Things were bright and chirpy once crisp summer morning in the Indian city of Bangalore. Being my day off- I woke up rather early and headed straight to lunch ;-) Well satiated, thought might as well skim through the newspaper to see if something was happening in the world of music. Suddenly things looked promising when I came across the arts and cultural section. My eyes feasted on an ad featuring a concert by Hariprasad Chaurasia -HPC ( for people who do not know him- he is THE most famous flautist from the Indian Subcontinent and an absolute delight to listen to). I didn't waste anymore time and called the store for details. And guess what? They were in a denomination that I thought wasn't a rip off. I told them I knew the location of their store on the most famous Brigade Road in Bangalore.
1/2 hour later- I found myself parking my car in the lone single available spot on a rather busy Monday morning. I got down- took in the fresh air and with a smile on my face marched up to the store. Everyone including the goorkha (typically one who opens the doors making us lazier than what we already are!) was very nice to me. But in retrospect, maybe it was because I was literally the first one to come in swipe my plastics at 10 am! Went right in and enquired where I could get tickets to the HPC concert. They appeared completely confused and that confused me all the more which was never a good sign. When the conversation saw a little more detail, he got to understand that tickets for this concert were being sold at "Music World". With the slightest smirk he could muster, told me patiently (or so I would very much like to assume) that this shop was "Planet M" NOT "Music World". My hands instinctively searched for some cover with which I could save my face but then - it had happened and I was right there in the middle of it trying my best to swim opposing the insulting current! I decided that a graceful exit would be more appreciated than further gibberish :) I thanked him for that rather enlightening "explanation" and I politely left.
While I was still struggling to keep my head above mile high water, the icing on the cake was still awaiting me in the form of another lofty soul- the Goorkha. Having been a witness to the spectacle that just took place, he 'also' took the chance and pointed out where Music World was. Politeness was the word of the day- so I thanked him with the same sheepish grin adorning my face. The next few moments seem to take forever and I stepped out into the world anew. I sure desired the road to take me to my real destination (in this case MW) and I hoped against hopes that I shouldn't see the *Lofty ideal laden Smirkies* ever in my life ;-)
Well, it so happened that I never went back to 'Planet M' or 'Music World' again... Wierd-huh??
P.S: For those of you who are still wondering if I went to the HPC- I did and it was really good ;-)
