Have we failed God?

 Just the other day, I got the news of one of my friends losing his uncle at the ripe age of 92 – the guy was happy that he had a cordial relationship with his uncle and he was full of zest in life – till the very end he had a sweet tooth and he used to binge on street food and love his evening smoke, and that his children were settled and he had no qualms or any question which life had not answered.

He was a strict atheist, though he believed in the concept of supernatural or ‘A Great Policeman” – as he used this word quite frequently, who has created this universe to his own amusement and as a child’s play and that all the occurrences in the world are a ‘chance happenings’ that is beyond our control. 

These words of wisdom made him truly remarkable as a human being, no wonder he was a local hero – he used to sit with local shopkeepers and discuss things happening in country, the tumult of the society and of course the life which he has lived – it was his favorite topic. 

As we both were discussing the character uncle had, he was once asked about his regrets in life – to everyone’s amazement, he had just one regret – that he didn’t climb “Mt Everest!” – for a man who had served as a government employee for more than three decades and touched almost every nook or corner of India, it was the only place he wanted to see and cherish with his naked eye – logic being he always wanted to be at the ‘top of the world…’

Such zeal at this age is formidable and can’t be seen in today’s living gentry, the youth are confused and are money minded, no doubt, we have failed God and has made a mockery of his favorite gift to us called “Life”. Engrossed in our own falsifying achievements and mostly whimsy targets we have failed to live an enriching life… how many of us think that we would be as zestful as uncle at age of 92? Forget about hitting 70 as most know internally the changes which have gone through our bodies…. Befooling our own selves, we continue to live the way we live…

“We didn’t mourn uncle’s death but celebrated his departure – the way he left his mortal coil – just effortlessly in his deep sleep, no hospitalization, no back to back visits to doctor – he knew his departure was close and he told me that it is high time he should take leave from you.” , as my friend told me all this I contemplated my thoughts on this subject for surely I knew that Accomplished souls are never die in hospital but induce a self-proclaimed heart attack when they get a message from other realms that their time is up! – though to many this seems impossible to the general soul… it is happening… how many of you have seen yogi’s dying in hospitals???

As a one liner, uncle’s life message is short and sweet … “live your life with depth, with no regrets and no ifs and buts…you will feel universe will respond to your attitude… that is what is God’s will… you are not here for regrets and follies…but to pass the test of being human, noble, and lively….”

Surely my friend is missing this great soul and a friend of his, but what remains a true legacy is his thoughts and teachings… the late night ‘after-drink’ talks they did about life and living will always be in my friend’s conscience and he would certainly try to tread the path that his uncle showed him…

~ Kabadiwalla, thus he Comes...~

 He is regular ‘Pheriwalla’ in our vicinity and comes every alternate day to fetch the household scrap – it is his regular feature to shout “Kabadi” again and again to make his presence felt that he has arrived.

“Kabadi” – the namesake that he shouts makes us all understand the work he does – with all his dignity and commitment, he makes sure that the customers, as us, get the best deal possible. We have sold our household trash aplenty without a bargain as we know he is the best – even if he makes a skewed profit of the deal, the sheer aura of “Yogesh -Ji” as I like calling him, has been captivating.

I have seen him treading our society in multiple rounds, shouting with his penchant voice “Kabadi”, our bond with him magnified in the last two years when pandemic struck, he was always on his toes, making a leeway for us to not venture out to throw our trash or for that matter hoard it at some obscure corner of our homes – he did some innovation by using technology to his use and shared his WhatsApp and telegram id’s – the photos could be clicked for old fans, tables and TV’s and other spare paraphernalia that we all earnestly wanted to dispose of. 

As time passed and the pandemic subsided, our physical interaction began to happen and during one of those days when I was disposing off newspaper items, I had a frank talk with him. He came out to be just another father around, having 3 kids and other family consisting of wife and old mother and father.

The subject of kids always intrigue me and that lead to further conversations between us – “ All kids are school going bhaiya. The eldest daughter has given her boards this year for class 12^th, the middle one is a son who is in class 10^th and the little one is in class 6^th.” – his speaking of these words was pregnant with a sense of achievement as I further enquired that Yogesh had not studies himself beyond class 8^th.

