Life in a Parallel Universe

This is not for all those who are identified as “artists” because I am going to talk about the other side that you might not know or might be scared to know. This is to those who know an artist either as a friend, a relative or maybe to those who live with one. I bet you all know at least one of a kind in your lifetime. If you don’t, then you should because that’s a hell lot of a ride that you wouldn’t want to miss.

Some artists are born with mood swings or to put it other way round, they live with an “emotional bomb” that might get triggered and explode anytime. For some, emotional instability and creativity come as a package. Correct me if I am wrong because some of those creative heads whom I have known and continue to be in touch, have proved me right at times. I am referring to those selected hardcore artists who fall under this category! - The ones who go crazy about films, paintings, literature, music, drama and so on…The ones who hallucinate, the ones who are struck with depression, the ones who have sleepless nights, the ones who are suicidal. I guess for some, it might be their hyper emotional hormones that trigger art because if they saw things like a normal person, then there is no art. But emotional state doesn't necessarily play a role to be an artist because there are a lot of cool humans out there who doesn't even know what I am talking about 

Artists are just more than human beings who don’t belong here. The way they think, their ideologies and the art itself, owes a lot more than what they get from the society. Moreover, they are amazing beings to hang around and be in touch with. But you know when this all turns out to be a mess? 

Let me take you through excerpts from the life stories of few who have been victims to this. I know a young girl who fell head over heels for an artist. For a girl who came straight out of a private school, literature, drama and politics seemed magical enough to win her heart. And yeah, to garnish it, you have some ‘rebel’ flakes and ‘I don’t care’ sauce. This defines him and this is not about the majority I swear. He walked her through the world of literature, she was pushed to write and was inspired as all that they spoke was about art, literature and his dream of cinema. She was mused and lost in that illusionary world which was far away from the reality. But love is powerful mahn! Powerful enough to push someone do things that they would have never done. 

So, let’s keep that part apart because we are diverting from the story line. So yeah, some artists! Things were just so normal and new with ups and downs, fights followed with hues and cries but then slowly it elevated to the next stage. As days passed, his emotional instability and mood swings started to seep into her, carving away her sunshine. Conversations from nowhere turned to be depressing, ending up in arguments and sleepless nights. Her bubble shrank. It became such that she had to cry every night before bed to get a good nap. Her dark circles had another story. Artists are awesome lovers and no one can ever love and be sincere like them. But that love was too much for her to take. 

There is another instance of a live-in couple where the guy was again an artist. He was so much in love with her that he was even ready to choke himself for her but he was unaware what his “so called caring” was indeed choking her.  He became a parasite living on her happiness. It was sucking out her peace of mind which she had by then forgotten. It became worse when she started to have panic attacks in sleep thinking that he might one day commit suicide because that's how their conversations went. The books that he read and the lines that he quoted on the walls, reaffirmed that. Days passed and she knew it wasn’t going towards a happy ending and before he did something, she ended her life leaving him alone to deal with his emotions.

Then comes the story of a mutually toxic artistic couple. She had said ‘no’ to many things that she loved to do just because his emotional state didn’t take it in the right way. He was blamed for her nicotine addiction. He was made the culprit for her lack of ideas for good stories. She was treated like shit by him. Both of them never acknowledged the effort that each one of them took to hold things together. Her priorities were never considered. She was asked to go against the norm and against everything which she couldn’t and was again a story for the blame game. Sometimes he would just go off like that, switching off his phone, to somewhere unknown and come back after weeks. Then she would also do the same game. Then it became worse and worse and they decided to cut that toxicity out and be free on their own.

Many stories...many lives! Such emotional rollercoaster rides aren't easy for a normal human being who is unaware of how to deal people with depression or mood swings. If you have experienced it, then you know. So, are all artists born like this? No, I don’t think so. This is the case of those different ones who are just different in their own way. They define their rules, their define their boundaries and they live in it, sometimes ignorant of what the other person is suffering from. But from then on for the girl, the aversion prevailed and her consciousness had that enigma everytime she met a new artist. But I do really wonder why do these beautiful souls shower others in their uncertain thoughts? We never know.

Artists are just wonderful to be in touch but for her, a few are to be observed and appreciated only from a distance. The trauma is that deep enough in her to keep distance from these emotional rides throughout her life.

**The characters and the story are imaginary but is brought to life by combining the real life experiences of many who have been through this.