High Drama

Sunita Jajodia (right) was furious this morning. It was 7 by her watch and nobody had joined her to start the exercises. Santosh Tyagi and Bhaswati were sitting close by, ignoring her. At a distance, Hari Naraiyani, Ved Prakash Grover, Kishor Babani and Bose Babu chatted away merrily. Like a lone sentinel, she stood in the semi-darkness of dawn, clapping to herself – “Ram Ram Bol, Shyam Shyam Bol…”
After about five minutes (by then she was on to the laughter exercise with Nahid Khan) Hari-bhai and Co came over and to her utter disbelief, restarted the “Ram Ram Bol” chant. Sunita-ji screamed. “Ho gaya, ho gaya… Hari Bol ho gaya” she yelled at the men, trying to stop them.
Grover showed her that by his watch, it was not even 7 then. “Ghadi phenk doh,” she snapped at him and suspended her exercise. Laughing like kids, the men continued chanting, “Mukunda Madav Govinda Bol…”, soon to be joined by Shekhawat.
Sunita-ji sat on a bench, sulking and cursing: “Inn sabko Garden se nikaal doh!”
Bhaswati instigated her: “Haan, danda lekar abhi bhagaao.”
“Nahin, chaaron koh bench mein khada karwa ke, murga banao,” Santosh-ji suggested.
“Main toh exercise nahin karwaoongi,” Sunita-ji shook her head. “Dekhte hain kaun karwata hai… Aaj Bose Babu karwayenge!”
The Hari Bol chorus over, the men turned to her as usual. “Bose Babu karwayenge,” she repeated. “Inho nein sab gadbad shuru kiya hai.”
“Nahin, Kishor-bhai aur Grover ke badmashi hai,” said Hari-bhai (left above), who had been quietly observing the drama so far. Seeing that she was still unrelenting, he tried reasoning that probably her watch was set five minutes fast, because all other watches were showing the correct time. “Bilkul nahin, meri ghadi sahi hai,” Sunita-ji retorted. “Baki sab ghadi naaley mein phenk doh!”
By now, she too was laughing with the rest. Hari-bhai had taken off his gold-plated watch and was meekly offering it to her to do the needful.
In between, a phone call came from Nazma Sayed (left), saying that she would not be able to join the picnic to Chokhi Dhani this afternoon as her sister’s son had met with a serious accident. He has been battling for life in hospital for the past three days. Shekhawat-ji told her not to bother about the picnic (obviously the lady was out of the loop, unaware that the trip has been cancelled) and her money will be duly refunded to her whenever she comes next.