Our story is the final chapter in the long-running battle for supremacy between good and evil and is based in the clandestine media school, The School of Plagiarism and Bitchcraft. Our protagonists are final year media students there and are forever embroiled in a war to either become a Jhola Journalist (those who supposedly uphold truth) or a Suspect Stinger (those who supposedly uphold everything but the truth).
Starring:
Hari Puttar: Our hero, an orphan who lost his parents rather tragically, who is basically honest but has a talent for lying that often forces him to misquote people in his stories and 'break' false news... for the greater good. He also has a glad eye for ladies and a very dark, secret...He also has a weird birthmark, a huge, bright, red bump (aloo) on his right temple.
Raman Wadhwani: Hari's best friend and sidekick. He too has a glad eye for the ladies... but they are always way older than him.
Harmanpreet 'Harmi' Kaur: She is a girl and is a friend to Hari and Raman. She is very intelligent, but unfortunately, her intelligence is only restricted to understanding gossip about celebrities.
Mini Wadhwani: Raman's sister and Harmanpreet's nemesis. Mini is an aspiring model and thinks that looking good in a situation is the most important thing.
Bumble Bore: Is the Head Of Department and a committed bachelor who is only too ready to commit if he could find a lady to marry. He upholds honest journalism and has done One Brilliant breaking story in his career - that no one has in fact read - and ever since, has only spoken about That Big Story that he did.
Val Thockeray: Our villain, the ultimate media magnate who wants to create the ultimate TV channel that will relay whatever he wants to relay. He has no ethics (of course!) and believes, "Either get the story by hook or crook, or create the story by hook or crook." He is personally responsible for slandering many Important People and spoiling their lives by printing lies about them. Now he wants to recruit all top students from SPB and use the Power of the Press to change things to his ways.
Bhoot Uncle: He is Hari's long-dead godfather and often appears to him as the friendly ghost who advises him on all things sundry. When he was alive, he was an ace crime reporter, till he was framed in some false sting operations and had since been named, 'Seriously Black' by the press.
The Story So Far
Hari had been peacefully studying with his friends and passing one semester after another when a nasty family secret was finally revealed to him.
For long Hari had lived under the belief that he had lost his parents in a fire. The story was that Hari's father was a chain smoker and one day, carelessly, had flicked a still-burning cigarette and had burnt down his house. His wife, Hari's mother, was also inside the house with Hari when the accident had happened. People say that Hari's mother, in a desperate attempt to save him, had chucked the infant out of the window, and since he had landed on his head, Hari has had the bump since.
However, just at the beginning of his last semester, Hari had learnt that his parents had not died in an accident. And that in fact it was evil media magnate, Val Thockeray who had burnt down his house and killed his parents. Val Thockeray had apparently killed Hari's parents because they were planning a big expose on him. Now, Hari wants revenge - by clearing his father's name and proving that Val Thockeray was the murderer - and has enrolled his best friends to help as well.
The Climax
Bumble Bore, who was Hari's HOD had warned him, that media intelligence said that if Hari took on VT openly, only one of them would survive. Since Thockeray had a lot of clout in the media, it was either going to be the end of Thockeray or the end of whoever was challenging him.
After much chasing and mobilizing forces – all those who wanted the end of Thockeray had come under the aegis of an anti-Thockeray organization called the Power of the Press (POP). As part of their plan to catch Thockeray red-handed, the POP had devised the ultimate plan: to catch Thockeray through a sting operation.
It had been known that the Puttar's – Hari's parents – had left the details about the Evidence against Thockeray somewhere and once Hari was to turn 18, that Evidence would come to him; and thus it would be Hari who would cause Thockeray's downfall. Ever since Thockeray had learnt of this, he had been trying to either get his hands on the Evidence or get Hari out of the way. Thockeray too had been trying to poach people from the POP and Hari's team to get to our hero.
Knowing Hari's preference for women, Thockeray had zeroed in on either Harmi or Mini to do his dirty job. So far, Thockeray had managed to have two private chats on instant messenger with Harmi and had even taken Mini out for some page three parties.
Tonight, it was the Biggest Party of the year and everyone, from the members of the POP, to the other press members and Thockeray and his minions were going to be there.
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The Scene
It was a regular party scene: Well-dressed people leaving saliva marks on each other's cheeks by way of greeting, women complimenting each other while simultaneously checking if the other was looking better and journalists talking about the stories they were working on. Of course no one was REALLY telling anyone what he or she were working on for fear that if it was anti-Thockeray story, the news might just reach the man in question.
Hari and his friends were also there, each on the lookout for Thockeray and his minions when someone suddenly screamed "Aaaaargh! Look, look, it's the Sign," and pointed towards the sky. Up there, in a puff of smoke was the sign that everyone had started associating with Big News – Thockeray's channel – a huge, yellow smiley, with a tongue sticking out at people. The appearance of that sign usually meant breaking news of a real bad kind... and since it Big News reporting, everyone knew that the news too would have been 'created' by the channel.
"Oh my god!" said someone else, "Wonder what's the breaking news today when we are all at the party?"
As if answering the question, Thockeray's voice was soon heard, amplified above all the music and chitchat. "Today is a big day for Big News, for we are announcing my heir to Big News, the young blood prince who will take this channel to the next level. The one who will replace me," announced the voice.
