lofty ideals but now, they were just there, like a dull ache that refuses to go away.She was dressed in the regulation short skirt and jacket. She had shortened and permed her hair and to put it mildly, looked ravishing, "Hello, I am Udai, just going out for lunch.Would you join me?" She agreed.
This was going to be different, she thought. Udai looked like a decent man, was dressed conservatively and in his own way, was kind of handsome.They reached The Taj, he pulled a chair back for her to sit and ordered for both of them.."You can call me Udai", he said, trying to put her at ease.
As one delicious course of meal disappeared after another, each accompanied by the right kind of wine which appeared as if by magic,Udai elaborated upon the nature of his business, his wife, his five-year old daughter,and how he got to spend very little time with his family since he had to travel a lot, Listening, jayanthi began to relax. A warm glow had begun to suffuse her face. Probably, it was the wine.Suddenly, he stopped and looked at her enquiringly,certain that she had understood the nature of her work.
"Oh damn it all to hell Udai",she blurted. "But I like quiet resorts in quaint little hill stations. Big hotels are just not my cup of tea,
Udai just grinned.
