He was hell bent on selling me the book and persisted, pestered and persisted some more. The rate was good too. It was hot outside. I was aware that the AC of my car must be adding to his discomfort. So I turned it off….for a few seconds.

Setting: Barakhamba Redlight. Time: around 5:00 pm. The salesman was a child who could be anywhere between 10-14 years of age. The book was, “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari.” It took only a couple of minutes to make me realize that this kid, who people considered as nothing more than a beggar-cum-second hand or substandard product seller, is every bit an astute businessman. After all selling books is not an easy task.

In the few minutes that followed (the road was choked as usual, so I was stationed at the red-light for some time); I realized that this young boy, if given a chance, can really benefit a company as a sales personnel. He took advantage of the jammed or stuck traffic, and managed to sell his ware to at least two more people (by knocking on their car windows in the vicinity), even after he took his own sweet time to determine the quality and taste of the apple that I handed him.

I thought…if only for a while, what it would be to live a life like that? This young boy, who is barely literate, has somehow acquired the skills and knowledge to determine what books are saleable, and what authors are bestsellers. If you aren’t falling for “The Monk….,” he would deftly pull out from his stack a Jhumpa Lahri, a Linda Goodman, a Chetan Bhagat, a Dan Brown and even Mills and Boons (M&Bs). Besides, he knows quite well that M&Bs is chicky stuff, and won’t take it out in front of the species that belong to mars.

So here is this other life, an existence that we can only imagine – an existence of sweltering heat and chilling winters. Yet an existence of some queer knowledge, acquired in some queer ways, and summarized as – “An existence at the extreme end of self sufficiency, but also one of clever tact and measures.”

I wondered then, what would it be like to hold enormous knowledge and so much of the world in a pile in your arms, yet being unaware of it all… to be walking in the crazy world knowing well what to sell and how, but not knowing what it really is.

It’s doing the ordinary in extraordinary circumstances. While a lot of people do it in boardrooms and wholesaler events, he is doing it on the streets… amid life itself…anybody is a target for him. Whoever buys his not so original stuff is his customer and he won’t remember any of them by name, nor would he do any PR or advertising.

Even if you don’t buy his books he will be happy (albeit to a lesser degree) with an apple too (he would infinitely prefer a chocolate or an ice-cream, so he told me). Those the young businessmen that our country is breeding – another life..isn’t it?

Mehak Chawla is a journalist by profession, a poet by passion and a fiction writer by choice.

Disclaimer: The views and contents expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of VCherish.com, its Editors or VCherish Media. VCherish.com, its Editors or VCherish Media will not be responsible or liable for any inaccurate or incorrect statements contained in this article.