Friday, March 12, 2010

Uncle

At times I try to recollect when I was first called uncle. Still there are lucky guys in our batch who have maintained that non-uncle look. My hats off to them. In case of the remaining unlucky guys, in high probability the person who called them uncle for the first time is rikshawala in Vasai. And the sentence which he would have uttered 'Uncle, puthe basata ka? The injustice is two-fold. You are the first one to arrive, wait patiently till 3 passengers come and then when the 4th person comes, it's your turn to share the front seat with him. To add on to that, you are being called uncle.
First my few initial encounters with uncle, I became used to it and thought about it quitely. To make myself feel better, I assumed that it was their way of showing respect to my age/wisdom :). The terms were different at different places. In crowded train, they would call you Boss. The Boss word can be used with different meaning by saying it in different tones. In office, term used is Sir. In office, you can use it for your benefit.
But with our relatives and community the experience is different and it is pleasant. You attend any function and you end up meeting grannies, aunties who would still talk with you in same way as they have been doing since last 30 years. For them you are still that same school boy.
The question which still remains unanswered for me is how to refer a riskhawala aged around 50, who has just called you uncle!

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