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The room is filled with hysterical laughter, fast chitchat and meandering commentary. Weâre at a social âcatch upâ gathering hosted by a family friend, where we hear: âItâs been a long time since weâve seen you.â Over and over again, like a scratched record.
There is an archaeological proof that 1,000 of centuries ago the Greeks, Romans, Japanese, Indians and the Chinese used fans, both as cooling and ceremonial device. I am not surprised. With our humid climate, one cannot imagine life without it. On quiet evenings, lying on the bed and staring endlessly at the ceiling, I nonchalantly notice the swift set of spinning shadows left by the rotating blades. There isnât a day it remains still. Even on cooler days. Except maybe when the maid is sweeping. Those two-unbearable minutes in this sweltering heat are brutal and even before she finishes sweeping the…
Being the only son in the family is enough reason to have to clean all the fans in the house, time and again, especially when Diwaliâs round the corner. There are other duties that sons donât really mind, like fetching stuff from the market, but theyâre always going to be less willing to do anything that involves standing on rickety chairs and cleaning unstable machinery.
The blissful, lazy Sunday sleep had just been disturbed. I was feeling distinctly warm. The room was quiet and I instantly knew that the fan had been switched off. The soft, comforting whirring of the fan had stopped and with my eyes still closed, the hearing sense took over. Diagonally across my bed to the left, I could hear the slow jingling of the maidâs bangles as she swept the floor. A decision had to be made: should I just keep my eyes closed and fall asleep again? Or should I open my eyes and investigate? Sensing that she just…
Especially those in dusty, not pretty, one in a few thousand towns across the nation? Where living is a simple business, governing is almost nonexistent. Intricacies of administration are less and extended conversations on daily predictable mishaps are more the norm. âWhy is the chai less sweet today?â âThere was more cow dung to avoid on the road today, too much of a nuisance, I tell you!ââ
