The Other Side of Life

In my humble opinion, of the many tests of married life, one of the hardest and most important is shopping together. My analysis of this test is as follows: I think the hardest role is that of a light shopper accompanying a serious shopper partner. There is too much of tricky balancing to do. For instance, the right mix of looking interested and looking bored, so the partner does not feel hurt, but at the same time, feels guilty enough to either hurry or compensate in some other way, such as say, a Baskin treat. Or a trip to Goa. Or maybe a lifelong spa contract. Not just that. The whole situation, especially if you are a shy light shopper, is reminiscent of scenes from the evergreen Amol Palekar starrer Chotti Si Baat.  The pressure to find the right spot outside the trial room is so high. You want to lean back and stand comfortably. But you want to be able to see your partner when he comes out. You want to be able to convey your opinion with subtle expressions...

When I was little, I think in class 1 or 2, we had a very nice story in English. It was called "Kachu's Shirt". Kachu was an absent minded, slightly stupid, but very nice man. One day, his mother gifted him a nice blue chequered cloth and told him to get it stitched as a shirt for his birthday. Kachu was delighted. He clutched the piece of cloth and ran to his favourite tailor. The tailor could see Kachu was excited. He spent some time taking measurements of Kachu's arms, his waist, his chest. Then in a typical darzi style, he stuck his pencil end in his mouth and started interrogating Kachu. "Full Sleeves or cut sleeves?" "Cut" "Long or short?" "Long" "2 buttons on the collar or 1?" "2" "Pocket?" "Haaan. Of course I want a pocket. I will keep all change there. Also, my comb. Maybe I can keep a photo of myself there. A few toffees too." The tailor ...