We see Mani sitting on a bench in a park. He's wearing casual jeans and a T-shirt. He’s looking around and is bored. He gets up and starts walking around. There are hardly any people in the park and it is the peak of summer. He pulls at his sweaty T-shirt and wipes the sweat off his brow. He sees a squirrel near the bottom of the tree. He walks towards it and the squirrel runs away. He takes out his phone and approaches the squirrel slowly from behind. He opens his camera app and gets the squirrel in the frame. He frames the shot with the unaware squirrel in it. The squirrel doesn’t move. He snaps a photograph and looks at it. He has an unamused, unimpressed expression on his face. (Change squirrel to bird?)
He picks up a twig. He zooms into the squirrel and sets the focus such that it would be ready to freeze motion. Inching closer to the squirrel, he hits the part of the tree right below the squirrel with a twig. The squirrel jumps from its place and moves around on the tree. Mani takes multiple photographs, zooming into the squirrel, and capturing every detail. He puts his camera in his pocket, walks away and out of the park. He has a smile on his face.
—-
The scene starts with Mani dressed in completely different clothes. He’s wearing a suit and has a glass of wine in his hand. He’s talking to two women.
Mani: Yeah, I’ve always loved nature and animals and insects. When I was a kid, whenever we used to go to weddings, I’d always be the kid who was near the bushes, trying to find the grasshoppers.
Mani laughs and so do the other two girls
Mani: You’ll have to excuse me just a moment.
Mani walks towards a balcony door and steps outside. We see the room they were all in. the camera moves past several hundred photographs framed on the walls with captions underneath them. The camera goes over specific wildlife photographs. Animals in exquisite poses and performing vivid actions. a crocodile with its jaw open. A bird screaming in a horrific way. Scorpions, monkeys, and dogs.
We cut to Mani on the balcony, lighting a cigarette and looking into the distance. He sees a flock of birds flying in the sky, as the sun sets.
—-
A much younger Mani is walking around the house with a cricket bat in his hand. He is about 14 years old and is trying to find a cricket ball.
Mani: Ma! Ball kidhar hai?
Mother: Aapne hi rakhi thi. Mujhe nahi pata.
Mani drops the bat and looks in the corners of the room. He opens the balcony door and walks outside. He remembered bouncing the ball on the balcony last. He looks around for the ball.
Suddenly, a pigeon comes and sits on the balcony ledge. It has a pink boil on its head. Like a big pimple. Its beak is oddly shaped and its head is tilted. It looks at Mani.
Mani notices the pigeon. He stomps his foot and moves his hand. The bird doesn’t move. Mani moves closer to the bird.
Mani: Phurrr
The bird starts flapping its wings. It flies into the balcony and towards Mani. Mani ducks his head and moves back. He lets out a scream. The bird flies away towards the trees.
—-
The setting is an apartment. A girl, Rohini, around Mani’s age, is sitting in a chair and reading a magazine. Mani opens the door and comes in, panting.
Rohini: What happened?
Mani: Nothing. I don’t know man.
Rohini: Sit down, sit down. Calm down. Tell me.
Mani: Fuck. I’ve committed a sin.
Rohini: What happened?
Mani: Okay...okay so I was just walking in the park and I saw two squirrels. As soon as I entered the started moving around. One ran away into some path I could not follow. The other one was heading towards the tree was in the middle of the field. I thought “Ha it can’t go anywhere now.” It climbed the tree and I followed it with my slow-motion camera. I don't know Rohini. I reckoned that it would get scared of me and it would jump or do something. But it was on top of the tree and nothing was happening. So I kicked the tree and the squirrel almost fell and then I kicked it harder and it flew from the tree to the ground. It didn't fly, it fell. It fell on the ground and then it ran away. I shouldn’t have done that man. I would’ve hated it if someone had done that to me.
—-
Mani is walking on the street, on his way to the large park. He’s wearing a loose shirt and expensive jeans. His head turns to see a man raising his hand to scare his dog and shouting, “Do it one more time and you’ve had it.” Then petting it sweetly. Mani grins to himself and keeps walking.
He walks through a revolving entrance gate, made to keep the dogs outside it seems. The park is filled with people from the neighborhood this time. Mani follows the walking path into the park. Reaching the middle of the huge park, he walks off the path and towards the largest tree in the park. The grass gets darker as he walks towards the tree. He’s a little jittery as he approaches the tree, with dozens of squirrels on its numerous branches. He lies down under the tree and looks into the distance at people on the walking path. He closes his eyes.
The grass pokes under his ear, much more discomforting than his cotton pillows. His body stops being restless. He opens his hands apart and spreads them next to his body. He feels a little weight on his right arm. As if something light has fallen on it. He opens his eyes. There’s a squirrel sitting on his arm, staring him in the eyes.