He has a tough job in hand as he strolls with his cycle-riskshaw from street to street with plastic waste and other collectibles, it is certainly a tough job and in this roasting heat, it makes things worst for him – as he carries a makeshift plastic bottle under a canopy of plastic bags which makes the water little ‘Cool’- as per him, he has made ways to survive with his day to day ordeal – so what was his zeal to struggle so much and what is his aim in life, I asked him this time when he came to fetch month’s newspaper trash – his answer was straightforward as if he was a self-motivated man on a mission –“ Bhaiya, my family and especially my kids are my real motivation, inke liye karr raha hoon” [doing it for my kids].

I appreciated his commitment to this great cause, the cycle of penury can be broken by such acts of dedication and motivation, Surely, Yogeshji is one such soul who I resolutely believe is on great path and the one who would break the shackles of misfortune through his vision… probably, time has the answer to this…

 

~ GenNext Girl…~

She came with a whim and ignoring all of the customers standing in the shop turns her head to look out for the refrigerator. Quickly she finds one and by saying “excuse me uncle” , he addresses me with a smile. Turning my head, I acknowledge her etiquettes and give her a space to open up the refrigerator – she quickly picks up her favorite drink – a can of “Coke” and closes the door and heads towards the paying counter.

Sliding through all of us, she confidently asks the shopkeeper and thus speaks only two words which makes all other customers turn their heads and look towards her …” Uncle, Scanner hai?”, she is certainly not an attention seeker but her gesture makes us all give her a captivating look.

The shopkeeper quickly puts forward the PayTM scanner with a smile and also with a sense of intrigue to see how this 11–12-year-old girl will pay for a can of “Coke” she had picked from the outside refrigerator. The girl is in a hurry and quickly scans the PayTM scanner and pays the requisite amount.

Two aunties standing by the counter see all this happening and are feeling a little outdated, as they were not accustomed to the new pay method and were buying their goods in cash – the young girl had certainly made her point and quickly paid the shopkeeper and said “Thank You Uncle!”, turned around put her purchase in the bag she was carrying. Finally, she caught hold her of bicycle and confidently turned it around and paddling around she just vanished within no time!

All this happened in just a fraction of second, we all laughed and also hailed the confidence of such a small girl, who was all by herself and not escorted by any senior or parent – a rare sight in Delhi at this hour!

The shopkeeper was a little amused as he hardly gets such a cute customer quite often, the ladies were bemused with what they had seen, a little girl brimming with confidence and etiquette makes her mark and sets an example for many of us. One of the auntie could not stop her vocal chords and thus spoke “ Aaj kal di generation 😊 baut confident hegi hai, is chataki jahi kudi wal dekho! [today’s generation is very confident, just look at this young girl…] – her Punjabi accent was a perfect one liner made us all smile – but not before I giving her a soft reply  - “ Auntiji, zamane de naal chalna chahiyeda…eh generation apne time naal sahi hege ne…[ Aunty, we should be with the times, this generation is with the times..]…

We all had a final laugh before we took to our own chores, not before acknowledging todays event as trailor of things to come, I know she lives in the vicinity, looking forward to meeting her again…this time surely she deserve my kudos for the GenNext girl she is…

~ Are you Unique...~

So, are you unique? Just a question popped up in my mind out of nowhere or may be not – but out of an observation that came across just recently. Going by someone’s school result, I started to reminisce my school days and that how I would perform. A streak of sweat line used to start making its mark along with a pulsating feeling when the report card was to be given- Alas! I used to pass but not with those marvelous ‘Flying Colors’ everyone expected me to be in …. As history repeats itself, I was going chatting with my new friends who happen to be school kids – till recently they were discussing their careers and what they want to be in life – everyone had high dreams except one – though he too was aiming for something better but did not had the guts to portray himself in the same league , reason being – he was a IInd grader with 63% marks in his 10^th class exams… he wanted to study science but could barely afford to get admission in Commerce in not so famous school – but on the contrary when other kids were boasting about their %ages – almost every one was 90%center …a common academic parlance at nowadays, he stood his ground as he termed himself to be ‘Out of league and Rat race!”

