Quilt or Not, Life is No Bed of Roses

Ismat Chughtai was dragged to court, where not a single prosecution witness could find one offensive word in the story. Result? Acquittal

- BY INVITATION Ganesh Saili Author, photographer, illustrator

Life lived in the crucible of a hill station is deceptively simple. Within its simplicity is masked a struggle for survival.

A long time ago, I took my blushful bride to trawl Landour bazaar for a warm blanket. Now that was no tall order, not unless you see it unfold. Rummaging through a pile of blankets in a dark, dingy shop, perhaps we had set our hopes too high? I knew a casual acquaintance who ended up selling his house here, all because of a quilt.

‘After hearing my teeth-chattering in a snow storm,’ She complained, adding, ‘He brought home a 10kg cotton quilt and to turn over one had to be a body builder!’ Later, I wasn’t in the least surprised when they sold their mountain home and moved to the warmer climes of Goa.