The call of Cal!

This weekend was a trying one. Couple of days of ups and downs. But the dominant emotion was one of confusion. Confusion unmitigated by any sort of illumination.
A friend of mine called up with some news – he was headed back to Calcutta, having managed to collar a job in the non-existent job market there. Faced with this momentous new, I first made all the right noises – congratulations flowed from my mouth. Then suddenly I started to feel disturbed. And to make things worse I just couldn’t put a finger on what exactly was disturbing me.
Then I did. I realized what was bugging me. Sheer unmitigated jealousy. I was green from head to toe, although genuinely happy for my friend’s good fortune. Green when I realized that soon my friend would be savouring the lip-smacking biryanis and chaap at Rehmania, strolling down Park Street at perfect liberty to pop into Moulin Rogue or Flurys or any of the other sinfully delectable restaurants dotting the street, enjoying blissful days of laziness and lethargy as bandhs paralyse the city.
Then something hits me hard. Aren’t these the very reasons one leaves Calcutta – the laziness and sloth, the never-ending protests against God knows what, the minuscule job market, the ‘kal hobe’ attitude, the perceived career stagnation – yet why are these the same things I miss the most? Why would I exchange where I am today for the City of Joy at the drop of a hat?
I guess it’s true what everyone says – you can take the Bong out of Bongoland but you can’t take the Bongoland out of the Bong. And strangely, I am proud of it.