Lunch at Jim-Me’s Kitchen

You admire someone whom you don’t know so well & that someone takes you out for lunch. Well that happens only with some lucky people. I met a lady in the first week of my schedule in TISS & started admiring her. Although she hails from Manipur even in a new state in a new environment she always looked very blissful, calm, cool, patient, relaxed, serene, tranquil whenever I saw her. Maybe because of that I admired her so much. Even in the harsh rains of Mumbai she always looked undisturbed & unruffled.

We exchanged pleasantries a few times in the first month of my schedule & then hardly met & spoke for more than a year. I had somewhat forgotten her & maybe she forgot me as well as the hectic courses in TISS hardly allows to socialise with students studying other course. Also as I wasn’t staying in hostel we hardly got to meet.

Then on 27^th September we met. I got her email address but I hardly communicated. Then I after a gap of around 6 months we met on 5^th March in DH at around 17:30 hrs. I was so lucky as I was leaving DH & she just entered. If I would have left just 15 seconds earlier then we wouldn't have met that day. We exchanged pleasantries & I got her phone number. The next day I accompanied her to some slums in Andheri as she had to visit some children living in slums to check how much financial aid is helping them to study. It was a great learning & nice experience for me as I got to know so much about the plight of children & people living in those areas. I kept thinking wish she were my partner during the M-Ward survey which I did in my second semester in TISS. After accomplishing our task she wanted to take me out for food but I rejected her proposal as I had to meet a counsellor in Family court in Bandra & attend my farewell which I didn’t attend as I had to write 9 field work reports. Throughout my travel with her she was extremely serene & unperturbed by the hot weather. She looked calm, patient & did her required task very smoothly. Maybe her passion towards her work made her ignore the difficulties we experienced while searching the houses.

I again went out with her to some slums in Mumbai on 9^th March. After a hectic travel without accomplishing the required task due to address issues we both were tired. Although she is an energetic person but as she had been travelling the entire week she looked tired. She then decided to end her work & take me out for lunch. I said “my travel with you wasn’t something laborious hence lunch isn’t necessary." I promised her that we'll go some other time but she was adamant & somehow persuaded me. I wasn’t able to deny her proposal as I had denied it last time.

From Goregaon's Arey Milk Colony we went to Bandra to a restaurant named Jim-Me’s kitchen. My female friend who is a foodie asked me what she should order. I being a non-foodie person, who follows Huna wasn’t able to decide. She being a non-vegetarian thought of ordering some non-vegetarian delicacies. Eventually she came to know that I’m a vegetarian. Although to keep her happy I could have eaten a bit of non-vegetarian food something R. Madhavan does in RHTDM to impress Diya Mirza but I didn’t do that.

My generous female friend ordered many vegetarian dishes which wasn’t possible for both of us to finish. The food was delicious. In the end she paid the entire big bill which I wanted to pay.

I had a wonderful time that day & I shall never be able to forget that day as she treated me so nicely, extravagantly & generously. That day will always remain so significant as something like this happened for the first time in my life & one hardly gets an opportunity to have food with someone he/she likes or admires but I was a bit disheartened in the end as my female friend paid the entire bill.