I woke up to the sound of barking dogs. It took some time for me to realise where I was and why the dogs were barking so loud. I sat up from my bench and saw the dark figure I saw last night, hitting a dog with his long stick. The dog seemed to have followed something to him and woke him up. All the other dogs started barking in unison, supporting their friend. I felt a movement below, as I saw the dog sleeping beneath the bench also get up and join the barking group.
I looked at my watch, stretched on my makeshift bed, and realised it was almost six. I gathered the sleeping bag and packed it in my bag, arranging the items inside. Looking around I found an old rusty tap along the wall on the outside. To my surprise water flowed down as I tested it. I decided to freshen up and wait for the shop to open. I had just finished brushing by the time Vijayan came, with a bag of items.
“Was it very cold? It rained a lot yesterday night”, he asked. “Aah, Balu will also come this way, you can join him”, he added.
“Who is Balu?” I asked as I opened the newspaper he had brought.
“He is the caretaker of the forest lodge, whom you tried to call yesterday. He goes this way every morning and drops in for tea. You can also go with him in his jeep”, Vijayan explained.
I was relieved to hear this, as I was thinking of how to get to my destination. Meanwhile, Vijayan had arranged the milk and morning snacks at different places in the shop. The snacks looked inviting from the glass shelf, fresh and in different colours.
“Do you want tea or coffee?” he asked, pouring milk to a vessel on the stove.
“Kattan kappi ”, I replied, referring to black coffee. “That is the easiest drink I can get wherever I go and has become a habit now”, I added.
I read through the local news, registering nothing in particular. I also went through the local events column and realised that there is a festival going on nearby. I quizzed Vijayan about this and he replied excitedly, “Yes! You should definitely come to the temple! You have come at the right time. The festival is starting tomorrow, and will go on for seven days”
“We have a lot of programs planned. You will love them, I am sure. It is just half a kilometre down the road”, he said, pointing to the road on the left.
He put a glass of hot black coffee in front of me, as a few people started coming in. It seemed that the teashop functioned as a meeting place for the people in the small village. A few started discussing the political developments in the state, with the topics shifting from one to another. Finally, the topic of the temple festival also came up.
“Vijaya, are the police coming this year? Heard that Balu’s team is preparing for something new and their program is political this time around”, said an old man with a flowing beard. He had thick glasses and a teacher-like look. His sound also reminded me of Professor John from college.
“Yes, the Ulsavam committee had gone to meet the SI last week. He has agreed to send a few people this week. I have also asked the committee president to pay the bills of the policemen this time”, Vijayan said. “Last year they had all the food from here and went without paying a single paisa. How can I ask them to pay up?” he complained while serving tea to the people who had gathered.
An old battered jeep came from the right and slowly stopped on the open ground beside the shop. A middle-aged man stepped out, wearing a chequered shirt and khaki pants. He had a thin moustache and hair slicked down to his scalp, as if he just had a bath.
“Vijayan chetta, one strong tea”, he called out, stepping up to the veranda and sitting on the thin bench outside. “Chetta, what is new in the paper today?” he asked the old man in glasses.
Vijayan looked at me, pointed to the new entrant, and said, “This is your guy, Balu”. He also introduced me to him, “Balu, this ‘sir’ has been waiting for you from last night. He came late last night, but you had already gone home. And it was raining so heavily, that he slept here. You can take him to the forest lodge.”
Balu stood up and walked over to me. He said, “Sir, I waited for you till late last night, but you did not come. And you didn’t call me also! Sorry for the trouble sir, you had to sleep here. Come now, we will go right away, you can freshen up there.”
I pointed to his tea and said, “No hurry, please finish your tea first. Then we will go”. He finished his tea in one go and got up to leave. He also offered to take my bags, to which I obliged.
He took them to the jeep, as I paid for our tea, and thanked Vijayan for his hospitality, “Thank you so much for your help and hospitality, I will come back for the festival. We will definitely meet”.
Balu had reversed the jeep and parked it in front of the little teashop. I stepped into the jeep, waved to Vijayan, and off we went into the forest.