Yesterday
Yesterday, at about 9pm, the security said he was closing the place for the day.
He said, “Light bandh karke aana, hum niche rahenge darwaze pe.” So I took an hour to pack all calls up.
It was pouring.
At the gates I asked him, “Ap darwaze pe hi the, itni barish mein?” We were sitting out on a porch at The Hive, there was absolutely no one there.
Empty like a haunted mansion, drenched in the rains, deserted by its community, stood the mansion on its edge.
As music barreled at its walls, trumpets, drums, and all.
As a Navratri procession passed the gates, I waited for the rains to subside before I could make a move back home.
He replied, “Humein ye kam pasand hai! In logon ko dekhna pasand hai”.