College Days (Ch. 12)
12. Noah’s Ark
12. Noah’s Ark
Neil registered their company under the name of MUSK Ltd. Their last game ‘Kasturi’ received bad reviews from the critics. That disturbed them for days. Their expectation of ground-breaking success was shattered. What was meant to be their proudest milestone ended up dragging them into a quiet depression.
(The first chapter of the series can be read via below link:)
In search of direction, they visited Jaju Sir. He listened patiently, then asked them to accept the harsh truth without flinching. “Don’t measure passion with money, fame, or any other silly parameters,” he said. He narrated his own struggles while building AOL Games, including the humiliations, the missteps and the nights spent questioning everything.
“Failures are the scars of an entrepreneur. It shows that you have fought a battle. Like a warrior, embrace it and be proud of it. Also, never ever forget, a true warrior never takes a hit on the same wound again.”
When they emerged out of his cabin, their spirits were elevated. It was now clear to them that the journey they had embarked on wasn’t an easy one. Someone had rightly said, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”
They decided to set aside everything weighing them down and doubled their efforts and determination. They revisited their game ‘Kasturi’, added few challenges and tweaked certain features. Though it didn’t improve its ratings, they witnessed its popularity growing among the young crowd. That lifted their spirits and gave them their lost confidence. Revenue from the game was minimal since most of the game downloads were pirated. But there was a relief that the time tracker of the game indicated that the players were constantly engaged and were exploring new challenges.
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Few months later, they decided that it was the time for their next project.
They assembled in the hall to discuss the idea for the next project. Baba spun on the swivelling chair while Chinu settled on a bean bag. Neil sat comfortably on the floor, stretching out his legs.
“If we want to break this cluttered game market then we have to design an Indian game. Grounded in Indian culture. Something that we can relate to,” Chinu suggested.
“I have an idea,” Neil sprang to his feet and continued, “Let’s make a game based on a chudail (witch) trying to save her entrapped child from a castle.”
“But, doesn’t a witch thrive on children?” Baba asked.
“Yaar, that will be the USP of the story. Trust me; it will be an awesome fantasy game based on an Indian female warrior. We will add mazes, puzzles, swordfights and magical arrows, stones, potions, weird creatures, etc. We can build a whole universe around her. What do you think?”
Baba thought for a while and then responded, “But, Neil, it’s too soon to tackle such a huge project. It demands high-tech equipment and a larger team. This kind of project needs serious funding. Itne kam time mein itni badi udaan nahi maarni chahiye (We shouldn’t fly so high in such a short span of time),” Baba asserted.
“Baba, magar udenge nahi to chaand tak pahuchenge kaise (Baba, if we don’t fly high, how will we reach the moon)?” Neil quipped.
“What! What did you say?” Chinu asked him to repeat that.
“Nothing.”
Chinu and Baba broke into a roguish laughter.
It was perfect when Avani spoke that line. Neil couldn’t understand how he had messed up but he knew he was going to pay for it.
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They started working on the witch project. The title of the game was kept ‘VASUMATI-the brave witch’. They knew very well that they would require funds to pull off such a huge project. Jaju sir helped them with the initial seed fund of 10 million while they arranged 2 million each from their parents. It still felt like peanuts for such an ambitious game. So, they decided to prepare a teaser and pitch it for investment.
The first task was to assemble a good team. They called their college mates and their colleagues from the summer internship program to join the project. Few of them responded but with ridiculous offers, so they had to decline. To keep costs low, they distributed most of the work among themselves. However, from time to time, they took the help of freelancers and the guidance of Jaju sir.
Though the stress level was tremendously high, the passion for creativity was too intense to dip their zeal. They didn’t let negativity affect the vibe of their work culture. To keep the mood of the workplace breezy, they would often pull each other’s leg. Chinu was their easy target but he was a kamina (rascal) too. To irate Baba, Chinu would drape a bedsheet around him and pose as a sage giving unsolicited blessings. To remind Neil of his million dollar quote (Magar udenge nahi to chaand tak pahuchenge kaise), Chinu would often play Udi Udi Jaai (Flyinh High) song from the movie Raees or dart a paper plane at him. In the presentation slide, Chinu incorporated a picture of a graveyard beside the lake in full MOON (Chaand).
“Was this necessary?” Neil asked, giving a frown look.
“Have you ever seen a witch in daylight?”
“But you will see a vampire in the daylight today,” Neil growled, lunging at him to bite.
Within seconds, the room exploded into chasing, shrieking and sheer madness.
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They had started pitching their project at various start-up conclaves. Over the next six months, they visited every Private Equity firm of the city. But the outcome was mostly disappointing. They also met other start-up founders for advice. All angel investors of the city were contacted. However, the project wasn’t garnering enough support. Nobody was ready to invest in their company. Nevertheless, the optimism was still alive. Though there were dark days, their spirits were still high.
