Working title: Tea 4 2

Story line – flash of inspiration – new movie?
(email I sent January 30, 2009)

Dear Madam or Sir,
Hi Folks,

It was meant to be a joke when I promised a friend to deliver a rough story line for a brand new movie.
I did. And she liked it.
It was meant to be a joke when I said I could forward this mail to you. Puja said ‘go ahead’.
I do. I’m a good girl.
Please kindly keep in mind I’m not a native speaker so please forgive mistakes on spelling or grammar.
So, if you don’t like it, forget it. If you like it, it’s yours. Oh, and please,  don’t sue me. Thanks.

The hero

Soldier in Indian army
his father trucker from South India, driving tea trucks
so our hero is expert in two fields: driving trucks and making good tea

The heroine

Not an albino Indian but physiotherapist in London – and of his age

The heroine’s husband

Husband? Oh!
Yes, Niles

And Buck

named after Buck Rogers

Please note the white pants (cameo possible)

Rough story line:

Earthquake in Pakistan. Real big one, so each and every nation sends help.
India: Trucks loaded with blankets, tents, food, water, medication, clothes, toys for the kids, and a lot of other useful stuff (Peace, man!)
UK: Niles and Buck, heroic dog leader and his sniffer dog
Germany: good advice how to avoid earthquakes in future
Since the road is miserable and dangerous, India handpicked the country’s best drivers to deliver the goods. One of them is army officer … err … Rahul? Yes, Rahul will do.

And he manages not to lose his truck and arrives safely with all the blankets, tents, food, water, medication, clothes, toys for the kids and a lot of other useful stuff

Very tired he rests at a romantically fire side and meets Niles. He respects him a lot for being so brave and having such a nice dog and they come to talk. That moment romance starts. No, not what you think! You! Tsk tsk! Niles does, what British are doomed do to until the end of mankind. He picks a cheap tea bag from his pocket and drowns it in hot water, ruining the taste of the delicious clear liquid. Rahul doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry and picks is own little tea box. It should have been filled to the rim with best South Indian tea (fallen off his father’s truck accidentally) but tea box is empty. (Chewing tea is a bad habit among Indian tea truck drivers). But Rahul knows he’d come back next week with another load of blankets and promises to bring some tea and civilisation for the British and his dog.

Only next week the road is blocked due to an aftershock, he can’t reach and has to u-turn. So how to keep the promise?

About one year later Rahul gets his well earned promotion, sending him to London as member of the personal guard of Indian ambassador. So he packs his bits and pieces and an extra amount of tea for Niles. He dresses in his best uniform, walks over to Niles’ house and rings the doorbell. Emma opens, all in tears, and over a cup of first class tea she tells Rahul, husband and dog have been declared ‘missed in duty’ and later ‘dead’. She is a poor widow now, not even the dog’s fur has been found and nights are so cold in London.

OK, Rahul agrees, he found out himself – it’s bloody cold. So they start comforting and warming each other. In the beginning with tea and hot soup, later by … well, you know.

Both are truly sad about the loss but finally agree to start a new life officially and to get married. But not in London. Emma can’t bear the thought of living in the town of her former husband, warming the current one. And Rahul finds it generally too cold. So he quits army, she quits hospital and they decide to go to South India. He’d drive tea trucks and find peace there while she’d treat all the tea truck drivers and their back pain, also finding peace.

Only two days before departure it happens
Niles comes back and also Buck, the true soul.

Rahul and Emma decide to quit their relationship, because after Niles had lost one leg he shall not lose his wife. And Rahul would never ever betray a friend, right?

So Emma stays in London with her insane and morphine addicted husband, feeding the dog and missing Rahul.

Rahul goes back to India, takes over his father’s business, becomes a rich guy by selling all the tea that fell off the truck - missing Emma.

Niles of course understands that Rahul leaves because of him, that his wife whom he missed dearly all the time in … where?

Flash back: the aftershock shook the mountains so hard, that Niles and his dog fell off, unfortunately they landed on the wrong side, in Afghanistan. People there treated them nice, but he lost his memory and lived there for - let’s say 3 years with good old Buck, before he was found by some n-tv reporters. Not knowing who he is, he spent his days painting pictures of Emma, the only face he could remember. The journalists left no stone unturned to find out who she is because this seemed to be a good story and so finally sent him home. Seeing how lovingly Buck greets Emma, Niles instantly regains his memory. Bad luck for all of them.

With the knowledge that Emma doesn’t love him any more, Niles starts drinking (scotch and morphine are a bad combination) and wants to commit suicide. But Buck’s sad look stops him last moment. So this drama goes on for a year or two and then again something happens. Buck dies. Old dog he is, he falls asleep in his masters arms never to wake up again. (Readers here please: crying and helpless sobbing, thanks).

Niles talks to Emma, wanting to release her but she tells him she could never leave him alone (secretly yearning for Rahul, of course) now that the dog is dead.

When Niles died it was not suicide but an accident. Taking a walk all alone he recalls how much fun it was to throw a stick for Buck. To live the memory he picks one up, throws it, his crutches slip on the wet leaves, he falls - neck broken. (Crying now is optional).

His lawyer sends a letter written long ago to Rahul, informing him about Niles’ death, asking him to come for the funeral. It has been Niles’ last wish to reunite Rahul and Emma.

So the two past time lovers meet in the small village where Niles was born and now is buried. Emma old and wrinkled, Rahul addicted to chewing tea.

Will they find a new future? Or will they go back to their lives? Will they have a dog again, happily frolicking around?

Find out in the sequel.

Love
Michaela