Go back to the roots.........

“Go back to your roots..................

Head back to RIGHT where you started from; a fresh start, a fresh inception, and a fresh embarkation could do wonders, my friend. We have been discussing this of late, but the conclusion seems to be pretty circular in nature; we keep hovering around those similar points of deliberation….. 

- What is ACTUALLY the perfect recipe of scripting a joy ride? 
- What should be the parameters of consideration while selecting the ideal “destination”?
- Should we follow the method of elimination or a selection? 
- What are those vitally essential factors that could transform your trip into a memorable odyssey? 

Believe me….We were NOT DISCUSSING on these lines when we met over coffee at the signature “Adda-zone” located aroud Rash Bihari; those random topics of discourse finally headed towards a very familiar territory…TRAVEL, and without a doubt that marked an end-point to the “randomized shuffle”.
The band that dissociated way back in 2006, did have an underlying bond. The bond that took us past those various avenues of life; we laughed, we cried, we celebrated, we analysed, we lamented and we travelled together in search of inner peace. The ‘redolence of back-packing’, the ‘cologne of adventure’ and the zeal to explore “together” paved the way for a magical peregrination; nothing in the world could hold us back.
 

Remo’s untimely death halted the progress.... the punk was imitating a typical rock-star pose with his imaginary guitar while hiking at around 12000 feet above the sea-level; the mystery of the impenetrable fog & the greasy snow-clad artery did him in. The rock star-dreams were brutally minced as if in synchronisation with his shattered cartilages; the Almighty didn’t give him a chance to recover. A trip that could have been brought in glorious and nonpareil memories, was transformed into a deathly battle of sustenance. The journey to the Everest base camp that was 'activated' on a “conquer-everything-that-comes-your-way" -mode ended on a disastrous note. We were uncomfortably numb by then; it was perhaps the longest walk back to the base camp carrying Remo’s lifeless body on our shoulders. 

“Screw it, I can’t take it any-more…..”- Rex banged on the table loud enough to attract 'external attention'. His restless act broke our trance to some extent. We’d been sitting silently for the last half an hour, 'deathly silence' so as to say..... the gravity of the episode was abysmal to say the least; the wait had been excruciatingly severe. Yes pain was unbearabe; 7 long years have passed since then….the scars are still pretty fresh; the tragic glimpses of the cursed expedition have kept coming back in batches. 

We couldn’t sleep for ages; those nightmares dented deep into our souls…and kept troubling us day in and day out. We had decided NOT to meet after the bereavement; to erase off those dreams & aspirations we had 'fancied' together….those equipment’s were dumped into the dusty stores; but then we were suffocated…choked under the burden of a deplorable loss.......

“Let’s retrace…..” – Banjo somehow gouged himself back from the black hole of depression.

“What do you mean….?”- I was taken aback at this cutting assertion. I had absolutely no clue of what he was refering to.....

“Our first show- Piyali Islands…Durga Puja….Nobomi….remember?”- Banjo predicated through those bits and pieces of information…he had a crystal clear memory. 

“Yeah…but.....like what are you trying to say ?” – Even Sandy looked perturbed; we had no idea where this was heading to, the bend was transforming into a riddle altogether. 

“I thought we were here to 'talk about Remo'; to reminisce, to commemorate….to share the pain we’ve been carrying all alone, in these seven testing years….not to ‘restart the machine'…..” – Prats had exasperation all over his creamy voice. The vocalist has seemingly lost quite a bit of his cutting “edge” in the last few years. It was true though; we had indeed decided to chop off those ‘mutual-connections’, it was a forceful separation …that didn’t help though. 

“We have to.......”- Banjo was interrupted midway. 

“Dude, we are NOT doing it again….it’s easy to relate after watching the movie Rock On, but our case is completely different….we simply CAN'T GO BACK....it’s a mark of respect to his soul; he wanted to reach those heights with us…..” – Rex seemed to be muddled with emotions, he was a strong guy though…the drummer with a tough core, we believed. But then, it was all about losing his pal, an associate….a partner in crime....the big man seemed to have given in.

“LISTEN UP….Peace everyone…! Let me speak……” – Banjo sounded like 'a man on a mission'; the mission to launch a fresh start….the mission to relive those moments & to add a tinge of green to the spit of killing darkness. 

