THE BUDGET ( A short story)
THE
BUDGET (A short story)
It was budget day evening. Aslam bhai was relaxing in his favorite chair and contemplating the budget. His wife Archanaben, in her early thirties,
was engrossed in watching her favourite serial on TV. Their two kids were intermittently
studying as well as chatting on the mobile. It was pouring outside and the only
sound, other than of the lady on TV threatening her in-laws, was the sweet
sound of rain. It so seemed that the sound of rain was the only element, in an
Indian home, that had not changed!
It was all fine till the kids whispered something to each other, ran to their mother and the three was seen discussing animatedly. They then got up and hurried towards Aslambhai.
Archanabhen , with a serious frown on her face, eyes intense but with a sweet voice asked of her husband " Are sunte ho, the family is finding our needs increasing. Will you tell us how you plan to manage these expectations".
Silence. The complexities of the balance of payment position and the sovereign debt bonds needed intense intellectual focus and our Aslambhai was lost in the world of the Indian Budget and, thus, was oblivious of the family's presence and the existential question posed by the lady of the house. A few repeated attempts finally got him out of his contemplation and he muttered;
" oh! well yes! I know. but well .." and then he went quite for few seconds. All of a sudden, his five lit up and his expression indicated a eureka moment.
He gestured to all of them to sit down. Sipping a glass of water, he addressed his audience " Look we are in for a new and exciting period. Never have this family been at the threshold of such a moment and with me at the helm, we will soon be the happiest and richest family in the neighborhood. I have planned to build a new home with four bedrooms and attached washrooms. A princely amount of Rs 200 lakhs has been estimated for this and I plan to have this ready by end of five years" . He is interrupted by claps from the impressed family.
He nods and continues " I am not happy with the school our kids are going to. I have decided that they must go the IB affiliated school. I plan to request your rich maternal uncle in Illinois for a long term, loan for meeting the education cost. With that our kids will be get the best international standard education possible"
The kids jumped up with joy while Archanabhen's look indicated that she has discovered god himself in Aslambhai.
Encouraged by this, Aslam bhai slipped into a Urdu couplet " Kareed paya na sukh, paisa wo bekar kha, ghar kho gar banaya nahi, aisa wo kis kaam ka"
Archanabhens smile told him he has got them where he wanted. He had to outline other plans too. " We all are young now but we must take care of our health. I have thought of an Aslam Parivar swast yojana that will ensure health for all by the year 2022. It will need six to eight lakh rupees per annum and it will have an annual health check-up and fifteen days recuperation at my friends Baba Shyamdev's ashram". Thunderous applause reverberated across the house. He pushed on.
" My dearest Archu , this is not all..In order to ensure adequate and good quality food for all of us, I am planning to selloff, fully or completely, the old godown belonging to your father, to a supermarket. The arrangement will be such that they supply our monthly groceries and provisions at half the price. All the families in our neighborhood will envy us, though I intend to invite all of them every month for a feast at our home"
Aslambhai knew he had the family all excited at their future. He surely and cleverly had managed to keep them happy, in fact very happy, for some time. A look of accomplishment took over his face. He went on......
Amidst all this, quite unnoticed and somewhat ignored, Aslambhais father in law, Mr Bakhulal , was reclining on the old grandfather chair, reading a book. He was a learned man and knew the ways of the world. He had stuck to his reading till he heard the claps and looked up. From then on, he listened to Aslambhai's narration of how he plans to change the life of his family. The expression on his face transited from curiosity to bewilderment and a tinge of anger at what was being presented to his daughter and grandchildren. He realized that while Aslam bhai painting of the future and the promises made were grand, ambitious and aspirational, it was also just hope, not backed by hard capability or resources.
He, however, did not react. He looked intently at Aslambhai , who caught his glance. Aslambhai instantly knew the meaning of that glance, the sharpness of the stare was enough to make him shudder. But both did not say a word.
The family was Aslambhai’s responsibility. He had their trust and Mr Bakhulal was clear that his daughter and her kids have to ride that trust and discover the truth the future held for themselves, without his interference.
He stared into thin air for a few seconds and then went back to his book.
