Of Stories and Storyteller

The plan was to have tamatar chaat at the famous Kashi Chaat Bhandar, situated en route Dashashwamedh ghaat. There was a catch, though. From the chowk where we were standing, all we could see was a sea of people. It was time for the Ganga aarti, on the left were people queued up to enter the Kashi Vishwanath temple through the brand-new corridor, on the right were people taking Ganesh idols for immersion and joining the festivities were those who were winding up Eid celebrations.

- Swati Subhedar is Senior Associate Editor, Outlook

Looking at our anxious faces, Dhanushdhari, the person who was driving us around, took charge of the situation. The four of us formed a human chain, with him leading. He literally dragged us for about 700 metres in the direction of the chaat shop, while also giving us live commentary on the ancient lanes and decades-old hole-in-the-wall shops.

The piping hot chaat blew our brains, so he took us to a famous thandai shop. He insisted we add just a little bit of bhaang to it. "Lamba chalna hai, takaat milegi," he said. He also slipped in the secret behind his happy married life. "Sometimes, when my wife fights with me, I give her a barfi laced with bhaang. She laughs a lot and goes off to sleep. The next day, everything is perfect!"