NEMESIS

(Picture by Jafar Shameem)

(This is a work of fiction. Unless otherwise indicated, all the names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents in this article are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.)

He entered the meeting room and said Hi to Manohar and occupied the chair in the front row. He was early; only the two were present. Soon with the arrival of others the rest of the chairs got filled. The noise in the room soon filled with light chatter and subdued laughter. Young bright faces brimming with  confidence conversed nonchalantly.

They stood up from their chairs on the arrival of Shruti, who asked them to sit down, while she stood, faced them and smiled.

“Good morning! I am Shruti Pandit, your Product manager. Some of you have worked with me while the rest will know me as we proceed to engage in our Product, called ‘Nemesis.’ I can see the frowns on your foreheads, and they are justified. You will apprehend its significance as we progress to build our Application. So, let us start with “Vengeance” and give our best to create the Product.”  She said and sipped a few times from the glass of water placed on the table.

“OK now, without wasting any time, let me introduce my team to everyone. Please raise your hand as I call you out. Govind you will be our research head, we will later discuss the requirement of persons to assist you. Manohar will be our analyst, and Parvez with his team as marketers will help gather inputs that should go into the Product. Last but not the least Manoj , Revati and Shakuntla will be the developers and designers who manage the day-to-day execution, draw up designs, test prototypes, and find bugs. You all will receive instructions specifically pertaining to your duties and responsibilities through email. The contents will be sent to each as we move along.” She told them.   

There was silence in the room though a few shifted in their seats feeling anxious.

“I know you all have questions, however keep it with you for now and ask them when I meet you individually.” Shruti said with a smile and left the room. 

The rest left in a fresh frame of mind  towards their cubicles. A few were looking forward to continuing their association with Shruti while the others were eager to form new acquaintances.

The load and  tempo of the work kept the entire team very busy, especially the developers and designers had no respite. They worked late in the night and on Sundays and holidays. The target fishing time fixed by Shruti was excruciatingly short.

Midway through the project Revati fell ill and was diagnosed with a viral disease from which she was likely to recover after 15 days or so. On Shruti’s request Manoj agreed to perform the entire portion of the task entrusted to Revati after Lajwanti had expressed her reluctance. 

Manoj shared a rented flat with his college friend Karan, who worked with a security agency as a manager. Karan was affable, amicable, easygoing and happy-go-lucky and had a very soft corner in his heart for Manoj. In college they stayed in the same room and had common friends. Their friendship never wavered even when they faced difficult situations and conflicting interests. Karan was much more than a real blood brother to Manoj; Which Manoj acknowledged though he cautioned Karan’s over zealousness in his protective actions towards him.

It was towards the fag end, when the project approached completion that Revati returned to her work desk. She acknowledged Manoj’s contribution in her absence. He had completed the major portion of the task assigned to her. For the balance portion she leaned on him to finish it. Though they remained closetted in their respective cubicles for a major portion of the day, their physical nearness happened only when Revati sought Manoj’s assistance. They remained socially neutral and emotionally covetless; They were normal colleagues and partners at work.

The Project overshot the planned date, not due to any lapses in its execution by its team of workers. The reason lay elsewhere. The aim and the intention of the proposed Application was leaked to the press by the Company to garner support and gain its popularity and support through free publicity. It met a strong negative reaction from the Government and its supporters, who sent their emissaries with the directives to verbally instruct the Company to terminate the Project. The Government would meet the expenditure incurred so far by the Company. The Company agreed, however they contacted FuYo, an American start up  based in LA, who purchased the rights for developing the Application at a reasonable cost. FuYo retained the same team who after a layoff of 46 days resumed the work from where they had left.

A day after the final testing of ‘Nemesis’ application, Shruti decided to hold an in house party at the office. 

“Let our hair down, let us dance, sing and rejoice. Tomorrow we will party here in my room! Be here in the evening by 7.30. Wear anything of your choice and bring your best dish. Drinks are on the house!” She hollered and the team yelled their acceptance.

Manoj found a complete change in its layout as he entered Shruti’s room. No tables, no office chairs, only a few handless chairs and a few small tables which occupied some space near the room walls. The space in the center of the room was vacant. 

“Hi Manoj! Come pour yourself a drink,” Shruti escorted him to a table which had an array of bottles filled with a variety of liquor and soft drinks. Manoj picked up a diet coke can and opened it.

