Paddy fields

written by
Namith Sampath Thella
FADE IN:
A FULLY INTACT ACE OF SPADES
Left untouched on a table laid with dust not visible to the
naked eye.
CUT TO:

INT. BEDROOM - MORNING

A procrastinating Arjun wakes up to a phone call. He picks it
up in the state of euphoria he is in.
ARJUN
Hello?
ARJUN'S MOTHER (V.O.)
(crying)
Arjun ekkada unnavu?
Arjun's MOTHER happens to be on the verge of a breakdown. His
face brightens up and he pushes himself off his bed.
ARJUN
Intlo? Emaindi?
ARJUN'S MOTHER (V.O.)
Vinod kanapadakle. Ninna night
bayatiki potha ani raaledu. Vaadu
phone kuda switch off ostundi.
ARJUN
Enti?
He glances at the clock.
ARJUN (CONT'D)
Office pani chala unnatundi mummy.
ARJUN'S MOTHER
Vaadu job poyindi kaabatte intiki
ochindu monna.
ARJUN
(surprised)
Enti?
ARJUN'S MOTHER
Avnu.
 2.

ARJUN
Emaina friends deggara veluntad.
Amit ki call chesava?
ARJUN'S MOTHER
Vaadu phone ettakle. Okasari try
chey evarikaina.
ARJUN
Sare aagu. Nenu malla chesta.
He hangs up and rushes into the kitchen as he scrolls through
a bunch of contacts and calls SHRUTHI up.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
SHRUTHI
Arjun cheppu?
ARJUN
Hey Shruthi. Ela unnav?
SHRUTHI
I'm doing good.
ARJUN
Ummm Vinod unnada neethone?
SHRUTHI
Vinod aa? Ledu.
ARJUN
Did he crash at your place last
night?
SHRUTHI
What?
ARJUN
Ninnat kelli kanpadakle.
SHRUTHI
Arjun, we broke up a week ago.
Arjun's eyes widen.
ARJUN
What?
SHRUTHI
Yeah.
 3.

ARJUN
(perplexed)
Enduku?
SHRUTHI
Em chepali? Too much aypoyindi. It
was a mess.
ARJUN
Oh my God.
SHRUTHI
I'm sorry. I have to go to work
now. I just hope you find him. I'm
so sorry.
Arjun lowers his phone and immediately calls his colleague
ANAND.
ARJUN
Hey? Iyala meeting attend kaalenu.
Why don't you take over?
ANAND
Emaindi?
ARJUN
I'm not feeling well. I'll drop an
email to the manager as well.
ANAND
Alright. I'll take care. Don't
worry.
ARJUN
Thanks man. Bye.
He hangs up and calls his mother.
ARJUN (CONT'D)
Mummy?
ARJUN'S MOTHER
Cheppu ra? Dorikada?
He puts on his pants and buttons his shirt.
ARJUN
Naaku ekkada unnado telsu. Nuv
tension padaku. Nen malla call
chesta.
 4.

INT. CAR - CONTINUOUS

A blanket of clouds as white as a sea gull covers the sky.
A WHITE K10
blazes through the damp air as it grazes the asphalt amidst a
slight drizzle. Arjun is furious with his wheel;
And with the pedal that drives the car forward.
CUT TO:

EXT. HILLTOP - MOMENTS LATER

Arjun slowly makes his way onto the hilltop and parks the
car. He slowly inches his way onto the edge of a precipice;
Approaches a calm VINOD sitting on the rock and sits beside
him.
ARJUN
Ediki ellinav ninna?
VINOD
Idike ochinde.
ARJUN
Etlochinav? Auto aa leda mee dostul
dimpira?
Vinod does not answer. Arjun frowns.
ARJUN (CONT'D)
Em chestund aa Amit gaadu? Phone
kuda ettakle. Roju thaagudu
thirugudu thappa em cheyara nee
dostlu?
Vinod sighs as he slowly takes out a card deck from his
pocket and takes out a card.
He tears it and throws it into a small dug up hole to the
left.
VINOD
Deentho okate card migilindi.
Arjun is frozen and does not utter a word.
VINOD (CONT'D)
Em cheyali?
 5.

He gets up and offers him a hand.

ARJUN
Em kaadu. First aithe podam pada
intiki.

Vinod does not budge.

ARJUN (CONT'D)
Pada.

INT. CAR - DUSK

Vinod rests his head against the window while Arjun pedals
the car into the horizon.

INT. DINING ROOM - NIGHT

A chilly night sends wind and thunderclaps down Vinod's
dining room windows as they struggle to keep the sound down.
Arjun dives into his plate as he feasts on a sumptuous meal
cooked yesterday while Vinod toys with the final card.
ARJUN
Adi pakkana petti thinu first.
He does not listen. Arjun stares at him for a while;
He then carefully places it aside.
ARJUN (CONT'D)
Shruthi ki call chesinde. Emaindi?
Vinod does not budge.
ARJUN (CONT'D)
Frustration antha job meeda
theesinattu unnav. Sare le kaani
mummy ki call chesi cheppu safe
gaane unnav ani.
VINOD
Nuvve chey.
ARJUN
Ippud nuv cheste emaithadi?
Vinod does not answer.
ARJUN (CONT'D)
Emaindi? Asal-
 6.

