Anguish of A Beggar

Author: Sham Saha 
Dated: 19 December 2007




Mumbai!!! A dream city… Don’t ask my name. I am not any extraordinary, I am ordinary, but some day unknowingly I have been lost among very ordinaries. I stepped in Mumbai just 27 Days back after getting my maiden job in a small MNC. It's a Law Firm. Our owner is an American and for last two days he is in Mumbai in a visit. It is our organization culture that every new employee gets a lavish dinner after joining. I have been expecting for my turn. Eventually, today afternoon I have come to know that our American boss has invited Satish, my colleague and me for dinner at evening in Hotel Oberoi. Hotel Oberoi is not too far from our office and our American Boss has been staying there since he came in Mumbai. Right now, the time is 6:50 PM. My American boss is about to call a cab for the hotel and I take the initiative. 

After reaching there, it is our formality not to let our boss to give the cab fare, so I have just thought of paying Rs.50 as fare. But alas, I have the exact amount of Rs. 50 only in my wallet. Tomorrow is our salary day. I don’t want to borrow money from anybody else. If I spend this money how will I spend next 24 Hours in Mumbai? I simply indicate Satish to pay the fare. Here we enter Hotel premises. This is such a place I have never ever visited before. Right now the time is 8:45 PM. We have just finished our lavish dinner. Now we have to move out. Our boss bids us a good bye, but next moment he offers Three Hundred Rupees Notes to Satish. “Hey Man! You gave the cab fare, In America the cab fare could be 500 Bucks, take this money”. Now Satish is hesitating, but at last he takes the money. Now we both are just on the road in front of the Hotel. 

I remember that in my school days we were supposed to read a Tagore’s poem. In that poem, Almighty was in disguise of a King and asked for alms from a beggar. The puzzled beggar was undecided and gave least grain to the King. Later on, the beggar discovered a tiny gold grain in his wallet. He lamented over his deed as he missed the opportunity to make whole wallet full of gold grains. I neither am a beggar nor is my boss a King. But thing is that, if I would have given the cab fare empting my wallet unconditionally I would have Rs. 300 later on. Suddenly I have found myself in the same situation the beggar had.

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