"Malayalees, especially those still in Kerala, have a superpower - their nonchalant sense of inquisitiveness without giving a damn to social niceties".
The irony wafted in deliciously along with the aromas from the kitchen, as we settled down for dinner on a friend's terrace. Conversations were light and the laughter brought the warmth in, that winter's night.
The irony wafted in deliciously along with the aromas from the kitchen, as we settled down for dinner on a friend's terrace. Conversations were light and the laughter brought the warmth in, that winter's night.
A small bunch of us was catching up quite unexpectedly, and I'd just met M, who mentioned that her projects in interior design take her quite often to the land of curious people. Both of us having roots in Kerala meant there was a subject for banter right away.
"I'd a client-visit for a project in Trivandrum,and I spent the latter part of the morning salivating at the prospect of lunch.What's a trip to Kerala without its utterly divine seafood? We were on-site and the heat was making me delirious anyway. The client's spectacles reminded me of a crab, I saw shrimps jumping out out of floor plans, I heard 'karimeen' when someone called out to Kareem, our
Man Friday for the day. When it was finally time for lunch, I let out a little yoddle and rushed to the car that was taking us to the restaurant that came highly recommended". M was going a bit breathless just talking about it.
" I hope that excruciating wait was worth it", I piped in.
" And how! You must hand it to the Mals. Their cuisine really caresses the taste buds. The sea food on the day was sensational. In my greed, I might actually have overdone the eating part", she confessed.
"Was cooking the superpower you alluded to earlier?" I wondered aloud.
"My story only begins now", she retorted.
"An hour or so after getting back to work on-site, my stomach began to rumble. I knew the price of gluttony had caught up. The site didn't have decent washrooms, and I asked to be taken to the hotel I was staying in.I was feeling sheepish, so I told them I'd left some papers behind that I wanted to pick up"
"Kareem asked if I'd like him to accompany me, but the NO was so emphatic he apologised instinctively, the poor fellow. He called for the driver - the same one who had driven us to lunch, and asked him to drive me to my hotel and bring me back." She paused, as she sipped off her drink.
"The hotel wasn't too far, but you know how it feels when the thunder within reaches a crescendo, don't you?" she cackled heartily.
"I was tensed up all the way and when we finally reached the hotel, I quickly jumped out of the car,rushed in,quickly finished the job and came right back. It wouldn't have taken me more than 10 minutes"
" I got back into the car and I don't know what it was - perhaps it was the palpable relief in my face - but the driver looked at me and in a voice laced with curiosity and concern and asked, "LOOSE MOTIONS AANO?" (loosies, eh?)
" I was completely taken aback. I knew it wasn't impertinence and so I didn't feel anger; just embarrassment. I mumbled something about how I'd to pick up some papers that I'd left behind. It was then that I realized that I was carrying nothing with me. I'd left my handbag on-site in my hurry and there were obviously no papers in the room to take back. I'd left the site empty-handed and now was returning empty handed"
"Almost a metaphor for life", she ended, as the rest of us rolled over laughing.
"I'd a client-visit for a project in Trivandrum,and I spent the latter part of the morning salivating at the prospect of lunch.What's a trip to Kerala without its utterly divine seafood? We were on-site and the heat was making me delirious anyway. The client's spectacles reminded me of a crab, I saw shrimps jumping out out of floor plans, I heard 'karimeen' when someone called out to Kareem, our
Man Friday for the day. When it was finally time for lunch, I let out a little yoddle and rushed to the car that was taking us to the restaurant that came highly recommended". M was going a bit breathless just talking about it.
" I hope that excruciating wait was worth it", I piped in.
" And how! You must hand it to the Mals. Their cuisine really caresses the taste buds. The sea food on the day was sensational. In my greed, I might actually have overdone the eating part", she confessed.
"Was cooking the superpower you alluded to earlier?" I wondered aloud.
"My story only begins now", she retorted.
"An hour or so after getting back to work on-site, my stomach began to rumble. I knew the price of gluttony had caught up. The site didn't have decent washrooms, and I asked to be taken to the hotel I was staying in.I was feeling sheepish, so I told them I'd left some papers behind that I wanted to pick up"
"Kareem asked if I'd like him to accompany me, but the NO was so emphatic he apologised instinctively, the poor fellow. He called for the driver - the same one who had driven us to lunch, and asked him to drive me to my hotel and bring me back." She paused, as she sipped off her drink.
"The hotel wasn't too far, but you know how it feels when the thunder within reaches a crescendo, don't you?" she cackled heartily.
"I was tensed up all the way and when we finally reached the hotel, I quickly jumped out of the car,rushed in,quickly finished the job and came right back. It wouldn't have taken me more than 10 minutes"
" I got back into the car and I don't know what it was - perhaps it was the palpable relief in my face - but the driver looked at me and in a voice laced with curiosity and concern and asked, "LOOSE MOTIONS AANO?" (loosies, eh?)
" I was completely taken aback. I knew it wasn't impertinence and so I didn't feel anger; just embarrassment. I mumbled something about how I'd to pick up some papers that I'd left behind. It was then that I realized that I was carrying nothing with me. I'd left my handbag on-site in my hurry and there were obviously no papers in the room to take back. I'd left the site empty-handed and now was returning empty handed"
"Almost a metaphor for life", she ended, as the rest of us rolled over laughing.
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