Laughing Out Loud

Muggy morning. Overcast skies. Dark and gloomy. Yet, throughout the morning, the Garden rang with laughter as everybody was bent upon pulling Nafisa Sayed’s (right) leg on her birthday. The odd part was she wasn’t even aware of it.
It all began with cordial handshakes and Club elders placing their hand on her head to bless her. Then came the demand for a birthday treat. Nafisa’s truthful reply was that had she known she was born today, she would have brought sweets. “But I can still call up my son to bring some luddoos right away,” she offered.
Then as an afterthought, she revised her decision: “But my son is fast asleep. So is my bahu. They all wake up after 11:30.”
This only gave others a handle to take digs at her, till Santosh Tyagi came to her rescue: “But didn’t you celebrate your birthday in July with Razia (Khan)? Or was it for a premature birth?” The perennially absent-minded Nafisa did not know what to make of it, but being a natural wit, was alert enough to enquire about the “maal pani” Shekhawat (left) was hiding in the bulge of his shirt.
The latter promptly opened his front buttons and fished out a folded newspaper. Then he dug in and displayed his military I-card. Thereafter, he put his hand inside and came out with a bunch of medical papers. Once again, he put his hand in and pulled out a bundle of currency notes, wrapped in a polythene packet. At this point Nafisa stopped him, saying, “Bahut lafda hai andar!”
Everybody just burst out laughing.
Being the week-end, some ladies decided to have an afternoon out and take in the worst movie in town, Rascals (right). It was much like a death wish as everybody had been forewarned. Newspaper reviews had given the film a half-star rating. Monthy Serrao’s son told her it was utter rubbish, but she insisted on going along. Others reported that people were walking out of theatres – so bad was the movie. Our ladies obviously wanted to see how bad is bad and would presumably spread the word on Monday that it was a fantastic film. Talk about sado-masochism…
Renu Babani:
The movie wasn't that bad. The ladies who dared to go, had already prepared themselves for the worst. However, it was funny and entertaining in its own way. The main idea was to have an outing and with that intention, it was good enough.
Yes, Nafisa, who always has her one-liners ready at the drop of a hat, was definitely the target. However, she took it all in the right spirit, thus ensuing a banter of witty remarks and funny comments. It was a lovely way to start the morning and surely a wonderful weekend.
Mr and Mrs Arora:
Nafisa-ji, we wish you a very happy birthday and many, many happy returns of the day.