Monday, June 25, 2007

My sister came into the dining room wiping her face with a face cleanser.
"I'm going to start a beauty products ka company." she announced. I put my pen down and looked at her.
"I'm going to make beauty products having names starting with 'W'." My eyes narrowed down to chinese size.
"And I will call my company, The W Company!!!"

For those of you who don't know about the slums in Pune, most of them are inhabited by a tribe known as the 'Wadaari' tribe. My uncle very fondly calls the slum - The W Company.

"I'll make a BIG range of products! - 'Which', 'What', 'Why', 'When' and 'Where'. Then 'What-what', 'Why-what', 'Why-why', 'What-where', 'Where-where'..."

"Why are you here?" I asked her calmly. She was supposed to be at maths class.
"Yah BRILLIANT!!! I'll call a black-head removing lotion 'Why are you here?' Its too long na.. for a name?"
My cat opened one eye and yawned.
"And 'Which-which' can be for pimple cure." she continued.
"Why?" I asked.
"No! 'Why' will be for something else."
"Nahi re..." I said, "Why 'Which-which'?"
"Aai-gah!! BRI-LI-ANT!! 'Why-which-which' will be a pimple cure concentrate!"
"Are I'm asking why 'Which-which' for pimple cure?"
"No! 'Why-which-which' for pimple cure concentrate. 'Which-which' for pimple cure."
"But WHY???"
"I haven't thought about 'Why' yet." she plunged into deep thought.
"Oh God!" I cried in sheer irritation.
"I know. God! Its beautiful. Sniff.."

My cat yawned. I felt jealous of him. He could yawn on anybody's face and no one would say a word to him.

"Hey!" my sister exclaimed suddenly. The nib of my pen broke.
"Look! This face cleanser... it's called 'Witch Hazel'!"
"Oh." I said sarcastically. "Which nut would call a cleanser that?"

My sister looked at me and grinned, "A Hazel-nut!"