Of stars, sofas, and such like

Seeing me lost in my thoughts, my husband asked what the matter was. “I was wondering how it is that an astrologer cannot predict his own future?” I replied.

My husband immediately caught on: “Oh, you are talking of the ex-OSD to the Tamil Nadu CM? Yes, that’s indeed ironic. But maybe the astrologer just got tired of figuring out what the stars foretell and simply wanted a day in the working life of a star.”

I laughed. “Yes, Tamil Nadu politics is one of reaching for the stars. Vincent Van Gogh would have loved to paint a portrait of the Starry Knights in Political Armour.”

My husband agreed, saying that the political parties have so quickly become starstruck and have aligned accordingly. The Congress, in particular, was the first to hitch its wagon to a rising star.

Continuing in this vein, he added, “Then there’s the five-star culture. Resort politics, where parties rush their MLAs to luxurious hotels, keeping the legislators safe from poaching predators.”

“It’s a star-struck political environment indeed,” I meditated. “There’s talk of star-crossing and of film-star-type ‘sofa’ politics.”

“Sofas?” he exclaimed. “How does a prosaic thing like furniture come into this star-studded conversation?”

“From the film Pushpa – where deals are done in filmy style by gifting fancy sofas filled with cash,” I replied.

“Oh!” exclaimed my husband. “Is that what the Opposition was alluding to when talking mysteriously of sofa sets appearing in political spaces?”

“Exactly.” I affirmed. “Now you see how anything and everything is connected to stardom in Southern politics.”

“Yes,” my husband assented. Then he exclaimed, ‘But Mina – have you forgotten? We are about to transfer our furniture from our Chennai house to our Bengaluru home. And there is that big antique sofa we are shifting! What if the authorities catch and grill us?” 

“What’s written in the stars, will be,” I replied. “But don’t worry, Anand. Firstly, we are strapped for cash. Secondly, we are commoners – neither stars nor superstars turned politicians. This sofa stuff is only for star performers. No one will look at us, I can assure you.”

“You are right, Mina,” sighed my husband with relief. “We should thank our lucky stars that we are nowhere in the celestial radar. We are just simple die-hard followers of cricket and cricket stars.”

“Exactly,” I replied. “Talking of sofas, Anand, I must tell you this story from my Air Force days: Dad was serving in the Air Force and commanding a unit in the north. On movie days, the whole unit gathered in the open-air theatre to enjoy the evening. There was a plush sofa set up in the front row for the Commanding Officer and his family. However, my siblings and I were too embarrassed to avail ourselves of this privilege and sat way back, merging with the crowd. I particularly remember one night, when the audience was spellbound, watching the big screen.” “Was it a starlit night, Mina?” joked my husband.

I had the last word: “You bet it was, Anand. Starring Dev Anand and Meena Kumari.”

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.