The local vegetable vendor . He doesn't do this for lack of customers . He does this because , he doesn't want me to be deprived of the freshest watermelon , the reddest tomatoes , and the firmest bananas. For , like a true gentleman , he doesn't stop his customers , made up of a motley gaggle of housewives and house helps , from squeezing , sniffing and holding the merchandise . Then abandoning the pale , the squishy , and the spotted , in favour of the firm , the shiny and the blemish free .
Survival of the fittest at its best .
Most of the people who flocked to this vendor are elderly . The "online-ly challenged " , if you may . No , it is not an insult .
I consider myself to be a part of this breed of humans , rapidly vanishing . An endangered breed who still like to haggle the price of lauki with their human thela vendors , and not order it at thrice the price on some faceless app . The possibility of being saddled with a rotting cabbage , and having to wage a time -consuming , and soul-crushing , online battle , for a refund , and an apology , is very real . Not worth it . It is easier to let the black hole of the online world consume your hard earned 50 bucks. That too , for a cabbage that your vendor would charge you , possibly 20 rupees for .
The pluses are many . You ask your regular sabzi vendor , if his mother was discharged from ICU . He tells you , she has "passed " , while passing his own hand over his recently shaved head , indicating the funeral of a loved one in recent past . You tut - tut , keep silent for a moment , then launch into a tirade over rising prices , wretched politics and the sticky hot weather . He matches you , word for word , shaking his head , nodding vigorously , speaking up when needed , and winding your interaction with a bunch of dhania and a fistful of green chillies , thrown in for free .
He even lowers his prices , and his guard , in criticising the ruling party , for you are that item , the "regular " .
For years , I have known his sons , his wife and him , as they take turns to run the shop . His sons are in college and high school and I keep forgetting their classes . I am scared to ask too , as I know that most of the time they are busy measuring out merchandise , and handing over the patrons their bags bulging with spinach and gourds , onions and tomatoes , the coloured and the green . All that work must leave little room , intent , or interest for scholarly pursuits .
Last week , the vendor took a loan from his bank , and bought an electric powered mini truck . It is shiny , white , new , and has immediately raised his status , both in other's eyes , and probably his own . Old friends , gardeners , masons , odd job boys , drop in , touch his vehicle gingerly , and ask him how much it cost ? Where did he buy it from ? The gas cylinder supplier , having an old petrol driven mini of his own , offers suggestions as where he could have gotten a better deal from , etc etc . All this has raised his self esteem in the eyes of his erstwhile friends , who probably don't consider him equal any more . With a single material possession , he has elevated himself , in ways , in which years of slogging wouldn't have .
Of late , as a sign of prosperity and good business , he buys large transparent bags of strawberries , kiwi fruit . musk melon (an exotic variety called "Bobby ") , button mushrooms , and a crate of alphonso mangoes .
These are expensive and fragile items and have , what is called a "niche market " .
Despite catering to a certain income group , it is interesting to note that there are some people , who have more expending power , even in the "earthy " realm of vegetable buying .
As someone wise had noted once "Men are created equal , but some are more equal than the others ".
