The Hindu Business Line : The growing up pangs

A Rs 10 Cheetos pack of tangy loops and a story every day are a must for Utsav, the grand-daughter of my friend Lachman Singh. Cheetos, manufactured by Pepsi Foods for Frito-Lay India is a hit with under-10 girls and boys in Borivili and Lachman stocks the item as most shops run out of supplies within an hour of their opening. A pack of Cheetos is the minimum as Utsav charms Vidya into buying her a second pack. In the family none says no to Utsav. The lady agrees to an afternoon nap only if Lachman Singh comes up with a story.

For now, Lachman has been briefing Utsav on Tulsidas Ramayana and has had to repeat many times the long jump by Hanuman over the Indian Ocean to touchdown on Ravana's Lanka. When she gets tired of Rama, Lachman crosses over to Mahabharata though he strongly dislikes the scene where the Kauravas try to strip Draupadi. Given a chance, Lachman would like to alter the plot with Draupadi, for a change, stripping the Pandavas and Kauravas for playing with her.

Being scared of Narendra Modi and his good friends in the BJP, the man refuses to pursue his version. He told me, "She wants stories by the kilo. Every day a new story. I am now reading animal stories as it is less risky and one can bravely invent beginnings and endings. If there are no stories, she paints my face with colour chalks, having got the idea from the cricket crowds she sees on TV." But things are changing.

Utsav is now about 10 years old and wants to be on her own. She does not like her grandfather being at her side. She chooses the dresses she wants to wear. Sitting in front of the mirror at our home, she applies lipstick and powder, left on the dressing table by Vidya. Lachman seems to have got the hint. He told me, "Abhi badi ho rahi hai (She is growing up)." She prefers to read Chandamama, Champak and books of fairy tales on her own and when bored of them switches on the TV to watch the Cartoon Newtork channel on TV with her friends. Sometimes she pesters Vidya to take her to films with the latest being Munnabhai, MBBS.

Utsav's best friends are the street kids left loose by their parents busy digging the roads for various government departments and private telecom and gas companies. With schools shut down for summer, kids in every housing society in our area are out on the roads from six in the morning as their parents have little reason to keep them indoors.

In the mornings, bird song of the koyal and magpie robin mix with the chatter and laughter of children to form a pleasant cocktail. Utsav is their good friend despite her not going to convent schools. The day starts with a round of cycling and Utsav joins them with a cycle bought by Vidya. She keeps her cycle clean, washing it every morning before riding it. Some skate on the roads. Some play badminton. Recently, Utsav banged her cycle into a Maruti car parked in our housing colony. The cycle fell on her and her friends pulled her out. Utsav came out with a few scratches while there was no damage to her cycle. The owner rushed out, stared at Utsav and left with a stern warning. He did not like the way Utsav stared back at him.

By around 10 in the morning, the girls and boys shift to cricket and are at it till the evening with small breaks for lunch at home or Amul ice-creams at Murari's. Vidya has a running account at Murari's and the owner allows Utsav to pick up anything she wants from the store. In a day, the bill rarely exceeds Rs 10 and that keeps Vidya and Utsav happy. Often in the afternoon, Utsav leads her friends to the mango trees bordering the rice fields leaving Lachman a worried grandfather. A few well-aimed stone throws and the raw green mangoes come down in a shower. Sometimes the fun and feast gets ruined by an irate Patil, the owner of the mango trees. Patil is a good friend of Lachman but that does not stop him from hollering at Utsav and her friends. And you cannot blame Patil as the mangoes are meant for sale in the markets around Borivili.

Late in the evenings when Lachman goes in search of Utsav, the lady has a ready reply, "Abhi nahin (Not now)." Her grandmother is more sensible leaving Utsav to herself. From our balcony on the seventh floor one can relish the goings-on and not tire. A time will come when Utsav will outgrow her childhood, turn a woman and Lachman will age. He does not want to be reminded of it.

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