Monkey Business and a Bitter Bargain at Faizabad Station
The incident began as passengers awaited the Lucknow-bound train, seeking respite from the oppressive heat. Monkeys, a common sight at the station, were observed frolicking freely, occasionally descending to scavenge for food. One particularly audacious monkey caused general amusement by snatching the loincloth of a man bathing under a water pump, eventually returning it after a polite request.
However, the mood shifted when a well-dressed businessman, identified as a 'Sethji,' arrived with a porter struggling under heavy luggage. In a sudden move, the same monkey swooped down from the train compartment and made off with the businessman's embroidered cap, retreating to a neem tree. The businessman's frantic shouts and threats proved futile, only serving to push the monkey further away.
As a crowd gathered, a fruit hawker approached, offering to retrieve the cap. Dangling two bananas, the vendor skillfully coaxed the monkey down from the tree. In a moment of silent suspense, the monkey exchanged the slightly crumpled cap for the fruit, much to the relief and applause of the spectators.
The vendor then humbly presented the cap to the businessman, explaining, "They are hungry, so they disturb the passengers." However, when the vendor requested two annas for the bananas, the businessman's demeanor turned sour. He vehemently refused, deeming the request "impudence." Despite intervention from other passengers who urged him to pay, the businessman grudgingly threw one anna to the vendor and four annas to the porter, whom he then verbally abused and dismissed as a "crook."
As the train prepared for departure, the vendor made a final, desperate plea through the compartment window, "Sethji, do not rob the poor!" The businessman, however, remained unmoved, turning his head away as the train pulled out of the station. The frustrated vendor eventually dropped off, defeated.
The incident left a lingering sense of indignation among passengers, who openly sympathized with the generous fruit vendor and silently condemned the businessman's uncharitable conduct. The amusing spectacle of the monkeys had concluded with a bitter reminder of social disparities and the often unrewarded acts of kindness.