Spotting Purvanchal of 1800s in the Caribbean

It is 2022. I am in the queue at the immigration section in Mumbai airport, holding my passport with a crisp boarding pass neatly tucked in it. Even though I have made many such trips, the act of playing it cool stays like a muscle memory. I have a fellow traveler who got his passport made especially for this trip. So, he is a bit nervous. Two counters are vacant, and we occupy these. The immigration officer looks like a strict 1990s dad about to check your report card. I throw in a bit of English to assure the officer I haven't sold my ancestral land to fund this trip and never return. The drama is at the other counter.

- Abhishek Asthana

"So, where are you traveling?" the officer asks my friend, even though the boarding pass mentions the destination.

"Sir, West Indies."

"What? There is no country like that" My friend panics. I pitch in, "Sir, Trinidad & Tobago, that's where we are going." I say this with a broad smile. The immigration officer isn't amused. I sound like a trafficker.

"Sir, we are going to cover the India vs West Indies series. Check the letter of invitation from the West Indian cricket board," I build our case further.

The familiar palm-tree-on-an-island logo of West Indies on the letterhead finally assuages him. After sufficient inquiry, he stamps the passport. The mechanical sound of the stamp is the sound of success.