“Cheers to Nemesis! Enjoy the party,” Shruti left him to greet others who had entered the room.

“Hi Manoj!” Revati greeted him with a smile.

He smiled back and his eyes lit up on noticing her. She was draped in dark blue sari which had stars all over, their reflection pronounced her delicate figure and enhanced the beauty of her innocent face. He kept looking at her. 

“Manoj! You are staring at me,” she blushed and shook his shoulder.

“Oh! I am sorry,” Manoj said, shaking his head.

“No issues. I look good in these clothes,” she said and parted her hair from her ear.

“Your earring is very beautiful! It looks unique,” Manoj said, with a fixed look on her ears.

“Yes. Everyone says that it is special. I love to wear it,” she replied. 

“Can I feel it? Can I have a closer look?” Manoj asked.

“Sure,” Shruti said. She removed it from her ear and gave it to him.

Manoj examined the earring closely from both sides. He felt his heart sink and his feet waver.

“Hi Revati! You look fab. Where is your glass? Come let me pour a drink for you,” Govind said and escorted her to the table.

Revati looked over and found Manoj moving towards the exit door. She poured a small peg of brandy in her glass and mixed it with water and joined Govind’s group.

Manoj headed for the washroom with a sudden turmoil lingering in his mind.

He took out his mobile and with it captured the pictures of both sides of the earring. He eased himself, left the washroom to find Revati, who was in  conversation with Lajwanti. He handed the earring to her, thanked her and excused himself. The party lasted until the late hours of the night, however, Manoj left early after having his dinner. He did not get an opportunity to meet Revati alone nor did he seek it.

It was Sunday and Karan, confirming his habit, woke up late. He was astonished to notice that Manoj was in deep slumber. He occupied the washroom for the next hour utilizing its facilities. It was while he was busy preparing the omelet for breakfast that Manoj entered the kitchen to help him. 

“You are not looking bright today,” he told Manoj.

“Yes, I had a late night,” Manoj replied and put the bread pieces in the toaster.

They carried the omelet and the toasts to the dining table, sat down in their chairs to eat.

“How was the party?” Karan asked.’

Manoj looked at him and kept quiet. 

“OK don’t tell me. I can smell something has happened that you are hiding from me,” Karan remarked.

“Yes something did happen,” Manoj replied with a deep sigh.

“Tell me. Lighten your burden,” Karan said.

Manoj held his mobile and opened the pictures from the camera. He held it in front of Karan for him to see.

“You see the picture of the Jhumka ( pendant). Revati was wearing it in her ears,” Manoj said.

“It looks beautiful. So what is the big deal about her wearing it?” Karan asked.

“The Jhumka belongs to my mother,” Manoj replied softly, shaking his head. 

“What?” Manoj cried out.

“Yes. My father had got them specially made from a jeweler and gifted it to my mother on his tenth marriage anniversary,” Manoj stated.

“But how can you be certain that this pair of them are the same Jhumkas?” Karan asked.

“Come closer. Now look at the front side of the Jhumka. Can you read the writing on it?” Manoj asked.

“Jai Sri Ram,” Karan said.

“Now look at this picture which is the reverse side of the Jhumka. What do you observe?” Manoj asked.

“The symbol ‘OM’, Karan said.

“The same words were on my mother’s Jhumka and I read them,” Manoj said and shook his head.

“What happened to your mother’s Jhumka? How did they land up with Revati?” Manoj asked.

“It’s a long and very sentimental story. I do not want to burden it on you,” Manoj said.

“Share it. You will feel better. I know you lost your parents when you were young and that your uncle became your guardian. I often feel your pain and try to reach out, but that has been quite insufficient,” Karan looked at him and held his hand.

“As usual, you have stirred my emotions. My father was a well known journalist. He worked honestly and dilligently for a big newspaper. He had many friends who liked and encouraged him and there were many enemies too whose nefarious activities he exposed through his articles. I was around eight years old and had a wonderful life. But one night everything changed. While I was sleeping in my bedroom, my parents were shot dead in their sleep in their bedroom. Next morning when I entered their room I found blood all over the bed. The room had been ransacked. The steel cupboard was open and Jewelry including the Jhumka and cash kept by mom in it were missing,” Manoj said.

