A love lost, A life gained

Facing the music and the mob

I had a lot more to write this time but i forgot it all cuz i didn't write it down like an idiot but okay lets forget that. You know a thing occured to me recently, people have been terming him playing this last IPL on literally a leg and a prayer as dedication. And maybe people might disagree with me but it is not exactly that.

Contrary to his own philosophy, the way he treats his emotions is very complicated; there are layers to everything and he is (if I am not wrong) capable of managing contrasting emotions very well, by giving simple names to each box he puts his feelings, a simplicity almost childlike in its innocence. And he repays the only way he knows how to. Silent acts of service.

What I am trying to say is, Mahi's dedication was when he played India. When he wore that blue jersey. Weirdly enough, he doesn't play for the love of people, he seems to appreciate them but understands their fickle nature, but the love of land. Most people think people are the country, and that is true partly, but it is land moreso that binds us. There is deeprooted history in this land, the struggles and the blood of our forefathers, and after so much that we have lost and continue losing (like tolerance for one, I am a muslim, and the number of times somebody has made nasty comments towards me is...well the reason I hate social media), this land remains loyal and nurturing. Mahi's obsession with army and farming, I could be wrong but it is not so much the people that makes India India for him but the land itself. He is dedicated towards that, whether he gets something in return or not. There is love yes but not the kind most people have, it is a love crafted from single minded dedication towards an inanimate entity.

What we say in IPL2023 was familial love, not dedication. Chennai is his second home and he is definitely their favorite son (I mean come on, CSK has fans in all states for one man only lets be honest, I am not trying to attack any bigscreen heroes but come on-); he recieves a sort of scary amount of unconditional love from them. It doesn't matter if he is out on a duck or if he has just saved the match, the mad love for him is consistently there, and while he quite sensibly doesn't let it get to his head, it has to be overwhelming for him. He is just one human, an incredible human but a human nonetheless. He has security in this team, a trust that these fans won't break his heart in a way he doesn't have when playing for India and that is not because Chennai is dearer to him. Give him a choice and he would give his life for that blue jersey. I think he cries for them because of love, that he receives, that they receive, irrespective of what happens. Everyone doubted them, Chennai didn't. Ask Mahi and he would put country first and family second; that is the relation he has with Chennai. His family loves him, if he makes a sacrifice on their expense, like he did for Ziva's birth, they would understand. If he fails, they would still love him. Chennai has his back. What did he say again, that he wants to play one more season, just to somehow give a gift back to us. Mahi played on a leg and a prayer not in the name of some sort of dedication towards the sport, or the franchise. Man is practical if nothing else, he knows IPL is not really the real deal in cricket. He could very well sit out. He didn't play for India Cements' CSK, he played for Chennai's CSK. He played in the name of the love of those of his fans who would never turn their back on him. He played for this family, a nameless bond with millions of strangers, a bond stronger than the test of time. He is trying to serve us whatever he can, his random fan interaction with Icepack taped on his knee, his act of service. His own little love language, his act of service. 

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Sourav threw his door open around five in the evening. Rahul sighed and kept his book aside, Yuvi might have made it famous now, but the original "barges into his friend's rooms like the world is ending" was Sourav Ganguly. Though this time he did look worried enough to warrant the violent entry.