Scene 1:
A few hours away from the Iran Border (into Pakistan)… He has been enjoying the Rs.4 per litre of petrol and riding his Yamaha at his own free will and pace… Somehow he cannot see any petrol pumps anymore… he somehow manages to buy some petrol from a roadside vendor at a premium of course… Next morning when he was leaving the MusafirKhana, where he rested for the night, he is told that he would be killed!!! No, this was not a warning or anything but something that would have been a usual activity for the sharp shooters who would shoot for no reason… He called his parents, friends and everyone who he wanted to hear, hoping that they see him when he reaches back home, though he did not tell what was expected…

Well… he managed to pass through with some luck and was not shot dead…

Scene 2: Pakistan Border
He gets a warm welcome, is given water to drink and some real nice food to eat and rests for a while before he moves on… There is some shooting (with cameras and not guns!!!) going on at the border and he is asked to act in it 🙂 he is asked to carry a few bags across the border, but he refuses politely… After much negotiation, he is left like that 🙂 but still he does spend some 3 hours shooting with the local team before he somehow manages to leave the place after many requests to the director of the serial!!!

Scene 3: Somewhere in Multan
He is being escorted by a SP from the local Police Department to ensure his safety while he travels through… The bad desert storm forces them to take shelter in a petrol pump and conversations start… During the chit chat, the police officer asks him why he does Murti Pooja… Though short of words for an answer, he still maintains a cool and shares his honest opinion about his respect for all religions… What comes next is least expected… the police officer says that the next morning he would take him to a hospital and do that needful so that he can convert to Islam… from there they would go to the Mosque and do the rest to ensure his conversion… Though he was stunned, but he still kept his cool throughout…

He told the police officer that there are ministers, media etc waiting for him at the border and if he does not reach there in the morning, there can be international conflicts etc… Some dedicated talks and the police officer lets him go, and escorts him to the border “intact”… Phew!!!

Scene 4:
Wagah Border… he is waiting an entry to India… but the Indian officials say that he cannot enter the country from Wagah as only people > 65 years of age can enter the country on their own from there own.. Rest either take the train or the bus… Much repeated requests hit deaf ears and he is stuck, and the only road takes him back to the same Police Officer who was keen on err… I have talked about it before!!!

He is not even given food or water for 6 hours, though a few phone calls to a few friends in the capital and then a few calls to some ministers etc help him get through the Wagah Border into his own country!!!

Phew!!! Again!!!

These are just some of the millions of stories that Pankaj Trivedi could have shared with me 🙂 I find myself lucky to have met him in the evening today… He is one of the very few people on flickr, who have earned my respect because of their sheer simplicity and modesty… God bless you Pankaj Bhai!!! Hope to hear many more stories from you sometime soon 🙂

Pankaj just completed a Record by riding between Kanya Kumari to Leh in 5 days and 5 hours… he also drove some 200 kms with half a handle on the Karizma as it broke after a slip-up with a truck near TangLang La… He also has driven from UK to India on a bike, which I would write about in some more posts later on Chai Ki Dukaan… As of now, I am feeling very happy to have met him!!!

Lucky!!! Yes I am!!! He knows ME!!!! 🙂