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How I sacrificed my honor in a Pahaganj bylane
Evening traffic. Just left the HT building on KG Marg. In an auto. Motion blur. LIC building, Regal Cinema, Shivaji Stadium… O driver bhayya, jaldi karo… Chelmsford Road, New Delhi railway station, Paharganj.
Walking jaldi-jaldi through the Main Bazaar crowd. Wow, that Person is sexy. But no time. Fast.
What if I’m late? What if that Khaled Hosseini is already sold?
Two days ago
Paharganj, Taqir Bhai’s second hand bookshop. Checking out. An American paperback of A Thousand Splendid Suns. On the cover – A chador-cloaked woman up on a cliff; looking down into Kabul lights. I have to get it.
Me: Taqir Bhai, how much?
Taqir Bhai: (turning the book, checking it out, again turning it, again checking) Rs 300
Me: Some justice this! I’m a regular, Bhaijaan.
Taqir Bhai: That’s why. You don’t get second hand of this novel. I would have charged paach sau from a firangi
Me: I’m brown. Don’t do this Bhai
Taqir Bhai: Pick any thing else and I’ll give a discount
Me: So this is final
(Taqir Bhai turns away)
Me: Ok, I’ll never come to your shop again
I leave. Can’t hear Taqir Bhai calling me back.
One day back
Monologue while on the pot: To buy, or not to buy: that is the question: Whether ’tis nobler to ignore this bestseller coz it is a bestseller or to… just buy it. But to go to Taqir Bhai? After swearing never to return?
I’m exchanging sms-es with a book friend from Bombay whom I’ve never met but who sends me surprise books:
Me: I saw Khaled Hosseini. Very handsome. Should I buy it?
Friend: Books. Always buy.
Back to Now
I’m walking. Fast, faster. Taqir Bhai outside. He’s pretending as if he hasn’t seen me. Inside: EricNewbyJeanPaulSarteSalmanRushdieMargaretAtwoodGrantaVikramSethJKRowling… Hosseini!
Published by Riverhead Books.
Me: Final price?
Taqir Bhai: Teen sau
Me: God! Why you doing this? You know you humiliated me last time. You know I said I’ll never return. You know I’m back. You know I’ve sacrificed my ego for this book…
Taqir Bhai: Mayank Bhai, please understand
[He hugs me]
Me: So this is the final price?
Taqir Bhai: Pick any other novel and I’ll give it for free
Me: Here’s your money
I give Rs 300. Taqir Bhai gives me A Thousand Splendid Suns. We hug. Another days ends in Delhi.
(11 votes, average: 4.82 out of 5)
Loading ...Posted by HT Editorials on Saturday, April 11, 2009 at 4:43 pm
Filed under The Delhi Walla · Tagged A Thousand Splendid Suns., books, paharganj, Taqir Bhai
Congrats, you ultimately bought the book! How is it, by the way?
Once I too worked in Kailash Building, and purchased lot of books from the bylane to Barakhamba Road. Some of them were a steal.
Perhaps they were really stolen!
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have u read his kite runner?
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Ya. It has happend to me also. Feeling let down and then vowing never to go to the bookshop but again if you are a bibliophile, you sometimes go to the place again. However, some shop owners do respect the real bibliophiles.
Once a second hand book shop owner gave me seven huge encylopaediae just for Rs 500 though he could fetch 5,000 for them easily. He told me that he wanted to give the books to someone who had ‘qadr’ for these precious books.
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saima Reply:
April 20th, 2009 at 2:34 pm
are u serious!! pls let me know the address of the bookshop!!
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Soofi,
I have read “A Thousand Splendid Suns” and “The Kite Runner” by Hosseini, loved both of them.
I must say you didn’t sacrified your ego by buying a quality book such as “A Thousand Splendid Suns”.
You got a good deal for Rs300.
I had to pay $30 for it
[Reply]
Well i am looking forward to reading the thousand splendid suns…. kite-runner was awesome…..
It has happened many a times with me that i go back to the bookstore to buy the book although i would already would have had a brawl with the shopkeeper….
I guess i’ll get the book during some train journey….
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ohh u’l love this book!! its un-put-downable!! its really really nice!!!
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Hey very good information. Will come back again - taking the feeds also, Thanks.
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