"Moti, thoda sharbat daalna zara..."

 

"Moti, thoda sharbat daalna zara..." ["Moti, pour some more flavored water..."]

....we'd always say, passing a request under the viel of an instruction.

Back in the 90s, the ice gola walas were a common sight, mostly in the afternoons. 25 paise for a small gola, 50 paise for a big one and a whopping 1 rupee for a glass/chammach gola! For those not well versed with the term, the image shown might help. So if we were lucky enough to get any of these amounts from the parents on a day we spot Moti ( the golawala in our area ), we'd be able to treat ourselves to a gola (pretty similar to ice candies, which were the next best, hygienic option).

In most vacations, we'd go to a playground nearby to play cricket and that was the best market for all golawalas. After some hours of cricket, dehydrated kids would invariably go to them on their way home to quench their thirst with a gola or a sharbat. But you couldn't just buy a gola, pay him and savour it on your way home! Not immediately atleast. The idea was to get a bang for your buck!

So you first take your gola and start sucking the sharbat quickly, while waiting next to his cart. After a few moments, you do the same with all your might, till the gola turns nearly white, devoid of any sharbat. And then you shove the gola in front of Moti, demanding that the sharbat be replenished (for free, obviously). Moti would graciously pour some, without protest, as if the extra pour was part of the package. Some of us sometimes pushed our luck and asked for a repour even after that and based on Moti's mood at that moment, we'd get another pour or a piece of his mind.

Few years back I again spotted Moti pushing his cart. Age had clearly caught up with him but his sharbat bottles were still as vibrant & colorful as always. I approached him and asked him if he remembered me. Unfortunately he had no memory of me. After some small talk I asked him how he felt about our requests (for extra sharbat) and how he never declined it for the first refill... all I got in response from Moti was a hearty laugh, as he continued moving his cart.

Perhaps I too could start pouring some extra sharbat while I push my cart through the journey of life, I pondered, as I heard Moti ring his bell at a distance, enticing prospective customers to suck at something that would bring them joy....

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