DEATHLY HUMOUR

BEING part of a big family, as they say in India joint family, feels great, at times troubled also. The ecstatic part is so overwhelming that one tends to neglect the insanity.

This kind of families is common in India and usually consists of many generations living in the same household, all, bound by the common relationship. Wow, sounds dreamy, isn’t it.

I grew up in a joint family. So everyone’s is like your parents and it is difficult to hide things as there is always that someone hovering around you, even though you live in estate with plenty of spaces for each others.

May be because of the fact, it is a joint family, people are literally joined to each other.

Sweet as its sounds, but not always. Well let me take you around one such family. Okay. The family relationship doesn’t end and some relatives come from other parts of the city to visit us. At times, it is difficult to keep track of cousins, and differentiate who is your brother and sister. So we knew that everyone’s is our brother and sister. But it is blessing to be brought up in one such family.

If anything happens to you, it is like everyone is there to look after you. That feeling is amazing. Trust me.

That then you have those distant aunts, whom you have never seen, but the reality is they know everything about you. Now that is scary.

There was this week long social gathering. These distant aunts were also invited. So I had an encounter. God, she embarrassed me. She said, “I saw you so young, you have grown up so fast. You used to roam around naked in the house...”

She said all of this in public, in front of youngsters and one of my potential crush. God, it was humiliating. That evening, at least three people bombed me with the question, “So you used to run around naked?” Sheer horror.

Next day, I avoid her, but she again caught hold of me. This time it was I should get prepared for marriage as time was passing and age also. She was laughing loudly.

Third day, she again caught me. She said, “Son, get prepared for your marriage…?” She is quite old. So this time, I shared a nasty joke in light humour, “Aunt, get prepared for death-bed, time is running away.”

After this statement, I was hunted around by my family members. But they knew, including the aunt, that it was a joke.