Hello:Part II: AmitL

This one is one Hello incident I can never forget. And,that's because the shop where it took place, comes on the route of my evening walk,and the honourable gentleman who made it so memorable, can be seen from the outside, if I glance in(And, I can't resist it, you'll see why) while passing by.

It was at the time of shifting the flat(Believe me,it's tiring!),earlier this year. There's a showcase I wanted to get dismantled and reassembled. Someone recommended this carpentry shop to me,and said 'just meet the Sardarji there'.

So, I went there.

Scene 1: 3 Sardars working on a piece of wood look up.

I enter: (All three Sardarjis working):
Me: Hellow.
*I explain the requirement for five minutes to them, they nod their head in agreement. *So, I ask’ When can you come?’. The answer:’ Oh, for that you have to meet the Boss upstairs.’

So, I go up the stairs, to a small cabin. And, there’s this Senior Sardarji who gives me a big smile and switches on the Airconditioner for me:

Him: Hello, Aaiye, Aaiye. Kaise hain aap? (Hello,Come in come in. How are you?)

Me: (Pleasantly surprised): Bilkul Theek. Aap kaise hain?(I’m fine. How’re you?)

Him: Bilkul theek. Bataaiye, kya seva karen? (I’m fine. What can I do for you?)

Me: Aaj ek Showcase dismantle karwa ke reassemble karvaana hai, next building mein. (I need a showcase to be dismantled and reassembled at another place, today.)

Him: Bilkul karvaa denge. (Of course we’ll do it)

Me: Kya charge hoga?( What’ll be the charge?)

Him: Aap kya denge? (What’ll you give?)

Me: 10-20 dirham ke beech mein. (Between ten to twenty dirhams).

Him: (wide eyes): Mein to 5 dirhams se zyaada nahin loon. Koi us se zyaada maange to who chor hoga (I wouldn’t ask for more than 5 dirhams. Anyone who asks for more would be a crook).

Me: Sahi hai. Lekin urgency mujhe hai. Kaam aadhe ghante se zyaada ka nahin hai.
(True. The work is not more than half an hour).

Him: Aapko kaise pata? Aap carpenter to nahin lagte hain, to aap samay kaise bata sakte hain?. (How do you know? You don’t look like a carpenter, and if so, you cannot judge the time)

Me: (Grinning): Nahin- Main apne past experience ki baat kar raha hoon. Aapke hisaab se kitna time lagega? (No, I am not, I’m just telling my experience from the previous shifting I did. How much time do you think it will take?)

Him: Aadha Ghanta (Half an hour).
(Remark: I thought such a dialogue happened only in jokes)

Me(Concluding): To kab tak aadmi aayega? (When will the man come?)

Him: Aapka number deejiye. Mein aapko call karoonga. Aap mujhe call nahin karenge.( Give me your number. I will give you a call. You don’t call me).

Me: Haan, lekin ek time bataaiye. Us time ke baad mujhe koi aur dhoondhna padega, kyonki mujhe aaj flat waapas dena hai real estate waale ko. (Yes, but, tell me what time. After that time, if your man doesn’t come , I’ll have to look for someone else because I have to handover the flat to the Real Estate Agent)

Him: Dekhiye, aaj to nahin, kal bhi nahin, parson bhi nahin – hamaare paas Jebel Ali ka kaam hai . To teen din baad main aapko phone karoonga.(You see, it won’t be today, tomorrow or the day after. We have work from Jebel Ali. So, I will call you after three days).

(Aarghhh, I went, internally- was I speaking Hebrew all this while, when I said I wanted to get the work done today?).

Me: Oh, koi chance nahin?(Oh, no chance ?)

Him: Nahin…teen din tak bilkul nahin (No..not for three days).

Me: Theek hai. (Ok)

Him: Achcha ji…aap phone zaroor karma. (Ok…please do call.)

Me: Kyon?( For what?)

Him: Aap mujhe bataana aapne kitne mein kaam karaaya. (You tell me how much you paid to get the work done).

Me: (Smiling externally, wanting to commit murder otherwise): Bilkul, bilkul. (Sure, sure).
*I run down the narrow creaky stairs, not knowing whether to laugh or to cry in annoyance*

Scene 2: Then, I climb down the stairs, and one of the Sardarjis there goes’ Hellooo- Pssst- take this’. And, he hands me a folded cut piece of paper, to be read outside the shop. I walk a few steps and open the meticulous folds. It has a number and says (Reproduced ad verbatim):

“ Thes Nobar coll ne. AFTAR Dis Kis.”

I went off to the barber shop(Needed a haircut, pondering over the note and whether it was some special Sardarji code. Inspiration dawned suddenly- I’m sure you all must have guessed what the note meant???

Cheers!