when it rains

at 1:45 pm, i left the house - grateful that the sky was overcast and that the heat was damping down.

near the tomb of safdarjang, i ran into the rain-smell, and saw the road darkened with the wetness of a passing rain, and my heart gladdened.

as i entered the aurangzeb road, i got caught in a terrible shower. stopping under a tree was futile. so i rode on.

on the india-gate circle, my life was endangered by the raindrops that refused to let go of my glasses because of some laws of physics.

when i exited the circle and rode into the tilak marg, it was as if i had stepped out of the shower back into a warm room.

as i parked my bike at the patiala house parking, i realized that everyone else around me was as snug as a bug, and that they had no idea that it was raining elsewhere in their city. eyes gleaming with curiosity, some smiled in amusement and some, sheepishly at being caught staring. i smiled back in reply.

inside, when i reached the counter to get my birth-certificate legalized, the man manning the counter asked me in genuine bewilderment, "yeh arunachal kaun se state mein hai?"

i didn't have an answer to that.