MR. SIDDAHARTH KAR RETURNED TO INDIA , HIS MOTHERLAND AFTER FIFTEEN YEARS . HE WAS PERMANTLY SETTLED IN THE UK. HE HAD LEFT INDIA AT A YOUNG AGE OF TWENTY FOUR AS AN EMPLOYEE OF A RENOWNED INTERNATIONAL SOFTWARE COMPANY. BEING A BRIGHT AND BRILLIANT STUDENT IN A RESPECTABLE INDIAN SCHOOL, HE HAD GONE TO A VERY PRESTIGIOUS INSTITUTION TO STUDY SOFTWARE ENGINEERING AND THEN WENT TO WORK IN THE UK AFTER A FEW YEARS OF STUDIES.

FINALLY, HE CAME BACK TO HIS COUNTRY FOR A MONTH AS A REPRESENTATIVE SOFTWARE PIONEER OF HIS COMPANY TO ATTEND THE MEETING WITH AN INDIAN MULTINATIONAL COMPANY. IT WAS SITUATED IN KOLKATA AND ITS POPULARTY HAD SPANNED ALL OVER THE WORLD WITHIN FIVE YEARS OF ITS OPENING. THE FOUNDER CURRENT CEO OF THE COMPANY WAS A LADY MS. S. KAR . SIDDHARTH HAD TO MOVE IN TO THE HOTEL WHICH WAS BOOKED FROM HIS OFFICE . BUT STILL HIS MIND WANTED TO VENTURE INTO HIS OLD HOME DESPARATELY. HE MIGHT HAVE BECOME SID BY NAME IN THE UK BUT STILL HE WAS A BENGALI. HE WAS A NATIVE OF KOLKATA. HIS FAMILY, WHICH CONSISTED OF HIS PARENTS AND A SISTER WHO WAS FIVE YEARS SMALLER TO HIM. THE CLOSE BONDAGE AND RELATIONS HAD BEEN BROKEN WHEN SIDDHARTH HAD LEFT HOME AND DID NOT HAVE TIME TO RENEW CONTACTS ANYTIME AGAIN AS HE BECAME TOO BUSY

BUT AT PRESENT, HE WAS FEELING NOSTALGIC. HE WANTED TO GO BACK TO HIS OWN MESMERISING CHILDHOOD DAYS. KOLKATA WAS A HEAVENLY CITY AND SO IS THE CITY OF JOY NOW. THE FOUR-STOREYED FLATS WERE REPLACED BY SKY-SCRAPERS AND HIGH MULTI-STOREYED COMPLEXES. SIDDHARTH HAD PLAYED WITH HIS FRIENDS ON THE GREEN PARKS WHICH ARE ACTUALLY REPLACED WITH CEMENTED GROUNDS. HE REMEMBERED GOING TO SCHOOL IN THE BUS LAUGHING ALL THE WAY. SHOWING HIS SISTER INTO THE SCHOOL, AND THE JOY HE RECEIVED ON SCORING THE HIGHESTAS WELL AS ENJOYING THE FIRST MANGO OF SUMMER.HE REMEMBERED HOW HIS PARENTS BROUGHT BOOKS AND GIFTS FOR THE LITTLE FAMILY AND HOW HE LOVED TO VISIT HIS GRANDPARENTS IN THE NEARBY APARTMENT. NOW, NOTHING IS LEFT. SIFDDHARTH WIPED HIS EYES WHICH WERE THEN FILLED WITH TEARS FULL OF YIELDING.

HE IMMEDIATELY SUBMITTED THE KEYS OF HIS ROOM AT THE RECEPTION AND BOARDED A CAB TO THE STREET BESIDE WHICH HE USED TO RESIDE. THANKFULY,THE NAME DID NOT CHANGE.AS HE LOOKED AT THE PLACES AS HE WAS GOING, HE UNDERSTOOD HOW KOLKATA HAD CHANGED. MAYBE HIS FOUR –STOREY RESIDENCE HAS BEEN SUBSTITUTED WITH A SKY-HIGH COMPLEX AND THE PARK MIGHT ALSO BE NON-EXISTENT NOW. BUT SIDDHARTH WAS DETERMINED TO MEET HIS FAMILY AND REVIVE THE RELATIONS.

"SIR, YOU HAVE REACHED YOUR DESTINATION", THE DRIVER SAID TO HIM AS SIDDHARTH SUDDENLY CAME TO THE REALITY. HE PAID THE FARE AND VENTURED INTO THE BUSY STREET. HE WALKED ALONG THE FOOTPATH AND OBSERVED ALL THE COMPLEXES WHICH LINED THE SIDE OF THE STREETS. AS HE CAME IN FRONT OF A LARGE GATE, HE UNDERSTOOD WHAT IT WAS. IT WAS THE GATEWAY TO THE PARK WHERE HE PLAYED. HE WALKED IN AND BECAME ASTOUNDED. TREES HAVE BEEN PLANTED BUT THE WALLS SEEM TO LENGTHEN AND THE GROUND , WHICH WAS ONCE SOFT AND GRASSY BUT NOW IS CEMENTED AT THE SIDES.

HE UNDERSTOOD THAT HIS HOME WAS VERY CLOSE.

