As I woke up today, it dawned on me that today is September 1st. I am always forgetful about turning a page of my calendars at home, at desks. So before I forget about it again, I turned them to the current month. I started thinking as I read the lines which I wrote for the September page of ‘Amurta 2023’.

पहिले वळून मागे,
पाठीवर बोच कशाची?
वाटते लपून आहे,
रोखली नजर कुणाची?

आदित्य साठे

Sharp sting on my back,
And I turned around.
Gaze stared from a corner,
Shadow lurking around

Aditya Sathe

The chain of thought started from the obvious meanings of lines about some piercing gazes we all feel on our backs every now and then. However, it kept growing as new links started to get attached. It settled on the final form which these gazes take. Gossips. It seemed to be a good topic to have a word with you all. Hence, this blogpost.

Irrespective of your age, gender, nouns, pronouns and what not; everybody enjoys the spicy tadka of gossip every now and then. This temptation gives all the ammunition needed to those chaar log of the society to have a say in every action we take. I am quite aware that I have no moral grounds to lecture anyone about how gossiping is bad. Having indulged in it quite a few times, I strongly believe that a person is a fibber if he or she claims about not being part of gossiping.

We have witnessed gossiping right from our childhood when your buwa visits you or your mum takes you to mama or maasi’s. Just like a good observant kid, we pick up the vice and start gossiping about our schoolmates. Most of the time we miss the thin line between asking for the well-being of your friends or relatives and gossiping.

And the game of Chinese Whispers begins.

“तुम ने सुना क्या?” “You know what he did?” “तशीच आहे अगं ती.” You can easily hear these sentences from any intense gossip sessions of friends or relatives gathered after a long time. Inherent storytellers in us take charge. He starts narrating the story with all the masala one can add to it turning a rai into a pahad. Next day, some other storyteller adds more tadka to this adding a few more grains of rai to it. I have heard stories of gossip reaching back to the same person completing a full circle taking entirely different forms. Sometimes things go out of hand. A story of sipping some cola from a glass might even go too far labelling someone as a drunkard.

So, I have just one suggestion for you all (and for myself too). Be mindful about this risk of crossing into the unhealthy realm of gossips while you are having fun with your friends and relatives. खैर छोडो, पर आप ने सुना क्या..

This post is a part of Blogchatter Half Marathon 2023. If you like to read more of my thoughts, please check this…