Monday 7 January 2013

Hilltop Story 1


Nothing much happened. Like always. I sat dreaming atop those little hills like I had done a million times before. The usual winter sun was shining brightly and there was a crowd,  as it happens, usually on such days.
                   Some school kids were hanging around and some old ladies were basking in the sun as were the stray dogs. The chaiwalas and the papadwalas were shunting around screaming from time to time, chai!!! Chai!!!  Or papad!!! Papad! Just like they usually did, everyday in their life.
              There also came a chatpatchannawala. His days were fixed.  But even he was usually there. Almost everyday of his life, screaming his harsh chatpat channa!!! Chatpat channa!!
                    The school kids who were some four five fifth class students, called the chatpatchannawala, who was alredy lurking near them tempting them with the chatpati redolence, his screams reduced to cooing, and a strange twinkle in his eyes. His boni time(first sale of the day), like his usual boni time. After a little childish bargaining that only children can do, they settled on a price and the usual transaction was going to  happen in which the producer, though may not be primary, would get a price for his product by a consumer who shows interest in that product. 
                                       But before this could happen something unusual happened and an older school kid came to them, in fact materialized from nowhere and took the younger kids with him to the school bus.
              Though not usual, or an everyday affair, but not even rare as the northern sunlight, whatever that is, the twinkle in the chatpatchannawalas eyes lingered on for a while and then vanished as he let out his usual harsh screams, chatpat channa!! Chatpat channa!! 
                                           And I sat like I  usually did on  that hilltop where you can find me anytime. Everyday. Where nothing happened.