Ajmal Kasab, a name that brings images of bloodbath, terror into the minds of millions of us. The images of cargo clad teenager, walking with a gun into the heart of India's business center, mercilessly shooting down strangers flashes across our minds. There are different versions of stories of this kid reaching India, the famous one being the sea route and pirates of Caribbean stories. Kasab's version in one of his statements was that he was picked up from Juhu, almost a week before the Incident ( " As read in some web page"). Anyways I am not sure whether, god knows the truth or not.
Anyways pals, the blog is not about Kasab, or Islamic extremism, it's about sweets. Like the mouth watering Rasmalai, Gulab Jamun's etc. How's it linked to Kasab and co. Pune is a city of outsiders, we have people especially students from everywhere here. And with fundamentalists of the great Maratha land around, I always have a insecure feeling roaming around on a Karnataka registered vehicle. But the on M.G. Road, on the Land Mark Arora tower building you have " Karachi Sweets". Yeah a sweet shop named after Karachi in Pakistan, my first reaction to the flashy board was " Where the hell are the fundamentalists who broke the panes of a poor Bihari's car". They should burn this shop down.
Lot's of time while roaming in M.G., there are friends of mine who always had a craving for sweets and they would hop into "Karachi Sweets". I would deny stating reasons ranging from loss of appetite, to a diet that am being strict about etc. The actual reason always remained the name of the shop, "Can any proud Indian eat from Karachi Sweets". Standing next to the cash counter, staring at the woman, who had skin as glossy as the Jalebi's, I wanted to ask this question " Why on earth Karachi".
I muscled up all my courage and asked her, "Why would you name such a sweet place Karachi". She smiled and asked my age and told that the shop has a heredity of 60 years. The partition resulted in them staying back here in India, where in a bunch of their relatives still lived across the border. She explained that they where from Sindh, and thus 100% pure Sindhi's and the shop is named after a city where their ancestors belonged to. I was startled at my own stereotype, from a different angle stupidity.
Then thoughts rushed into my head one after another, why would I hate Kasab more than ministers involved in Scam's. Kasab killed some of us because of reasons including ignorance, poverty, impoverishment etc.( Still has to be proved). He is just a button, what about the crimes committed by our own people which effects the economy, the credibility of one of the worlds biggest democracies. With all respect to Major.Unnikrishnan and hundreds of others who died fighting for our pride, there's a question that seeps into my heart " Why would I fight a tyrant thousands of miles away, when I have thousands of tyrants a mile away".
PS : I still cannot eat @ the sweet shop, with a smile from the heart !!!!
