Just read this so pumped for it!!
Sweating profusely on an excessively hot Monday morning, Professor Dilip Shantaram was trying to teach a half empty class of completely uninterested children some basics of Indian History. While the 37-year old expended all his energy in trying to get his underachieving bunch of 13-year olds a bit of a knowledge and a fair chance in life, the kids spent most of the lecture googling their professors' name to find something embarrassing; this professor yielded no results. In the 'Internet Age', where every moment of every person's life was documented, it was shocking and disappointing for the students to be unsuccessful in their search for their professor's past.
"You're late", shouted Shantaram from the front of the class. A tall, muddy boy stood at the door, with his head down in fear and respect. "I'm sorry, sir. Won't happen again."
The professor's voice only got louder. "You think I don't remember the last time you issued such a promise? Enough with your apologies. You..", pointing at the headboy of the class, he said, "..give Abhishek a summary of everything I've explained so far. I'll go and speak to the Principal about these football practices this boy keeps going off to.
As soon as Shantaram walked out the class, his steps ringing throughout the corridor, all the students huddled around Abhishek. "Are you insane? You know how much this sir hates your footall! Why couldn't you tell the coach to leave you early?", said one girl, to which the boy, swapping his football for his book, replied, "The coach left us twenty minutes before this lecture begins, like he always does." To which another friend of his responded angrily, "Then you are stupid! You know what's going to happen next. He'll kick you out of the class for bunking, lying and a dozen other reasons. You better apologize the moment he walks back in." The rest of those surrounding him nodded in agreement, as the boy pondered over his next step.
Quickly shaking off any doubt he had, he pointed at the girl and asked, "What would you do if you had a chance to meet Shah Rukh Khan?. "I would leave this school forever if I ever got the chance to meet him in person", her prompt response.
"Well, exactly. That's what happened to me! I've been dreaming of meeting my favourite footballer the moment I started watching the game, and here he was, standing literally 30 feet away, in my own school. How could I think of attending this meaningless lecture when I could be learning so much from that man?"
In no general direction, he requested his friends, "Could anyone tell me who Suraj Kulkarni is. He had come to meet this man but I have no idea who he is. Do we know someone famous without actually knowing him?" As soon as he uttered those words, everyone started typing on their phones, wanting to the very first in the class to find this man who brought the highest profile celebrities to such a 'nobody's school'.
Meanwhile, the headboy tried to maintain decorum. "Come on, guys! Get back to your seats. If you don't let me teach Abhishek today's chapter, Professor Shantaram will fail us both in the examination. Please!"
A loud, uninhibited reaction filled the classroom, as the phone with the search result for Suraj Kulkarni got passed around the students.
--
Professor Shantaram's anger grew volumes as he could still hear the noise from his class in the background, but the anger soon turned to confusion as he noticed a tall figure sitting in the chair opposite the Principal. This was the face of a man who Dilip had across many times in his younger days and wasn't sure what he was here for now. 'A tell-all book' perhaps, he wondered. A standard, professional handshake followed by a tight hug initiated by Baichung Bhutia broke the ice between the two former on-field rivals. The Principal just stood there, not sure how to believe that a former international footballer with 24 appearances for India in the 1990s was now working on a teacher's salary. The two men started walking outside the office, at a slow pace.
"I hear you are called Shantaram now. I can't picture you as a Shantaram.", said Baichung, jokingly.
"My name drew too much attention, too much press. I thought moving to a quiet town under a new name will change that. With you here, it obviously hasn't worked."
"Everyone's always known where you were, Suraj, and what you were doing too. No one wanted to deal with your situation. You are Suraj Kulkarni, you should remember that."
Kulkarni shook his head. "I obviously remember; every single day I remember. I've given up on forgetting my old life a long time back."
"That's sad to hear, because I am here to pull you back.", Bhutia looked at his old foe expectantly. This caused Suraj to laugh loud. "Seriously? You want me to come back to football at 37? I start breathing heavily climbing two floor to my classroom. I'm not cut out for a return."
"I like how you blame your fitness and not flat-out denying interest. It gives me hope.", he smiled, "I recently acquired my agent licence and I'm here to make you my very first and I'm sure finest client. I want you to become a football manager.".
looking good bro!
