Party Blues

Siba Prasad Maitra holds his audience in thrall after the exercises

Banoo Apa made an insightful comment this morning. “The number of people turning up (for the exercises) is a declaration of whether there is going to be a party or not,” she remarked, half in jest.
There was no party today and attendance dropped drastically as compared to yesterday when Arun Patil celebrated his birthday in gala style (see post).
We were thankfully spared of all such excesses this morning and could contain ourselves to the main purpose of assembling at the Garden every day, i.e. to exercise.
Last month was terrible. Every second or third day (on average) someone or the other was throwing a party from which there was no escape. Apart from taxing the body and ruining our health, there are intractable issues we have not bargained for.
It is a Catch 22 situation. For, to avoid a party would amount

Old school: Tara Chand Seth

to being rude to the host. And to join would mean getting drawn in a vicious cycle whereby you need to reciprocate and play host some time.
In what has spiraled into competitive one-upmanship, to say that hosting a party is entirely voluntary is of no use. Things have not worked with us that way.
Only one man could extricate himself from this madness – Tara Chand Seth. He belongs to the old school and believes that a box of sweets should suffice for a celebration. He comes to the Garden religiously every morning to exercise, but attends no party and gives none. The reason he has managed to hold his ground is his age and seniority.
The blessings of NOT having a party was evident today. Much to our infinite delight Siba Prasad Maitra broke into a medley of classical numbers (some in Bengali) against the backdrop of massing rain clouds and gathering darkness (see lead pic).
A trained singer, he was obviously in the mood and very much in the moment. His audience may have been limited but for those of us present this morning, the experience was in one word, ethereal. No party, big or small, can come anywhere close to this.
Karun Sharma:
I agree with Blog Monster that July was saturated with parties and that we all need to regulate our food intake according to our physical need. My party is overdue. I shall plan it this week after seeing the mood of fellow friends and my availability. With regular early morning work commitments, I have been sacrificing my Big Laaf exercises. Today's was a refreshing experience in the cool breeze.