The Masks- PART I

The Masks

He’s cursed and abandoned by his family; pressurized, almost ditched by his girlfriend. Why? ‘Coz he’s lazy, doesn’t have any ambitions, any dreams, they say…at least not as the dreams are supposed to be.

The sound of airplane and traffic is merged in the vast, a mechanised crowd. Everyone is chasing something, trying to breathe as hard as they can, and running fast. The crowd has workers, beggars, clerks, and hair-gelled young people with their ties on, in formal decent clothes. They are going for interviews. A sound of canned laughter follows them, and the source of the laugh is a TV set. Some sitcom is running on the TV.

Well, here enters our ‘he’. He is sitting in front of the TV with a straight face. His father yells, “You are wasting their time too”, his father is a typical old man like a typical old men are, and he is bald, has specs, has a deformed body and is big and loud-mouth. “Our neighbours were asking me ‘your son must have plans for the future, unless our son, he just found a normal job in a bank’, yeah…he has plans”, his father spanks him on head, “he has plans to sit and eat for the whole of his life on my money” well, that’s enough ‘coz old people won’t stop talking…

He is sleeping inside his room but his father just refuses to shut his mouth. He gets irritated; he gets up wears a shirt over his t-shirt, and goes out.

He is sitting with his girlfriend. But the girlfriend is yanking too…almost the same words…but she adds a threat to ditch him if he doesn’t do anything…he turns and says. But I’m doing something…” but the girl again starts off. This time she is talking numbers to prove that the situation of the country’s economy will get bad even further, so this is the right time to get a secured job. She has contacts and can fix-up an appointment or something. He stands up, and starts walking away. “Are you listening? Should I fix the appointment tomorrow? Dress-up nicely…” she also just refuses to shut up.

Again the TV is on, the blue white light is lighting up his face. The canned laughter again looks odd on his straight face. Well, someone is talking continuously…again!

In the morning he is walking on the road looking at the roadside shops. He stops at a bakery; creamy pastries are kept in the showcase. He is mind eating them, when a servant of the shops asks, almost yells, “What do you want?”, he looks at the servant angrily, but the anger and irritation on servant’s face is more, so he decides to retreat. The crowd is moving around him as fast as it can pushing him, squeezing him…they are going for interviews, and he?

His girlfriend yells in his ears, “move fast the appointment is at 12”

He stops in front of another shop, his girlfriend has been merged and moved in the crowd…he is looking astonishingly at the glass window…he tries to touch the items inside through the glass….he decides to go in. but he stops, checks his pockets, he has few coins in it, he grabs those coins tightly in the fist and moves inside. As he pushes the door of the shop the wind chime chimes.

He enters the shop and now more astonished than ever he looks around.

The shop has bright violet coloured wallpapers, with very Indian and oriental designs. It has dark mahogany settee, matching counter; it has some glass wall hangings that are reflecting colourful light. But these all things are not for sale, the product on sale are hanging on every wall available…they are Masks…

Many masks, of various sizes, shapes, colours; are showing different expression impressing various emotions. For example one is of warrior, a furious warrior; who is determined to take over the world. Other is of a very beautiful and innocent girl, but some secrets are hidden behind her hollow eyes. There are animals which are generally related to human and human traits. Like dog, donkey, wolf.

He is something more than astonished and lost, when he sees the only other real human face in that shop, it’s the shopkeeper, but obvious, as he is standing behind the counter. “What are you watching at?” the man behind the counter shrieks.

The man looks like is in his mid 70’s, he has hair on the sides and he is covering his top with a cap. He is thin, and his hands are like wood. He is wearing thin glasses. But his clothes are kinda colourful.

“its amazing!”, our boy says, “I haven’t seen anything like this before. Do you own this?” “its for sale and not for collection. What do you want?”, the old man is still suspicious. Our man says, “I liked this faces” The old man looks at our man from top to toe, he gets up from his chair to have a even closer look of him. He comes very close adjusting his glasses, “which mask would you like to try?” the old man asks, giving a specific stress on the word ‘masks’. Our man again looks around, “no, I would just like to see them. If I wear them than how can I see the masks, I think this masks faces can change everything, inside out!” Expressions on that old man’s face change slightly as he walks back to his chair followed by our man.