It was another mundane class of agricultural economics. I had comfortably seated myself in the last few rows where I could afford a little afternoon siesta. The poor and deprived farmers of India shall have to remain uncared for a while longer I guess. Soon enough though the class got over, I really didn't have the willingness or energy to stay through the day in college and decided to make my way home in the purple of afternoon.
I was rather disoriented for some reason, and although our class was on the eighth floor I decided to make my way down the stairs. I waded through the acrid floors of UPG and Mithibai college and got an auto rickshaw parked right outside the gate.
As we made our way down the road, the auto slowed down at the first signal and stalled in the first line of vehicles at that signal. I peered out my auto as the melodious tune of 'she will be loved' (maroon 5) kept playing in my ears from that old i-pod. A young mother dressed in a cool summer jeans and tank top was crossing the road with her young child. She must have been something around five or six years old. She had a tiny pink bag with one sling gently placed across her shoulder and kept adjusting it. It was all rather amusing because the child had evidently picked it up by seeing other women around her continuously adjust their handbags.
The other side of the road still had traffic and they waited until it would empty out such that they could cross. Another girl about the same age suddenly came up from behind the auto to greet the mother and child standing there. She was about the same age but juxtaposing to the well dressed babe that stood with her mother. This girl wore tattered clothes and had her hair in a mess, unwashed for days together. Her face had smudged mascara and marks from nights of crying all alone. She poked the mother on her buttocks and lay her hand out asking for some alms but the mother was quick to dismiss her off with a wave of elitism. She despised these street urchins, it was all very evident from her face. The mother pulled her daughter and crossed the road hurriedly now, the urchin followed them across.
The mother started to look for autos completely aware of the urchin still lurking around. The daughter broke away from her mother grip in a rather abrupt fashion and stared looking through her little bag. The mother was too busy in getting an auto, a formidable task indeed in this city. The daughter called the urchin closer and took a small box out of her bag. She jingled the box a couple of times and slowly opening it took out a shiny one rupee coin. She looked at this coin with radiant eyes for a brief period and then gently placed the coin in the urchins hand. The mother had by now noticed what was happening and quickly and firmly grasped her daughters hand and climbed into an auto that she had just stopped. The daughter gave the urchin a wide grin and got pushed into the auto that took off in a couple of seconds.
The urchin made her way back and soon came begging to my auto. Now I usually don't believe much in giving alms but after this entire incident my hand just automatically slipped into my pocket, My fingers did not even take permission from my brain and was already picking out one of the new ten rupee coins. I quite fancy those coins and dont give them around, but this just called for it. I placed it in the urchins hand and it took a few harrowed stares from her side to actually grasp that it was a ten rupee coin. She looked back at me and had a wide grin on her face, much like the daughter a few seconds ago.
We are ever so often told to not behave in a childish fashion, to grow out of our childishness. Somehow no one tells you, that you must try hard to never lose your child-like-ness. That innocence was something that made me simper to myself as the signal broke and my auto sped ahead.
I was rather disoriented for some reason, and although our class was on the eighth floor I decided to make my way down the stairs. I waded through the acrid floors of UPG and Mithibai college and got an auto rickshaw parked right outside the gate.
As we made our way down the road, the auto slowed down at the first signal and stalled in the first line of vehicles at that signal. I peered out my auto as the melodious tune of 'she will be loved' (maroon 5) kept playing in my ears from that old i-pod. A young mother dressed in a cool summer jeans and tank top was crossing the road with her young child. She must have been something around five or six years old. She had a tiny pink bag with one sling gently placed across her shoulder and kept adjusting it. It was all rather amusing because the child had evidently picked it up by seeing other women around her continuously adjust their handbags.
The other side of the road still had traffic and they waited until it would empty out such that they could cross. Another girl about the same age suddenly came up from behind the auto to greet the mother and child standing there. She was about the same age but juxtaposing to the well dressed babe that stood with her mother. This girl wore tattered clothes and had her hair in a mess, unwashed for days together. Her face had smudged mascara and marks from nights of crying all alone. She poked the mother on her buttocks and lay her hand out asking for some alms but the mother was quick to dismiss her off with a wave of elitism. She despised these street urchins, it was all very evident from her face. The mother pulled her daughter and crossed the road hurriedly now, the urchin followed them across.
The mother started to look for autos completely aware of the urchin still lurking around. The daughter broke away from her mother grip in a rather abrupt fashion and stared looking through her little bag. The mother was too busy in getting an auto, a formidable task indeed in this city. The daughter called the urchin closer and took a small box out of her bag. She jingled the box a couple of times and slowly opening it took out a shiny one rupee coin. She looked at this coin with radiant eyes for a brief period and then gently placed the coin in the urchins hand. The mother had by now noticed what was happening and quickly and firmly grasped her daughters hand and climbed into an auto that she had just stopped. The daughter gave the urchin a wide grin and got pushed into the auto that took off in a couple of seconds.
The urchin made her way back and soon came begging to my auto. Now I usually don't believe much in giving alms but after this entire incident my hand just automatically slipped into my pocket, My fingers did not even take permission from my brain and was already picking out one of the new ten rupee coins. I quite fancy those coins and dont give them around, but this just called for it. I placed it in the urchins hand and it took a few harrowed stares from her side to actually grasp that it was a ten rupee coin. She looked back at me and had a wide grin on her face, much like the daughter a few seconds ago.
We are ever so often told to not behave in a childish fashion, to grow out of our childishness. Somehow no one tells you, that you must try hard to never lose your child-like-ness. That innocence was something that made me simper to myself as the signal broke and my auto sped ahead.
I like this piece particularly because it's so extremely honest Abhi.
ReplyDeleteso this was the coin story..:)
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