Withdrawal Effects

Zarina Khan

Monsoon has officially withdrawn from Mumbai, but it still rains during the evenings every other day. While this helps in bringing the day temperature down by a few degrees, the relief is temporary. For what follows is an extended spell of stifling humidity, the effects of which are visible every morning at the Garden.
Today, of all the people, a relatively quiet and reticent Zarina Khan was to narrate a “genuine joke”. She simply could not contain herself on how Monthi Serrao reacted when informed that two of her grandsons were aged three months apart. “One is aged 18 months and the other is 15 months and Monthi just refuses to believe me,”

Monthi narrates the Bagdogra joke

Zarina complained pointing at Monthi standing a few feet away.
“How is it possible?” Monthi asked giggling uncontrollably. “Just three months difference?”
We were still not getting the joke, till someone quipped Super Fast Express. “No, none of you are getting the point,” Zarina exclaimed.

Siba Prasad Maitra

“You are not asking if they are from one son or two!”
The nickel dropped, but slowly. Only Ved Prakash Grover fully understood the joke and to humor him further, Monthi narrated another ‘funny’ incident – this time about her brother-in-law stranded at Bagdogra Airport in Siliguri yesterday. “He called up to say that his flight was delayed. But there was another aircraft on the tarmac ready to take off for Mumbai. He wanted to know if he could board that one. I told him don’t give me tension!”
Even this one was lost on us. But what did strike a chord was when Shekhawat picked on Siba Prasad Maitra for turning up “after more than a month”. (In Shekhawat’s mental universe, the smallest unit of time is one month.) Arora intervened to suggest that a fine be imposed from now on for every wrongdoing of members.
“We should not charge money,” he declared. “For the first offence, the member will have to exercise without a cap. For the second offence, he will remove his shoes. Third offence, the T-shirt comes off. Fourth offence, the belt…” He did not proceed any further. But it made perfect sense to all of us!