Skip to main content

On the way to everywhere, stop there for some

In this world, there are busy roads and not so busy roads. People jostle to move past or move ahead. Each of them walks these roads in his own faulty, perfect, hesitant, cocksure gait. But each one takes a step in a direction – some with the urgency of getting away from, some with the earnestness of getting closer to.

Every road is a maelstromific bubble. Every person who walks it, walks it with little spurts of crackle. No matter how small or desolate a path, it is someone’s highway to somewhere. And on these roads, there are stalls that stand vanguards to the ultimate emblem of the free spirit – an open road.

These stalls are frequented by an ilk that hasn’t gone soft. Their hearts are still simple, their minds are still unfettered. There’s rawness in their bustle. There’s quickness in their transaction.

These stalls are no place for the mind to get plush or lofty.

When the sun beats down on these stalls, people with unfinished business stop here. They have a grit in their eyes that you would miss in a chic coffee shop anywhere. These eyes could belong to a laborer who’s thinking of being the Marco Polo of his village or the sales guy who’ll shed his corporate shackles today or the woman who’s listening to the first applause of her play. These people are different from those with smooth, processed desires who sit in cool, mild cafĂ©’s. Their dreams are unpolished still – like the stalls they frequent.

From these stalls comes a beverage that infuses this doggedness. It’s sweet and scalding – like the careless tomorrows that crackle in the maelstromic bubble. Again, it’s not for the content or the laggards. It’s for those who sear and bear and grimace yet blink at the sun without shades. It’s for those commoners who claim the open road without sunscreen. It’s the liquid brew of the Ceasar’s promise and the Excalibur spirit.

The cutting chai is not everyone’s cup of tea.

Comments

DewdropDream said…
Just as the local trains and buses are not everyone's trip
Anonymous said…
There used to be omlette pav made all fresh n hot at the stalls near my old office building. I had also immensely enjoyed the ragada pattis, masala chai, masala dosas and Dabeli at other stalls there. Here there arent many such stalls except for sukha bhel types. I miss that old place now :(.
neha said…
oh no blythe! i am so missing the thelas now

:(
heretic said…
Truly, nothing like the mid-morning cuppa at the thela, with the first sutta of the day (but of course you hate tobacco, so perhaps vada pav). :-)
Ar Ar Ar Arrrrr said…
These stalls are no place for the mind to get plush or lofty.
Very true....yup, its been a long time I paused and had those road side cutting chai...


Greetz!!
Ameet said…
Cutting chai and garma-garam vada-pav. Oh, the days!
Khakra said…
i hope starbucks here adds ka-ching chai and madras kaafi coffee to their menu.
karmic said…
Yep.. The lot of the common man, roadside cutting cahi, omelet or vada pav or some quick chinese. The latter often coming from a cart run by someone who only nominally looks Chinese if at all.
Those were the days when I could do that withour worrying about the water and food.
Now if I visit and try this, my stomach can't handle it anymore.
A creature of the west now, I have to say I am a wuss when it comes to thela food :)
But seriously the cleaner water and food here over the years just sensitizes your system differently.
Hyde said…
And I write something about Madras Kaapi on my blog!!
I would die to become one on your road for that one from the stall.
Prat said…
argh...i miss the dabeli guys...

Popular posts from this blog

First Impressions: How to Get Away with Murder (Netflix)

 I love courtroom dramas.  I love non-linear storytelling. I love thrillers. I love tender love stories that embellish such series of grit, grime, and blood. This series delivers on all counts, dips somewhat after a couple of seasons, gets uneven and predictable (when it is less courtroom and more drama) and then finishes strong. The series centers around Annalise Keating who is a fierce, black criminal lawyer who also teaches a class in criminal law (which she calls 'How to Get Away with Murder'). As a teaching methodology, she gets her class to weigh in on her live cases. Part of her strategy also involves picking a handful of promising students and have them work in her 'lab' where they get to help her in strenuous arguments and civil suits, etc. The plot thickens, a murder happens, people get involved, incriminated, incarcerated, and dead. I found a couple of characters in this cast to be really unlikeable - Michaela, Laurel, and Bonnie. After the first couple of se

That kind of a day, that kind of a thought

 It was Eid and Ekadashi today. Thus far, I have managed to keep the fast for Ekadashi. But we still have 2 hours to go so...let's see. I had this urge to go to a temple. There is a small one near my house. Today it was filled with people singing keertans. So I went to the  Iskcon. I like the temple. It's so big and bustling. It's organised and musical.  But today was very crowded. Usually I go to temples and do a quick pranaam without offering flowers or fruits. But I felt like buying a thali. I got one with some fruits, tulsi leaves and a single marigold flower that lay there like a fully energized petaled sun. There was a long queue and I was already feeling stressed in the pit of my stomach. But the line kept moving and just like that, I had my darshan and I got done.  I came out and thought of getting a flower for the pooja room in my home. I bought a lotus. The florist fluffed out the petals and it looked like a sweet little bird.  I caught an auto back and as is my n

A very bad mood

 I have been trying to sleep for a while but have not been able to. I am in a very bad mood. Turns out I am very averse to change. Things are crap.  Deep breaths are not helping. I am feeling very trapped. The anger and irritation is quite intense. Let me take a few moments to just quietly watch myself.  Works