Its been a month and it still doesn't feel real without him. There are moments and events which are so quintessentially chintu that its hard to not think of him at those times. I don't think a farewell post or any such thing can do justice to the person he was or the role he played in so many lives, but for the people here in Lucknow, I'd like to list down somethings that will always remind me of him(I guess now I'm used to writing everything in points, don't know why I just naturally put bullets here as well):
- Every time Suhani speaks you can almost expect Chintu to buzz on whatsapp with a comment about the disconnect between her mind n mouth
- Every time Yamini Prakash would deviate from the book and try to teach from her own "knowledge", she would falter and yes, there would be a host of remarks on whatsapp and some directly at Yamini for the benefit of the rest of the class.
- Every time my car would make a weird noise, Chintu would swoop in with his extensive knowledge of globing about on cars to explain how the ball bearing on the linkages between the prop shaft and the gearbox were wearing out something to that effect.
- Every time we would listen to some Punjabi number straight out of Patiala, you could expect him to start talking about the lyrics of the song and how meaningful it is, as if to say that Jazzy B puts real meaning into his songs.
- Every time I make a gay joke, or any PJ for that matter, and its not appreciated, I know that Chintu would have "Bumped" it cause his threshold for jokes were as low as mine
- Every time we stand at Guptas and Rutvik lights up a cigarette and Arun starts talking about how Rutvik should stop. It just reminds me of how Cunitu would just take the fag n put it out
- Every time I think of IIM A, it reminds me of how much he loathed the guy who made it there despite Chintu not getting a chance
- Every time any teacher, even one from IIMA itself, just mentions cars or bikes, you can expect Chintu to take him on or at least make a comment about the incompetence of the teacher since he had to prove he knew just that bit more.
- Every time I have a cold drink at GnB, the guy accounted for half the sales of the bloody hut.
- Every time we launch into a discussion about Marathis or Delhi, it was just more fun with him around cause then I could have a completely nonsensical argument and still manage to garner support because he understood the point of the nonsense
- Every time I have to say that iphones or blackberries suck, because he is practically the only person I know who shares the view that function is more important than form
There are just too many things that remind me and many others of him on a daily basis and though all these probably make us smile, most other moments just make us miss him. The campus seems half empty without his incessant banter.
Moving on is a weird thing because it probably means getting used to the fact that he is not around. I don't want that to happen to be honest, but I can also see that it is inevitable. Frankly I would rather go through the rest of my time here in Lucknow missing him than simply moving on and I hope others will join me in doing the same. Finally, the funniest thing that reminds me of him, his favourite quote:
"Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur"
