yete jeevanth kombadi milet ahé

these are tough times to be chicken

they are culling chickens by the poultryfarmloads in maharashtra. i remember a time not too long ago, in pune when we'd scheme, plot and conspire to cook some. it took a great deal of investment - time, money and persuasion. we were still little boys. and not too long gone from the all enveloping, comforting umbrella of mama's culinary skills. it took a minor act of providence to pull off a decent cup of tea. chicken curry was strictly off limits. but with wangkhem anand singh around, there was hope. but make no mistake, namay matu (as we fondly called the cook in our midst; manipuri for motherf**ker) didnt acquiesce too easily. it took nudges, threats and promises of season tickets to the next film festival in town to get him to bring his grand exalted mystic cooking skills to the stove. but when he did, it was an all out orgy. and boy!! did we pig??!??

but now the chicken has the flu.
and i wouldn't eat any if i were you.

they used to hang these obscenely big boards outside every chicken shop in pune. and alongside the whimsically decided price per kilo was inevitably scrawled in bold - yete jeevanth kombadi milet ahé - marathi for "hey dude! if you're looking for live chicken, you've come to the right place." or somewhere thereabouts. but now the prefered lingua franca to describe the present state of affairs is mandarin.
lou shi. frightened chicken.