Meeting Paradoxes

Hunting stories for a special issue on Delhi, I met paradoxes. Human paradoxes. In CP, we came across this shop that declared itself “the smallest studio of the world”, and the pictures hanging outside were of the owner with the biggest Bollywood stars. Inquisitive, I asked the Sikh gentlemen standing outside how he managed to get clicked with the who’s who. “We are in the media ji,” he replied. “ Freelancer, you mean,” I asked. “I am not a freelonser. I am media,” he grumbled. We asked him for his card, he said he doesn’t give cards. Smallest studio, biggest stars, no cards.
We walked a little ahead and found two guys cycling for world peace. Lokbandhu and Vishvabandhu are their names, they have traveled the entire South east Asia and plan to keep cycling for world peace for the next five years. They are the bandhu of the entire world, but themselves in tattered condition and complained of financial problems. It seems their government is not quite their bandhu.
The next day we were hunting for a mosque built by Ghulam Qadir Rohilla’s father, around India gate. On reaching Pandara Road, at a newspaper stall, I chanced upon this old man with thick white moustache, white kurta and lots of photographs pinned to his kurta. An identity card said “ freedom fighter” and the photos were of him with Sonia Gandhi and Sheila Dixit and other top Congress leaders. After a little chat in which he was very reticent, he said I hate the media and I hate politicians.” I pointed out that he was very lovingly carrying those people on his chest who he hated. “what will you know. You were not even born,” was his reply as he walked away.
Next, in the mosque hunt, we reached the mosque where an old man – not the imam, but someone hanging around told us that taking pictures was prohibited by religion. A while later, I clicked his picture, and he smiled and posed for it.