It was all fine till the kids whispered something to each other, ran to their mother and the three was seen discussing animatedly. They then got up and hurried towards Aslambhai.
Archanabhen , with a serious frown on her face, eyes intense but with a sweet voice asked of her husband " Are sunte ho, the family is finding our needs increasing. Will you tell us how you plan to manage these expectations".
Silence. The complexities of the balance of payment position and the sovereign debt bonds needed intense intellectual focus and our Aslambhai was lost in the world of the Indian Budget and, thus, was oblivious of the family's presence and the existential question posed by the lady of the house. A few repeated attempts finally got him out of his contemplation and he muttered;
" oh! well yes! I know. but well .." and then he went quite for few seconds. All of a sudden, his five lit up and his expression indicated a eureka moment.
He gestured to all of them to sit down. Sipping a glass of water, he addressed his audience " Look we are in for a new and exciting period. Never have this family been at the threshold of such a moment and with me at the helm, we will soon be the happiest and richest family in the neighborhood. I have planned to build a new home with four bedrooms and attached washrooms. A princely amount of Rs 200 lakhs has been estimated for this and I plan to have this ready by end of five years" . He is interrupted by claps from the impressed family.
He nods and continues " I am not happy with the school our kids are going to. I have decided that they must go the IB affiliated school. I plan to request your rich maternal uncle in Illinois for a long term, loan for meeting the education cost. With that our kids will be get the best international standard education possible"
The kids jumped up with joy while Archanabhen's look indicated that she has discovered god himself in Aslambhai.
Encouraged by this, Aslam bhai slipped into a Urdu couplet " Kareed paya na sukh, paisa wo bekar kha, ghar kho gar banaya nahi, aisa wo kis kaam ka"
Archanabhens smile told him he has got them where he wanted. He had to outline other plans too. " We all are young now but we must take care of our health. I have thought of an Aslam Parivar swast yojana that will ensure health for all by the year 2022. It will need six to eight lakh rupees per annum and it will have an annual health check-up and fifteen days recuperation at my friends Baba Shyamdev's ashram". Thunderous applause reverberated across the house. He pushed on.
" My dearest Archu , this is not all..In order to ensure adequate and good quality food for all of us, I am planning to selloff, fully or completely, the old godown belonging to your father, to a supermarket. The arrangement will be such that they supply our monthly groceries and provisions at half the price. All the families in our neighborhood will envy us, though I intend to invite all of them every month for a feast at our home"
Aslambhai knew he had the family all excited at their future. He surely and cleverly had managed to keep them happy, in fact very happy, for some time. A look of accomplishment took over his face. He went on......
Amidst all this, quite unnoticed and somewhat ignored, Aslambhais father in law, Mr Bakhulal , was reclining on the old grandfather chair, reading a book. He was a learned man and knew the ways of the world. He had stuck to his reading till he heard the claps and looked up. From then on, he listened to Aslambhai's narration of how he plans to change the life of his family. The expression on his face transited from curiosity to bewilderment and a tinge of anger at what was being presented to his daughter and grandchildren. He realized that while Aslam bhai painting of the future and the promises made were grand, ambitious and aspirational, it was also just hope, not backed by hard capability or resources.
He, however, did not react. He looked intently at Aslambhai , who caught his glance. Aslambhai instantly knew the meaning of that glance, the sharpness of the stare was enough to make him shudder. But both did not say a word.
The family was Aslambhai’s responsibility. He had their trust and Mr Bakhulal was clear that his daughter and her kids have to ride that trust and discover the truth the future held for themselves, without his interference.
He stared into thin air for a few seconds and then went back to his book.
Aslambhai felt glad that he had watched the day’s Budget session on TV.
Archana bhen, meanwhile switched on a new channel.
The channel was airing the excerpts of the Budget speech of the Finance Minister. Something sounded familiar to Archana but she could not place it. Soon she ignored that feeling and went back to her excited self.
The channel was airing the excerpts of the Budget speech of the Finance Minister. Something sounded familiar to Archana but she could not place it. Soon she ignored that feeling and went back to her excited self.
In a curious manner life and events merged, danced and swirled in the
house that rainy evening.
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