Safe and Sound

The newsmaker of the day had to be Hari Singh Shekhawat. Back from a trip to his native village in Rajasthan, he looked fresh and energetic, even fairer than what we had seen of him a month back. But more than that, he appeared unaffected from the encounter with his favorite chudail (female apparition) in the village (see earlier posts). “Iss baar kuchh nahin hua,” he declared, much to the disappointment of the ladies who love teasing him (pic above) on his special relationship with the ghost.
But Shekhawat had a new story to regale them with. It seems he went visiting his in-laws in another village and on his return journey, the jeep he was traveling in ran out of fuel. “It was past midnight and we were in the middle of a jungle,” he narrated with dramatic pauses. “It was pitch dark. Not a soul could be seen. Now where could we get diesel in that godforsaken place? Quickly I downed one drink and waited for a passing vehicle to give us a lift to the next village."
Meanwhile, the driver of the jeep had gone away with a jerrican to procure diesel from somewhere. “All this time, my gharwali (wife) just sat on my head as though I was responsible for the diesel running out,” he complained. “Seeing us quarrel like that in the middle of the jungle, a car slowed down and offered to drop us ahead some place. We could have gone, but then I thought, after that what? Besides, what would happen to the jeep if we went away? We did not go...”
Pity, most members missed this electrifying narration, punctuated by peals of laughter and side comments, especially from Harbans Singh and Jagmohan Papneja. Being Bakrid today and a public holiday, many had taken an off. We wish them and all our readers the very best on the occasion. May Allah forgive their transgressions, accept your sacrifices and ease the suffering of all.