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Murder Most Foul - 9

by Bala
(Mumbai)



Back to Chapter 8


As the picture was released during his exams he did not bother about it, since he had to concentrate on the exams and the
viva voce. (Oral questions after completion of written exams).

But after his exams were over and the film was declared a big hit he had the time to think and plan his future course of action. Till the time the exam results were not declared he could not try for any job as an engineer. So he did not bother about that aspect.

All these months he had not mentioned anything about his getting a break as a playback singer in a film or his actual recording of 5 songs for the film to his parents. He kept them under wraps since nobody was aware of the things during the production days. He was scared of breaking the news to them for fear of getting a severe drubbing from them so that he kept postponing the event for some "suitable" time in the future.

But after the release of the film and the news coming out about his playback singing in the film he could no longer hide it from them.

So he wrote a long letter of apology to them saying that he got the offer to sing in the film due to his singing in the musical troupe for so long as the music director had attended some of the programs, had listened to his singing, appreciated his singing etc.

Two years previously he had nervously told them about his singing activities. It was the first time he had gone back to Ahmedabad during the long vacation after the April exams that year after the start of his stage shows.

He explained to them that many of his friends were good sportsmen and so they could get selection in the college's teams as cricketers or football, hockey, table tennis or basketball players. But since he did not play any game he could not get any chance in any of the teams and so his friends made fun of him.

But at the same time they found that he sang very well and encouraged him. When the chance to sing in a musical troupe came up they insisted that he should grab the chance and sing. So he took up the chance and found success etc. Even though they were a little cross about it, they subsequently accepted his explanation.

So he continued in the current explanation that now that he had achieved success as a playback singer and he was praised by every magazine and the fans he requested them to accept the fact also.

But in their reply letter his father was very furious in his reaction. He told him that they had sent him to Bangalore with the fond hope of making him an engineer and not anything else. Singing in a musical troupe during the college days could be pardoned as an extra curricular activity but singing in a film as a playback singer was not at all acceptable to them.

So they asked him to come back to Ahmedabad on receipt of this letter and try to get a job in Ahmedabad. Further he asked him what he was doing there in Bangalore after the exams were over, where he was staying etc.

With his course getting over he had to vacate the hostel room allotted to him, so that his biggest problem was accommodation if he wished to stay in Bangalore or else he had to go back to Ahmedabad. He wanted to stay back in Bangalore for obvious reasons so that he could be near to Sudha and find a job there.

But with Sudha becoming a celebrity now he could not judge what she was going to do. She stopped taking part in the musical stage shows and without her Sudhir did perform a couple of times singing his own popular film songs along with the other solo songs which he had been singing on his regular stage shows previously. But for his duets he did not get a good singing partner like Sudha and hence the stage shows were lack luster for the audience.

As far as his accommodation was concerned he had to approach either Sudha or some of his Bangalore college mates!

After managing to stay as a guest with some of his college friends by turn for a few days with each friend he managed to get a tiny room accommodation through Sudha who also sent some cash through her contact. She had also very intelligently arranged through his college mates to meet her by turns so as not to arouse suspicion in the minds of her parents or the other filmy persons so that she could pass on cash to Sudhir from time to time!

The biggest problem he faced was how to justify his continued stay in Bangalore to his parents. He also needed cash for his expenses and he did not like to depend on Sudha for his expenses all the time and wanted to ask his parents to send his money for some more than till he settled down.

So he informed his parents that he was expecting practical training stint with a civil engineering company soon in Bangalore itself, since he had met the company officials a few days earlier and that they had promised the same for him.

Such practical training for at least 6 months after the final exams were over was a prerequisite for getting his degree. He had already written to them about such practical training condition of the engineering course in the past so they could be mollified to some extent.

But they asked him why not try for such practical training in Ahmedabad itself so that he need not worry about accommodation or cash for his expenses and all that.

He satisfied them by stating that he would do that once he became sure that he could not get the "promised" practical training in Bangalore!

To be continued...

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