This is a story idea that I’ve been flirting with… I’m not sure if I can make it into anything, though.
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Chandni Chowk. The next stop is Chandni Chowk.
The voice was cold and mechanical, curt, with a British accent that seemed out of place in a crowded Indian subway car. I reached behind me, making sure my backpack was still securely closed. “Pickpockets abound,” the guidebooks screamed, “Be careful, especially in crowded areas!” I looked around at my neighbors – the aloof schoolboy, sharply dressed in uniform, the overweight businessman with worn leather attaché and prototypical Indian mustache, the lost Danish couple, noses buried in cryptic maps and heavy guidebooks – all respectable human beings, at least in appearance. But one can never be too careful, right?
I walked out of the subway station into the punishing mid-afternoon sun. It was a hot day in Kolkata, with a slight breeze that stung the face with dust and carried with it the ethereal odors of urine and decaying cabbage. Muktaram Babu Street seemed like every other street in the city, a maze of tea stalls, shoe shiners, and artisans peddling their wares. The melodies of the latest Bollywood hits drifting out of the corner restaurant were drowned out by the occasional taxi, honking with a purpose as it moved slowly through the throngs of people.
“This better be worth it,” I thought, as two small children casually darted around my legs in an impromptu game of hide-and-seek. Searching for the street number of my destination, I stared down at the crumpled letter in my hands, chuckling to myself at how formal the language was.
“SIR— we humbly request that you shall allow Mr. Eddie Zhang to tour the premises of the Marble Palace, former home of the esteemed Raja Rajendra Mallick, on the afternoon of 15th July 2008. Please allow him passage without hindrance or molestation. Many thanks for your cooperation. Signed, this day of 13th July 2008, Manab Mukherjee, Minister in Charge, West Bengal Tourism”
In a country infamous for its tireless bureaucracy, it seemed highly appropriate that in order to visit one of the most interesting attractions in Kolkata, one would have to sit in a stuffy office at least 24 hours in advance, patiently awaiting the opportunity to request a letter from a disgruntled state employee, the purpose of which was to secure permission to enter the premises of said attraction, or more practically speaking, to reduce the amount of the bribe that needed to be paid to the gate guard from 200 rupees to 100 rupees.
