Monkey matters

The monkey took away a pair of spectacles.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

Some time ago, social media was spilling over with reels of an encounter Shashi Tharoor, MP, had with a monkey. An unexpected beautiful and peaceful bonding of the human and simian became the highlight of the episode, with the MP subduing his fears to entertain the animal who chose him to be his host.

As I was going through this news, I was reminded of another kind of bonding between the two species which was played out on the streets of Vrindavan.

The temple town was crowded chock-a-block. A huge number of devotees from all parts of the world arrived at its gates. They were directed to park on the periphery and proceed on foot or hire a rickshaw to their destinations. There were further instructions: one should not carry edible items openly in their hands, wear footwear after a certain point, tease monkeys that populated that area, and take off their spectacles during the transit. The last directive seemed very outlandish. However, since the lines were echoed in various tongues and tones across the zone, we decided to follow the thumb rules for whatever it was worth.

Soon the wide road meandered into narrow streets which branched into several lanes and culminated as footpaths. All along the congested route, the olfactory senses were kept busy inhaling a peculiar mixture of the scent of sweets, fried foods, cow dung and open drains. The jostling crowd calling out to their travelling companions laced with devout cries of “Radhe Radhe” rent the atmosphere. Just when we were getting used to the new normalcy of the venue, a simian plunged from an electric pole and plucked the spectacles off my cousin’s hand in a trice and took his position on the transformer.

Even before we could figure out what was happening, a crowd gathered around. Each one quoted a price to retrieve the spectacles. We commissioned the young lass who offered to do the job for a hundred rupees. Soon the girl started calling out to the monkey and tossed a roti followed by a banana and odd snacks beseeching him to give the glasses in return. However, the monkey neglected these offerings and held his booty between his teeth, all the while giving the girl a long, piercing look. Several endearments and admonishments later, the girl asked the scamp if he wanted “Frooti”. The rascal replied with a smirk, enunciated with a sparkling eye.

Promptly, the girl reached out for a tetra pack of the liquid from a nearby shop and waved it high in the air. She negotiated with the animal to return the spectacles as an exchange for the treat. What happened next was a sight to behold. The little carton which was tossed up was caught with dexterity by the monkey. Simultaneously, down came the spectacles which was caught with equal deftness by our heroine. A pity that it could not be captured on camera.

Money changed hands and the spectacles was restored to the relieved owner.

When the incident was recollected in leisure, it became obvious that the whole operation had been orchestrated to the T. The human-simian nexus had been panned out to a win-win situation for all parties concerned. The monkey had not only played his role but was not keen on parting with his loot till his specific demand was met with.

In our country, monkeys have been contributing to the human kitty for ages as artists and pets. Wish we could work on this unique bonding for the betterment of the world instead of misusing the intelligent beasts to achieve our selfish ends!

srprathi@gmail.com