Dr KattuKattu was hugged warmly by Dr Tripathy Tirumal. Together they had come a long way trying to make their dreams come true.
Dr Tripathy's son had opened yet another hospital in a village, which was well connected to their group of hospitals.
Serving people efficiently, wherever a branch existed, was a dream come true for them.
Junior Tripathy was indeed a gifted doctor mused Dr KattuKattu. How strange that the one child who seemed hopeless, among brilliant ones, turned out to be so noticeably successful.
Having been diagnosed with a brain disorder, as a child, this young doctor was not meant to achieve anything, but for the research paper that granted him extraordinary healing. This took Dr KattuKattu to the theatre waiting area all those years back.
Dr KattuKattu remembered reassuring an old man absentmindedly, while being hugged tightly by him, amid a crowd of grateful eyes, in a trance like state. He had just saved a patient whose life pushed down his financial status by a huge difference. Not to mention his career graph, which looked as though it was going for a toss.
At that time, Dr KattuKattu couldn't focus on what was happening because he had had no intention of saving this patient. When he had entered the theatre, he was dead sure that he was going to send out a dead patient.
So he wasn't really interested in the glory nor the emotional display of gratitude freely flowing towards him, then. In fact, Dr KattuKattu was, all that while, trying to figure out what had just happened.
He was definitely not interested in this patient's life nor did he understand why he himself went about saving him, despite a definite intention of doing otherwise. Especially, since he was offered everything he had long yearned for to make his long time dream come true, just for following that sinister intention through.
Having a record of hundred percent success, so far, gave him the luxury of allowing himself a deliberately orchestrated failure which would then be rewarded handsomely.
The multi-speciality hospital that he was promised, in return for being a little careless towards this one operation, would have saved lakhs of people eventually. Sigh!
Saving Dr Vella Muttu was no easy task. That was exactly why the patient's family sought to bring the patient, Dr Vellamuttu, to his care.
Dr. Vella Mutthu's family didn't know that their move to book appointment with the doctor who has never ever failed a surgery, would create a parallel move from Dr Vella Muttu's long term rival Dr Tripathy Tirumal.
Dr. Tripathy wanted some business plans approved for building a hospital and Dr Vella Muttu's friends were in the panel that got his proposal rejected. Not only that, since then every plan of his got rejected thanks to some objection raised by this set. The rivalry between Dr Vella Muttu and Dr Tripathy had started right from the college they studied together, and, it got intense by each passing day.
Working together at some of the village hospitals, Dr Tripathy and Dr KattuKattu became friends. One day while casually mentioning about an alumni of his college coming for treatment, Dr KattuKattu revealed his patients identify to Dr Tripathy. That's when Dr Tripathy mentioned his woes with this Doctor. That's how he convinced Dr KattuKattu that Dr Vella Muttu was single handedly responsible for sabotaging all his plans of building a chain of hospitals.
That's when they decided to start a hospital together, with zero investments expected from Dr KattuKattu. All funding would be arranged from Dr Tripathy's sources.
Together, they had decided that Dr Vella Muttu was a nuisance that they could do without.
All set to casually ignore his unique achievement of hundred percent success, albeit in a small village territory with ordinary people's surgery, Dr KattuKattu suddenly remembered the news he heard that day.
A young player was explaining that he would never make any relaxation for his opponent, even if his score had a margin that ensured his victory. He shared his losing tendency when he gave an inch also to the opponent in the field. He would start losing points from that moment onwards, never to recover.
For some reason, Dr KattuKattu decided he didn't want to give an inch to his opponent, Death. He gave his full support to team Life.
Coming out to meet the patient's relatives, didn't bring that joy. His heart wasn't rejoicing. His success was kind of usual, for him, but his temperament wasn't.
After a while he walked out from the hospital towards his car. That's when he got a tight grip from behind. He tried to shed it off wondering if it was a thief trying to bring down his finances a notch further.
"Thankyou so much. Thankyou so much you mule headed genius", muttered his friend. There were tears in his eyes. Dr. Tripathy was crying. He seemed shaken to the core.
That kind of brought Dr KattuKattu out of his trance. Perplexed he just waited for Dr. Tripathy to calm down.
"I was called by junior's physician today morning. He said there was a chance for my son to be healed. A paper submitted by Dr Vella Muttu has been accepted for research grant and they are looking for patients, exactly with my son's symptoms, who can be successfully treated. At first the name of the research genius didn't register and when it did, I literally shook like a leaf. I thought, I had killed my son's prospects with my own deviousness.
I tried reaching you, when I learnt that the deed was done. Then, just headed here straight. By that time, the operation was done and successful. I just slumped down.
When I realised that your hundred percent success still stands, trust me, my gratefulness surpassed that family's which you just attended to."
That was a long while ago. Today, casually referring to that day, Dr KattuKattu mentioned, " I have often asked myself what made me successful that day. You know, back then success was a norm and I expected no less. Today, I value success even when it keeps repeating. And, having had time to ponder over many things I wonder why the creator let me have that success that day too? That warning thought suddenly popping in my mind. Why was I given that help? My intentions weren't worth a grand support, given that I was privileged to be kind in the first place.
His friend replied, "Perhaps all the earlier sincere efforts paid forth your future efforts. And even for mine. He has cared well for junior. How easy it is to misjudge."
Thoughtfully he replied back, "That day I was selfish. I didn't want to lose. I didn't care about the implications for that family. Strangely it was selfishness that was brought forth in me, to prevent a selfish despicable deed."
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