Torn Fences & Broken Walls - 2

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For six months before my wife joined me in Qrs C1-97, its twin C1-98 was vacant and deserted due to routine delay in Allotment. Cattle and Goats had a free run of both the Twins.

In her astonishment of getting a proper Bungalow with spacious front and back yards for the first time in her life that was earlier spent in the crowded temple town Tirupati, she at once became a Garden Enthusiast. I knew the tears of gardening at KGP, but fell diplomatically silent.

One learns these things by 'Acquired Intuition for Deprived Sex' (AIDS).

We engaged a Proper Mali, who cleared the mess, erected a pucca fence dividing the Twins, and started raising flowers, vegetables, creepers etc within 6 months. My Fair Lady took a personal interest and was tending to the plants as if they were her own kids.

And we went on a short trip away from KGP to attend a wedding. By the time we returned, nothing was left but the hollow footprints and holy dung of a dozen cows, and stumps nibbled away by 20 goats. The culprits were the maids, milkmen, newspaper vendors, postmen et al who merrily barge in and don't bother to close the Front Gate.

My wife was chastened and took a vow that she would never repeat the mistake.

And Sonoo, my son, was in the offing anyway.

The fence we erected crumbled and our Mali was asked to just keep the place clean for the advent of our new arrival.

One fine morning we found that our Twin Qrs C1-98 was allotted to Prof DKA, whom I knew a bit from our Gokhale Hall days 15 years ago. Neither he nor I changed much. I was as usual a withdrawn loner too shy to speak first (although Aniket dubs me a 'chatter box'), and DKA was worse than me in that respect. Two silent tombs.

[Joke: Two prisoners were jointly allotted a Cell in NY. After six months of silence, one of the two declares: "I have decided to buy NY"; and gets a prompt reply: "Sorry, I won't sell it for another decade"]

But I found that in consultation with his wife, DKA announced that they would like to raise a Garden in their half and asked if I had any objection if the fence between us was made pucca. I asked him to go ahead but indicated that we have absolutely no control over our half and should not be blamed if cows and goats enter there from here. He said he would make it cattle-proof.

And within a year, a lovely Garden was there on the other side of the fence which was not only greener but redder, yellower, bluer etc with all sorts of colorful flowers. My wife and I had the great pleasure of painless voyeurism.

DKA had a singlet son, Sanju, 3 years older to Sonoo, our own singlet. As Sonoo grew to take to walking about our desert, Sanju was watching him curiously. One fine morning, when Sonoo was eating his 'tiffin' in his hand at the back fence, Sanju asked him from across; "Ki Khaachcho?". Sonoo couldn't quite follow Sanju's Bengali, so I prompted him to say:"Chapati". And Sanju was so pleased that the chap across could talk that he started dancing; "Cheeni Chapati! Chimti Chapati!". And Sonoo followed Sanju's dance steps closely.

Parents on both sides rushed to watch the Dance of these two little Devils, both of whom badly needed company of their own kind and age. It was a great relief for one and all.

It follows as Day follows Night that within a week, Sanju Auntie asked their Mali to make a 'picket gate' in the front so that the two little devils can commute between the two Qrs without risking going out of the Main Gates onto the high road.

It follows as the Night follows Day that within a month Sanju Auntie asked their Mali to make a 'wicket gate' in the fence behind the kitchen so that Sonoor Ma and she could exchange salacious Campus Gossip without interruption by their hubbies and kids.

And within another year Sonoo was being fed fish and meat by Sanju Auntie, and Sanju Idli, Dosa, Sambar by Sonoor Ma.

And a lifelong friendship was established between a highly conservative (almost xenophobic) Bengali family of 3 on one side of the fence and an ultra-orthodox South-Indian Vegetarian family of 3 on the other side. The only common factor worth gloating was that both were Brahmins (gps without the holy thread and DKA innocent of Vedas).

The kids grew up to School, then IIT, then to jobs, then to marriage and then latest to fathers of two lovely daughters...all keeping their family friendship absolutely unbroken (like the ooze of a filament of ghee as they say) and wonderful.

Soon after his marriage, Sonoo took his brand new wife to his KGP to show off his Sanju Auntie, who gifted Sailaja a beautiful gold chain.

And when my wife and I visited KGP four months back, we gifted Sanju Auntie a lovely Hyderabadi Pearl Necklace Set. She was so pleased with 'Chotto Sonoor Return Gift' that I could see tears welling up. She quickly went inside, and returned with the Pearl Necklace and Tops in place to show off to her husband: "ogo, dekhcho?".

And Sanju Mama and Sonoor Baba exchanged their usual pleasantries for the 30th time in as many years.

Didn't Tolstoy write a story where two neighbors burnt their houses down on a silly dispute over a tree that bordered their fences?

Good Fences make Good Neighbors

But

Torn Fences make Great Neighbors!

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