VINOD
Chinappud okasari school lo
teacher marks eyyakle ani nene
marklu icchikuntunde answer sheet
lo. Dorikanu. Intla telisipoyindi.
Peddaga aypoyindi.
Arjun stops chewing on the chicken's leg.
VINOD (CONT'D)
Baada paddaru andaru. Daddy aithe
main. Oka card chinchanu. Naa 13th
card anukunta. Lesson ento telsa?
Mosam cheyodu.
Arjun backs off from the table and inhales. A mild pause
ensues.
ARJUN
Asal nee problem enti?
VINOD
Emaindi? Nenem anna?
ARJUN
Arrey naak asal maatlaadaalani ledu
daani gurinchi. Eppud chushna ade
theestav? Irritate cheyaku nannu.
VINOD
Ade le thappu cheste enduk
oppukuntaru chesaru ani?
ARJUN
Enti? Em annav?
VINOD
Nenem anna? Nijame cheptuna kada.
Arjun gets up from the table and pulls the chair in front of
him.
ARJUN
Nuv appud oppukunav. Blame cheyak.
Nuv aaputhe aaputunde kaani aapale.
VINOD
Naakem telsu? Nen chinapilodne
appud.
ARJUN
Mari daddy ki poi chepeste
aipotunde ga anna ila chesad ani?
 7.

VINOD
Emo.
ARJUN
Emo kaadu. Kinda kaaripoyindi
kaabatti em chepale.
Vinod gets furious as Arjun stands up.
VINOD
Asal odilesunte aypoyedi. Okate
saari motham leshipoyinde.
Arjun balls up his fist and comes closer to him.
VINOD (CONT'D)
Asal inti dabbul etla koteyabuddi
ayyindi neeku?
Arjun does not answer.
VINOD (CONT'D)
Emaithadi appu vaalu oste varam
varam ki? Extra time adigi manage
chestunde.
He could feel his anger through his face.
VINOD (CONT'D)
Le. Manaki hero avvali ani unde.
Pakkaga gamble cheyalisinde motham
inti paisal thoni. Motham.
ARJUN
Mari daan tarvata card chinchi
kathal paddav ga naatho maatlaada
ani? Ippud enduk ochi thintunav
eeda?
Vinod does not reply and neither does he maintain eye
contact.
ARJUN (CONT'D)
Anthunte rondu kaala meeda nilabadi
panulu chey. Chusko family ni.
Eppudu aadon lekka edavak. Ardam
ayyinda?
Vinod looks him in the eye.
VINOD
You're just a selfish piece of
shit. Nuv asal eppud chuskunav
family ni aina?
 8.

Vinod places the hand he served morsels with on the card;

ARJUN
First nuv jaldi thinesi bayatiki
nadu.
VINOD
Asal etla antha free ga
bathukutunav em thappu cheyale
anukunta?
ARJUN
Nadu be nadu thinte thinu leda
bayatiki nadu.

Vinod crushes the card and leaves the house immediately.

ARJUN (CONT'D)
Nen ista neek full marks overaction
kosam.
Arjun opens his wardrobe and takes out a small plastic
container. He scrutinises the pieces of a card inside and
later throws it in the dustbin.
FADE IN:

TORN PIECES OF ACE OF SPADES

All scattered in a haphazard manner on a dust ridden table.
CUT TO:

INT. BATHROOM - DAY

Arjun takes a shower as he contemplates about the altercation
the day before.

INT. BALCONY - CONTINUOUS

Arjun ships his dry clothes into a basket when he gets a call
from his uncle ARAVIND.
ARJUN
Chep babai? Inni rojul gurthe
raale?
 9.

ARAVIND
Em led le ra oorlo polam pani baaga
ekkuva aipoyindi. Anduke call
chesa.
Arjun sighs.
ARJUN
Babai naaku office pani baaga undi.
Vinod ostadu emo.
ARAVIND
Vaadiki ontlo baaled anta. Nuvve
ra. Sare na?
ARJUN
Sare babai.

EXT. FIELD - NOON

Arjun ploughs the paddy field using his uncle ARAVIND'S
tractor on a humid day.
Flies are regular visitors to a dung ridden place as they
wash their hands and legs after ploughing.
Arjun stops and looks at his uncle.
ARAVIND
Ela unnadu Vinod? Mummy cheptundi
baaga baadapadthundu ani?
ARJUN
Emo babai.
ARAVIND
Inka aa pattilu chinchutunada?
Arjun smirks.
ARAVIND (CONT'D)
Ayna meeru thappul cheyodane aa
yaabai rondu cardlu ichadu appudu.
They head towards the mud road.
ARJUN
Ekkada saripoyayi babai? Okate
migilindi anta.