“All ears….”- I uttered. Banjo was actually my closest friend in the mix; the bassist had vibrant ideas right from those school days; his valuable inputs did 'support' the ‘lyrist’ in me… I could connect to him; his insights and inimitable skills did a world of good to my confidence. He was an trained mountaineer too; in-fact the only certified one in our group. 

“Guys…..we are going back to Piyali this Puja….I know you may revolt, but then….there’s a common passion that we have always shared; the passion to explore. We have explored those notes, those rhymes and the rhythm to connect to our thoughts…we have stitched in the essence of melody together. We had almost completed our journey “to the top” when the testing forces hindered our path.....we were almost on the verge of creating history my friend;  think about it…should we stop...should be surrender ? I think we shouldn’t.” 

 – He paused for a while and then continued. His words were cutting & profound…. 

“Remember how it all started? The late start, the train delay, the grumpy TT, the over-crowded transport, the tempo, the melody embedded in those country-roads, the fresh air that warded off those initial nerves? 
Remember the song we composed ‘on the sail’ – what a ride that was…..! Remember the night before our performance….how nervy we were….I guess Remo was the only one who maintained his composure, he had faith in his abilties- cool as a cucumber. 
Remember our spooky Guest-house in the midst of the forest? And the indifferent care-taker who would doze off without serving our dinner? Those glorious memories of our late night expedition to the 'locally acclaimed haunted house' keep coming back with it’s hilarious bend...gosh those were some days; the ‘angry young man’ Rex’s plight was something that we would never forget……...” – Banjo paused again to take a sip; I guess even we needed a break……his words were literally breaking those shackles of self-confinement; it was knocking hard onto the obscure zones of our mind…they were literally “hibernating” by choice throughout the 7 long years. 

“I want to re-launch the journey yet again…….let’s explore those un-addressed avenues yet again; let’s rock the stage where Remo had raged madness, let’s dig deep into the country-side once more, let’s gorge upon the locally cooked delicacies..come on.... let’s rekindle our dizzy souls. Those familiar faces, the windy encompassment, the ride of “simplicity”, the ride into the greens ; our rendezvous with retrospection would script a chronicle, or perhaps start a new chapter from where we left…the Happy Traveller’s chronicle…..” – Banjo rose from his chair & headed off to the washroom as his voice slowly faded away. I could see the tickle of a droplet in his eyes as he excused himself. We looked at each other, as if in reassurance….as if in advocacy; the shadow of death had almost engulfed us deep within...the darkness had now been obliterated by the divine rays of hope...! The track was clear now, so was the mission ......

The ‘ride against fate’ that was gained momentum on the boulevard of broken dreams, would find its climax on the pitch-black highway....it all started with an expedition, it would relive itself through another voyage; this time there's 'experience' under the belt.
The layout couldn’t have been scripted better….. 

Who knows, perhaps Remo is still waiting on the stage;on the verge of launching yet another magical innings, waiting to embrace us with extended arms....to greet us in his own way; perhaps we could resume our "unfinished journey- RIGHT to the top"? - Possibilities galore await as we head off to the “roots” once again this December….- “The Happy Travellers’ re-incarnated genesis.” .....Wish us luck!!!

Through my lens: Excerpts from our "First ride to the Piyali Island....West Bengal....." 

That's how the journey started, those 'unique' vehicles leading the way......

The picturesque island did have loads to offer...the photographer's paradise....

The wild eleganve did a world of good...it magnified the spirit manifold....

Piyali un-furled the rich essence of it's refreshing enterprise....we were rejuvenated to the core

This was our companion for the entire tenure.....the ride was truly memorable...

A Poet's desire....'Majhi re...o Majhi re....dekha hai kya...tumne use....'

The essence of sprace ruggedness had it's own charm...the stranded beauty so to say....

And those reflections.....gracious me...we felt like sailing along in the depths...

Those sizzling delicacies added another dimension.....

* This post is a part of the "Creating Happy Traveller's initiative by indiblogger in association with yatra.com... 
Do visit Yatra's website for more travel related schemes & offers.
* This is a true depiction...the character names have been altered deliberately......
* The images have been shot through my lens and are copyright protected.