Sochi, Russia , Feb 5 2010, 7:30 am
At a height of 5,580 feet from the surreal Myzmta river, Ahaan was staring down a single-hued landscape – a pure, pristine, psychedelic, nauseating , angelic white. Somewhere near the quiet town of Krasnaya Polyana , literally translating to ‘Beautiful Glade’ , Ahaan was sitting in a Kazan Ansat helicopter amidst the beautifully breathtaking Caucasus
The tranquil stillness of the snow-clad peaks was somehow being violated by harsh sounds emanating from the rotor of the helicopter. Ahaan was covered from top to toe, in a multi-layered snow-suit fit for sub-zero temperatures, anti-reflective goggles to protect his eyes from the sheer whiteness of the snow, ski gloves and neck warmers. He carried with him a small backpack to hold bare essentials. In his hands, he held on loosely to his elegant snow ski poles, while his feet were married to a set of blood-red, A shaped, twin-tip alpine skiis. He had barely moved his feet in a long ,long time and was already starting to feel a bit of numbness in his toes. But the excitement that ran down his spine from time to time made him ignore these minor obstacles… He was about to experience the ride of his life!
The weather control station at Krasnaya Polyana had just sent a radio message to the pilot, warning them of possible avalanche conditions in the next few hours. The decision was his, and Ahaan knew at the bottom of his heart that nothing was going to stop him from fulfilling his one dream. As they approached a relatively barren spot on the mountains with nothing but white snow visible as far as the eye could see, Ahaan gestured to the pilot to make the maneuver. As the pilot slowly brought the Kazan Ansat to a standstill position , slowly hovering around the target area, Ahaan closed his eyes for one last time, said a little heartfelt prayer, and jumped.
The fall from the helicopter, hung at height of 100 feet from the snow, to the surprisingly rock-like surface of the mountains, was unexpectedly harsh. Ahaan thought he was going to plunge face-first into the fast-approaching surface of the slope, he searched frantically to gain control over his snow ski poles, and within the few seconds he had, somehow managed to gain composure and dig them into the snow just in time. The split second effort managed to steady him on the slippery surface, his Elan skis now somewhat balanced on the slope, as he began to rush down the mountains at speeds of more than a 100 kms / hr.
As he began feeling the cold winds lash on his body and face at that breakneck speed, his mind slowly started to bask in the beauty of it all. Through his protective goggles, his eyes could feel the sheer vastness , emptiness and lonesomeness that the snow-clad slopes offered. The Sea of Tranquility should be here, and not on the moon, he managed to squeeze out a thought from his preoccupied mind. As he twisted and turned down the slopes, beginning to master the moves, for the first time he could see a thick foliage of almost blackish birch trees approaching him at a distance of about a 100 feet. He realized he was heading straight for them and this speed, had only a few seconds to make a maneuver to circle around them. He twisted his snow ski poles slightly to the right and dug them deep into the snow, slowly working his way into a projectile that would make him miss the trees and ski past them. All he remembered after that was the brush of pointed ice-cold leaves against his neck, as he barely glided past the trees.
He had made it almost to the bottom of the slope, now at just a 1000 feet from the ground. As he was about to make a maneuver to put a slow brake on his seemingly unstoppable downfall, he heard a muted explosion in the far background. Managing to throw a fleeting glance behind him, his awe-struck eyes caught a glimpse of a humungous expanse of piled-up snow hurtling down the mountains at a speed much faster than him…. The warning from the weather control station had not been a false alarm… it was an impending avalanche!!
Ahaan’s heart skipped a beat. His dream was over….
Flat no 103 B, Oberoi towers, Kandivili East, Mumbai , India , Feb 5 2010, 7:50 am
Mr. Ram Dixit’s heart skipped a bit, but as he woke up from his deep sleep and induced dream, he had the broadest smile of contentment on his lips .He had made it to one of the best places to heliski in the world and he didn’t really care if he was saved from the avalanche!
Mr . Dixit took a moment to savour the journey again, buttoned a few buttons that had become undone during his sleep, ran an unsteady hand through his hair and called for his wife …. ‘ Seema, where are my crutches??’
Mr. Ram Dixit was 38 years old, a middle aged man of failing health ,and had lost both his legs in a recent car accident.
Headquarters of DreamWorks Inc Ltd, Pune, India , Feb 5 2010, 7:55 am
A tall, well-built , muscular 27 yr old man was being awakened by his father . ‘Wake up my son, mission’s over’ ! , whispered a reassuring voice into the man’s ear.
Ahaan was still lost in the never-ending vastness of the white snow, but the voice made his subconscious mind jerk back into reality… he had finally undertaken his first real mission … he had finally fulfilled his father’s unwavering desire…. Finally, he was a part of DreamWorks Inc.
It was in the summer of 2005 that his father, Mr. Ray, a distinguished man in the international scientists fraternity, had founded Dreamworks Inc. In it , were a handpicked few, who belonged to race of supremely gifted individuals - those who had the ability to penetrate into people's dreams and change the course of their dreams - help them be whoever they wanted to be, help them achieve things otherwise impossible in their real lives, help them live a life they always wanted to live.
Ahaan and his father belonged to this special race of chosen beings - 'The Dreamers' - as they chose to call themselves.
It had been 5 long years since Ahaan was first incepted into DreamWorks Inc. Ahaan still remembered the heart warming words that his father said to him on his first day of inception - 'Ahaan, my dear child, do remember one thing. We are not just workers here at DreamWorks Inc- we are a chosen race of extremely special people to have been given the responsibility of keeping the threads of humanity alive. We work to keep the social fabric of this society firmly woven with good values and good people. Our work not only gives many a person a reason to smile, but sometimes, it may also give him a reason to continue living'
Now, his father said quietly to him, 'Do you know Ahaan? Mr. Dixit was so frustrated with his state of ill health that he was planning to return the most precious gift that God gave him - his life. But now , because of what we have been possible to achieve today, his choice is to use that gift for as long as possible'.
Ahaan simply smiled, as the words said 5 long years back, kept echoing in his mind.
Chiyoda City, Tokyo , Japan March 10 2010, 6 55 am
Asako Ikeda meekishly smiles in her sleep, as she fulfils her fantasy of training to be a traditional Geisha.
Novi Grad, Sarajevo, Bosnia May 21 2010, 7 15 am
Branko Bitorajac, a Bosnian war veteran wakes up with mixed feelings, as he has just single handedly destroyed a 250-strong unit of Serb forces, much like a video game hero.
Palais Bourbon, Paris , France June 1 2010 , 6 am
Rene Tatou, a beautiful girl in her mid twenties, wakes up to a beautiful morning, having just attended an unveiling of her famous portraits in the Sully wing of the Louvre museum. Her 'Dream of Angels' is set right next to the 'Mona Lisa'. Good morning, Leonardo.
Southhall, London, United Kingdom , June 15 2010 , 6 10 am
Rajtej Singh, the son of an illegal immigrant from Jalandhar in India, is still swinging his arms in his sleep, having just won an international cricket match against Australia by hitting a sixer of the last ball of a Brett Lee over!
Temeke, Dar es Salaam. Tanzania, July 11 2010 8 am
Abasi Malokotela, a member of the native Lambya tribe, shifts uncomfortably in his sleep, having just delivered a lecture on Chaos Theory in a room full of enthusiastic students at the Princeton university.
Somewhere across the offices of DreamWorks Inc all over the globe, five young 'Dreamers' let a smile of pure satisfaction swipe their faces.
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