As a kid one always considers numerous career options. We even write essays in school about what we want to do when we grow up. I knew I wanted to be a doctor, though I hated hospitals (naturally), the smell of medicine, injections and lab coats. I always wanted to own a doctor's set. I always imagined having it and examining my toys with the stethoscope huh!!
I realized pilot, army personnel were not my cup of tea. Which meant most of the conventional career options were not available for me.I wanted to be a superhero. I always had ideas for my costume (someone like Mr. India...ya know the idea of becoming invisible by wearing a watch like thing sounded soooo cool back then). But being a superhero meant getting up in the middle of the night to help people. It also meant lot of exercise. I immediately abandoned the idea and actually, this piece of wisdom came from another friend of mine who was thinking on similar lines. But now I feel she discouraged me to eliminate competition but then she too never became a superhero . Perhaps she was wise.
My next plan was to be a private detective(inspired by television series like reporter and Tehkeekat). This could not go wrong. I could investigate during the day and sleep peacefully at night. I was great at talking to people, I could piece up clues, that’s it, that’s all I needed. I was so confident that I discussed it with my friend. This was a bad mistake. She discouraged me. She asked me to solve few puzzles (involving mathematics...ya know I sucked when it came to numbers) and I failed miserably. Then brutally she told me if I could not solve such simple stuff I could never do anything bigger. Don’t ask me how she made those connections, but after I had fallen off a bicycle (with trainer wheels) after bumping into a wall I felt she was right, I mean how could I fall off a bicycle which had trainers??. Fine, I could not ride a bicycle and unlike most kids I kept falling off it; but come on which detective came on a bicycle! Give me a break.
After all my options died a premature death I decided to settle for either a lawyer or a Businesswoman. I, of course had no idea what they meant . But these were just halfhearted decisions. I knew I could never be a movie star since I had to look like Hema Malini or Rekha or Sridevi. Even after 7 births (being born Hindu the religion said I have 7 chances) I would come nowhere near them. You see, when it came to looks I was practical. I knew where I stand.
However, like most kids I had this imaginary character in my mind. A rotund girl with two pigtails who got her powers from carrots. This again was stolen from Popeye I only replaced the food (the carrots idea was stolen from Karamchand). But she was no superhero. She was a great detective. All she had to do was visit the scene of crime and the clues would float up automatically. If she needed extra powers to crack the mystery all she had to do was eat carrots. She was super rich since she had found treasure and lived in this beautiful house by the sea(the being rich thing was again taken from Duck tales and Richie rich). When asked the question’ What do you do?’ she used to smile broadly and answer ‘I really don’t know. I guess I solve things.’ (again you have to realize my universe was totally constructed by movies,serials,cartoons, hence the smart answer instead of saying I am a detective.)
Ironically, the rotund girl never vanished. The pigtails did, not because of age but due to severe hair loss. And since there was no treasure the big house did not happen. Today if you ask me what I do I will say the same thing, ‘I really don’t know.....guess sometimes I solve things…’
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