She was cute.
And Her eyes had strange innocent glow, which caught my
attention
Though I was not the only one standing outside that super
store on Sunday night
There was lot of hustle, the place was jam packed.
Mostly due to Drivers waiting inside their cars for their SAAB log who
feared a ten step walk to the parking. So the driver’s greatest job was to rush
in his car to the main entrance of that super market before his SAAB’s or BEGUM
SAHIBA’s feet would step on the main pedestrian stand, right outside the store.
SAAB log probably feared the dust ??
Well not exactly, there were many other things to fear
for.
The greatest of
them was the anger in the eyes of AAM log. The disgust they always had for
them, for the thought that it is their hard
work on which many have become SAAB
AAM log….always complain about injustice……if it’s not in
their luck so what can we do. Begum Nasreen explained to her daughter while
putting in K & N’s nuggets in her trolley.
Her daughter totally ignorant to what her mother was
saying was busy in texting through her new Android phone, one of his close friends.
And there were few AAM say log.
Fahad and her mother were one of them.
They had this strange habbit of looking at the price of
everything first, calculating something, discussing and then either putting it
back at its place or at times in their trolley.
Fahad did steal eyes, and at times fixed them right on
Begum Nasreen’s daughter, Tania.
Tania was aware of it. And yes she was enjoying it, as
she was being admired. So at times she too gave looks back, with......little pressed
smiles.
But out of all of them, no one had that eye catching tale,
neither SAAB log nor AAM log and neither Tania and Fahad’s “Ankh macholi”.
Except her.
And then she walked over to me.
Tiring and desperate walk, it seemed......
“Saab tissue ka packet lay lo”
I looked at her for a while; she wasn’t more than ten
years of age!
Too young to be on a street alone.
And I thought of Tania.
How Tania would have been, once she was of her age!
And then yes being of this society, where street begging
is just another essential element, my mind was occupied by usual thoughts of a common man.............i was from AAM log, after all.
“she is working for a THAAKUR, and all the money goes to
that THAAKUR
They are professionals…
They don’t deserve our gentle eye
I should be ignorant like BEGUM NASREEN said
Its not our fault”
I turned around, started walking away, but after taking
few steps. I stopped.
Her innocence was like a barrier, so hard to ignore her. I
thought of giving her something, but
“It would not suffice her need”
So I started walking again.
Today when I sit here thinking of her with a heavy heart.
“Its not her fault too. She was born in that place and I could
have been in her place too. If we are born under shelter with enough at home to
feed our hunger and needs, what does it means, that we have right to judge
those on streets, or is it our responsibility to make them stand on their feet,
provide them with equal opportunities and let them sit with us, shoulder to
shoulder.
For we could have been in their place”
