I give it up for humility...for the kaaka kadai, the pettige angadi, daaba, very own 'mariappana angadi'. They all mean business, no real customer care like in those glossy traps where you made to feel like a big fat hen all willing to lay more golden eggs !

The real people and people being real is what curiosity is all about for me when it comes to people, the struggles, the adventure, the adrenaline. I have been hounded with questions and the sheer excitement of talking to this person has kept me going through days of my routine weekday job., well i spotted him sitting outside his pretty roadside Ayurvedic shack on a Monday !

Finally, come saturday ! A few technical problems (later about it) and i walked up to this colourful tent, with a more colourful advertisement outside the tent - a cloth banner talking of the various diseases and illnesses (in pink, yellow and green on a black background) that he can cure. These are the 'hush' diseases of the society (i am not going to list them here lest i attract the wrong people looking for all the wrong things, instead will post a photo of banner later).
He is a handsome old man, two golden earrings in each of his ears and a modest precious stone choker, a cotton dhoti and a cotton turban. I would have loved to talk to him all day long sitting on that school-bench outside his tent, but our man refused to talk. Invariably any question from me would lead to his dog, someone had stolen it from him that very morning., i had to wait for his interrupting diatribe to end. "My big brave dog, there were people who were ready to pay 10-15K for it, but i woud never sell her, i fed her as a kid and she protected my humble tent and family...now its gone, mera kutthi - kisine usko utaliyaa"...preset to a mood to rant about how unfair life and people are...i listened, apathy enacted - well, i really wanted to talk about him for heaven's sake - i like dogs too alright !

He was a man with a family of 10 kids, he talked about how he and his great greats have been in the profession since the time of the Britishers (i am sure much earlier than that) and that they were well regarded by the britishers "govt ne kya kiya, hamaara kheti baadi sab kuch leliya", his son added some gory details to this - their tent burnt down by some miscreants and they derpived of their shop which existed until old Bangalore. There was a HTV (slighty larger than a matador) standing by their tent - this was covered by a large sheet and out of view from the road, they travelled from place to place, their last destination was Tamil Nadu - its Bangalore for the last couple of months and everything in Bangalore has changed nice the time they last saw the city - exactly wht everybody talks about everyday (but for once from a person who was genuinely imapcted and innocent), well, Bangalore is changing by the day....more software, more filth and garbage and pollution. He was complaining bout the nearby drainage whose stench was infact unbearable, but for me the excitement of sitting with this man (opposite the 'rat trap' - Spar mall, at Koramangala junction), i was overcome.

And then after much coaxing, he allowed me a picture of his family and his Murga, he proudly talks of his Murga and proud it was !! a big, haughty looking one., but couldn't really get the picture of his murga 'coz Pradeep's camera wouldnt work (the technical problem - both !). He disclosed the secret he seemed to have guarded with passion for the last 20 minutes - his name "Jwalasingh", he was reluctant and his son again associated this to the same gory tale of their home burnt down only after his name and details were published in 'The Hindu' (please note that i believed every bit of incident he narrated to me). His wife who was stitching some clothes on a sewing machine placed on the ground ( i have never seen a sewing machine in operation on the ground and i wouldnt have believed this information if he had just said it !!), she said they were Raajputs and belonged to the Chitaudia community. And then he started about his dog again and i asked to be excused, though i still want to revisit him on a brighter day.

Amazing, how he called destiny what i call adventure and humility, but then with ten mouths to feed and a profession that deals with ayurveda for 'sex-related' problems amongst others, its but inevitable !

More about him and his travels hopefully (maybe next time i'll carry a pup with me instead of a stupid camera...i might get to see some happiness on his really handsome face)

"Anybody with a caravan ? Take me along and i'll take care of your dog !!!"

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