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Showing posts from July, 2011

“Chalta hai”: The fountainhead of indifference in India

As I was sleeping on the lower berth of the train, a voice rang out “Beta thoda side de dena jara”. As I opened my eyes and tried to adjust to the dizziness of my broken slumber, I saw the face of an uncleji with a huge grin of expectation stretched across it. “What the hell” I thought and gave him space enough to seat 2 folks. To cut a long story short, that ‘little space’ soon turned into his entire family belongings (of all generations, I think!!) coming in my compartment and eventually almost my ouster from my own seat. In the night when it was the time to sleep once again, I told him to go somewhere else. “Beta, adjust karlo. Ek raat ki hi toh baat hai. Itna toh chalta hai”, pat came back the reply. Eventually after a heated argument ‘the gentleman’ relented to move 3 of his family members so that I could sleep comfortably instead of a foetal position. An endearing phrase showing our true spirit of resilience and generosity?? But after that encounter, the phrase “Chalta hai