He had a good and observable point, though it is too early to commit to his wordings and thoughts, as only time would give an appropriate answers to his thinking – but internally, I was in rogue tandem with his thoughts as destiny had certainly made him unique in sense and stand aloof out of those 90%centers ..his family gave him an opportunity to repeat class 12 , to which he firmly said “No”….

As in middle age of my life , I have observed that all of us reach somewhere or the other slowly or steadily, some get too fast but become victims of success and they get suck into the rigmarole of responsibilities of high job profiles and the position they command , knowing fully well that up there it is total loneliness and nothing else….there have been many stark examples of people who have risen to the occasion and started slowly and lived with their set of losses, but have never had the feeling to quit- midst of all the expletives and lane wordings – these have added to their motivation level – a classical case being ‘Radhika Gupta’ – MD of edelweiss Mutual Fund, the youngest CEO at age 33 makes a point – “ With a crooked neck and squint in the eyes, and many interview rejections and a suicide attempt, can make it to the top, why cant you?” … for her, destiny has given her own uniquity and that makes her class apart from the rest….

So, when you read about cases when a visually impaired Delhi government teacher with a correspondence education but with a gumption to succeed really does succeed when she gets overall 48^th rank in UPSC – one of the toughest exams to crack, she capitalized on her “Uniqueness” – she is different and therein she performed with her limited abilities….

We often ignore the lateral uniqueness that we have been imbibed, the rigmarole of our daily lives are much demanding, to compete and perform is everyday mantra, but to find your own uniqueness, we have to talk to our own selves and delve into our beings, sit in soberness sometimes and ask your inner being about what uniqueness you have been bestowed with… you can surely capitalize on that….who knows what comes out of this experiment… but at least ponder…!

~ Unfathomable Faith...~

 He has a peculiar job in hand and that seems to be strewn across a street lane which this gentleman visits on those special occasions – ‘Saturday is one of the day when he surely visits to certain shopkeepers in the marketplace – these shopkeepers take his ‘Services’ on this special day to ward of evil – such is the tumultuous faith on the power of the unknown that ‘Babu’, as he likes himself to be called fondly, has found himself a job for more than a decade.

From where does he outsource the necessities to make a bunch of lemon and green chili and jumbled them up with a string and thus makes his ‘Sell’ possible to be tied to the front doors or entrance of shops and showrooms he visits. Considering the cost of lemons in todays world, this seems to be a costly affair – but not so as the magnificence and the positive vibes this act of pacifying the gods bestows much generosity on the psyche of the meek shopkeepers.

Ask Babu if he believes on this practice truly and that it will ward of evil effects of negative forces – he smiles but does not say a word – his smile has zillion meanings but to my mind it means a big farce!

Living in this part of the world with our opinions and belief systems, Babu are the best keepers of faith for many of us – be it giving alms on special occasions to obligate the mercy of Gods or offering un-quantified goodies to Gods for our own benefit, we do it all – such are we, that we believe that all hell would break loose if we wont do a gesture which other are doing by rote! 

Coming back to the basics, Babu was tying the knot of carefully weaved lemons and green chilly bunches in quick fashion as if he was in a hurry – as my observations came true, he indeed was busy today as I saw another pack of knots which were qualified to be tied to showrooms – it was well past afternoon and he indeed had to finish his task quickly to accomplish his objective – as he steered passed me, I asked him the price of one set of his “Sell” – he smiled and said “Rs 20/- only!” – “Do you want one?”

Without wasting any time I was quick to answer a big “No”, but definitely asked the purpose of him tying these to the main gates of shops – he was equally quick to respond in a timely fashion – “It is to ward of any evil eye on the shop!” – I had no further questions as I deemed understood that Babu wont be engaging in a long conversation, considering his state of mind and gesture – he left many questions in my mind which I still gives me a restless upheaval – these may be quite sensitive to many and emulate strong faith systems which many of us quite follow without a wane but to me it certainly defies logic to my finite mind…. the quest follows…

~ A Daily Morning Saga...~

 He comes daily with a zeal and is chirpy and talkative. He has a rickshaw which he loves to maintain and decorate, the best part being that on the front wheel his faith is enshrined – his devotion to Lord ‘Shiva’ – a small mannequin that he found near a Peepal tree which someone had put. He just felt a strong connection when he saw his God laying idle near the Peepal tree and made the statue tied to the front wheel of his daily mode of transport and living – his scrap trolley!

