Rediscovering Empathy and Rekindling Hope
In 1989, at Chitrakoot Inter College, Mahendra, a Hindu, Yasin, a Muslim, and Vishal, a Christian became fast friends. Mahendra and Yasin shared a room because Yasin faced difficulties in renting one as he was a Muslim. In that shared room, they navigated the delicate frictions of difference. They learnt to live together despite differences in food habits and other things. At first, Mahendra, a strict vegetarian, was aghast that Yasin had cooked meat. Then he insisted that cooking meat was okay, but the kitchen had to be cleaned thoroughly afterwards. Slowly barriers melted, and Mahendra began eating eggs. After college, life swept them down separate paths. Decades rolled by, and as the friends drifted apart into the quiet routines of work and family, the outside world grew increasingly polarized. Mahendra started feeling guilty that he had not kept in touch with his close friend over the years. He wondered how his friend felt in this changing social landscape. Mahendra felt a restless...