#100sareepact Day52
\nThis saree is another repeat. I was going to a government office to get some important work done so I dressed up ( down?) appropriately for the task.
\nLast week, we received a call from Son in the USA, saying he needed to submit his birth certificate somewhere, a certificate with his name on it. Now, once upon a time, hospitals were statutorily required to inform the Municipal Corporation of all births ( and deaths) within 24 hours or whatever. As children were unlikely to have been named by then, the certificate that was issued contained just the gender of the child and parents’ names.
\nDH set out armed with all possible documents relating to Son, copies of his original BC, his school passing certificate, of driving licence, passport et al.
\nNot needed, he was informed. All that was required was his own id proof, a form to be filled up and a fee of \u20b955\/-. Quickly accomplished.
\nMay he have the certificate now?
\nNo, he had to come on the 30th. It was a long weekend beginning the next day.
\nBut it was needed urgently! Papers to be submitted by the 30th.
\nA shaking of the head and a shrug of the shoulders.<\/p>\n
So we decided I would accompany him on Monday and play the role of the distressed mother. It might just work? ( Several years ago, returning from our honeymoon to Srinagar, we had been ‘snowed in’ – all flights cancelled and roads closed down. My damsel-in-distress act had melted the heart of the airport manager, who procured us two seats in the very first flight out!)
\nSo, Taiji baby sat Tana, while Ma and Dadda of ‘Boy’ born to Madhu and Rajeev Mathur went to the office of the Municipal Commissioner. We decided it would be best I approach the supervisor who sat behind the clerk on the counter.
\nI took out the receipt and in my sweetest, elderly lady voice asked the gentleman if he could pleeeease issue the certificate today?
\nGo first check at the counter, he responded sharply.
\nAnd what do you know, the certificate was ready, name and all! Absolutely, delightfully, impressive! Quickly scanned and sent to Son.
\nThe story, however, doesn’t end here. The children had discovered, in the meantime, that Daughter-in-law’s certificate issued by a city corporation in Punjab, also didn’t have her name. ‘Girl’ it declared tersely in the name column. Her father rang up someone to visit the corporation office. Easily done, they responded! Take it within 10 minutes. Did you want the name added? Did you want the mother’s name changed? Or perhaps the father’s? Change the date of birth? Or change the ‘girl’ to ‘boy’? No problem!
\n\u20b925k is all it takes. In cash, under the counter.
\nAnd there the matter stands.
\nThe saree? A simple one from Bengal, in khaki and maroon. I discovered when I looked at the pics that the flower bud ‘bootis’ are all wrong side up! ?The palla is pretty, though! I teamed it up with a khun blouse to add interest to it…My official photographer, Maya is back at work after a long break. Hence the various backgrounds and poses.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
#100sareepact Day52 This saree is another repeat. I was going to a government office to get some important work done so I dressed up ( down?) appropriately for the task. Last week, we received a call from Son in the USA, saying he needed to submit his birth certificate somewhere, a certificate with his name…<\/p>\n