Deepak has a unique style of living – he gets up at 4 a.m. and is quickly readies himself to work for another long hot and humid day – he is a native of Bihar and has been in Delhi for a month or so – he feels this city has given him much – “ Out there in my native village, I didn’t work but was wasting my time after my studies- there are no employment opportunities for youth like me !” – he spoke the other day. 

“I love the people of this city when they call me by my name “Deepu”, sometimes they misspell it as ‘Deepa…which changes my entire genre, he speaks with a smile” …I am alone in this city and live with my cousin brother and his family – his parents live near my home in our native village in Bihar!”

As I had already observed his talkative stance, everyday. I make it a point that his zeal captivates me in the morning saga. Delhi of today is full of neighborhood who are conservative and reticent and living a secluded life, the changing dimension of this city is nerve wrecking sometimes, the old neighborhood have sold-off their properties due to burgeoning clout of builder flats and skyrise apartments, they preferred to reallocate themselves to satellite towns like Gurgoan and Noida…Delhi has indeed changed…

Coming back to my good morning friend Deepu, the other day he was wearing a wi-fi earphone all through his work and I happened to observe it and commented “Wah Deepak, aap toh hi-tech ban gaye 😊!” – he laughed and whispered in a subtle voice, “bhaiya, gane suntan rehta hoon aur kaam karta rehta hoon, Gane achchey lagtey hain!” [ Brother, I love to hear songs and I keep on listening to them and work side by side] – I could instantaneously connect with his thoughts, a music buff myself, I can endlessly hear to diverse melody tunes without keeping an eye on the clock! 

Also, the type of work he is into, he has to focus to keep moving, Imagine fetching daily scrap for more than 100 odd households, almost stepping 4 floors up and down with out a lift for some of them, combined with ongoing Delhi weather, it indeed turns out to be an arduous task to achieve…. He does all this without any downtrodden inkling as he tells me “ Bhaiya, I came here empty handed and without any job and have to remain unemployed for quite some time, this is the first ‘Job’ I got and I have to honour it… this is just the beginning for me!” – Indeed, I said, keep on working Deepu, you never know what life might offer you in coming times…there are enumerable such examples who started from scratch and just by sheer jest of their hard work achieved much….hearing this, he took away with him two things – first , a sense of honour that being a trashmen he still have people talk to him while many of us would desist doing so! And second, that there is little sense of belonging towards him from households he daily visits to keep all our vicinity and our household clean and tidy…. “Thanks Deepu, you are the man of the day!” …

~ Raju Bangaya Gentleman...~

Today, I saw Raju after a long time, he has been a helping hand during that devastating ‘Pandemic Month’ last April – May’21, where the streets were empty and one can only hear the noise of that Ambulance siren – an ominous sign of deciding someone’s fate.

He was rock solid support as he used to come with full preparation and always had his stack full of all those necessary fruits and vegetables apart from other things, which a usual vegetable and fruit seller normally didn’t had on his cart – Items such as water bottles, Bread, Butter and even milk!

Money was not a problem for him, as many of us didn’t had the time or for that matter the courage to go to an ATM or bank to fetch money – so was the psychological effect Covid had jutted in our minds and souls – Raju had a turnaround for such a problem, he used to get a slip for each household and snipped an image for the day’s buy and whatsapped us all – really he made use of technology to have a contactless business model for the benefit of all – first time in my life I was seeing technology being used to its optimum other that what Whatsapp university is now famous for!

