Costal Golden Mine

The promise

1982,

A novelist was struggling to come up with a new idea for her book after a long creative dry spell. She sat in her room, frustrated, her brain refusing to cooperate. Frustration got the best of her, and she began to scream in a manner akin to a creature deprived of sustenance.

"Ahh!! Why can't I think of anything? Am I stupid?"

Startled by the commotion, Rashmi's father entered her room. He found chaos, with crumpled papers strewn across the floor, a soiled bedsheet, and Rashmi looking disheveled.

"Hey, what's going on, my dear daughter? I heard the screams. Is everything alright?"

"Papa, I just can't seem to write a new novel."

"Oh, I see. You're a talented writer, not the best, but better than many. Have confidence; you'll find an idea."

"Papa, I've been trying for a month and still haven't started."

"Hmm, remember when you went to France to write about Western culture?"

"Yes, but why bring that up now?"

"You went to write in France; perhaps you should explore different parts of India."

"That's a good idea, papa. Where should I go?"

"You can go anywhere, but I recommend Mangalore, Karnataka. Visit my old friend Jai Prakash and ask him about CGM."

After the conversation, Rashmi booked a flight to Mangalore for herself and her writing assistant and began packing.

She arrived in Mangalore and located the village her father had mentioned. The village appeared vastly different from her home, lacking the greenery she was accustomed to. It seemed barren and scarred by violence.

Rashmi inquired with the locals about Jai and easily found him, a well-known figure in the village. Jai's house was still under construction, resembling a haunted abode. She knocked, and a man answered without questions, directing her to Jai.

Jai was an old, frail man.

"Who are you, young lady?"

"I'm Rashmi, a writer."

"I've heard that name before. Are you... Raju's daughter?"

"Yes, he mentioned you. He's your friend."

"Yes, it's been a while. Is Raju doing well?"

"Yes, he's fine."

"So, why are you here?"

"My father sent me, saying you have something special for me."

"What's that?"

"He mentioned a story, the story of CGM."

Jai's eyes filled with tears, but he smiled slightly to hide them.

"What do you want to know about CGM?"

"Everything you can tell me."

"This story is about a person who changed many lives, a person who became a villain in his mother's eyes—the tale of CGM, the story of Vazeer."

Jai, Rashmi, and her assistant sipped coffee, and Jai began the story.

In the story,

1950,

A man named Washi discovered a gold deposit in a forest near the Mangalore coast. He leased the land for 99 years and built an empire called CGM. Around the same time, a boy named Vishwa Mitra Yadav was born in Gurgaon.

His father was of modest means, and his mother, Shanti, was just 16 years old. They lived in a slum, struggling to make ends meet. Shanti suffered from tuberculosis, but their poverty prevented her from receiving proper medical care.

Ten years later, 1960

(Drama writing)

In a government hospital

Vishwa: Here's the money I managed to gather.

Nurse: I'm sorry, young man, but it's still not enough for your mother's operation.

Vishwa: Ahh!

Vishwa rushed to his mother's side, lying on the hospital floor.

Vishwa: Ma (mother), I'll find more money for your treatment.

Shanti: It's too late for me. I know I won't survive much longer. People say it's hard to live without money, but no one talks about how hard it is to die without it. Promise me, when I'm gone, you'll become the richest man in this cruel world. Promise your mother.

Vishwa: I promise, Ma.

In CGM,

Washi: Due to my illness, I must appoint a new leader for CGM.

Aka: Father, please tell me who it is.

Washi: (Cough) It's you, my son, Aka. Kuraku will not interfere with your rule and will only assume leadership of CGM when you pass away.

Kuraku: As you wish, father.

Kuraku left CGM after Aka's coronation.