Real Story Of Najeeb, The Protagonist Of Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life)

Living in a desert for two years as one among many goats and without meeting a single human being other than a cruel employer was the greatest ordeal of Najeeb, the protagonist of the movie Aadujeevitham (Goat Life). The movie is based on the celebrated 2008 Malayalam novel ‘ Aadujeevitham’ written by Benyamin who became an overnight sensation after its publication in Kerala. The movie helmed by Blessy starring Prithviraj Sukumaran as Najeeb is all set to be released on March 28.

Notably, the plot of the novel was not the imagination of the writer but was the life of  Najeeb that struck hard the consciousness of the readers. The writer’s note on the cover page  “The stories of life we hear but haven’t experienced are just tall stories for us” takes the reader closer to experiencing the goat’s life.

Hailing from Arattupuzha near Haripad in Alappuzha, Mr Najeeb left home and crossed the Arabian Sea hoping to provide a better life for his family. The visa agent had told him that his job would be as a salesman at a supermarket in Saudi Arabia.

Unfortunately, Mr Najeeb’s landing on Arab soil led him to a nightmare he had to recollect and worry about throughout the rest of his life. The vehicle picked him up from the airport and ran for two days, instilling fear in Najeeb about where he was heading as he saw no buildings or people on the way.

It was the beginning of the tears, fear and suffering. After reaching the desert devoid of a single human being other than his lone boss, he realised the trap with helplessness and agony. Talking to The News Minute, Najeeb explained that his work was to herd around 700 goats owned by his boss and was made to live outside a small shed in which his employer was sleeping. To ensure that Najeeb is not trying to escape, the sheep’s owner used to look through binoculars. Only eating dry Kuboos and water, Najeeb walked with heavy legs with each day passing unaware of the day, month and time.

Najeeb was not permitted to take a bath nor given a dress to change his long-shift dress, forcing him to live with nauseating and disgusting feelings, and with time he is accustomed to it, he admits. He was not even allowed to trim or shave his hair and head, leaving him in an unrecognisable form, which he was astonished to see through the reflection of the water in the desert.

He was introduced to no other facility of his employer, confining him around the shed. His boss’s elder brother was visiting the site to take the goats to the market. Najeeb says both his owner and his brother were rude towards him and used to beat him despite his cries. He says he had not spoken to anyone during the entire two years and helplessly thought that his life would perish in the desert.

As he spent days remembering his 10-month pregnant wife and longing to go back, one day his employer and his brother left the shed for a marriage in their family, providing Najeeb an opportunity to escape the goat life. He ran away without direction through the desert for one and a half days.

During his run, he unexpectedly saw another man leading the same deplorable life in the middle of the desert. Najeeb learnt that he was a Malayali as he came close and talked to him, filling him with excitement of talking to a man after two years. Najeeb says the man could not escape due to the surveillance of his employer though he wanted to.

However, after running for more than 35 hours, forlorn Najeeb saw a road which was an oasis for him. After he stood for hours trying to stop vehicles, an Arab car finally took and dropped him in Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia.

Seeing Najeeb in wild attire in the city, a restaurant owner, also a Malayali gave him food that he enjoyed after two years. However, Najeeb spent 10 days in jail as part of legal procedure after losing documents before he returned home. He says the 10-day jail term was far better than the life he experienced for two years.