the "BIRAYANI" fiasco...

Just a casual conversation on the dinner table lead to the chance discovery that my grandfather's birthday was on Oct 2nd,the very same day as that of another father,the father of the nation....Silpa,my cousin,remarked "Grandpa,this calls for a treat,in fact for a special biryani treat.." My grandfather ,with his blank stoic expression said," hey I dont celebrate my birthday...It always has been inauspicious "... Then he narrated how I was attacked by a bull (when i was just a thumb sucking kid),the last time he had celebrated his birthday....But Silpa was adamant and I gave her my full fledged support...At last the old man gave in and I was bestowed the divine task of bringing home biryani,the next evening....

The next day as I came back from my college library(studies are going on heavily these days as the P.G medical entrance exams are breathtakingly near),I was immediately reminded of the biryani...Grandpa gave me 150 bucks...Rs.150 and biryani for five persons!!!! It was bit too trifle even in this cheap town of Cuttack... A matchstick cost Rs 1 in this age of inflation!!!! And Silpa wanted the biryani from hotel Bishal which was famous for its special chicken biryani and also for its exhorbitant costs...!! A bit of cajoling and the amount was raised to Rs 200 ;still it would be grossly insufficient ;I was sure....

I took my friend Samba(pet for Sambit) along from our college hostel to kill time...We had chicken tandoori as he told me some disturbing facts that how some people bitch me behind my back...I showed the "I dont care" attitude but somewhere i felt a mental pang...btw it was just going to be the beginning...In the meantime ,the birayani was neatly packed and the aroma itself was mouth watering...But the Rs 500 bill that came along might not be that titillating for my grandfather...

As we came out , we were stuck in a heavy traffic jam...Some puja procession was going on(which goes the year long at Cuttack) ...And the roads were jam packed...We took a diversion but as luck would have it ;it was even more congested...
Suddenly my bike,the white elephant(read about it in the previous post) ceased dramatically and fumes came out its engine...Both of us had no other option to drag it to the college hostel nearby...And to drag it for 2 kms midst the heavy traffic; glaring horns and the flood of perspiration didn't feel rosy at all....I kept it at the hostel and took Samba's bike...Three missed calls on my mobile indicated that people were desperate at my home ...

I was vrooming along comfortably and smoothly negotiating through the hordes of vehicles,that suddenly the bike jerked and stopped..!!! Shit! petrol over !!! And again I was back to the bike dragging business....Then I bought some loose petrol and sped away to finally reach my home...A 10 minutes ride back journey took more than two precious hours...
I was so mentally and physically drained that I didnt realise that I was terribly hungry too...The biryani was served and everyone ate it gleefully ..That also included my grandfather,who was obviously shocked at its price and while licking his fingers began stories how things were cheap during his age...

The Biryani(if u deduct the very sour raita) was fantastic ,but was it really worth the effort..!!!!!! Or my grandfather's theory of inauspiciousness with a special relation to me, vindicated..!!!!!


......ayaskant