A Kutcheri in progress in Hyderabad
Where's the Kutcheri Tonight? By Venu Dorairaj
Tarang
On a wintry Friday evening after a hectic week’s work, Joe, a colleague visiting from the States, enquired enthusiastically, ‘Where’s the party tonight?’; It was a tradition to host any visitor to a party. Short of a good answer, I was left with no option but to invite him to a Music Concert that I had looked forward to enjoying in private. Joe was thrilled; he was quite eager to shake-aleg and listen to some mind-blowing music, preferably Bollywood, he emphasized. My attempts to explain that a Kutcheri was not really a party to exercise one’s legs did nothing to temper his enthusiasm, and so we ended up at the auditorium! The gathering outside the auditorium caught Joe’s observant eyes. “Quite a bright party this,” he quipped as he looked at the colourful, traditionally dressed crowd in Saris and Kurtas, wondering if he was attired adequately for the occasion. As we waited in the chill air outside the auditorium, I brooded if I had made a mistake in choosing the kutcheri for a party. But there was no turning back now, and so we took our seats and I left Joe to his wits as I settled for the party to begin.
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