“Congratulations ma’am!” “Thank you! Are you congratulating me for soon becoming the first tribal president?” “No ma’am!” “The second woman president?” “No ma’am!” “Then why are you congratulating me?” “For someone who can be remembered for ever in Indian history, at a time when children can’t recall who was president,…
Murder Most Foul..!
She stood, a small figure in front of the school notice board. With anxious eyes she searched for her number. It wasn’t there. The girls around her jostled and pushed. There were screams of delight and shrieks of ecstasy. She turned away from the sounds, tears streaming down her face….
Defections and all that Money..!
How much money did it take for so many MLAs to cross the floor, betray their leader, betray their voters, forget their ideology and run to the other end of the country? I wonder what people do with so much money? I mean you get a crore that’s a lot…
The Boy in the Barbershop..!
Something I love doing if I go for a drive, is to instruct my driver to drive slowly, while I look down every street, into every shop, sometimes homes that have their doors open. I gaze at people going about their normal activities, watch expressions and quite often hear conversations…
Wrinkles on Your Face..!
“My God!” you whisper as you stare at the mirror. “What is it?” asks the wife, looking up in alarm, “You look pale, come we need to take you to the hospital, you’re getting paler. Doctor! Doctor, my husband is turning white. Yes, please send an ambulance, I think he’s…
Why Broaden Our Roads?
“He, he, he,” giggled the slim and slender road as she shifted from side to side, “somebody’s tickling me.” “They’re digging on either side of you,” I said, “they’re broadening you.” “Oh my, oh my is that what they’re doing,” cried the road in sudden despair, “why ever would anyone…
Welcome Good and Faithful Servant..!
A year ago, on that morning of July 5th in a hospital in Mumbai, a voice spoke, “You’re free Father Stan!” “Free? How can I be free, I’ve been languishing in prison for over eight months! Hey!” “What?” “I’m supposed to be deaf, but I can hear you clearly!” “Look…
Our Guestrooms..!
“I hope I’m not going to put you and your family to any inconvenience,” I tell my friend as I enter his house. “No problems,” for any of us, “We have a guestroom waiting for you!” I shudder when I hear those words. I’ve never been particularly lucky with guestrooms,…
The Swimming Pool and Ache Din..!
The joyous shouts from the private swimming pool outside, the thought of a scrumptious breakfast soon, the sight of my two beloved daughters and their husbands, and hot coffee brought to my little cottage by my wife, all gladden my heart. Then I stare at the bathroom, with its beautiful…
Walking with Pebbles in Our Shoes..!
“Dad,” said my daughter one day, “Isn’t it Central Park that you’ve always loved?” I was quiet, because though I loved the park and all the fall colours I was sure it offered, I still knew that it was a bit of a more tedious walk than the river park…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.