Jokey Wokey

Jokes session in progress

Before smartphones and WhatsApp corrupted our sensibilities, jokes sessions were a regular feature of the Club. After the exercises, we would eagerly gather around someone like Santosh Tyagi who would fish out a scrap of paper and read out a few funny anecdotes culled from different sources. Repetitive as they often were, we could not do without this daily diet of jokes.
Then Santosh Tyagi stopped coming, WhatsApp forwards took over

Santosh Tyagi (file photo)

and the jokes did not sound the same… till this morning, when Yusuf Rassiwala revived the aura of those innocent times with a couple of outlandish gags that threw us off our seats.
One was of a senior couple who kept themselves amused post-retirement -- even outsmarting an unsuspecting traffic cop.

Banoo Apa's sister recuperating after surgery

The other was about over-dependence on ‘voice recognition technology’ leading to a poor dental patient being locked out of his own house.
These were actually forwards Yusuf R had shared with Bhaswati Bose, who was to translate another joke about a group of friends ageing progressively, till dementia takes over. These jokes set the stage for an animated exchange of even more hilarious yarns, resulting in a fun-filled morning of unstoppable laughter in the China Hut. But in the end, we learnt one important lesson. As Yusuf R pointed out, jokes that read well do not always sound as funny, and vice-versa. Of course, much also depends on the style of narrating.
In keeping with the joy and positivity all around, here is a spot of good news. The surgery Banoo Apa’s elder sister was to undergo at Tata Memorial Hospital, has gone off well. Banoo Apa is no doubt relieved – as indeed, all of us are. She has sent a picture of her sister recuperating and thanks us all for our prayers.