As a kid Damu was often asked the question, "Bade Ho Ke Kya Banoge Beta?". The Quiz Masters often disguised themselves as his uncles, aunts, neighbors, Mummy's friends, Daddy's boss and so many other earthlings who visited their house. The answers thought to him, during his training sessions, included Doctor, Engineer, Lawyer and Scientist. He had the liberty to use any one of them, only condition was to stick to one option the entire day.
He did not want to be a doctor for he was scared of injections; acrophobia prevented him from even thinking of being an engineer(a person, he thought, wears a yellow helmet and builds skyscrapers); he dint know what Lawyers did and "Scientist" being an unpronounceable word was avoided as the answer. Instead he used his general knowledge and gave answers like "Sachin Tendulkar", "Mithun" and "Lata Mangeshkar". Damu dint know who these people were, but they were the most talked about names in the house. One thing he observed was that the third answer always made the Quiz Masters happy, which they demonstrated through their laughter.
Although he did not share his dream job with anyone, he had dreamt of the most exciting job. He wanted to guide the ignorant creatures of this world, to make the decisions, to be in-charge, to pass orders and make sure they are followed, to be respected and so on... in short, he wanted to be a Bus Conductor. For him this was the most revered job in the world, and how could he be wrong? It was the conductor who traveled from one place to another in the bus, in 'his own' bus, free of cost; it was the conductor who ushered the passengers to the vacant seats; it was the conductor who gave instructions to all (including the driver); it was the conductor who woke the people lost in their dreams when the bus reached the destination and it was the conductor who in return of all his favors charged an exorbitant amount of money, three Rupees to be precise.
Damu was captivated by these men. Their Khaki uniform, leather Batwa, and the Pilluk (whistle). He couldn't believe how nimble they were at their maths, which they demonstrated while giving back the change to the passengers in a flash. Their memory was beyond any comparison, they knew exactly the source and terminus of each and every passenger's journey and halted the megaton bus at the right stop with just one gesture. They were also fearless, as they moved in and out of the moving bus at will. Punctuality was the quality that Damu liked the most, every time the conductor felt that the bus was late he used his pilluk to push the driver, who in turn stepped on the gas and made the bus reach on time. Damu often dreamt of the day when he would become one of the men in khaki and rule the world. The thought always dropped off leaving an incessant smile on his face.
Very little did he know that one day he would overcome his fear of height and become an Engineer- not the one who builds tall building, but a one who works in them. Damu is working with an MNC on 74th floor. This is not the kind of life Damu had imagined twenty years ago. Then, he did not like air condition, found coffee bitter, pizza and Maggi were unheard of, he used to hug his bed at 8:30pm and always lost to computer in the Brick Ball game. All said, he did not satisfy any criteria of being a software professional.