Raju is a native of a village in Bihar and stays with his family – two kids and his father, mother – I asked him, did not he risked his life and also of his family members whilst he used to come and provide his services to the entire block – many of Delhi residents were covid +ve and unfortunately deaths were the norm of the day. As he reverted, “ Sir, I took it as an opportunity to help people, I am not literate, I could sense the suffering of people prisoned in their homes and were fearful of the situation, you must not be knowing, I helped such old people who would have otherwise died of hunger – there were literally no one to help or assist them as their children were stuck up in other countries and could not come – these oldies gave their mobile numbers to them and they used to call me from foreign lands to supply their parents their general dose of groceries and even medicines…”

After the pandemic was over, they superlatively acknowledged my services and one of them even called me their 2^nd Son – that was my Karma, my biggest achievement in my life, I did all this selflessly as I took upon myself to help these oldies who could not afford to risk their life and go out and fetch their daily take of groceries, medicines and other paraphernalia… I thought them to be their son and did it…

The experience which Raju told me was just phenomenal, here was a guy who risked his life and saved the lives of so many without showcasing a whiff of his doings during the most trying days of Covid, when many people dreaded to go out , he boldly  took the onus upon himself to portray a son, brother, father and other namesake responsibility to many known and unknown souls who would not have survived this surge of pandemic.

Now that he comes to our block, he is caressed like a son and a brother to many households, he is received with open arms as he has been their life’s savior – His smile says it all, as he is busy adjusting his vegetables on his cart, with all his humble living but great thinking attitude, I always love to call him “ Raju Bangaya Gentleman’ to which he smiles and says, “ Kya bhaiya aap bhi na…” … Though he is Camera Shy, but what he did for all of us would be dreaded for many...that’s humanity…!!!

~ The Walk...~

He has been essaying this role of a ‘Pithu’ – aka ‘Porter’ for more than 20 years now. He has a daughter who stays in his native village somewhere in Jammu, so does his wife ‘Chameli’.

He caught my attention quite uniquely as he smoothly whispered as he came near me ‘ Bhaiya Pithu Chahiye?” – [Sir, do you want a porter?]. The journey was arduous as it was almost 13 kms uphill. A journey to Mata VaishnoDevi is known for its vast experiences, not only of treading this walk but also by way of meeting versatile people telling his own stories and life situations. Many of the porters and Ponny and horse owners are inhabitants of far-off places and live at the foothill of revered ‘Trikuta’ Parbat on which resides The Divine Mother ' Mata Vaishno Devi'

Now that he has developed habit of walking up-down in one instance, depending upon the customer he gets, he takes two back-to-back rounds once a while, though he tells me that he gets tired to the core when he overstretches himself. 

“Shamsher Singh hai Mera Naam – [My name is Shamsher Singh], and I am a native of Jammu and have been in this profession since more than two decades.”, he tells me in his baritone voice. At first look, you will find him as a wanderer, just passing his time, loitering around at the foothill observing the stack of tourists who have just come together as a flock of birds together ready to start their journey.

I don’t know what made him approach me and that he came to me with a subtle smile and gesture of politeness asking if his services were required. I instantly obliged as I had too much of a baggage to be carried and I was a loner. The ‘Deal’ was stuck instantaneously as he didn’t argued much and obliged to go with the government rates for such services, he further gave me his id card as a token of security – this is norm of the place.

The journey thus began, he went off carrying my bags, which he had tied up in a particularly unique fashion only he could have done, then suddenly, step by step has started to walk way and soon he just disappeared into the sea of humanity, not to be seen but with a promise to meet sometime later in the evening at a designated spot!

Treading step by step, I reached atop all withered away as the journey of 13 kms takes a toll on the body, especially if you are not a habitual walker – The first thought coming to mind was to catch a glimpse of Shamsher Singh as I had my belongings to change and Alas!, he was there just smiling at me.

‘Agaye Janaab, sab khari meri!” [Sir, reached safe and sound?], I revered in affirmative but with a laggard tone as I was tired beyond a measure – I asked him ‘Shamsher-ji, how you traverse this journey up and down, sometimes twice and still look afresh!”

