Cutting Chai

A dash of sweet, slightly overboiled chai

That leaves you thirsting for more

On that endless highway called life.

It’s in every nook; every corner:

At the roadside tapri.

On the highway.

Outside every office building.

It comes with its own variants:

A dash of ginger, a hint of lemon grass, a sprinkle of cardamom.

But always, always, always

In the distinctive triangle of glass--

A little more than half full,

A little less than half empty:

Sipped, savoured, relished, loved.

It’s the thread that runs through the heart of real India.

Binding the Rich and the Poor;

Pessimist and Optimist;

Rickshaw-walla and Tie-walla;

The struggling author ; the book lover.

That lone stranger; the Gang of friends.

An Idle moment;  a long awaited tea-break.

Tongues of Gossip; Minds steeped in deep thought.

Sometimes I think  some of the country’s

Wittiest ads

Timeless movies

Best business strategies

Most hummed tunes

Were all born over a glass of cutting chai.