Saturday, October 15, 2005

Kiss and Silk




Back when I was in college, screens were lighted up by the naked gyrating hips of the nouveau heroines as censor boards eased restrictions. On full view on the giant screen one night was Silk, (‘Silk.’ Oh my! The very name electrifies my body and numbs my brain. Her sensuous gaze enraptures me as it blazes through my body, those endlessly long shaven legs and her russet lips make her a veritable delicacy)

‘Even if I make it to the movies five years from now, I’ll be able to act with her,’ I proclaimed to my friends. ‘I aim to be her hero in at least a single movie and…’

‘And?’

‘Kiss her,’ I sibilantly said. ‘On screen! For everyone to see!’

The maximum I shamelessly can confide about my academics from then on is that I did not once fail in college during which time acting in college plays and in front of the mirror was a way of life. Thereafter father arranged for interviews which I promptly flunked while Silk continued to enthral audiences across the city.

My efforts in front of the mirror did not go waste as a non-descript director was impressed and I became the hero’s chauffeur in my first movie.

‘You sure they will pay you for this?’ Father asked me incredulously.

My career took off splendidly as audiences accepted me pronto. Silk was still a distant star in the cine skies. I kept dreaming of that coveted kiss – on screen!

It happened so fast it felt like a dream. I got the offer one November morning. Though she was not the belle that she looked on screen, the almost pudgy Silk, mesmerised me. My friends jealously disbelieved that my lips had caressed her satin ones. Though only for an instant, the taste of those saporous lips would linger in my tongue till eternity.

Opening day, first show! I was in the front row along with my friends and family. The theatre lights dimmed and little did I know that that was my last movie. My eyes narrowed as I leaned forward to see us– Silk and I -capering around trees in rain. Whispers among my nervous friends gently disturbed the silence. From now it was only the two me’s, one on screen and one off it. There was no sound nor were there people around me. Silk looked at me longingly and my body yielded like a pack of cards in a hurricane. As I caressed her face, I could feel father’s hot stare and my friends’ envious ones. She snaked her slender hands behind my neck (it was happening…on screen!), drew me closer (time froze), and (indeed happening)...

Now I am jobless, I don’t act anymore and I hate the censor board which decided to clamp down on what it called ‘objectionable’ scenes exactly at that moment. Some directors still call, but I had ended my acting career …along with my dream.

The world had not seen the kiss!



Post Script : This was written for a flash fiction competition.
Theme : Silk
World Limit : 500 words








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