Saturday, May 13, 2006

contemplations

A long time ago lived a prince in a kingdom where all the people were a happy lot. The prince had a beautiful princess who was adored by the people of the tiny kingdom...But there lived an evil king in the nearby kingdom of......”Those stories were relishing and I remember pleading my mom to buy the tinkle that was kept so temptingly on the stands at Higginbotham’s...It cost 5 rupees those days and I have shed many a tear not being able to persuade mom to buy that....And sometimes while waiting at Trivandrum railway station to catch a train I always expressed my fetish for “Gold Spot” ...

Me:”Amma...Am feeling real thirsty because of the heat
Mom (who already knew what was coming from me): “Oh..Yeah I have bought this bottle of water. It’s the best thirst quencher”
Me:”Amma...But how it will be like having a Gold Spot. I guess my thirst will be gone only after having that”
Mom (she has already started flaunting her teacher stares):”How many times have I told you....? (Rest of the script is immaterial ...I have already lost the battle)”

Gold Spot cost seven rupees those days...And my Government employed parents considered them luxuries...Frugality was the buzzword those days...Later did I come to know long term financial planning is characteristic of any Govt servant...Their planning is highly detailed with accurate predictions that should make the Morgan Stanley’s and Mc Kinsey’s look mediocre...And my parents thought far ahead.... and all the Gold Spots..Tinkles...5 stars were dispensable luxuries...But they always gave me pleasant surprises when least expected...And now when I recollect those days were usually the first days of the month when they got their hard earned dough...So it was not exactly like living during “The Great Depression” ...Those books were doubly enjoyable. Those chocolates twice tastier...and those gold spots many times quenching.....The occasional 50 paisa or 1 rupee that comes my way went to the nearby bakery which sold Sip-up’s. Sip-up’s were a craze those days just like we have people flaunting Pepsi diet these days (As if the Diet Pepsi is gonna make them loose weight)...And still if you had only 10 paisa you could still buy “Gas muttai”(poorer version of chloromint)...This poor man’s candy has braved inflation and influx of perfetti toffees. You can still get a dozen of em for a rupee or two...Those were times when little joys were exponentially happier for me...

15 years later....... (Just like they show in movies...eh)

Am standing in a main street in Mysore with friends...We just have come out of the coffee day outlet after having Irish coffee and other fantabulously described breeds of exquisite coffees...They cost us two hundred bucks with taxes amounting a cool 25 bucks....My friends tosses a rupee to a pestering beggar nearby...Am already contemplating whether to buy a new sleeker mobile that cost something that was an astronomical figure 20 years back...

And I recollect the ad line of a famous card firm “There are some things money can't buy, for everything else there's....”

Is there really anything that money can’t buy???Ofcoz they can buy you everything...But am not having the same pleasure having the coffee which cost 60 bucks that I used to have while having the hard earned 5 star 15 years back.... There is no pity while parting the one rupee coin to the beggar...Am not drinking the “frooti” spending hours like I used to...
Am still at odd’s comprehending why its so...

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

heylo again!
i remember gold spot!!! i used to love it too!!! man i wanna taste one now... i totally cant remember how it tasted... even that drink called crush or something...but of course gold spot's older... have u seen any lately? so wanna have it now!!!

~*. D E E P A .* ~ said...

gold spot , sip up - i rem them as forbidden fruits .. have had just 2 gold spots in my life ... sadly now that we can buy them , they no longer exist

~*. D E E P A .* ~ said...

read all the tags ... loooooove ur sarcasm

see u

mathew said...

@swathi

remember those gold spot ads!!!

@deepa

thnx a lot!!! :)