Terrace Cricket, by Vasant Jurru, Hyderabad
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Born in Jadcherla and raised and currently living in Hyderabad, Telangana, Vasant is a simple guy who loves cinema and believes in a live and let live policy.
I was into social distancing in my apartment complex even before COVID-19 happened. I was popular there until I quit my IT job to get into the film industry. People advised me against it, and that’s when I disappeared. For almost ten years, I interacted with no one in the complex.
But then came the pandemic. To beat the boredom of the lockdown, I went onto the terrace for a walk and bumped into couple of neighbors of my age. We started playing terrace cricket. In a matter of time, the numbers swelled with other boys and uncles.
During one game, the bat slipped from the batsman’s hand and fell onto the opposite building. A young girl from that building was mad at us for being reckless. Most of the guys in our group were taken aback that she was angry at us.
They made fun of her, saying things like, "Why is she overreacting?” and, “How dare she show attitude to us instead of just passing on the ball?”
They almost tried to pick an argument with her. It didn’t go well with me. I volunteered to get the bat. I went to the other building, apologized to her, and promised I’d do my best to make sure it wouldn’t happen again.
That incident changed everything for me. I realized so many men I was in touch with regularly were misogynists and bullies. I wasn't comfortable anymore being around the cricket group. I couldn't avoid them because I had no excuse to give, as there was no other place to go than staying home and showing up to cricket every evening. I felt trapped.
Then the flat president ordered us to stop playing cricket citing COVID-19 concerns, but his actual agenda was to protect his cable dish from getting blacked out because of our game. I was mad at him for twisting the situation to his personal benefit, yet I took it as an opportunity to get out.
So my experiment of renewed social interaction backfired, and I am back to social distancing. When I think about it now, I wish I had challenged the guys on their behavior right when it happened. I was trying to avoid a conflict, but sometimes conflict is better than staying silent.
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(This story was prepared for an “Imagine Another World” online storytelling workshop held October 14, 2020.)
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