He answered in a calm tone, which defeated my intellectual arrogance, “Sir, this is my Karma and duty and I am doing this for my family! I have submitted myself to the Goddess and have an attitude of complete surrender!” – He just nailed it – I had no words but to oblige him with a folded hands – I had just judged the source of such a satisfied man. A final goodbye awaited both of us and this happened too soon, as he had just made another deal with a customer who was in quick hurry to get down to catch hold of the evening train – I just thought, the tough terrain Shamsherji had just treaded and reached his destination and now was ready to go back, without taking much break. I asked him this question, he smiled and started to walk away , not before saying a final goodbye with a waving hand and saying ‘Jai Mata Di’…

~ A Slipper Story...~

So, what could be a gratification quotient in one’s life, be whatever, you are cool as a cucumber and the daily ups and downs of living does not bother your – rather you have tamed your mind and your thoughts to not hinder your daily behavior and they actually don’t bother you anymore – alas! you can be described in a state of daily nirvana!

This can be no joke as I personally know a man – a roadside dweller selling Chappals (local footwear) and always having a smile on his face – He sits on the pavement with no placed fixed and owning a shop is a distant dream for him, certainly not in his lifetime as he himself says so, that too with no regrets but his bubbly smile, life seems to be at ease with this gentleman.

Just the other day, I happened to be near his temporary setup, I was waiting for the currency change I owed after I purchased vegetables from a vendor. Suddenly, I chanced upon him as he was smilingly negotiating a ‘deal’ with his prospective customer, as I could observed, he was trying to sell a pair of slippers for Rs 100, which was the best price he was offering , but the customer was not obliged to the price being offered, the deal was thus fixed for Rs 90, taking a loss of Rs 10, he was still happily packing the pair of his sell whilst he boasted about its quality and replacement if it does not fit the bill.

This happened right in front of my eyes as it was just a 2-minute saga, the customer went off and he started to arrange his products in a unanimous arrangement and thus waited for his next customer.

He looked satisfied and contended with his work, it was quite obvious, as the smile on his face was authentic and described his cerebral state of mind.

The whole scenario was a life learning, how can a street vendor sitting on a pavement and earning a daily miniscule amount be so much happy. His own slippers that he was wearing were almost battered, his tericot pant and a unwashed pale yellow shirt showed signs of dirt, but internally he was a happy soul, his face always gleaming with a loving smile. A small talk made me aware of his precedents…as he told me that he comes in a humble Atlas -black cycle which he paddles for about 10 kms daily before he comes to our vicinity to make a living – before that he goes to the wholesale mart to buy slippers on wholesale prices.

I could not resist saying ‘Hello Bhaiya’ and could not stop myself to buy an unwanted pair of sleepers, not that I was in dire need of one, but just for the sake of remembrance of that life learning moment. He taught me the mantra of life… Be whatever be your predicament, be happy and live each moment…

I didn’t ask his name as he had other customers lined up and I certainly didn’t want myself to impede his sales, may be next Saturday flea market, I shall be honoured to have a general chit-chat with him, till then I am selfishly waiting for that moment….

~ Chai - as my last supper...~

It has given me an adrenaline rush when I am down, the zest of life gets diminished through everyday rigmarole of life – having a cup of tea makes me start over again – It has been my best friend over three decades, the only ‘Bad’ habit one would say that I have, but I just cant leave it…as I would certainly like to have the last tea cuppa before I depart….

Be it late evening or early morning saga, not having a cup of tea as my noble companion does give me the push to perform – the lethargy gets encrypted till I gulp my first sip of tea after the wake-up.

I wake up daily and embrace my morning partner – a cup of tea which gives me life to move on and accept the challenges of the day.

Come afternoon, again I have a rendezvous with my best friend and foe, foe- as it has become a queer habit, I miss the tea cup when aloof and it certainly gets me back during the snooze hours of summers now a days – Of course, with a long lasting relationship that I have had with this unique beverage, I also have found close fondness to various cups which I like to have my ‘Drink’ .

Of late, I have been addicted to ‘Kuhlad Chai’, as it gives a certain degree of fragrance when you sip it slowly – the whole aroma is filled with its magnificence – no doubt, it takes time to fall in love with such a habit, more so as we are mostly accustomed to having tea / coffee in regular ceramic cups.

The taste of tea magnifies if you have a good company – the sip by sip conversations leads you to a sense of peace and tranquility – the exchange of thoughts gets inversely proportional to the diminishing tea in your cup- though a sense of poignant charm surrounds you and you would certainly like to have another back to back cup but the lethargy in you wont make you get up and go to the kitchen to action another cup on the burner!