ARAVIND
Enti?
 10.

ARJUN
Avnu. Monna poi kurchunad malla aa
konda paina. Naak telsi anni
aipothe jeevethantham badapadthadu.
Arjun stares at the ground. They walk towards the fields.
ARAVIND
Enduku?
ARJUN
Ade maata meeda nilabadale ani.
ARAVIND
Heart attack kante mundu ainaki
entha baadano aa appulu valla.
Meeru unnaru ane balam ae ainaku
dhairyam ichindi.
Arjun looks at the fields and does not answer.
ARAVIND (CONT'D)
Aina meeru baagundali ane
korukuntadu. Baadapadali ani kaadu.
Aravind pats him on his shoulder.
ARJUN
Sare kaani, intha pani chepistunav
naathoni babai?
ARAVIND
Roju mem em chestunam mari?
ARJUN
Etla chestunavo endo.
ARAVIND
Maa deggara unnave ee polalu.
Chuskakapothe ela? Prematho
chuskunte manchiga perugutai.
Gaaliki vadileste paadaipothai.
Arjun goes back to his car and pulls down the sun visor when
a polaroid lands on his lap.
He scrutinises it for a minute and heads towards the hill.

EXT. HILLTOP - CONTINUOUS

Arjun rummages the precipice for torn pieces of cards. He
finds them in a hole and fishes them out into his cupped
hands.
 11.

He heads into the car and takes out some tape from the glove
box;
Lines them up back into shape;
Starts piecing them.

INT. CAR - DAWN

Arjun wakes up to a call from his colleague.
ARJUN
Yes Anand?
Arjun frowns and gets out of the car in desperation trying to
scout the place.
ARJUN (CONT'D)
Yes, I completely forgot. I'll send
you the details as soon as
possible. I'm so sorry.
He hops back into his car.

EXT. HIGHWAY - MOMENTS LATER

Arjun is left bamboozled behind the wheel when he finds his
brother face down on the asphalt on the other side of the
lane.
He parks the car, carries and places him on the backseat.

INT. HALL - NOON

Vinod wakes up on to the couch after what seemed to be six
hours. He looks around and heads towards the terrace.
He finds Arjun having a beer and grabs one from the ice
bucket.
VINOD
Ekkada unde nenu?
ARJUN
Konda deggarane. Malla naduchukuntu
poyava? Here.
Arjun then hands him the deck, freshly repaired. Vinod takes
out a card and notices the tape on all the rough edges.
 12.

ARJUN (CONT'D)
Ekkuva cardlu dorkale.
He smiles.
VINOD
Nen appud nee gambling tarvata
chinchina ace of spades unda
padesava?
Arjun does not reply. Vinod smiles.
VINOD (CONT'D)
Em feel kaakapothe daani enduku
store cheskuntav?
Arjun faces him.
VINOD (CONT'D)
Aa plastic dabba chusanu nenu.
ARJUN
Nijangane nen appud thappu chesana?
VINOD
Nijangane cheppali ante naa deggara
daanki answer ledu.
Absolute silence follows.
VINOD (CONT'D)
Ace of spades. The death card.
Black Maria. Sword of Damocles.
Entha powerful card unte anni perlu
untai.
ARJUN
Death card antar ane telsu. Kotha
kotha perlanni nuvve pedtunav.
VINOD
Neekem telvad. Sword of Damocles is
accurate. Responsibility unte
tension untadi ani daani ardam.
Arjun turns and looks at the orange sky.
ARJUN
Eppud emaina help kaavali ante call
chey. Happy ga undu.
VINOD
Haa.
 13.

Vinod looks at the beer bottle.

VINOD (CONT'D)
Thanks for the beer. Guess you
aren't selfish anymore.
Arjun smiles as he raises his hand in a gesture.
ARJUN
Amit gaadni piluste piluvu. Aadne
drop cheyamanu alane ninnu.
VINOD
Pakka na? Aadu oste anni beerlu
lepestadu.
ARJUN
Nuvvu aadi thaagudu ki ee appud
full marks.
VINOD
Abba.
Arjun laughs.

INT. HALL - NIGHT

Arjun heads towards the fridge and pulls out snacks to munch
on. He sits on the table when;
A GROUP OF MAIDS
Surround him with lavish plates of sumptuous meals and wine.
They place them on the table and take away his snacks.
A few people emerge from behind and stare at him in contempt.
ARJUN'S DAD
Enters the hall and stands in front of him. Arjun is
speechless.
ARJUN
Daddy?
His father does not answer. He looks up and is left
paralysed.
A SWORD
Dangles over his head on a strand of horsehair.
 14.

One of the maids approaches him and gets down on a knee only
to hand over tape, a fresh cloth and a container in a golden
tray.
He takes it and spreads the cloth on the table and clears the
card shards. He puts the shards into place.
He zips out some tape;
FADE IN:
A BROKEN BUT INTACT ACE OF SPADES
lay in front of him as he stares deep into his broken past.

THE END