Karan got up and held Manoj’s shoulders. He patted him on his back and offered him a glass of water.

“How did the Jhumka land up with Revati? Did you ask her?” Karan asked him.

“No not yet. But will ask her when we meet the day after tomorrow during the launch function of the Application,” Manoj replied. 

The banquet hall of Le Meridien Hotel at LA was brimming with the audience who sat patiently to listen to the CEO of FuYO. He was launching ‘Nemesis’ an application which had caught the imagination of the IT world and also was mired in speculation in the media. Exactly at 11 am the CEO entered the stage of the banquet hall to deliver his speech.

It was 8 pm in New Delhi and the Company’s staff filled the auditorium to watch CEO FuYo’s on the screen and listen to his speech.

“Greetings to everyone who are present here at the launch ceremony of Nemesis, the path breaking application.

Ladies and gentlemen, I, Jonathan Shaw, welcome you and offer you my best wishes. 

I am here to introduce you to our new application called Nemesis. Let me start with the many observations and comments that I have heard and read about the application. Nemesis is of the AI genre, however unlike Chat GPT it does not ask questions to give answers but solves many of the social media ills by cleaning them without your intervention. The IT media which sends out hate messages, divisive harangues, the pornographic industry that sends lewd pictures and the world leaders who influence their followers with fake and misleading messages, all of them will now face obliteration and decimation. They can no longer hoodwink the social media tools such as facebook, Whatsapp, Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, Pinterest and so on under the garb of freedom of speech. Nemesis will search each and every objectionable post and delete it from your application. You will only see, hear and read morally acceptable, truthfully pleasant, factual and actual images, voices and happenings. As the name suggests Nemesis is an adversary that can not be overcome by anyone.

I wish you all to use Nemesis to lead a healthy, pleasant, constructive and fruitful life.

My technical team will run you through the Nemesis application. Over to them,” he said and left the stage. The screen soon lit up displaying the home page of the application.

Manoj left the auditorium followed by his team members. Nemesis had occupied their lives and it was time for them to move on. 

“Can we have a drink in the cafeteria?” Manoj asked Revati.

She nodded and he escorted her to a table where they occupied their chairs. Both ordered coke. The waiter soon fetched it and poured the contents in their glasses.

“You are not wearing your favorite Jhumka,” Manoj told her.

“It was stolen last night from the house,” she said.

“What? How did it happen?” Manoj asked in surprise.

“I know nothing. I was sleeping and learned about it in the morning from my father. He tried to stop the robber. The robber hit him and broke his right leg bones. He remained unconscious throughout the night. In the morning I called the doctor. He shifted him to the hospital where he is resting with plaster on his leg” she replied.

“Oh my God! This is terrible! Feel sorry. Did they call the police?” He asked.

“I do not know,” she replied.

“How is your mother?” He asked.

“She died five years ago,” she replied.

Manoj felt for her and wanted to console her, however he left it for later. 

“I also feel sorry that the Jhumka was stolen. Where did you buy it from, maybe we can get a similar one?” Manoj asked her.

“Oh! We did not buy it. It was a gift to my mother on her marriage anniversary from my father’s childhood friend,” she replied.

“Who is this generous person?” He smiled and asked.

“Rakesh Mohan Patel uncle,” she said.

“The same person who had a meeting in our office with Shruti sometime back?” He asked her.

“Yes, he is the one,” she told him.

The next day Karan met Manoj at breakfast. 

“What happened to your hand? Why is it bandaged?” Manoj asked him.

“Oh nothing serious! The car door crushed my fingers. They will heal soon. How about you? Did you find from where she got the Jhumka?” He asked Manoj.

“Yes I did. Mr Rakesh Mohan Patel had gifted it to her mother on her marriage anniversary,” he replied.

“And who is Rakesh Mohan Patel?” Karan asked.

“He is the Home Minister of the State,” Manoj replied.

Karan hid his emotions and kept silent looking at his shoes with fiery intensity.

He put his hand in his pants pocket and took out the Jhumkas and handed them to Manoj. 

“You will soon defeat your nemesis, I promise,” Karan said and hugged Manoj.

(Picture by Jafar Shameem)

For more pictures by Jafar Shameem please log on to https://www.jafar.com