The words were chilling as it was known that megalomaniac Thockeray usually did not like to share his power. Also because he spoke of blood and replacement, people had an uncomfortable feeling that all was not being told.
"Before you waste your time speculating, let me announce," continued the voice, "My heir for Big News is the brightest youngster from SPB, Hari Puttar."
Of course there was shocked silence. From being the boy who would overthrow VT, how had this happened?
"You all must be wondering as to why have I chosen Hari," ased the voice and waited. Everyone waited too. "Well, are you'll wondering or what?" asked the voice.
In unison a "Yes" rose from the crowd.
"The reason I have chosen Hari for my heir is because of this..." said the voice and as it finished, projectors suddenly whirred and huge, mounted screens came alive.
There was an ongoing movie on the screen: There was Hari hiding behind a wall with a camcorder taping someone clandestinely and looking very happy about it. A close-up revealed that Hari was taping Raman snogging... the school nurse!
A gasp arose from the crowd: the nurse was 12 years older to Raman and many people recognized the video as the forward many had received in their emails some weeks back. The video then showed how this tape had 'mysteriously' been leaked on to the Internet.
It was clear that it was in fact Hari who had leaked the tape and the news to the press. The nurse had been dismissed and Raman had suffered mild embarrassment.
Now however, Raman was looking at Hari murderously and Hari was looking smug. "Since Hari has shown that he will go to any lengths to get a story, he is the rightful heir to Big News," Thockeray continued and suddenly people realized that the man was now standing on the stage.
"I now invite Hari to come up on stage and share with us two more videos that will reveal the truth behind certain very important people at the School of Plagiarism and Bithcraft," said Thockeray with a flourish, motioning for Hari to join him on stage.
Hari walked up and took the projector controls from Thockerays hands, "Thankyou Val," said Hari, "Long have I waited for this moment to show that journalism is not dead. Here is a video that I made at the risk of being thrown out from school. The truth about our Head of Department, Bumble Bore..."
Another collective gasp rose from the crowd and the screens now showed Bumble Bore carefully shaving off his once-flowing beard and whistling, "Mojo rising" to himself.
As Bumble Bore shaved, he kept looking at a picture on the right side of his shaving mirror and spraying himself with something. A close-up showed that he was spraying the ground breaking deodorant, Sax Effect, that was supposed to attract women. The entire party was in shock: sworn bachelor Bumble Bore was trying to attract chicks! But who was he interested in? Another close-up showed that the picture on the right was that of the... school nurse!
Raman gasped and looked at Bumble Bore, who looked at Raman accusatorily and said, "I didn't know she liked boys!" Val Thockeray was holding his stomach and laughing. The crowd however was silent... because Hari was looking at Thockeray with a wild look.
"If you think that video was everything, here is the REAL stuff..." announced Hari, still looking at VT and pressed the play button on the remote.
On the screens were images of Val Thockeray in his pyjamas and yellow tee shirt with Scooby Doo on it. Thockeray was pacing around what looked like a bedroom – you really couldn't make out with all the Barbie centerfolds plastered on the walls – and was talking into a Dictaphone.
"I have my own news channel, but no one puts me on it. I am always creating news about other people. All my life I was a mediocre journalist and now, even when I have my own channel, I am not in the news, others are. I have to do something about it."
As the video rolled further, the screens showed VT chucking the Dictaphone at the wall, smashing it to pieces and begin to start crying. "People don't like me," cried VT, blowing his nose into pink tissues... "I am so lonely."
And as everyone in the party watched shocked, a woman entered the looks-like-bedroom wearing a nurse's dress... It was the school nurse!
"Here Vallu, stop crying now. When will you grow up to be a man? Everyone is scared of you and here you are crying about loneliness. It is lonely at the top..." she said admonishing VT.
"But why don't women like me?" cried Val, "I have everything!"
"You ALSO wet your bed Val... as a grown man. No woman likes that," replied the nurse. With that the video came to an end.
"And that, ladies and gentlemen," said Hari, "Is the truth about the fearsome Val Thockeray: he wets his bed."
And as Val Thockeray stood there shocked, two women walked up on stage. One, was the school nurse and the other... was the school nurse! Yet another collective gasp went up from the crowds: "But we thought there was only one nurse!" said someone and as they said it, both the nurses took off the wigs they were wearing. It was Mini and Harmi!
And as everyone cheered, a third school nurse walked up on stage, her arm linked to Raman's. "Hari did not tape us clandestinely. I had to resign because Bumble Bore had been hitting on me rather blatantly ever since he shaved off his beard.
However, since I had no other source of income, the boys decided to help me out and we made that snogging tape and put up subscription for those who wanted to see it," said the School Nurse, "Hari is such a noble boy!"
And with that, Val Thockeray could never show his face in the media again, Hari was not called a liar anymore, Raman got his older woman and Bumble Bore decided to grow back his beard (he read somewhere that since all men were losing hair, women preferred a gentleman to have hair).
As for Mini and Harmi, after seeing that they could really work well as a team, they decided to start working together and even moved in with each other. And oh, Hari took over Big News and everyone lived happily, ever after.
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