India trip 2018 - Day XIX

I concur with my friend JP Jagdev about the rise in the number of Puja Pandals in Bhubaneswar. In my honest opinion, it is just the reflection of rise in population of the city in recent years. However, a city of nascent immigrants it lacks the soul and spirit of Cuttack where the Puja celebration is centuries old - much part and parcel of the city's cultural ethos.

DASHAHARA and the day before were complete chaos on the roads of Bhubaneswar, especially near the Puja Pandals. People were spiritual as well in high spirits gripped by Puja fever. The silver lining amidst the chaotic traffic in Ravi Talkies CHHAKA (square) yesterday were a bunch of young boys and girls supplementing the traffic police in both crowd and traffic control. Hats off to these youngsters wearing "Student Traffic Controller" T-shirts, cajoling the recalcitrant traffic offenders to follow the rules.

I saw a middle aged man trying to push his way through the already clogged Ravi Talkies junction Pushing GALLUs (transliteration of Gallu Peliba in Odia, meaning stubbornly defending one's own mistake), yelling "AMA RASTA AME AGA JIBUNA - this is our road, we go first". I felt irritated by the behavior of a middle aged guy, who had no shame breaking rules in front of kids old enough to be his children trying to set him straight. 

The guy should be shown the ubiquitous commercial on TV where the Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar sarcastically telling a man breaking traffic rule - YEH TUMHARA BAAP KA RASTA NAHI (This is not your dad's road). I wouldn't have minded at all if the police standing nearby gave the pillion driver a taste of the stick he was holding.

There is Perennial shortage of changes everywhere. If you purchase an amount of Rs.212 and hand the shopkeeper a 500 rupee note (Bill), you will be most likely asked to give and additional Rs.12 so that the shopkeeper can return you Rs.300, easier to return using 100 and 200 denominations. They complain that everyone carries a lot more 500 rupees notes than lower denominations, causing a scarcity in the market. Only big retailers and hotels don't have this problem. 

I went to the "Modern Book Depot", one of the oldest book stores located in Master Canteen. Once upon a time it used to be the only store in the city which carried varieties of books. The Pinocchio shaped long nosed owner who never used to give us any discount due to lack of competition is still there. But competition from online outlets like Amazon and Flipcart, Kindles, coupled with declining reading habits has got better of him. 

The much mellowed down man revealed to me, he gets pleased if the number of customers a day reaches double figure. He complained - "EBE MU EKA EKA BASI MASA MARUCHI, Now a days I am killing mosquitoes sitting alone", euphemism for being idle due to lousy business. It is the way it is. Can't blame him as we live in changing times where technology can be a double edged showed - bringing in new business opportunities driving out the old. More later...