Rare Chivalry

In a rare display of chivalry, the men in the group today switched places with the women, thus braving the sun and presenting the latter with the ‘luxury’ of exercising in the shade of the trees. Hari Singh Shekhawat said something about Vitamin D and the benefits of exposure to the early morning sun. Srichand Arora was more gallant. “All our lives we have endured hardships,” he said. “This too we will take in our stride so that our ladies are comfortable!”
Many ladies appreciated this fine gentlemanly gesture. Some even sympathized with the men as they got baked in the harsh sunshine – little realizing that nobody was doing anybody a favour. The men had conveniently vacated their places, primarily to save themselves from the droppings of crows nesting in the branches above. Now, it would be for the women to deal with this menace.
However, the big plus of the day was the huge turnout (well crossing the 30 mark) which is rather unusual for a Monday morning. As in the good old days, women outnumbered the men, leading to a lot of cross talk, mischievous jibes and loads of laughter. But oddly enough, the women appeared somewhat restrained today while the men, in their new position facing the blazing sun, were a restless and noisy lot.
Razia Khan, who was conducting the exercises, got so fed up by their behaviour that she actually asked Shekhawat and Yusuf Rassiwala to shut up – only to be told that they cannot help it. “Jagah ka asar hai!” they retorted shamelessly. In this atmosphere of madcap bonhomie, Monthi Serrao (above) gave away 'Easter Chocolates', leaving everyone with the feeling of a morning doubly well spent.