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For one of their investment meetings, they travelled to Bangalore. The pitch was going well. Investors were showing interest in the project by asking several thoughtful questions. They had their fingers crossed but then a girl showed up there for two minutes. Baba and Neil felt that they had seen her somewhere but couldn’t place her. She whispered something in the ears of one of the investors and left. Her brief appearance perturbed Chinu. He rushed through the pitch. Baba and Neil were startled by his behaviour. When the meeting ended, they rounded on Chinu for spoiling the good opportunity.
“What the hell was that, Chinu? We had a good chance!” Neil hissed.
“Nothing was going to happen,” Chinu announced.
“Why do you think so? It was going well till you…” Baba began.
Before he could finish, a female voice called out behind them.
“Chandrakant!”
They turned back and saw the same girl approaching them.
“Chandrakant, please listen,” the girl said.
“Who is Chandrakant?” Baba asked. Chinu punched him on his shoulder.
In the darkness of the presentation room, Baba and Neil couldn’t put the name on her face but now, they recognised her.
Kusum:Chinu’s ex-girlfriend.
She extended her hand to greet them but Chinu cut her short, “Kusum, this is wrong. You shouldn’t have let your personal bias to sabotage the investment deal.”
“I wasn’t sabotaging it. I tried to use my influence to help you to get the investment deal but it didn’t work out. I had gone through your presentation. It actually has good prospect,” she said.
“What!”
“You mean…?’ Chinu asked.
She nodded.
Baba and Neil looked at them and then at each other.
“Yaar, have you seen the dancing fountain at the entrance?” Baba asked and nudged Neil.
“Is it nice?” Neil inquired.
“Yeah, come with me. I will show you.”
“Dancing fountain? Really?” Chinu said in excitement but Neil enlarged his eyes and signalled him to stay.
After the two left, Chinu and Kusum glanced at each other and smiled.
Chinu was shocked. He couldn’t make out what to say. So, Kusum spoke, “I am sorry for overreacting over the handshake incident. I was naïve at that time.”
“I am sorry for harassing you on FB. And, also, thanks for not filing any police complaint.”
They grinned.
“Apology accepted.”
Chinu leaned forward to embrace her.
“What are you doing?”
“I thought...”
“I helped you out of friendship.”
“Thanks.”
“Thanks for what?”
“People say friendship is the stepping stone to love.”
“Don’t try to flirt else I will hit you with POSH,” she feigned anger which Chinu figured out.
“For that, you will have to work with us.”
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The next day, Kusum dropped by their hotel room to help them polish their upcoming presentation.
“Images won’t be enough,” she said, scanning their draft on the laptop. “You have to show them at least a minute worth of content. Since you are all techies, so I understand that you...” she stopped abruptly.
“Why did you stop? Criticism is always welcome,” Neil encouraged.
“Your presentation is too much on the technical side: on game designing and coding. For investors, what you can do is immaterial. They are concerned with how much money they are going to make. Tell them about ROI, budget, their stakes and a detailed valuation. You have to think from their angle.”
“But, we don’t know how to…” Baba admitted.
“Don’t worry, I will help you out.”
“Thanks, Kusum. Thank you very much. I don’t know what we would have done without you,” Neil said.
“Also, very important. Never ever beg. While negotiating, never show your desperation. Give your presentation with panache as if you are favouring them by giving the opportunity to collaborate.”
Her words struck them deeply. For the first time in months, they felt they had a real chance.
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Kusum also accompanied them for the pitch. Neil was still not confident enough for public speaking so he let Chinu lead the pitch. Baba handled the technical aspects and intervened wherever Chinu fumbled. In the end, Neil showed a teaser of the game and ended it at the slide with two words: GAME STARTS.
One of the panel members, a bald man, asked, “Every day, ten start-ups knock on our door for funding. Most of them are from reputed colleges like IITs and IIMs or have work-ex of Mckinsey, BCG or Goldman Sachs. Why should we fund a start-up idea of tier-2 College alumni over them?”
Chinu was taken aback by that question. Not only were they from a tier-2 College but were dropouts too. He didn’t know what to say. Baba and Kusum were perplexed too.
But to their surprise, Neil cleared his throat and said, “Right now, I can recall one and only one quote. Experts built the Titanic which sank on its maiden voyage while an amateur built an ark that saved humanity from a great flood.”
Neil shot a glance at the bald man and then went on to explain that though they were from NIT, Surat, they had successfully designed and executed the ‘Kasturi’ project that had achieved a huge success on mobile platforms among young gamers. He highlighted Baba’s academic achievements to reinforce their credibility. Kusum confidently handled the finance questions, introducing herself as their strategic advisor. Baba nodded at her self-proclamation.
After an intense day of grilling, the firm finally agreed to invest money in their start-up. Baba burst into tears and hugged Neil and Chinu. They went straight to the nearest temple and bowed down in gratefulness and asked for blessings to execute the project successfully.
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Neil knew it was time to try his luck with Avani again. After getting the details of her university from Pia, he boarded a flight to the USA and went straight to the campus. He dashed to the admin office but was stunned to find Jaimin chatting with the admin officer.
Jaimin gave him a cold glance. Neil ignored him too and asked about Avani but the admin officer refused to share the personal details of any student. They insisted but in vain. Finally, with a gloomy face, they left the admin building.
