Gaanapriyan Tales (Part- 2)

So, this man has indeed made a considerable impact on my internship. :) Well... Not everybody has such unique tales to tell, I guess.

As I have already mentioned, he was the universal Aliyan (Brother-in-law) in Gandhi Bhawan. From 90 year olds to 4 year olds, all used to call him Aliyan! :P Some even used to tease him by calling him *Kilavan* ( Old fella). He was torture personified for everybody. But for a few of us he was great entertainment. He definitely used to bore us, but then, sometimes, even getting bored becomes entertainment. ;-)

Just to make the point clear, I was not the only one with whom he made a fool of himself. With him all of us had  a different way of dealing with. He used to boast a lot! A LOT! And we used to fuel that boasting. :-P And everyone in the office used to do that.

For instance, his relative is the Manager of Gandhi Bhawan. He once told Gaanapriyan Sir, "I am going to be appointed as the Lt. Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. I want to appoint you as the P.A. to me. We all will stay in the palace there."  :-| And, Gaanapriyan Sir bought it! He came up to me and shared the *great* news. And asked me if I was willing to live in palace. :-| ( Well... As a matter of fact, he never left the intention of marrying me :-| ) So, I told him, " I don't have such big dreams. My dream is of a small flat in Delhi, a small family. That's it." To which he politely replied, " My dream is also of a small flat in Delhi, a small family, that's it!"  :'( :'(

Then, once when we were talking, he said that he was looking for suitable jobs. I said, " Fine! U were a formal journalist, right? My university has one of the best Mass Communication faculties in Asia. I shall recommend you as the Dean. :) " The next day when I went to the office, Anoop Sir (General Manager of Gandhi Bhawan) said, "Look, you can definitely take him with you! Only one condition, don't you dare bring him back!"  I did not understand what he meant, at first. But when I saw Gaanapriyan  Sir in the vicinity, I understood everything. Till the day I was leaving Gandhi Bhawan, the office people literally haunted me with the idea of taking Gaanapriyan Sir with me! :-(

On another occasion, Radhakrishnan Chettan (Auto Driver) suggested him to become the Secretary of Ponnakkal Panchayat. :-|

Gaanapriyan Sir had these great visions! He wanted to set up an Advertising agency, with it's main office in Kottarakkara ( Kerala), and also it's branch in Delhi. He wanted me to do freelancing and canvasing from Delhi. Kotarakkara office was to be managed by Anoop Sir. When I asked about my salary, he said I would get commission- 10%. SO, if I canvas an advertisement worth a Crore, I could earn 10 Lakhs! And 10 advertisements, each worth a crore, in a year could actually make me a Crorepati! :-|

Also he wanted to start The Idea Bank. Not money, but a bank of ideas. Those in need of ideas could definitely approach the Idea Bank. :-P

In between, a Malayalam Serial Actor Mr. Yathikumar came to Gandhi Bhawan. His mother is an inmate there. Yathikumar Uncle also knows him and promised Gaanapariyan Sir roles in movies and serials. :-|

Anyways, Gaanapriyan Sir actually used to believe all that. And he still thinks that the Mass Communication faculty is indeed gonna send him an appointment letter for the post of Dean. And he thinks that I, Devu, am the reason behind all this fortune coming his way.

Sometimes, I used to feel that what we were doing was wrong. I mean, we were giving that poor chap false hopes. But then, all those false hopes brightened his days. He was happy... He was laughing because of them. He was positive so much so that he started the CHIRI CLUB (Laughter Club) where u perform funny acts and all.

He, of all people, very well knew and acknowledged the fact that many made fun of him. But to him, that hardly matters. And when I asked why, his answer was very simple- "They are jealous."  

You know, he actually never gave up the idea of marrying me. And I used to let that down in subtle ways. But then, slowly I let that go. If that 'hope' makes him happy, let him be happy. :) It wasn't harmful to me in any way. I am in Delhi. He is there. When I make a call to Gandhi Bhawan, I talk to him. And I know, that call matters a lot to him.

A lot of people knew that Gaanapriyan Sir was very fond of me. Vijayalakshmi chechi told Anoop Sir about the proposal also. By the end, even Secretary Sir  (P. Somarajan) knew about it (coz Gaanapriyan Sir himself went ahead and told him about it!). But the fact is, nobody tried to bring him out of that scene. Perhaps, they all thought that letting him stay there was a better option that forcing him out of it.

Day before yesterday, I made a call to Gandhi Bhawan. Talked with him too. And he said, "People here are teasing me with your name. But it's ok. I will call you when I go out."

After all, we should never deprive someone of hope... It may be all they have.