My relationship with Tea is since time immemorial – thanks to my father who was a complete ‘Tea-totaller’ – and thus was fond of this magnificent drink of his lifetime – the habit galvanized unto me and during my study years, I used to have a pot filled to the brim and with each passing hour, would pour it in the cup and gulp it , matching the timeless hours just passed by…. Those certainly were the times of Delhi’s foggy winters - today as I again had the privilege of having this unique drink in an earthen cup – called ‘Kulhad’ – I went into a reminiscing trance… those days came as a flash and time certainly stood still… I wish, to the last day of my breath , I would like to have ‘Tea’ as my last supper… till then, its again time to have a nice sip…the smoky cup is enticingly calling me to kiss it and enjoy the tea-moment….

~Kaveri, a lone warrior...~

 Everyone was talking in vernacular English with exceptional drawls with a view to dominate the conversation – the parents were well off and of course they were educated, maybe they were lucky to have received quality education from prestigious schools in Delhi. A bit showoff was evident though not a deliberate gesture.

As I was a mute observer to all of this charisma, suddenly there comes a family which catches everyone’s eyeballs – the family is unique in its own way – as the society calls them the ‘EWS’ or the ‘Economically Weaker Section – the tagline is munching of its dignity but we as a society have castigated them. 

From the visible appearance the parents of the girl seems to be not highly educated and this was proven when the father asks the guard sitting near the aisle “ Kapde and Kitabein Kahan Milengi?” (from where will we get clothes and books?), the guard showed them the way sitting on his chair. The gesture of the guard was profoundly different as he seems to be entertaining them as just another like him – as he did not stand from his chair whilst he answered them, a distinct gesture which he didn’t do for other ‘highly educated and rich parents’ of kids coming to school to fetch books and clothes.

While the parents continued to talk in marvel English with occasional tongue roller verbatim, this girl’s father just stood in complete silence as he was bluntly ignored by others – I could see the cold feet the society showed to such people – distraught on the behavior of these educated parents as for them it didn’t matter who he was and that they knew him for sure to be from an EWS strata of society.

Suddenly the twist of tale happened, as the father was confused to ask for the free books and clothes which such parents are supposed to have under government’s concessional scheme, the girl rose to the occasion and went inside the school bookshop and started to talk in a tone which astonished many.

She started to converse in impeccable English in a clear-cut vocab to the surprise of everyone – her contrast clothing and the background seems to be just not matching the tone she spoke of. As some moments passed, her mother came into the room and voiced her concerns thus - “Kaveri beta, dress aur Kitabein mil gayi kya?” [ Kaveri, did you got the dress and books?]

She was quick to respond, ‘Nahi Ma, abhi nahi, bola hai bhaiya ko” [No , I have told the shopkeeper, he is taking it out]

Everyone started to have a conscious look towards both mother and daughter as if something extraordinaire had happened in that moment, surely it was something extra ordinary, something momentous – the icy silence was broken when one student’s mother greeted Kaveri’s mother “Namaste!, meri beti aapki beti ki dost hai…” [Hello, my daughter is your daughter’s classmate], suddenly this gesture made Kaveri’s mother comfortable as she forgot her opaque personality amongst the group of parents standing there…. The two ladies started to converse with equanimity withstanding the prodding eyes of ‘high-class’ parents who still seems to be from a different planet, but surely, they were in the receiving end as they were made conscious of what education can do to anyone be it from EWS family or otherwise…

A lovely lesson was given to many such parents and to my kids – that be whatever you are in the outside world, in the institution of schooling , your worth is your pure play knowledge and education – as it certainly is the power which will take you across many hiccups life shall offer you in due course – your image and dignity will not subside by your current habitat but the power of your mind shall base your competition with resourceful students who surely have an edge over you – don’t be subservient of their status, once inside the school you will have the power to subside them by your knowledge…I truly believe that little girl had been given this life lesson by her circumstances if not by  parents… truly Kaveri was the hero of that moment, no doubt!