The fiddler of Kodihalli and other stories

His thoughts were interrupted: “Ayya, two rupees please. My child hasn’t eaten since two days.”, a beggar woman clutching a baby started pleading with him. Sethu cast a disdainful look as he tried to dodge her; she was the usual sort, dishevelled with dirty clothes and a ragged child on her hips to complete the appearance of a BPL (below poverty line) citizen.

The beggar woman didn’t care for his disdain. At least he had reacted. That was the sign of a potential donor. The seasoned never-give-money-to-beggars type would have walked straight on as if she did not exist. This bloke had made eye contact. Time to move in for the kill – she tugged at his shirt and let out an even more plaintive 'Ayyaaa'. The move backfired. Sethu gave her a stern look, “Don’t touch me. Don’t you feel ashamed standing outside a restaurant and begging like this? Why don’t you take up some construction labour? You have two hands and feet, there are so many buildings and roads coming up all around. People like you spoil the image of this city.” The beggar woman retreated, muttering to herself “Ask for two rupees and you get a lecture.”

The next day, Sethu set out for office. He lived a few kilometers away and generally took his car but as it was out for servicing, he decided to take an auto. He started walking the couple of blocks to the auto stand. The narrow by lane was littered with garbage. He started making his way through gingerly.

Suddenly he froze in his tracks – a pack of street dogs had started barking furiously a few meters in front of him, blocking the way. They were excited by a passing buffalo. Sethu was terrified nevertheless. He despised these street dogs. He would have happily strangled the animal rights activist who was responsible for their proliferation. But for the misplaced priorities of the activists, the local municipality would have controlled their population by sterilization. He waited for them to calm down, wondering if he would have to abandon this route and take a more circuitous one to reach the auto stand. He was nearly late for a 9am meeting.

His predicament was cleared by a shrill call, “Rajaa”. The dogs immediately turned back and ran in the direction of the caller. Relieved that his path was clear, Sethu hurried towards the waiting autos at the stand. He cast a sideways glance to check who it was that controlled this troublesome pack. It was a disheveled figure with dirty clothes and a ragged child on her hips. Sethu recognized her as the beggar woman he had encountered the day before. She was throwing bits of food at the dogs, calling each one by her chosen name, delight writ large on her face. The dogs lapped it up, wagging their tails excitedly, the distraction of the buffalo all but forgotten.

“Its funny. Had she been busy doing productive construction labour, I might have got late for my meeting”, thought Sethu to himself as the auto sputtered to a start.

written on:   Saturday, January 03, 2026    permalink

note: This is a work of fiction. All names and characters are fictional.