Karim
Lala stealthily walked down the Subedaar street and halted in front of an
electric pole which bore a payphone. The payphone was fixed to the pole with
the help of couple of bolts both on the top and the bottom. The handset was
hooked and was bound to the base unit by a twisted tinsel wire. Standing there,
Karim scrabbled his right hand inside his trouser pocket and picked a coin. He
carefully took the handset out with his left hand and held it appropriately.
Doing so, he inserted a coin with his right hand and punched in a number. Karim
could hear the phone ringing on the other end.
“ Hello
”, a voice mumbled.
“ Bhai,
this is Karim ”,
Karim spoke into the phone.
“
What is wrong with you Karim. Its 2.45 AM in the morning ”, the person yelled with a
low-tone on the other end.
“
Bhai, I think we got Thakur.”
“
What do you mean by ‘We got ThKari ? “, came through the receiver.
Karim
looked around two make sure no one is watching and slowly whispered, “ I have solid information from
a trustworthy source that Thakur is coming to a saloon in Subedaar street at
around 3.30 AM. And moreover Tony is out of the town. I have my men already in
their positions. Bhai, trust me this is the perfect time ”.
“ How
do you know Tony is out of the town, Karim “, questioned Bhai with a light cheer.
“ Through
my source ”,
Karim replied.
From a
distance, Vinodh and Mukesh, the onlookers, watched Karim speak over the phone
with gripping silence.
“
Karim ! You decided to take down the biggest and the most formidable man in the
city and yet you inform me just half an hour before the act. It isn’t easy
Karim. Without days or probably months of flawless planning and enough manpower
we cannot dare lay a single finger on Thakur. You know not about Thakur’s
immunity. He is not the same person who he was years ago, Karim. Thakur has
grown along with Bombay. Today Thakur IS Bombay. Bombay IS Thakur ”, Karim heard Bhai gasp
heavily.
“
Bhai, I don’t believe in planning. We are not doing a marriage to plan and
distribute cards. We are doing a MURDER. It has to be done instantly. And
planning for days is not safe because there are chances that the information
might be couriered to the other end. It has to come as a surprise. Believe me
Bhai, we will strike the tiger right at its heart ”, Karim explained.
“ I
am still uncertain Karim. We are not dealing with a tiger. As far as I am
concerned Thakur is a dragon. I know him and the people around him very well.
Loyalty of the people around him is his immunity. You know Karim, a person with
LOYALTY is invulnerable, infallible, indomitable, impregnable, invincible ,unassailable,
unbeatable, unshakeable ,……………. ”
“ Bhai,
enough of his abilities. Your dialogue is intolerable, unbearable and
uncomfortable to listen. When I say I can DO it. I MEAN it. Trust me ”, Karim interrupted.
“ Would
you mind revealing the name of your source, Karim ? ”, Bhai asked with curiosity.
“ Bhai.
Don’t be shocked. My source is Rekha.”,Karim uttered slowly.
“ Whaaat
!! Rekhaaa ? She is Tony’s wife. Why on earth would she entangle
her brother-in-law’s life ? Are you sure Karim ? How did you get to her Karim ?
“ , Bhai exclaimed with little
joy.
“ Because
Rekha is my sister ”,
Karim responded with a grim on his face.
“
I knew from the beginning that she is not a routine lady. She is
definitely not a wife material. How could Tony be so dumb and blindly love her
? “, Vinodh spoke to Mukesh.
“ Just
shut up Vinodh. Please don’t draw any attention to us ”, Mukesh whispered angrily into
Vinodh’s left ear.
“ Good
Heavens ! Then I think I have hired the right guy Karim. Very well done.
You are a genius. So how are you going to send him to grave ? “
“ Bhai,
we are a total of 7 in number and going in with the daggers “, said Karim.
Karim
continued, “
Pistols or shotguns leave the clues behind. I hate that. And also they are very
noisy at this hour of the day. I surely don’t want to awaken the neighbors ”
“ I
have a guy in the house at the end of the street who turns on a bulb when he
first notices the vehicle. This is an indication that Thakur’s vehicle is
approaching. I have men positioned at different angles of the saloon. As Thakur
descends his vehicle and walks into the saloon, our men are set to attack him.
And don’t worry, they have veils on their faces to conceal their identities. I
promise you that Thakur will not see today’s dawn. Is that fine Bhai saab ? “, Karim pushed his words into
the transmitter.
“Hey
you SCUMBAG, Karim !! How long are you gonna talk to your Bhai over the
phone with just one coin inserted. You idiot. This is the reason why I hate
these directors. They take their audience just for granted. I hate this stupid
movie “,
Vinodh
yelled at the big screen loudly.
Ashamed
of his friend’s act, Mukesh slowly told , “ Hey ! Vinodh calm down. People
are watching us. Shut your loud mouth and just watch the movie. ”
Conceived and Written By,
Jayanth
