This Did Happen

This article has been submitted by Vatsal Vasudev for the CLATGyan Blog Post Writing Competition. If you think this article is a good read, ‘Like’ this article on Facebook (the button is at the bottom of this piece) or post a comment using the ‘comments’ section below.

As the title suggests, the incidence which I am about to relate did take place. God-promise. I can’t do much else to convince the readers that it is indeed a true story, so I will presume that they trust me, and proceed.

When in school, I used to have a premonition. In that premonition, I would always feature as a legendary writer, whose masterly creativity changed the way the world thinks once and for all. Its only a shame that all the writing competitions I participated in during my school life were adjudicated by dullards who never understood the actual, deeper meaning of whatever I wrote, so I never really got the recognition I deserved. Anyway, I was made of stuff way too stern to be discouraged by the lack of literary insight in a cynical few. I decided that I would carry on taking part in writing contests even in my college and I will prove my worth there.

But even the gods grew jealous of the unprecedented promise of my creative ability, and they arranged my fate such that I landed up in a law school, where the essay competitions have topics as scary as “Role of WTO in dispute settlement in Third World Countries with special perspective on FDI in the Energy and Raw Material sector”. I decided that this is no world for true genius, and that my premonition would always remain just that- a premonition.

Life goes on, however. I tried my luck at academics, with little success. Just when all hope was about to be vanquished, I stumbled on a blog writing competition being organized by fellow-law schoolites, with prize money enough to enable me to buy something which my parents have been vociferously denying me – a nice remote controlled car which I spotted in a toy shop where I once went to buy a birthday gift for my five year old cousin. So, with hopes of a better tomorrow, I set myself to the task of preparing a write-up.

Nonetheless, the path is never easy for true heroes. The thing was that the competition organizers did not prescribe a topic and decided to give imagination a free rein.  This was something I took for granted initially, but soon it assumed the shape of a major crisis. I mean I usually used to grace the prescribed topic by arranging my thoughts in form of an essay but now when there was no prescribed topic at all, I found myself at my wits end. All that I could come up with were topics like “ My Random Musings :)” or “Sweet Memories”- stuff which sounded clichéd and being an honest artist, I could not bring myself to writing things which were already dealt with by others.

So it all was not as easy as it looked like. I resolved that coming up with a decent topic was a task which warranted serious effort. In order to contemplate deeply on the matter, I arranged my pillows neatly on my bed, switched on the AC, pulled the blanket over me and began thinking.

When I regained consciousness, I found myself gripped with that old premonition. Ultimately, I was unable to think of a topic and just sent in a cock-and-bull story. I am now awaiting results in breathless anticipation.

So folks, I am sure you liked my story.

I hope it serves as a pathway to my glory.

Oh thanks! I accept your compliment. Always knew I have it me to be a great poet as well.

Vatsal Vasudev,
Batch of 2016,
NLU – Jodhpur.