Welcome Diversions

Kiran Prakash ushers in Diwali today

Kiran Prakash today kick-started our Diwali celebrations in the Garden with a box of barfis. It was Dhanteras yesterday and today, it is Narak Chaturdashi. Tomorrow it will be Diwali proper and a day later, it shall be Bhatri Dwitiya or Bhai Dooj.
Effectively, Diwali has come to be celebrated as a five-day festival and going by our past record in Big Laaf, it would take another five days, if not more, for the after-effects of the festivities to wear off.
A major Diwali bash from the Club is also being scheduled.
Meanwhile, in celebrating the absence of Arun Patil from the Garden this morning, Razia Khan defiantly discarded her cap while conducting the exercises. It was an act of declaring independence (‘azadi’, as she put it) from the supposedly authoritarian ways of Arun and with Rukhsana Khan and Khatoon Baig extending their support, it was a fun-filled morning for all.

Karun Sharma (in black) keeps a hawk's eye on Razia Khan |(r)

The ladies even coined a new name for our group -- Azad Company!
But they had obviously spoken too soon. No, Arun did not turn up later. Unknown to the ladies, he had left behind his alter ego, separated by a single ‘K’. Karun Sharma took on the mantle of Arun with effortless ease – riddling Razia constantly through the exercises, picking faults needlessly, correcting her at every step, telling her to keep count properly, to speak louder, not to fidget too much, to bend more… and so on.
The mindless prodding had its desired effect and everybody laughed their heads off. Exasperated, Razia could not help remarking that Karun was possessed by Arun’s ghost!
Be that as it may, this is how we exercise every morning. We require some reason to break the monotony of our daily regimen and we find it, unerringly at the Garden. Call this collective waywardness, creative license or plain mischief, so long as nobody gets hurt and everybody has fun, a diversion from the routine is always welcome. Else, life in Big Laaf would become a big bore.

Bihari Milwani:
It seems Razia has many admirers.