Beggars can't be choosers...

Chandigarh, India (2005)

I was hanging around in Sector 17 one evening (the only real "happening" place in Chandigarh), penniless and doing nothin but watching life go by as people went about their business, when I happened to be literally accosted out of nowhere by a pushy child beggar just outside a swanky nightclub (You need to experience it once to know how pushy they can get!). For some reason he thought that I was the son of a Sheikh (ahem..what can I say). He kept following me for a while with his well practised dialogue, trying to squeeze me out of my money(I only had loose change on myself!), and I kept putting him off for awhile telling him he was chasing the wrong person.

And then these three stunning women walked by me towards the club strutting their stuff..The little runt made a beeline towards them, screwing up his face with the same dialogue of "I've been hungry all day, please give me some money"...I watched with interest, eager to know what their reaction would be. What I saw next stunned me. One of these girls, actually cornered this 8 year old boy dressed in rags, and complimented him on his "acting" and asked him who his favorite actor was. She told him that he would get some money from them ONLY if he could shoot off some dialogues from his favorite actor Shah Rukh Khan (the superstar in Indian movies). By then, the child was smiling, taken aback by this unusual behavior from a stilleto-wearing, cleavage-popping, club hopping girl. He belted out a few dialogues and was quite impressed by his own capacity. The girls heard him, laughed, and behind them all, I was smiling too..he really had some talent! The girls gave him some change and left, and he was left standing there in a stupor, a BIG smile pasted all over his face which refused to go away.

I had to walk up to him, and I asked him if he suddenly wasnt desperately hungry anymore? Didn't he want to rush and get some food in his belly quickly anymore? He nodded conveying to me that he was still very hungry, but with a smile, he just sat down. I squatted on the pavement near him too and thats when it struck me..it wasnt about the money, it wasnt about the hunger..what this child was really missing in his dreary life was a genuine smile, some happiness. He was already missing the joys of childhood because he was forced to beg in order to survive ..and today, when these girls gave him a rare chance like this, it was like a fresh breath of air for him..

Think about it. Do we really spare a thought for such beggars or the homeless, ever? I mean, we always try to put them off, or give them some change and try to get away as quick as possible..and then they are forgotten..but today, what i saw was something different..someone DID try to stop a while and make a difference in this little childs life. It was not out of any compulsion or any real necessity..it was just a good gesture from an unexpected quarters..

I stood up to leave, giving him all the change I had left in my pockets.