A youth of about 21 years lands in the city with his luggage not knowing what lies ahead of him. The rickshaw-wallahs crowd around him screaming to take him places in the city. One intelligent rickshaw driver knows where this confused youth dressed in casual clothes belongs and shouts out the name of a respectable IT firm in the city. The youth laps it up and loads himself along with his baggage into that rickshaw. Throughout the ride he is peering out trying to take in as much of the scene as possible. The rickshaw finally halts and he gets down. He has never being to this place before. However the name of the locality matches the address he has printed on a sheet of paper in his jeans pocket. His father’s acquaintance who he has never met before opens the door of the flat and asks him to be comfortable.
A week from that day; the youth takes leave of the acquaintance and loads another rickshaw to take him to another locality. He does not seem jittery now. A week in the city has helped his confidence however he still has to work on learning the local tongue. He pays the rickshaw driver the amount which the acquaintance had agreed upon before with the driver. A thought that maybe the previous rickshaw driver duped him earlier crosses his mind for a moment. He smiles (out of helplessness) and moves on. A few hours later he is done arranging his wares in his new flat. “My place”, he says to himself. Only to realize few moments later that he is a tenant on lease.
He is happy to know that a swimming pool and a gym have been opened in his building. The next day he makes his way to the building gym only to return dejected when the security at the entrance informs him that these amenities were only for flat owners and not for the tenants. He does not understand the logic but feels too awkward to raise his voice. “Why was the security guy talking to me with disdain?” he thinks. He again smiles (out of helplessness) and moves on.
Six months pass by. He is not sure if the other beings in his building are aware of his existence or not. Being a tenant he is extra careful not to create a nuisance for anybody, more so the security. He drinks no doubt but only at his friend’s flat (who owns the flat) returning the next morning worried what impression would it create on the others (owners) had he returned home feeling high. A month later he wakes up to find a society notice pushed under his flat door which says that he is to vacate his flat in a month’s time. There was no word from the owner of the flat about this. The notice says “In the Annual General Body Meeting convened on 4th April 2009, it was decided that the society will no longer allow the flat owners to rent out their flats to bachelors. Only families will be allowed.” "What Annual General Body Meeting?" he thinks to himself. He remembers reading a notice about the time and venue of the meeting but then tenants were not allowed there too. Were the victims not even allowed to present their case? He calls up the owner who is equally surprised. His owner lives in a different city and he too has no idea. The owner confirms the news and glumly asks him to vacate the flat in a month’s time. He tries to smile but in vain!!!
A few weeks later the youth again loads himself along with his belongings in a rickshaw which takes him to another address. He is not sure how long he will be able to call that address his own. “I am more of a Modern Nomad than a software professional” he thinks to himself feeling proud about the originality of the thought.
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