Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Story Idea - The Missing Link

The silent bus travels on through stark country. Inside the bus is a motley crew - a young man who is losing his fiancee to some mystery disease, a man going to sort out a situation that is threatening the life of his brother, a woman trying to fix the broken marriage of her daughter unsuccessfully, a young man who has no money to pay his debt and is contemplating suicide (get the idea...all drama...perhaps I could make it more contemporary and address certain social issues). But the idea is that the ten-twelve people in the bus lurch and sway with the bus burdened by their own troubles. As the bus moves on, something or someone, a sight, a dialogue, a voice, a song, a face, a perfume, triggers a flashback in each of its inhabitants.

People are getting in and out as well until it suddenly becomes obvious to us that there is one person on the bus who can solve the other guys problem - like say one of them being a doctor with exclusive expertise in treating the dying fiancee etc etc. But no one is talking, sharing their problems and are merely sitting down in the silent bus. Help is next to them but they do not know, do not open their mouths and ask or share.

Into the silent ghostly and trouble ridden bus enters a happy chatter box (not sure if he is to be young, old but a chatter box nevertheless who is thick skinned to boot). He soon chats up one after another and loudly shares the information. The young lad figures out that the person who can save his fiancee appears to have got off at the last stop. Going in search of the one man who can save his fiancee the young man finds the doctor and his peculiar problem - and also that he can help the doctor. And so on and on, as the entire bus changes its route and goes about solving each others problems. All problems have solutions on board. And some problems as well (the villains).

And how about a twist in the end when the chatterbox exposes everybody's stories and helps them but he has a story that he has not revealed - one that reveals itself only when the last story is told!

Its a bit heavy but I see scope in the stories for sex, violence, romance, comedy and drama. Some women, a couple of villains in the group. Ah delicious possibilities!

6 comments:

Rajendra said...

Yes, immense possibilities...why are you giving away the ideas? Write the story.

ಭಾಶೇ said...

That's a movie material... rather a novel material.

Any plans to develop it to that level?

madhav said...

u spending too much time with ponni

Harimohan said...

Raja, I figured writing it is the big job. That's the next step. But right now I just want to see if I can keep coming up with as many of these little ideas as possible (just to keep my creative juices flowing) and develop them when their time comes (or when my time comes)!

Harimohan said...

It is more a movie-like story of course, they are easier to think up and twist and turn. At some point yes, I might develop it.

Harimohan said...

Madhav, When you drag Ponni into this I wonder - are the story ideas getting better or worse? And are you by any chance insinuating that Ponni's ideas are not classic stuff? You will break his heart man. And come to think of it, its been a while since he called me up and told me one of the stories that flashed in his rather too-fertile mind. But fear not my friend, I shall put up Ponni's stuff soon as I remember them, under a separate head and with total credit to him!