It was a Sunday afternoon. Slightly rainy, slightly sunny, meant for a big meal and a light snooze. But I was out, standing in a multiplex, clutching my caramel and cheese popcorn mix, worrying that I’ll work my way to the middle of the tub even before the doors opened for The Avengers: Age of Ultron.
“Do you know why the movie isn’t starting?” I turned around to see a young man wearing a Captain America shield tee. I told him what a plex attendant had said, that the show would start 15 minutes late.
“May be everything is running a bit late because of the aftershocks. They had to evacuate the hall once this morning, I heard,” he said, making no move to move away.
Oh wow, I’m being chatted up... in a movie hall, in Calcutta! He started talking about all the Marvel and DC adaptations being made.
“Yes, I’m waiting for Batman V Superman,” I said, and watched his eyes light up like a geekboy in a comic book store. “And Jared Leto’s look as The Joker in Suicide Squad has just been unveiled,” I added for fun. His expression changed from appreciation to awe.
He couldn’t not say it any longer, the question that was weighing on his mind as heavy as Thor’s hammer. “So you’ve come to watch The Avengers all by yourself?” You’re the coolest chick ever, is what he left unsaid but his face gave it away.
“Movies that I really look forward to, I always watch them alone. I am so happy to see a girl watching The Avengers on a Sunday afternoon, that too alone! Girls usually don’t like such stuff,” he was rambling now.
The doors finally opened and we walked to our separate seats. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, even though my lusty thoughts for Thor gave way to sweet love for Bruce Banner (The Hulk for the uninformed) and his conflicted conscience. And how I enjoyed Veronica! Tony Stark, you’re always my man!
After the show, a (by now) familiar voice asked: “So, how did you like it? Better than the first Avengers?” I said yes. The guy smiled and hesitated for two seconds. But seeing my silence, he said goodbye and melted into the crowd.
Full disclosure: I love superhero films but I have no idea about the comics and their backstories and rivalries. Rom coms and period dramas are my thing. But being in Team t2, all kinds of cool pop culture seep into you, I discovered.
This encounter left me thinking. We girls always assume boys like to date only hot, pretty girls. But may be what also gets them going is a girl who shares their passions — superheroes, futuristic fantasies, fast cars, FIFA, gadgets.... Remember how important it was for Ted in How I Met Your Mother that Stella like Star Wars? Or how Penny even gets the difference between Star Wars and Star Trek after she starts dating Leonard in The Big Bang Theory?
One might argue that you don’t see a man trying to enjoy things his woman likes, so why should a girl try to like geek stuff if she’s not into it herself? True, you can’t pretend to like something you hate or are indifferent to and hope to carry on with the lie. But it sure makes for a supercool opening conversation!
Pretty or geeky, what’s more important to a boy? Tell t2@abp.in