HE APPROACHED THE PLACE WERE IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE BUT INSEAD FOUND A TWENTY-STOREYED BUILDING. HIS HOME IS REBUILT. HE APPROACHED IT. STILL HE HAD A RAY OF HOPE.

"EXCUSE ME! MAY I PLEASE VISIT MR. SASHI KAR AND MRS. CHANDRA KAR? PLEASE HELP ME. I HAVE NOT BEEN IN CONTACT WITH THEM FOR YEARS AND YEARS!", SAID SIDDHARTH DESPARATELY.

THE LADY AT THE RECEPTION GLANCED AT HIM FOR FEW SECONDS. THEN SHE PASSED A REGISTER TOWARDS HIM. AFTER FILLING THE SPACES, HE ASKED THE FLAT NO. AND THE ANSWER WAS IV-A.

HE QUICKLY BOARDED THE ELEVATOR.

FLAT NO. IV A.

HEPRESSED THE CALLING BELL. HIS MIND WAS RACING. THEN HIS PARENTS DID NOT LEAVE THE PLACE.PERHAPS THEY STILL HOPED FOR HIS ARRIVAL.

THEN A BEAUTIFUL OLD LADY OPENED THE DOOR.

SIDDHARTH'S MOTHER.

"SIDHU!!",SHE DELIGHTFULLY EXCLAIMED.

"MA!! I AM SORRY. I AM BACK."

"COME COME. WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU ALONG THE LENGTH OF SO MANY YEARS."

SIDDHARTH MOVED INTO THE HOUSE. HIS EYES FIRST FELL ON A KIND-LOOKING OLD MAN. SIDDHARTH'S FATHER.

"BABA, HOW ARE YOU? I AM SIDHU AND I AM BACK."

HIS FATHER TOOK A TIME TO COMPOSE HIMSELF. THEN HE SLOWLY SAID,"SIDHU, YOU HAVE COME! WE HAVE BEEN ANTICIPATING THIS DAY!"

"WHERE IS MY LITTLE SISTER?"

"DON'T YOU KNOW ABOUT HER?", ASKED SIDDHARTH'S MOTHER BRINGING A PLATE OF THE LEGENDARY RASOGOLLAS,"SHE IS THE FOUNDER OF A BIG MULTI-NATIONAL COMPANY. SHE IS MS. SHRESHTHA KAR OR MS. S. KAR NOW. SHE HAS SUCCEDED IN MAKING HER NAME AROUND THE WORLD."

"MY OWN SISTER! SHE IS THE CEO. AND ALL THROUGH I DID NOT RECOGNIZE HER! IT WAS SHE WHO PROPOSED THE ALLIANCE WITH OUR COMPANY IN U.K.!", SIDDHARTH WAS TAKEN ABACK BY SURPRISE AND SADNESS OF NOT RECOGNIZING HIS OWN SISTER. HE HAD DELETED ALL RELATIONS WITH HIS FAMILY FOR WHICH HE WAS ASHAMED AT THAT MOMENT.

THEN SIDDHARTH WENT ON TO SAY HOW HIS LIFE WAS AT U.K. AND THE REASON OF HIS RETURN. AFTER SO MANY YEARS DID HE FIND THE TRUE TIES AND BONDS WITH HIS FAMILY. LISTENING TO HIS LIFESTYLE, HIS PARENTS WERE HAPPY AND TOLD HOW KOLKATA HAD GROWN INTO ONE OF THE BIGGEST CITIES OF THE BUT NOT COMPROSING WITH ITS FOOD AND CULTURE.

FINALLY, IT WAS EVENING. THE BELL RANG. SIDDHARTH'S MOTHER OPENED THE DOOR.

"MA, BHAIA HAS ARRIVED FROM THE U.K. COMPANY. IT WAS A VERY TIRING DAY. WE HAD TO PREPARE ALL THE PRESENTATIONS AND HANDOUTS. I WENT TO VISIT HIM IN THE HOTEL BUT HE WAS NOT THERE. UMM... DID HE COME HERE?", SHRESTHA'S VOICE WAS HEARD. THEN SIDDHARTH GOT UP AND WENT NEAR HIS SISTER AT THE DOORS. BOTH WERE OVERWHELMED WITH JOY AND HAPPINESS.

THEY HUGGED EACH OTHER AND TALKED THEIR HEARTS OUT:-

"HOW YOU HAVE CHANGED!"

"ARE YOU FINE?"

"YOU HAVE BEEN SO SUCCESSFUL!"

"DREAMS CAME TO BE TRUE".

THE BROTHER-SISTER DUO WERE OVERJOYED. SIDDHARTH HAS FOUND REAL HAPPINESS AT LAST AND HIS CHILDHOOD HAPPINESS SEEMED TO RETREAT AT THAT TIME. HE PROMISED NOT TO PART WITH HIS FAMILY AGAIN. HE PROMISED TO STAY IN CONTACT WITH THEM ALWAYS

REALIZATION DAWNED ON HIM THAT FAMILY, FRIENDS, MOTHERLAND AND MUTUAL TIES ACTUALLY PROVE TO BE THE GREATEST GIFT TO A HUMAN BEING.