An Indian student approached them and asked, “Are you looking for a student’s profile?”
Neil and Jaimin nodded.
“I can hack the university system and find the required information for you.”
“Will you?” Neil asked.
“But it will cost 1000 dollars,” the Indian guy said.
“What!” Neil exclaimed.
“1000 dollars for what?” Jaimin asked.
“To hack the university database,” the Indian guy responded.
“This is wrong,” Jaimin said.
“Okay, fine,” Neil said.
“Bloody Indians! Always ready to exploit the situation,” Jaimin quipped.
Neil interrupted him and took the lead, “Give me the data.”
The Indian guy was annoyed.
“Now, it will cost you 1500 dollars. 500 bucks for his insightful quote.”
Jaimin was going to speak more but Neil gestured to not utter a word.
“Keep silence! If you want to find her, then shut your mouth. Your smartness just costs me 500 extra,” Neil shouted at Jaimin and handed 1500 dollars to the Indian student. He hacked into the university data and searched for Avani Somani but couldn’t find her.
“There is no student with this name.”
“Check carefully.”
He looked again but without any luck. He shook his head.
“Check the database of doctorate students.”
“I have checked the database of all batches of all streams for the last five years. Avani Somani is nowhere to be found.”
“Then, where is she?” asked a bewildered Jaimin.
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Avani worked in a chemistry lab in a far-off country. That was her silent atonement for being in a forbidden love.
The days were long, soaked in the sterile smell of chemicals and the hum of machines but the real weight came from the emptiness she carried inside. She never complained though. Yearning was the only thing that still reminded her she once had something precious.
Every evening, she trudged across the bridge to return home. She stopped midway to gaze at the restless river, hoping it would ease her heart. It never did.
At home, she would prepare mandu (dumplings) and eat them while watching a scene from the movie ‘Gunda’. At times, she found herself whispering the lines Neil used to mimic, only to clamp her mouth shut immediately.
Later, she would sit before her laptop to play Kasturi for long hours. On the rare nights she cleared a tough level, she almost jumped up to chant: ‘Haarela jeevda khai…’. But the words died in her throat. The celebration collapsed into grief and she would quietly break down into tears.
Source: Tamasha
The laptop wallpaper was adorned by Pia, Amancha and Rinichi but her mobile screen held only one person. Neil.
Every night, she browsed the internet to follow the progress of his game start-up.
Before dozing off, the glow of his photo was the last thing she saw. And the ache in her chest was the last thing she felt.
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After the first round of investment, they had started working on their project. Kusum helped them set up a new office. She suggested them to keep their office and home separate to inculcate discipline and a code of conduct. A single floor office was taken on rent. There were no partition walls. However, boundaries were marked on the floor to define work area of each employee.
College mates and colleagues from the summer internship program had called them to fill in the vacancy. Baba refused them humbly by citing their high CTC. He believed that a team was a critical element for the success of any company so he was involved personally in the recruitment process of each and every candidate.
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Though Neil was buried under deadlines, meetings and the never-ending chaos of MUSK Ltd., his thoughts kept drifting back to Avani more often than he expected.
Every morning, he woke up with the same thought lodged in his chest like a stubborn thorn: Where is Avani now?
Baba coded a program which used Google’s search engine to scan her name on different websites every day. But Hard Luck.
Sometimes, during lunch, while everyone joked around, he caught himself imagining what Avani might be doing at that exact moment. Then he forced the thought away because remembering her always felt like touching a bruise.
At night, when the office emptied and the lights dimmed, he finally let himself breathe. He typed her name into search bar to find any traces of Avani but in vain. He started to read published papers on chemistry in the hope of finding her name. He had read so much that a university could easily award him a PhD in chemistry.
Before dozing off, the glow of her photo was the last thing he saw. And the ache in his chest was the last thing he felt.
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A few days later, Neil took the entire team to show the ruined palace, Noor-Mahal. As they walked through its cracked arches and ivy-wrapped corridors, he narrated its forgotten history and asked the team to study it meticulously. They even flew a drone over the site to capture a detailed Digital Elevation Model (DEM).
Chinu climbed a slope nearby, spread his arms and dashed downhill towards Neil while waving like a bird and singing ‘Phir Se Ud Chala’. Neil chased him with a cane of a security guard. Chinu trailed him to the lake beside the graveyard of Sanam and dived into the lake. Neil followed him.
While returning, Baba drove the car while Chinu sat in the shotgun position. He played ‘Maine pucha Chand se ki’ song on the music player. Neil extended his hand and pressed for the next song. The next song was ‘Udh Jaana’ from ‘Jaaneman’. He was exasperated and pressed the next button thrice. ‘Chanda Chamke’ from ‘Fanaa’ movie started playing. Baba had put in extra efforts to dig out the songs based on either the moon or flying.
“How long do I have to listen to these songs?” Neil asked.
“Until we reach the moon,” Baba quipped.
“Uda lo Uda lo…” Neil sulked but realised his mistake.
Baba and Chinu broke into wicked laughter. Neil eventually gave in and chuckled.
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(Continued in the next chapter.)
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