The Adventure of the Woodcutter (and some tea)

A rainy afternoon at Tea Junction is like soul therapy. Imagine the dark and soothing noise of thunder and the rush of rain falling swiftly on the glass around. An earthen cup of spicy tea, and plastic spoon cutting through the flavour of dhokla and chillies. The warmth of people and tea steam. Strangers around tables on very low stools. Scalding hot and sugary sweet gulab jamun. In Kolkata, you sometimes refer to samosas as singhadas. Imagine rich singhadas, their corners touching the growing expanse of tangy, sizzling red chutney.

Kolkata leaves you curious again and again. Today, I observed a gentleman by the side of the road. We had stopped at a red light, and the gentleman I speak of was engaged in a unique sort of activity on the footpath. Garbed in formals - white shirt and all, his laptop hung on the iron jutting out of the metal fence. The mango tree overhead had shed a few branches in the rain, and the guy would pick them up one by one, and attempt to break them into smaller pieces. And not just break them. He would place each between two bars of the fencing and snap sideways. And he did this repeatedly in all sincerety. Not dressed like one who might need firewood to cook on, and with all the calmness of one who, in fact, could not possibly have anger managment issues, he continued to do this, till the light had turned green, and we had left him behind.

There is a Youngman's Repairs Service Store here. Perhaps the boys being trained at the Boy's Training Association come here to be repaired. Maybe since 1918.

After ten days in this city, I don't find my chancing upon many Music and Dance training centres strange anymore. This is a place steeped in the classical arts and in literature. Speaking of which, a new Starmark bookstore opened at Mani Square today. Notebooks here are cheaper than at the hyper-market.

Oh, and we all know malls are created to make people shell put money. But to actually name one Mani Square (pronounced almost and nearly exaclty like Money Square) isn't quite that subliminal, don't you think?