Yadav's pan corner at the town centre is very famous and is one among the few to make a roaring business. Here, it is most sought after, as people believe, he uses only original ingredients without compromising on the cost involved. Morning and evenings are the busiest hours when one had to virtually wait his turn to get one. For, it was peak rush hour and mostly the office going people throng his shop. Everybody narrates a story or relates a reason to press him to dispose them off at the earliest. Having listened to them for about three decades, Yadav says nothing but simply would smile at them.
At the break of the dawn, Yadav comes to his small shop in his usual shabby clothes and settles in that dungeon sans any tidiness. Perhaps many customers are very young compared in age to the jar, which Yadav uses to mix `chunna' or the table and chair in his shop. As the thousands of his customers are hard pressed for time or engrossed in their worries, one never tried to inquire about Yadav's personal life beyond his smile. He too always appeared reluctant to share his personal details with anybody.
But, going by the turnout of customers, often some one would remark `Yadav bhai, how much do you make in a day? Thousand rupees a day? or two thousand rupees.
One would easily guess what his answer could be. He smiled back uttering nothing. But, he made more than that.
Never has any customer recognised pan vendor Yadav as equal or as a fellow human being. Often many appeared to have entered into a strange relationship with him where he always looked at the receiving end. In that five minute or ten minute drama that takes place at the road side pan shop, the customer always imagined himself as a hero and Yadav, a non-entity.
Any slight delay, whatever be the reason, will always make Yadav listen to a heroic act of that customer.
A lowest rung employee in the revenue department and regular customer of Yadav once went on -
"Yadav, you are an illiterate brute! Do you know how important I am in my office? People will have to wait for a day to meet me or get their things done. Not a single paper goes up to the district magistrate bypassing me. But for this pan habit, do you think a person like me will come here and stand. I make many influential people to wait, often to test their patience. But, you make me stand for that silly pan."
A wayward youth with connection to a political party was once seen grilling poor chap Yadav.
`Hey man, what do you think of me. Why you never look at me or give the pan immediately. How dare you make me wait? You cannot make an MLA wait for your pan. The MLA will not step out until I go to him. I am telling you again, never make me wait here."
And the police constable, another regular customer did not wish to lag behind on the heroes list when he threatened to drive away all the customers slapping heavy fines for illegal parking on the road infront of pan shop.
"Just because you are known, I am ignoring only to help you earn your bread. If you keep me waiting, someday I will see that not a single customer comes to your shop."
There are so many heroes who turn up there. If resolved, anyone of them could really to affect the whole life of Yadav or threaten his very survival. Hardly any of them ever did, though. He matured and aged listening to people say how important they are in the society and how indispensable to the system. Yadav hardly realised that one day one of his heros really meant what he said. He smiled as usual when the municipal employee got offended for having made to wait for the pan till such time, he thought.
"I am a key man in this town council who will decide how a road should take its course" he said adding that he would mark Yadav's pan shop as obstruction to the free flow of traffic and would order for demolition. Rather, for the delay, the municipal employee got very much enraged at his smile. He saw some viciousness in that smile or felt too humiliated for not seeing any remorse in Yadav with so many people around on the spot.
Just a week after this incident, some municipal employees were seen marking the road and buildings on either side of the thorough fare in the town. The traders came out and were seen talking with each other in commotion. When Yadav went there in out of curiosity and came to know that council had decided to widen the road demolishing the buildings, he murmured
`Bloody fellow! What a dangerous man. I should have given him the pan without any delay."
He did not reveal that the municipal employee threatened him the other day for fear of earning their ire. He listened to them and agreed with them to approach the higher officials to spare their properties.
The efforts of traders did not yield result. But, their blood boiled when the very tall building belonging to a top businessman was left out untouched. Soon, they learnt that he bribed the MLA who prevailed upon the council officials to change road plan.
Yadav was so disturbed at the thought of remaining without his shop in the town centre. He felt his life crumbled. He mobilised all the traders nearby and decided to meet the MLA. Accordingly, they did. Yadav took the lead and approached the MLA. The petty traders expected that they would get a positive reply and were prepared to relate their woes in as dramatic way as possible. It was Yadav who first received the shock when the MLA asked for a Rs 50,000 to be paid as party fund. He wore a question mark face. The MLA was equally surprised.
"Can't you part with just Rs 50,000?" was his remark.
"Sir," Yadav pleaded "I am a small time businessman who earn for the daily bread. I don't have the capacity to...
Even before he completed his sentence, the MLA rose on his feet and shouted back - "Stop the nonsense you bloody creature. You want your property to be protected, but you won't pay anything for that. Am I your servant? Is it for this I spent a crore of rupees to become MLA. Did you vote for me at all? Even if so, do you think your vote alone helped me win? How do I recover my money? You make Rs 50,000 per month and amass all the wealth. When you have a problem, you want others to help you. But for free. I know everything – who earns what on the road. If you are prepared, talk to me, else get lost you bastard," he concluded.
Not just Yadav, but other traders too got the earful. They all came out and it was Yadav's time to burst.
"Dirty bastard, you see he pleaded us all like a dog for our votes to win the election and suddenly changed. You know, when I started my pan shop, that fellow was rearing pigs to eke out a living. But for the vote politics, that fellow would have never got a party ticket and never become an MLA. Are these bloody politicians there to serve the people or to amass the wealth? The country is going to dogs each day," he rued. Other traders echoed similar feelings.
Deep inside his heart, Yadav resolved to teach the MLA, a lesson. Whenever and wherever he met the fellow traders during regular meetings and at other times, Yadav went on encouraging each of them to contest for the MLA seat next time while the road widening programme, like any other government development plan kept postponing. To everyone Yadav spoke, he got similar reply.
"Brother Yadav, why don't you contest as MLA in the next elections? I cannot do it because I have many family responsibilities. Instead of giving party fund to all sundry fellows, I will ensure that our trading community funds your election expenditure."
This is what he was expecting from all and he got it indeed. His strategy worked out well and without going round the political parties, he got sufficient money to contest as an independent candidate. While all other aspiring candidates waited for their names to be declared by their parties, Yadav began his campaign much ahead leaving his pan shop to his wife and children.
Yadav got earful from scores during the course.
One said "Why you poor fellow get into the dirt? Do you think you can win the election? It is not a child's play."
The other said "Brother, why you waste your hard earned money. He wore broad smile on his face as usual.
He told himself "whether I win or lose, it doesn't matter. I will divide the votes and defeat that pig. That is all."
Women in the village demanded for prohibition of illicit liqour and wanted the candidates to promise regular supply of drinking water. The youth demanded for more jobs while the government employees and pensioners urged for pay revision. Every party and candidate promised to do much more than asked for if voted to power. After a six month heat and storm of elections, the dust settled down and the life which virtually came to a standstill returned to normalcy. People in large numbers began searching for the employment for the day.
Yadav's wishful thinking not just came true, but with a bonus. This time he smiled at himself. He won the election much to the surprise of political analysts somehow.
But, very soon the new MLA proved himself to be a `no different man'. He perfected the art of making money at others' cost.
A fellow trader who had been with him ever since the election process began was shocked after witnessing Yadav dealing with a group of women who came to ask for drinking water supply to their slum. "Ok. The council has enough funds to lay pipelines to your slum. Since, you are all poor, I want each household to contribute Rs 200 and give it to me to meet my expenditure. The work will begin in one month after you pay me."
The reaction from the women was instant. They rose to their feet hurling all kinds of profanities at his shameless demand for money. The fellow trader quipped "Some trees always bear bitter fruits."
Yadav smiled at him, as if he understood it.
EOM/
No comments:
Post a Comment